This is truly a fun way to eat Brussels sprouts. In case you thought they were a tiny intimidating or boring, or just unappealing, you can play with them so they become exciting. It’s true they tend to have a strong flavor, but I don’t find this “déplaisant” (literally translated into depleasing, a word that does not exist).

The saltiness and sweetness of the cooked prosciutto contrasts quite well with the strong soft sprout. I think I must have consumed them in any shape and form, shredded, chopped, quartered, whole, roasted, steamed, pureed or any way they can be eaten, so I figured why not wrap them for a change. I rarely use meat when I cook, but in this case, I made an exception. You can use pancetta if you’d prefer, or thin bacon would work too. In France, sprouts are often combined with lard fumé (similar to bacon), like most types of cabbages.

Mâche being so tender, delicate and almost naturally “greasy” when you eat it, tones down the powerful flavor of the Brussels sprouts.

So give Brussels sprouts a chance, after all, they’re not really boring!

Ingredients for 2

For the Brussels sprouts

• 6 Brussels sprouts, cleaned
• 2 slices prosciutto, cut in 2 strips lengthwise
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 cup mâche salad

For the vinaigrette

• 1/2 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled and diced
• 4 tbs olive oil
• A few drops of lemon oil (to drizzle at the end)
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
• 1 tbs parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp basil, chopped
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Cook sprouts in salted boiling water. Drain and let cool. Wrap 1 strip of prosciutto around each sprout, and using a toothpick close the extremity so that it won’t open while cooking.

Heat olive oil in a pan, and cook wrapped sprouts until golden on all sides. Remove toothpick

For the vinaigrette, combine all ingredients together in a bowl, mix well.

Divide mâche on each plate, top it with three sprouts and pour vinaigrette on top, drizzle with some lemon oil. Serve at room temperature.

When you eat out, salades niçoises are always more or less the same, with minor variations from one restaurant to another…and often a little on the boring side. So after a few thoughts on how to make things a little more exciting and with a different way to prepare them, I came up with a salad that has the ingredients of a salade niçoise (less the salmon), that was lovely. Most of the ingredients are here but in a different way to present and cook them, which modifies all the textures and make them very interesting and exciting. Here the green beans are cut and mixed with the greens and cherry tomatoes. The olives are turned into a tapenade which is an olive paste from the South of France spread on top of the bread. The egg is poached and not boiled and the other final touch is the salt, I used sea weed salt (from Brittany) but of course, you can use any other sea salt.

If you want to remain traditional and feel the salmon shall not be seen on a salade Niçoise, use tuna instead. This salad is really fun, and you can play with it using your imagination as you wish. For instance, if I had quail eggs, I would have poached two quail eggs and made two tartines, instead of one. Now there is not one particular recipe for salade niçoise, and each cook can make it the way he wants, even though the traditional recipe is not supposed to have any cooked ingredients, only raw. So if you want to say that my salad is not a Niçoise, like a Nicois (a person from Nice) would probably say. Well, I am ok with that…it is nonetheless delicious.

Sometimes for specific recipes, I like to remain as close as the original recipe as I can, but in some more “flexible” recipes, I also like to have fun in the kitchen and play around with food…but obviously it needs to be good or it shall not have its spot on the blog.

Ingredients for 2

• 1 salmon filet of about 1/2 lb
• 4 small round yukon potatoes
• 1.5 cups fine green beans
• about 20 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 cup of mixed greens or arugula
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1/2 bell red pepper, roasted,  peeled and cut in stripes
• 2 eggs
• 2 baguettes slices or country bread

For the vinaigrette

• 2 tbs extra virgin unfiltered olive oil
• 3 tbs lemon olive oil
• juice of 1 meyer lemon
• orange-champagne vinegar or any mild fruity vinegar
• about 8 leaves basil, chopped
• Sea weed salt
• pepper

For the tapenade

• 1/4 lb kalamata olives
• 2 good quality small anchovies
• about 6 capers
• 1/2 garlic clove
• 2 tbs olive oil

Preparation

Start by cooking the potatoes in water. When the potatoes are about 3/4 cooked but still a little firm in the center, remove from stove. Let them cool and then peel. Set aside. Cut the salmon in about one inch cube pieces.

Cook green beans in boiling water until cooked but still firm. When cooked remove from stove, then let them cool and cut in about 2 inches pieces.

Using a wooden skewer, place one piece of salmon, then one potato, until you have two pieces each on each skewer.

In the meantime, in a container mix cherry tomatoes, salad, green beans, bell peppers. Prepare vinaigrette by combining all ingredients together.

For the tapenade, mix all ingredients together in a mixer. Toast baguette and spread tapenade on top.

Broil skewer in the oven until golden brown and salmon cooked all the way through or pink (depending on your tastes).

Poach egg in boiling water for about 2 minutes (poaching technique will come in another post).

Pour vinaigrette on salad, toss well and keep some vinaigrette for the skewer.

Plate first salad/beans/tomatoes mixture, then place skewer on top, add the remaining vinaigrette on top of skewer. Serve with tartine of tapenade topped with poached egg, and drizzle with olive oil.

It’s quite a fun way to eat lentils…lentils are very versatile and I think not popular enough especially since they’re highly nutritious. I have rarely seen them in restaurants other than in soups. In France they’re considered rustic, something you would eat during winter and with smoked sausage or meat. I like them with smoked fish like salmon or trout, it tones down the smokiness of the fish (if the fish is too smokey like my salmon, actually this salmon was too smokey and salty). Here I like the combination of a hearty rustic ingredient with a more elegant and refined one. I have always loved contrasts. They’re unexpected, interesting and always leave you a feeling of wanting more.

Lentils and spinach are among the ingredients French kids have a hard time eating, if you ask any kid in France what they don’t like to eat, they’ll probably say, j’aime pas les lentiles et j’aime pas les épinards! but obviously I don’t want to make this a generality.

You can also combine fresh salmon with smoked salmon, then you would need to cut both salmon in cubes. Here I striped the salmon since I only used the smoked kind.

Ingredients for 4

For the lentils

• 200 g lentils du Puy
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 carrot
• 1/2 onion
• 1 celery stick
• 1 clove
• salt
  

For the lentil vinaigrette

• 1 tbs hazelnut or walnut oil
• 1 tsp cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp whole grain mustard
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 tbs parsley, finely chopped
• salt and pepper

For the salmon marinade

• 4 large slices of good quality smoked salmon, cut in strips
• 1 orange
• zest of 1/2 orange
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp dill, chopped
• 1/4 tsp fennel pollen
• 1 tsp capers, chopped
• Piment d’Espelette
• Pepper

Preparation

In a pot of water cook lentils with clove, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf and salt and cook until lentil are tender but not mushy. Drain and remove the cooked vegetables from the lentils and set aside. In a mixing bowl, prepare vinaigrette mixing all ingredients together.

Cut salmon in stripes, mix all ingredients of the marinade and pour over the salmon. Mix well to coat the salmon. Let it marinade in the refrigerator for about one to two hours.

Place a small amount of lentil salad in the middle of a plate (you can use a rind to mount the salad) and top with some salmon stripes. Drizzle some extra marinade on top.

Has anyone heard the story of Paul le poulpe, or Paul the octopus? Well my cousin came to visit a few months ago and he told me about this octopus story. Paul was a French octopus whose life lasted from 2008 to 2010, quite a short life…maybe that’s a lifespan for an octopus.

Paul was very famous, simply because he could predict the winner of the soccer games. He predicted 12 out of 14 games during the world cup. For French people, soccer is the national sport, getting to know in advance which team would win, and most of all getting scores from a mollusk whose destiny is to be in a pan along with tomatoes and onions, rather on TV with sports commentator, is something linked to the divine. I have no idea how an octopus could predict such scores, but it did, doesn’t this sound odd?

I have not met Paul, and I am sure he was quite a smart animal…now I have to admit that I love octopus in any form, shape and recipe. I do feel a little guilty to eat it, but when I eat it, I simply don’t think about this and I enjoy every bite of it.

Animals are amazing and teach us humility and kindness. My life changed since I had my dog and my parrot…all they want is to be with me, cuddle and eat. Maybe one day, I will buy an octopus to cuddle with, and will stop eating it, but in the meantime, I think I will still enjoy it. Doesn’t this sound cruel? I wish one day, I will stop eating any animal form…

Ingredients for 4

• 600 g octopus
• 1 fennel bulb, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 cup small creamer potatoes
• 3 tbs celery leaves, chopped
• 2 tbs kalamata olives

for the vinaigrette

• 3 tbs olive oil
• zest of 1 lemon
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 pinches paprika
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Cook octopus in water for about 2 hours or until tender. Slice in small thin pieces. Set aside in a mixing bowl. Grill fennel, peppers, onions on a skillet. Add to the octopus. Add all other ingredients and mix well.

Cook potatoes in salted water, and cook until tender, cut in half and add to the octopus.

For the vinaigrette, mix all ingredients together. Add to the octopus mixture and toss. Serve lukewarm with toasted bread.

Who said kekabs have to be with meat? you can do anything you usually do with meat using vegetables, some vegetables are more adapted to certain cooking methods, but are incredibly versatile.

I haven’t used haloumi in a long time, and really felt like grilling cheese, and especially haloumi with its delicate texture and pungent flavor. You can find some other haloumi recipe here and here. I bought some pomegranate molasses at my favorite Greek grocery store (called the Fruit Barn), and had to find a way to use it. Sometimes I can get a little obsessive, when I buy a new ingredient, I won’t stop thinking until I find a recipe to use it.

Pomegranate molasses is widely used in Lebanese and Iranian cuisine not really in French or Italian cuisines, but is definitely a Mediterranean ingredient. I loved the pomegranate juices you get in Israel, in those fruit juice joints in any street, they’re so refreshing and healthy. So pomegranate molasses is produced by reducing pomegranate juice, you get some syrupy texture, half sweet, half acidic.

Basically the natural sweetness of those kebabs produced by beets and sweet potatoes is a very pleasant sensation for your palate. It’s enhanced by the bitterness of arugula and acidity of pomegranate molasses, so you’ll see how delightful these kebabs are. The stars of this dish are definitely the haloumi and the pomegranate molasses.

Ingredients for 6 kebabs

For the kebabs

• 3 medium size beets, peeled and cut in 1 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut in 1 1/2 cubes
• 1 piece haloumi, cut in cubes (similar sizes than beets and potatoes)
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper

For the arugula-lime sauce

• 1.5 cups arugula
• 1 tbs pomegranade molasses
• juice of 1 lime
• 2 tbs raw cashews
• 1 garlic clove
• 3 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Start preparing the arugula dipping sauce. Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend, until obtained a paste, but not too thin.

Start first by roasting beets. Place cut beets in a sheet, coat them with oil and vinegar, salt and pepper and broil in a 375F oven for about 20 minutes or until just tender. Remove from heat and keep warm.

Proceed using the same method with potatoes. Keep warm.

Using a wooden skewer, add one beet cube, then one potato cube, haloumi, another beet, and potato.

Heat a skillet or a grill pan, and grill each skewer, until the haloumi is grilled on all sides. Add some dipping sauce, and serve hot. You can serve the sauce on the side.

Yes, this is definitely a dish for one of those lazy days, not lazy “like sitting on the sofa”, but lazy “like not feeling to cook” but with a desire to eat something good.

After waiting for a while after for people all day, first to come check out some windows for replacement (and not showing up), for phone calls unreturned, you get into a strange mood and wondering what is wrong. Is it the muggy weather? Is there something up in the air that makes people unreliable? I have no idea. I guess some days are just like that. Well so for one of those days, this is the perfect little thing to do, that will not leave your kitchen messy.

Verrines have been quite popular in France, you just fill them with whatever you like for a fun presentation. Basically, the glass is filled with layers of quinoa, pesto, goat cheese. It can be served lukewarm or cold as a salad or appetizer.

Ingredients for 4

• 250 g quinoa
• vegetable broth
• 6 tbs chick peas (soaked in water or canned)
• 3 zucchini, sliced crosswise
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 4 tbs goat cheese

For the pesto

• 70 g peeled almonds
• 1 garlic clove
• 40 g parmigiano Reggiano, grated
• 50 g basil
• zest of 1 lemon
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Steam quinoa in vegetable broth by adding enough broth to cover the quinoa by 1/2 inch. Bring broth to a boil, then cover with a lid and reduce heat to the minimum. Cook for about 20 minutes or until the quinoa has absorbed all the liquid. The other and quicker alternative is to cook quinoa in a rice cooker. When quinoa is cooked remove pot from the heat and let it cool a little.

Add chick peas to the quinoa and mix well. Grill zucchini in a grill pan and add to the quinoa-chick pea mixture. Add lemon juice, drizzle with olive oil and adjust with salt and pepper.

For the pesto, combine all ingredients together in a mixer to obtain a semi fine paste.

In a glass, add one layer of quinoa, add a layer of pesto, then a layer of goat cheese. Start over with a layer of quinoa. Top it off with some goat cheese, a slice of grilled zucchini and a basil leaf.

Don’t you guys love truffles? I grew up eating them, since my father himself grew up in Italy in a region producing lots of truffles, so when he moved to France he brought with him a dog called Boby, whom he trained to smell truffles and find them. Boby died when I was about 10 and it was the only dog we had. My father has always been a truffle “hunter”, wild mushroom “picker” and unfortunately a bird hunter too (which I hate) and anytime I go home, I have to argue with him about this. In France, there are unfortunately lots of hunters (in Italy too, to the point where there are barely any wild birds left). The argument of hunters is, oh well they are destroying the crops of the farmers (talking about the wild boars), well they don’t realize that humans have invaded all animal habitat and have left no space for animals to live.

My dad’s aunt, in Italy used a pig to find those rare mushrooms, so did most people in the countryside. I remember after days of truffles hunting with Boby, my dad would come home with bags filled with them…and of course, my mom would make tagliatelle with a ragu and truffle sauce. Now the ones I bought were not as good as the ones I am used to eating, they barely had flavor, so if you can find great truffles, you’ll be the lucky one. Truffe means truffle in French, but it also means the nose of the dog. Yes, every dog has a truffe…I am wondering if it has to do with his sense of smell finding truffles.

I love the sweetness and creaminess of the corn combined with the shrimps, then the truffle adds such an elegant and refined final touch. It’ s a little unconventional salad due to the corn purée, but all the elements work perfectly well together.

Ingredients for 4

• 16 shrimps
• 1 large black truffle
• 2 cups mâche salad
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

For the corn purée

• 1/2 lb fresh corn
• 2 tbs heavy cream
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• salt and pepper

For the truffle vinaigrette

• 3 cl truffle oil
• Sherry vinegar
• fleur de sel

Preparation

In a pot, combine corn, cream and broth and bring to a boil, let it cook slowly for about 10 minutes until the liquid has evaporated, adjust with salt and pepper. Blend in a mixer, and pass through a sieve to obtain a smooth cream. Keep warm and set aside.

Saute shrimps in olive oil, salt and pepper until cooked.

Prepare the vinaigrette by combining truffle oil and sherry vinegar gradually.

Place corn in the middle of a plate, top it with the shrimps, shave some truffle on top of the shrimps. Sprinkle with the vinaigrette and fleur de sel, then decorate with the salad sprinkled with additional vinaigrette.

Lately I have not been too well, that’s why I haven’t been posting any recipe on a regular basis like I used to, and my desire and energy for cooking has gone down, hopefully it will pick up at some point. I have no motivation for sitting in front of my computer either, but I sincerely miss everyone, people I met through this blog have been incredibly supportive, kind and generous. Thanks so much for anyone who reads my blogs and leaves genuine comments, they mean a lot to me. I apologize if I have had a difficult time to catch up with everyone, I have had very low energy level and some health issues, but hopefully will get back to my regular routine soon.

I started writing this recipe about three weeks ago and never managed to finish it, it took me forever…so here it is after such a long time. This salad is composed with a well balanced mixture of grains, vegetables, and proteins, such a nutritious and flavorful dish.

I call this a salad since it has a dressing but it can be called anything you like, and can be consumed lukewarm or cold. The particularity of this dish is that I mixed eight varieties of grains and seeds such as brown rice, oats, lentils, pumpkin seeds, etc… for a mixed variety of textures. Maybe you’ll think this look more like a bird meal to you than a gourmet salad. It is definitely questionable, but after you taste it, you will think bird ingredients can taste incredibly tasty.

The grains have been enhanced with vegetables, and seafood which complement the grains quite well. This is nothing complicated, you just need various grains in your pantry.

Ingredients for 2-3

• 200 g of mixed grains such as:
• brown rice
• wheat flakes
• sorghum rice
• buckwheat
• pearl barley
• black rice
• pearl rice
• red lentil
• 1 tbs roasted pumpkin seeds
• 10 large shrimps
• 4 medium artichokes
• 3 tbs dry white wine
• 70 g cannellini beans cooked  (either dried or canned)

Ingredients for the herb-lemon vinaigrette

• 3 tbs avocado oil
• juice of one lemon
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
• 1 tsp parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp chives, chopped
• 1 tbs red onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• one pinch cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Mix all grains together and steam them. You can steam them the same way you would steam rice, even if there are many varities of grains, some of them cook a little faster than others but it does not make a big difference cooking them all together. You can use a rice cooker or use the regular technique using a simple pot.

Trim artichokes, removing the hard leaves around, and cutting off the top of the artichoke. Cut in quarters and place in a container filled with water and lemon juice to prevent the artichokes from darkening.

In a pan, heat olive oil, add 1 garlic clove, then drain artichokes and add to the pan, stir for a few minutes, coating the artichokes with garlic and oil, then add wine, salt and pepper. Stir well. Cover with a lid and cook at medium heat until artichokes are tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

Saute shrimps in olive oil, add salt and pepper and set aside.

In a large container, mix steamed grains with artichokes, cannellini beans, shrimps, pumpkin seeds. Pour vinaigrette on top by mixing all ingredients together. Stir well and serve. You can serve at room temperature or cold.

]]> http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/grains/salad-of-grain-medley-with-cannellini-shrimps-artichokes-in-a-herb-lemon-dressing/feed/ 28 http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/appetizers/a-table-with-a-view-grilled-baby-cuttlefish-with-crushed-herb-potato-and-tapenade-salad/ http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/appetizers/a-table-with-a-view-grilled-baby-cuttlefish-with-crushed-herb-potato-and-tapenade-salad/#comments Wed, 09 Jun 2010 06:55:19 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=11134 Une table avec vue – Salade de seiches grillées avec pommes de terres à la tapenade et vinaigrette à l’ail

This one will be among my favorite seafood salads…When you are in love with so many dishes, it’s hard to just pick one, so I have a list of dishes, and this one is a part of the “killer list” or “la liste qui tue“.

Saturday after a delicious dinner at a famous San Francisco seafood restaurant, located at the Embarcadero facing the Bay Bridge called the Waterbar, I met again with octopus. If you ever end up in San Francisco and want to stay away from the touristy seafood restaurants on the Pier 39, try the Waterbar. I think it’s a little pricey but if you want to spend a nice romantic evening “déguster” (savor) amazing fish and seafood, the Waterbar is a great choice. Nothing is fried like in many restaurants, every dish has been carefully prepared and cooked with refinement to enhance its natural texture and flavor. You get the most amazing seafood dishes staring at the gorgeous Bay, so nothing to complain about.

This salad has been inspired by the octopus dish I ordered. The octopus was sliced and topped with an abundant and garlic chutney, arugola, and some potatoes topped with tapenade. I fell in love all of the sudden. I saw it, my heart melted. You must think that I do fall in love quite easily, if you give me grilled seafood (looks like I am back eating fish and seafood) with fresh herbs, garlic , I just cannot help myself.

I found this cute cuttlefish at the store that reminded me of Italy, cuttlefish is very popular in Southern France and Italy where they use its ink to make risotto al nero di seppia (squid ink risotto), seppia means cuttlefish, but squid and octopus ink is also used in gastronomy. So cuttlefish has replaced octopus here and I felt a little closer to home. Cuttlefish is thicker than squid, so it require a little more cooking time.

I made extra tapenade which is a traditional spread from Provence (Tapena means capers in Provencal language) made out of olives crushed into a purée. It can be stored for days in the refrigerator and be used in so many other ways.

Ingredients for 2

• 8-10 baby cuttlefish
• cherry tomatoes, cut in halves
• some arugula or other greens leaves

For the potatoes

• 6 medium yukon potatoes
• 1 tbs tarragon, chopped
• 1 tbs parsley chopped
• 2 tbs extra fruity cold pressed olive oil
• salt and fresh cracked pepper

For the tapenade

• 1/2 lb (or 250 g) kalamata olives
• 1 garlic clove
• 2.11 oz (or 60 g) capers
• 1.41 oz (or 40 g) anchovies
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 3.38 fl oz (or 100 ml) olive oil
• pepper

For the garlic vinaigrette

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs walnut oil
• 1 garlic clove crushed
• 1.5 tsp orange champagne vinegar
• 1.5 tsp pomegranate glaze
• 1 tsp chives, chopped
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Cook potatoes in water until cooked. Peel and let them lukewarm. Crush roughly with a fork leaving some big chunks and incoporate herbs, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix carefully.

Grill cuttlefish on a grill pan, turning them around until cooked, about 7-8 minutes or less, depending on the size of the cuttlefish.

For the tapenade, place ingredients in a mortar, and crush all ingredients into a paste, except for olive oil, lemon juice and pepper. Add olive oil gradually at the end like you would proceed for a mayonnaise while stirring. Add lemon juice and pepper when tapenade is ready.

For the vinaigrette, mix all ingredients together, mix well.

Place a small amount of potatoes in a plate, top it with a tsp or more of tapenade. Place cuttlefish and cherry tomato halves around the potatoes and drizzle with vinaigrette.

Carrots are in the same category as broccoli…they’re all over the place, therefore lost their appeal and excitement.

Once in a while, I like to feature one of those “ordinary” vegetables” and give them a make over. When you really look at the different ways to prepare them, and the amount of vitamin A they contain, they’re not that ordinary after all. Besides, I think it’s a great way to have kids eat their vegetables if they’re not very inclined to. I have been thinking about a recipe to combine gorgonzola and carrots, but I was not quite sure how to combine it all together, first a savory cake crossed my mind or as we call them cake sale, then, I wanted something lighter with less carbs and since I love vegetables galettes of all kinds, here it is.

In France we say, that carrots make you pleasant, les carottes ca rend aimable, so I guess with all the carrots I ate today, I must be a pure delight to be around.

I really need this, San Francisco is entering the terrible summer season, with the fog rolling in, I thought that would be postponed to July-August and unfortunately, it seems like this year it’s happening sooner. I will probably end up eating carrots all summer!

The carrot-almond-cumin-gorgonzola combination worked very well together. The sweeteness of the carrots is a little toned down by the pungent gorgonzola and you get soft after taste of the almonds. The cucumber salad is quite simple and balances the whole dish.

The galettes tend to be tender because they do not contain egg, you might want to add extra almond flour. They need to be handled carefully.

Ingredients for about 6-7 galettes

For the galettes

• 3 large carrots, peeled and cut in halves crosswise
• 5 tbs almond flour or almond meal
• 1/2 ts cumin seeds roasted and crushed
• 1 tbs sliced almonds
• 6 small pieces gorgonzola, diced
• salt and pepper

For the salad

• 3 Persian cucumbers, peeled
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbs chives, chopped
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Steam carrots. When cooked mash with a potato masher into a fine consistency. Add almond flour, and cumin seeds, salt and pepper. Mix well and form little patties. Add one piece of gorgonzola in the middle of each pattie and close it to “seal” the cheese inside. Add extra almond flour on to coat each side of the patties. top it with sliced almonds. Place on a parchement paper and cook in a pre-heated oven at 375F for about 15 minutes until the top is slightly golden and cheese has melted.

For the salad, slice cucumber very finely using a mandoline. Squeeze excess water using your hands. Add all ingredients and mix well. If you get too much water, squeeze cucumbers again.

Serve on a small plate with a small portion of cucumber salad and carrot galettes on top.