2011-02-01T01:00:00+01:00 | Page 5 of 6

Great Chef Series: Philippe Chevrier’s Recipe for Mixed Berry Crisp

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, February 4, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway, recipe translated and adapted with authorization of Domaine de Châteauvieux

Michelin star chef Philippe Chevrier’s recipe for mixed-berry crisp with nougat and caramelized pecan ice cream

Philippe Chevrier is head chef and owner of Domaine de Châteauvieux in Satigny, right in the middle of the vineyards just outside Geneva. His restaurant has two Michelin stars and a 19/20 rating in the GaultMillau restaurant guide. Geneva gourmets have had a soft spot for him for a long time now and his restaurant is the institution of fine dining in this city.

Chevrier posts a recipe a month on his site, and this is an adaptation of this month’s. Admittedly, it is a recipe for experienced cooks and people who really like to bake or who have a real sweet tooth. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be motivated enough to get through all the steps.

Switzerland: Valentine’s Day Chocolate Notes

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, February 4, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

Comprehensive list of chocolate shops and visits to chocolate makers in Geneva area. Each chocolate maker makes its own special chocolate creations for Valentine’s Day, so check out the chocolate works of art at your favorite local chocolate maker.

A chocolate heart from Chocolatier Durig in Lausanne.

Organic, fair-trade chocolate at Chocolatier Durig in Lausanne. Online ordering.

From chocolate lollipop to cup of organic dark hot chocolate. Just dip lollipop into hot milk and stir for few moments et voilà, a delicious cup of hot Swiss chocolate! List of sales outlets at La Cuillère Suisse.

How did chocolate get to Switzerland anyway? They don’t grow chocolate in the Alps! Read about it here.

How to make a chocolate heart for your sweetie, but please substitute Swiss chocolate! Buy the chocolate at your favorite local chocolate maker.

Follow daily Valentine chocolate updates on Twitter: @RamblingEpicure and @SwissFoodies.

Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, February 4, 2011

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, February 4, 2011 Permalink 0

by Benjamin Franklin

A house is not a home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body.–Benjamin Franklin

A Fun, Interactive Guide for Teaching Your Children Good Eating Habits

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, February 3, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

Teaching your kids good eating habits, now and not later

Alarming increase in rate of obesity in European children

As covered in our article IOTF of May 2008, obesity has taken on epidemic proportions in European children. According to IOTF report (International Obesity TaskForce) figures, Europeans are starting to wake up to the seriousness of this with regard to health. One in five European children now fall into the obese range, with an annual increase of two percent, according to another IOTF report.

Some European countries now have an even higher rate of obesity than Americans, going as high as 30% in some countries.

Two-thirds of these children will remain obese for their entire lives, and their life expectancy is reduced by several years, since obesity leads to a long list of other serious illnesses, including early-onset heart disease, respiratory disorders and musculoskeletal diseases, according to Swiss government statistics that came out in January 2008.

Continue Reading…

Simon Says: February 3, 2011

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, February 3, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simon de Swaan and Argentine Cookery

Half of all Argentine desserts would disappear if dulce de leche [caramel spread] did not exist. When abroad, Argentine people who have no dulce de leche, suffer the syndrome of abstinence and all those who go abroad, take dulce de leche in their luggage. Dulce de leche is the national obsession.–Argentine Cookery, Monica Hoss de le Comte, 2000

On the Chocolate Trail: Yes, there are chocolate spies, but I am not one of them

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, February 3, 2011 Permalink 0

by Christina Daub

I am seventeen, in Zurich waiting for a train to Kilchberg, a welcome break from the grinding German language drills that march me through my summer mornings. Kilchberg, literal translation: mountain of freshwater whitefish and the site of Thomas Mann’s grave, but these could be not be further from my mind.

I am going on my first chocolate factory tour, the Lindt Swiss chocolate factory, where you can sample the goods and I can hardly breathe.

A Video: Why Meryl Streep Was Inspired to Play Julia Child

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, February 3, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

“Julie and Julia” was by no means one of my favorite food movies. Julie was of such a banality, lost in life with no purpose that made any sense, compared to Julia Child, who when she lacked something to do in Paris, set off on a mission that was to last the rest of her life. In this short video, Meryl Streep describes why she was inspired to make the movie. She really was the perfect choice, and I listen to excerpts of Streep’s performance over and over for inspiration.

Meryl Streep’s Julia Child Inspiration

Simon Says: February 2, 2011

Published by Jonell Galloway + Wednesday, February 2, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simon de Swaan and Jonell Galloway

To gulp a mouthful of soft, warm red wine, and then to lean forward and slice a fragrant chip of meat from the brown, bubbling carcass in front of you, dunk it in the fierce sauce of vinegar, garlic, and red pepper, and then stuff it, nut-sweet and juicy, into your mouth, seemed one of the most satisfying actions of my life.–Gerald Durrell, The Whispering Land, 1961

Gerald Durrell, brother of the noted author Lawrence Durrell, was foremost a zoologist interested in protecting wildlife. His brother Lawrence once suggested that he write books in order to earn money to support his numerous wildlife causes, which motivated him to write The Overloaded Ark, followed by The Bafut Beagles and Three Singles to Adventure. All were successful enough to allow him to continue writing up until his death in 1995, all for the sole means of supporting his animal protection causes, chiefly through the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust.

David Downie: World’s Best Tortellini in Paris?

Published by Jonell Galloway + Wednesday, February 2, 2011 Permalink 0

by Pellegrino Artusi’

The other night, for our collective birthdays – three of us – our dear friend Daniela X (she is modest and does not wish to be identified) made classic tortellini alla bolognese in brodo. Anyone who has been to Bologna, Parma, Modena or the other great-eating-cities in the Emilia region, will know the authentic item.

Tortellini are a variety of navel-sized (and shaped) filled pasta — see the photo of Daniela’s tortellini, courtesy Kimmo Pasanen. They’re cooked in a sumptuous broth made from several types of meat (usually chicken or capon, veal, and, optionally, cotechino), and served in the broth, period. Purists don’t even sprinkle them with grated Parmigiano. But that may be going too far.

The 7 Lives of Bread: Recipe for Bread by the Sweat of Their Brow

Published by Jonell Galloway + Wednesday, February 2, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jean-Philippe de Tonnac

Translated and adapted by Diane Castiglioni

Discriminating bread lovers and sensitive natures, please abstain.

Photo: A Crow sweat lodge, photo from Museum of the American Indian.

The activity of kneading several pounds of bread dough, before the introduction of mixing machines, brought about a condition not unlike what the Lakota Sioux undergo in their I-ni-pi ceremonies, what is commonly called a “sweat lodge.” Theirs is an act of ceremony honoring the link with the Great Creator, and inside this veritable oven, the participant performs his metanoia (μετάνοια) by ritually “crying the tears of the body.” One offers this water in a manner to allow that which is within to be given back to Mother Earth.