Monaco

 Welcome to Monaco!  In 2014, 30% of the population were millionaires!  Monaco's defense is the responsibility of France, and Casino Monte Carlo was established in 1863.  If you are a native of Monaco, you are not allowed to gamble at the Monte Carlo!  Fascinating.  There ae so many interesting facts about this country - it was great to research!  You'll have to look it up yourself for more.  According to Google, the population is 38,000 people and the capital is Monaco (it is a city-state and has no designated capital city).  Their national dish is...

Barbajuan!

It is a greens and cheese filled crispy pastry.  Which, if you make gluten free, is not easy.  So, because I am a glutton for punishment, I decided to look for a dessert to make too.  I found something called Fraise Millefeuille, which is a strawberries and cream dessert.  It was said to be Prince Albert's favorite dessert.  What could possibly go wrong with strawberries and cream?!  Here's what we did:

BARBAJUAN

Pastry

1 2/3 C gluten free flour

Pinch of salt

3 tbsp + 1 tsp avocado oil

1 egg, separated

3 tbsp + 1 tsp water

Oil, for frying

Filling

1 tbsp avocado oil

1/4 C finely chopped onion

1/4 C finely chopped leek (white part only)

2 Swiss chard leaves (green parts only), shredded and chopped

2 C chopped fresh spinach

Pinch of dried oregano, crumbled

1/4 C ricotta cheese

1/4 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 egg yolk, beaten

1. For the pastry
2. 1.  In a bowl, combine the flour, salt, avocado oil, and the egg white.  
3. 2.  Add just enough water to bring the pastry together as a firm dough.
4. 3.  Turn this out onto a lightly-floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.
5. 4.  Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
6. For the filling
7. 5.  Heat the avocado oil in a shallow pan over medium heat and add the onion and leek and fry until golden.
8. 6.  Add the chard, spinach and oregano and fry until the chard is tender.
9. 7.  Transfer the contents of the skillet to a bowl and then mix in the cheeses and the egg yolk from the pastry.
10. 8.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
11. Putting it together
12. 9.  Roll the dough out on a lightly floured work surface to about 2mm thick.
13. 10. Use a large cup and cut into as many rounds as you can.
14. 11. Gather the scraps, re-roll out and cut again. You should end up with about 20 circles.
15. 12. Place 1 tsp of the filling in the center of each pastry round and brush the edges with water.
16. 13. Fold the dough over to form a semi-circle and press the edges with the ends of a fork to seal.
17. 14. As you complete each pastry, transfer to a baking tray lined with foil.
18. To Cook
19. 15. Pour oil into a deep pan and heat to fry.
20. 16. Working in batches, add the pasties to the oil and fry until brown and crisp.
21. 17. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen towels using a slotted spoon.
22. 18. Enjoy!

(Source: Barbajuan)

FRAISE MILLEFEUILLE

2 C milk

3/4 C sugar

4 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

3 1/2 tbsp corn flour

1/4 C butter

2/3 C whipping cream

Other needed ingredients

1 1/2 lbs fresh strawberries, thinly sliced

3 gluten free puff pastry sheets

1/2 C white frosting recipe follows:

White Frosting

1 C milk

1/4 C gluten free flour

1 C butter

1 C white sugar

1 tsp vanilla 

1. 1.  Add vanilla to a pot along with the milk and 1-1/2 tablespoons sugar. 
2. 2. Bring to a boil over medium heat. 
3. 3.  Meanwhile, beat together the egg yolks and remaining sugar in a bowl. 
4. 4.  Whisk corn flour into egg mixture. 
5. 5.  Remove milk from heat and add the egg mixture, whisking constantly and return to low heat. 
6. 6.  Cook, stirring constantly, for two minutes. 
7. 7.  Pour mixture into a bowl and add the butter one small cube at a time. 
8. 8.  When butter has been incorporated, set aside to cool. Stir occasionally so mixture cools and thickens evenly.
9. 9.  Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. 
10. 10. Roll out puff pastry into three sheets. 
11. 11.  Layer with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator to chill for at least thirty minutes. 
12. 12. Layer each pastry sheet on parchment paper and set on baking trays. 
13. 13. Place in oven and bake for thirty-five minutes. 
14. 14. When pastry rises and turns golden, remove from oven. 
15. 15. Set a plate on top of each pastry sheet and set aside to cool.
16. 16. In the small saucepan containing the milk mixture, add flour. 
17. 17. Cook over medium-high heat until mixture comes to a boil. 
18. 18. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. 
19. 19. When milk mixture is cool, add butter, sugar and vanilla. 
20. 20. Beat with an electric mixer for ten to twelve minutes, scraping the bottom of the bowl occasionally. 
21. 21. Refrigerate frosting about thirty minutes before using.
22. 22. After pastries have cooled, spread frosting on smoothest side of each pastry sheet. 
23. 23. Place in a preheated 425-degrees F oven. 
24. 24. Bake for about four minutes, or until lightly caramelized. 
25. 25. Allow the pastry to cool, then proceed to assemble the cake. 
26. 26. Whip the cream and fold through the custard mix.
27. 27. Place a sheet of pastry on a serving plate and add layer of cream. 
28. 28. Add a layer of strawberries. 
29. 29. Repeat layering until three sheets of pastry have been assembled. 
30. 30. Slice and enjoy!

(Source: Fraise Millefeuille)

The verdict?  This was a hard one.  The barbajuan did not turn out well at all.  The pastry was hard and very bland.  I didn't add xanthan gum, which would have helped.  I also probably didn't roll it out thin enough.  The pastry filling was tasty, and there wasn't a lot of it leftover, like there usually is with fillings.  I think the filling would have been a tasty pasta topping or a lasagna filling!  The fraise millefeuille was a disappointment too.  The puff pastry sheets worked great, but the icing never caramelized and the custard did not set in a way that we could add it to the cake.  It was incredibly runny.  So, we didn't add that part to the cake, and instead just added whipped cream and strawberries.  It was very tasty - we enjoyed it!  It was strange to put flour in the frosting, but it ended up working just fine!  We turned the custard mixture into ice cream the next night.  It was good, but the corn flour gave it a bit of a gritty taste.  So, my thought is that if we made it again as ice cream, leave out the corn flour!  Overall, we were disappointed in this country's meal, but it wasn't a total loss!

    

ME

Taste of Barbajuan (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 5

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 5

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Barbajuan (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 6

ME

Taste of Fraise Millefeuille (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 6

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Fraise Millefeuille (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 6

Join us next time in Guiena!

Thailand

 Welcome to Thailand!  We took a detour on our way to Monaco because we had Delightful Dad here, who loves the national dish of Thailand.  Thailand has always interested me and a place I would love to visit and take some cooking classes - I do love Thai food!  "Thai" means "free man" - Thailand has never developed a national army.  Thailand loves animals, and has an annual monkey buffet, where they set up a buffet for monkeys!  According to Google, the population of Thailand is 70.03 million people and the capital is Bangkok.  Their national dish is...

Pad Thai!

I love Pad Thai.  I have a really good recipe for it that I have been making for years, and was hesitant to make a different type.  However, we agreed that we wanted to try an authentic (or as authentic as we could find) recipe, so below is what we found.  To go with the Pad Thai, we made Thai iced tea and Thai sticky mango rice.  It didn't seem complicated to get all of these things made, but coordinating the timing of it all was a bit tricky.  Here's what we did:

PAD THAI

Sauce

5 tbsp palm sugar, chopped

3 tbsp water

4 tbsp Thai cooking tamarind

2 tbsp fish sauce

Pad Thai

4 oz dry rice noodles, medium size, soak in room temp water for 1 hour

2 tbsp dried shrimp, medium size, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 C roughly chopped shallots

Dried chili flakes, to taste

3 tbsp vegetable oil

10 medium sized shrimp

2 eggs

2 1/2 C bean sprouts

7-10 stalks garlic chives, cut into 2” pieces

1 lime

1. 1.  To make the sauce, add palm sugar to a small pot and melt over medium heat. 
2. 2.  Once the sugar is melting, keep stirring until it darkens in color.
3. 3.  Immediately add water, fish sauce, and tamarind paste. The sugar will harden immediately and this is okay.
4. 4.  Bring sauce to a simmer, then turn off heat. 
5. 5.  The hardened sugar will not have dissolved at this point, but let it sit while you prep other ingredients and it should be dissolved by the time you need it. 
6. 6.  In a bowl, combine garlic, shallots, dried shrimp, and chili flakes.
7. 7.  Heat a large skillet over high heat and add just enough oil to coat the bottom. 
8. 8.  Sear shrimp until done and remove them from pan.
9. 9.  In the same skillet over medium heat, add a little more oil if needed, then add everything in the bowl and sauté for a few minutes until garlic starts to turn golden and shallots are wilted. 
10. 10.  Add more oil if the skillet looks dry.
11. 11.  Turn heat up to high then add noodles and sauce. 
12. 12.  Keep tossing until all the sauce is absorbed.
13. 13.  Once sauce is absorbed, you can turn off the heat and taste the noodles for doneness. If they're still undercooked, add a little more water and continue cooking.
14. 14.  Once noodles are done, push them to one side of the pan. 
15. 15.  Add a little extra oil to the empty space and add eggs. 
16. 16.  Break the yolks, then put noodles on top of eggs and cook for about 30 seconds. 
17. 17.  Flip and toss to mix eggs into noodles. 
18. 18.  Toss the cooked protein back in, plus any collected juices. 
19. 19.  Then add bean sprouts and garlic chives. 
20. 20.  Turn off the heat and toss until well mixed.
21. 21.  Serve immediately with a lime wedge. 
22. 22.  Enjoy!

(Source: Pad Thai)

THAI ICED TEA

2 black tea bags

1 pod star anise

2 pods cardamom

1/2 cinnamon stick

1/4 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp almond extract

1 C boiling water

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp sweetened condensed milk

2 tsp evaporated milk

1. 1.  Steep tea, star anise, cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla, and almond extract in boiling water for five minutes.
2. 2.  Strain the mixture with a fine-mesh strainer.
3. 3.  Stir in sugar and sweetened condensed milk until both are completely dissolved.
4. 4.  Fill 2 tall glasses with ice. 
5. 5.  Pour the tea over the ice, leaving an inch or so of space at the top for the evaporated milk.
6. 6.  Top up with more ice if needed, and then drizzle with evaporated milk on each glass of tea.
7. 7.  Enjoy!

(Source: Thai Iced Tea)

THAI MANGO STICKY RICE

1 C glutinous rice

1 C coconut milk

3 tbsp sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cornstarch

1 ripe yellow mango, peeled and sliced

1. 1.  Soak the rice in room-temperature water for one hour.
2. 2.  Strain and rinse rice to remove extra starch.
3. 3.  Bring 2 C water to a boil, and add the rice.
4. 4.  Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook for 20 minutes.
5. 5.  While the rice is cooking, put coconut milk, sugar, and salt into a small pan and warm over medium heat.
6. 6.  Once the rice is cooked through with no hard, raw bits in the middle of the grains, transfer to a mixing bowl. 
7. 7.  Slowly pour the warm coconut milk mixture over the cooked rice, stirring frequently to coat the rice in the coconut milk mixture, but watching so that you are not oversaturating the rice to the point that there are puddles of coconut milk. 
8. 8.  Continue stirring and stop adding the sweetened coconut milk once it looks like the rice is saturated. 
9. 9.  Set the rice aside for 20 minutes to finish absorbing the coconut milk.
10. 10.  Keep the remaining coconut mixture for later.
11. 11.  When the rice has absorbed the coconut mixture, spoon a helping on a small plate. 
12. 12.  Add mango slices to the side, and top with extra coconut mixture.
13. 13.  Serve room temperature, and enjoy!

(Source: Thai Mango Sticky Rice)

The verdict?  We liked my other Pad Thai recipe better.  This one was good, but not as good.  I didn't like the dried shrimp in this recipe - it was very chewy and very fishy.  Handsome Husband didn't mind it so much, but I picked mine out.  The sauce was more of a sour sauce, but with the noodles, it mellowed it out quite a bit.  I missed the lime taste that is in my recipe.  The recipe also called for peanuts, but we chose to skip them due to allergies around the table.  The sticky rice was not my favorite either.  The texture was gummy or mushy - I'm not really sure what to call it.  The coconut topping helped, but still not my favorite.  The mangos, however, were delicious!  The tea wasn't what I expected either.  I typically don't like Thai iced tea, but this one was good.  It had a lot of interesting flavors.  We all agreed that there was too much of an almond flavor, so if we make it again, we would cut down on the almond extract.  I also think I would use half and half instead of evaporated milk, so that it's not as sweet.  Overall, it was a decent meal, but not one that we will make again.  At least not with this recipe...

   

ME

Taste of Pad Thai (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 6

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 7

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Pad Thai (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 7

ME

Taste of Thai Mango Sticky Rice (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 5

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 4

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Thai Mango Sticky Rice (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 6

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 5

ME

Taste of Thai Iced Tea (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 8

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Thai Iced Tea (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 6

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 6

Next time, we REALLY WILL go to Monaco!  Hope you join us there!

United Kingdom

 Welcome to the United Kingdom!  Another bucket list country - it is just filled with so much history.  Especially history with the United States.  It is hard to remember, sometimes, that the United Kingdom (UK) includes Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, not JUST England.  It is estimated that 100 million cups of tea are consumed every day in the UK.  Golf was started in Scotland, and is considered the national sport.  The Union Jack (the flag) is a combination of elements of the flag of England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.  When we found out what their national dish is, we were shocked.  More on that down below.  According to Google, the population is 68.75 million people and the capital is London.  The national dish is...

Tika Masala!

I'm sorry, what?  Isn't it something like fish and chips?  Beef wellington? Roast beef dinner?  It is said to be tika masala because there is a wide variety of cultures in the United Kingdom.  I was so surprised.  To go along with the tika masala, we made a dessert called Eaton Mess.  That at least SOUNDED more like it belonged in the UK...So I gathered my Indian spices, my fresh berries, and went to work.  Here's what I did:

TIKA MASALA

For the chicken tikka:

2 lbs chiken thighs, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp ginger, peeled and zested

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp paprika

3/4 tsp chili powder

6 tbsp whipping cream

1/2 tsp garam masala

3 tbsp avocado oil

For the masala:

4 tbsp avocado oil

1 onion, halved and finely sliced

1 tbsp ginger, peeled and zested

5-6 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tbsp coriander

1/2 tsp turmeric

3/4 tsp chili powder

2 tsp paprika

4 tbsp yogurt

2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped

1 1/2 C chicken stock

1/4 tsp salt, or to taste

1/4 tsp garam masala

4 tbsp chopped cilantro

1. 1. Place the chicken in a large bowl and add salt, lemon juice, spices, cream, and garam masala. 
2. 2. Mix well, cover, and refrigerate for 6-8 hours. 
3. 3.To make the masala, pour the 4 tablespoons of oil into a large pan and set it over a medium-high heat. 
4. 4. When the oil is hot, put in the onions, stir and fry until they brown, six or seven minutes. 
5. 5. Add the ginger and garlic and continue to fry, stirring, for a minute. 
6. 6. Add the ground coriander, turmeric, chili powder and paprika and stir for 10 seconds, then add a tablespoon of the yogurt. 
7. 7. Stir and fry until it is absorbed and add the remaining yogurt in this way, a tablespoon at a time.
8. 8. Add the tomatoes and fry them for three or four minutes, or until they turn pulpy. 
9. 9. Add the stock and salt and bring to a simmer. 
10. 10. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer gently for 15–20 minutes. The sauce should turn thick. 
11. 11. Stir in the garam masala and cilantro leaves, taste for balance of seasonings and add more salt if you need it.
12. 12. Shortly before you eat, preheat the grill to its highest setting. 
13. 13. Thread the chicken on to two to four large skewers.
14. 14. Grill until the chicken is cooked through. 
15. 15. Remove from the grill and take the chicken off the skewers.  
16. 16. Add the chicken to the masala, stir to combine, and serve over rice.
17. 17. Enjoy!

(Source: Tika Masala)

ETON MESS

1 1/2 C heavy whipping cream

2 tbsp sugar

2 cups meringue cookies

3 cups strawberries

1. 1. In a stand mixer, beat the heavy whipping cream until you get stiff peaks.
2. 2. Break the meringue cookies into bite-sized pieces and add them directly to the whipped cream.
3. 3. Slice the strawberries into small pieces and set half of them aside. 
4. 4. Using a fork, mash the other half of the strawberries in a small bowl.
5. 5. Add the mashed strawberries to the cream and stir to combine everything together.
6. 6. Spoon the eton mess into individual cups or into a large serving bowl. 
7. 7. Top with the remaining strawberries and a sprinkle of sugar.
8. 8. Enjoy!

(Source: Eton Mess)

The verdict?  This was a delicious meal.  Every aspect of it!  The tika masala was delicious, and the chicken was so tender.  There was a lot of flavor in the sauce and the chicken - we were very impressed.  The ginger gave it a bite that made it taste almost spicy, but honestly, we wouldn't change it.  The sauce never thickened like the recipe said it should.  I think if I were to make it again, I would add a bit more of every spice and then add some heavy cream - that may help? But seriously, this was a delicious dinner.  The Eton mess was great as well!  It was strange not adding any sugar to the whipped cream as it was whipping, but honestly it didn't need any extra sweetness because of the strawberries and meringues.  Those meringues gave the dessert a very interesting texture, but it was very welcome.  It truly was very good!  It has already been requested again!  I'd call that a success!

  

ME

Taste of Tika Masala (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 9

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 4

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 9

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Tika Masala (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 8

ME

Taste of Eton Mess (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 8

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 7

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Eton Mess (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 8

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 7

We hoped you enjoyed the United Kingdom!  Join us next time in Monaco!