Posts tagged herbs
Back to Provence – Tian Provencal and tapenade tartine
Jul 24th
De retour en Provence – Tian Provençal et tartine de tapenade
Tian is a traditional dish from Provence, and should be made in a clay dish…since I just broke mine, I had to use a Pyrex one. The vegetables are sliced thinly, placed upright and cooked in the oven for a long time. You can add goat cheese as well, but I wanted to keep it vegan and light, so to get additional Mediterranean flavors, I served it with a tapenade tartine. This is a very simple dish to make yet delicious due to the slow cooking of the vegetables and all the herbs that have infused in it.
Of course, there are various recipes for tian, some people don’t add onions, but fennel, or potatoes, but tomatoes, zucchini and eggplants should always be around. You can play around with herbs, cheese, etc…but I wanted to keep it simple. Sometimes I like simple flavors and don’t want to add too many intricate and complex flavors into a dish. The slow cooking turned the vegetable almost “confits” in the herbs and own juices.
Usually tians are served with grilled meats or fishes, they add wonderful aromas to a dish. I have to admit that I ate the whole tian by myself and was still hungry. Usually this would be sufficient for four, if you serve it with a fish or meat, or also rice in case you want to keep it vegetarian. It really depends on how much vegetables your guests can eat. Quand on aime, on ne compte pas, that’s what the French say, when you love, you don’t count…which is true for many things. The tapenade tartine is a nice element if you want to keep your meal vegan, that olive spread is simply divine with this tian.
Ingredients for 3-4
- 3 large tomatoes, sliced crosswise
- 3 zucchini, sliced crosswise
- 2 medium eggplants, sliced crosswise
- 1 onion,
- lavender salt
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
- 1 tsp basil, chopped finely
- 2 tbs olive oil
- pepper
For the tapenade, see recipe here
Preparation
Spread some olive oil, all over the dish, preferably a clay dish.
Place all vegetables upright in the dish, alternating between a slice of tomato, two slices of zucchini (since the zucchini tend to be smaller), one slice of eggplant, and onion. The vegetables need to be tightly arranged so they stand still.
Add herbs and garlic, sprinkle with lavender salt and pepper. Add olive oil all over the vegetables.
Cover with aluminium foil and cook in a pre heated oven at 365-370 for about 40-45 minutes. Remove the foil and let the vegetables get golden brown.
Peach folie – Peach-mint soup and peach-rosemary bouchées
Jul 7th
Folie de pêches – Soupe pêches-menthe et bouchées pêches-romarin
This is only for those days you have a lot of peaches in your kitchen, lots of mint in your garden and a huge desire to eat peaches…berries and peaches are some of the fruits I don’t get tired of eating. When my Greek grocer next door saw me with all those peaches in my basket, he asked me if I was going to kill myself with them. I told him that’s what was probably going to happen…that would be a great way to die, if you ask for my opinion. Death by peaches. As much as I am not a sweet tooth, I adore fruits and fruit-based desserts, they’re refreshing, light, put me in a great mood and energizing me for the day. Alors voilà, encore des pêches!
The peach syrup has been infused with mint and vanilla, then enhanced by a a dollop of yogurt and light touch of cayenne pepper. The bouchées which are really tiny (1.5 inch diameter) look like muffins but they’re really not, have a subtle rosemary flavor, since the peaches have been caramelized in a butter, honey and fresh rosemary blend. This makes a light and refreshing dessert. I served this as a dessert to a dinner and it’s always so pleasant to have a fruity bite when people are no longer hungry. It cleans your palate and the herbal touch tells you: This is the end.
Ingredients for 5-6
For the peach soup
- 2 white peaches, peeled and cut
- 2 yellow peaches, peeled and cut
- 1 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise
- 10 mint leaves
- 2 tbs agave syrup
- 1.2 cups water
- 6 tbs plain yogurt
- 6 pinches cayenne pepper
For 12 rosemary bouchées
- 2 eggs
- 60 g butter, melted (+ a tsp extra)
- 20 g kamut flour
- 30 g chestnut flour
- 20 g white flour
- 3 tbs almond flour
- 40 g agave syrup
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 rosemary sprig, chopped
- 1 tbs honey
- 2 peaches, peeled and diced
Preparation
For the peach soup
Mix water, agave syrup, mint, vanilla beans and bring to a boil for about 5 minutes, then let it cool and infuse the syrup. Drain and set aside. When syrup is cool, place some of it in a blender with peaches and mix into a smooth consistency. Refrigerate for at least one hour. When ready to serve add one 1 tsp of yogurt in the middle and a pinch of cayenne.
For the peach rosemary bouchées
Melt butter in a pan, add honey, then when the mixture turns thick, add peaches. Coat peaches with mixture for about 3 minutes, then add rosemary, cook for an additional 2 minutes, then remove from heat. In a mixing container, beat eggs with butter, agave syrup and the different flours. Add baking powder and mix well. Fill up individual mini molds such as silicon molds with the batter. Add 1/2 tsp of the peach mixture in the middle with some rosemary. Bake in pre-heated oven at 360F for about 20 minutes. Let them cool and serve with peach soup.
For a happy lunch – Melting potato bouchées with herbs and mozzarella – Yogurt mint dipping sauce
Apr 20th
Pour un déjeûner gourmand – Bouchées de pomme de terre aux herbes et mozzarella, sauce yaourt menthe
I kept forgetting about those potato bouchées, I think we tend to forget good old recipes in our search to find new ones, but this one is too good to forget. So as we continue on a vegetarian journey for a little while, I wanted to feature a delicious recipe that has been quite popular among non vegetarians as well. The combination of melting mozzarella and fragrant herbs with this soft potato mixture is a delight.
Potatoes are one of the ingredients I am not using very often but I have decided to incorporate them more in my diet especially since I have been on a vegetarian trend, I will probably go back to consuming fish at some point but for the time being mangeons sain!
I used purple potatoes, I figured the purple would look great on my blue plate, but it seems like they lost their vibrant color in the cooking process, therefore the “purple” is barely noticeable on the picture. You can use any other type of potatoes, purple potatoes contain more starch therefore tend to be slightly sweeter.
I served these potato bouchées with a grilled fennel, and red onion salad that was incredibly delicious. I will post the recipe soon because they were a match from heaven.
Ingredients for about 10 bouchées
- 5 medium sized potatoes, cooked and peeled
- 2 tbs parsley, chopped
- 2 tbs chives, chopped
- 2 tbs basil, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 200 g mozzarella, diced
- salt and pepper
For the yogurt dipping sauce
- 200 g small plain yogurt
- 1 shallot
- 1 tbs mint, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Roughly mash cooked potatoes, and mix herbs, mozzarella, salt and pepper and form some small patties about 4 inches diameter. Heat a non-heating pan or a grill pan. Cook patties until golden brown on each side and serve with yogurt-mint sauce.
For the dipping sauce, mix all ingredients together.
Not that "bête" – Verrines of golden beets with herbed ricotta
Nov 23rd
Pas si bêtes que ca – Verrines de betteraves, ricotta aux herbes
I went for a little walk downtown today since my car did not run, the internet and the phone were completely dead, so I decided to take a day off rooming around the city. It had been a while I did not get the chance to do so and that was the perfect excuse for it. When technology decides to let you down, just go back to the basics.
You can feel the holiday spirit all over the city, all the Christmas colors are out, what an exciting feeling! Let’s not jump right onto Christmas since Thanksgiving is not here yet, it’s right across the corner and I haven’t yet decided what to serve for dinner. All the beautiful stemware and dinnerware in display makes me want to buy it all. I love a beautiful table for special occasions and was trying to find some special theme for Thursday night dinner.
In France, we serve turkey for Christmas, La dinde de Noël traditionally served with chestnuts. So that’s the way I will prepare my turkey, with chestnuts and with lots of vegetable side orders. I will call it “Thanksmas”.
We also serve many trendy appetizers like this one called verrines. They’re usually served in small glasses and in small quantities. Un Verre = A Glass. Verrines can be exotic, classics, sophisticated, it all depend on the ingredients. I bought beautiful golden beets and wanted to use the ricotta with them. Beet’s sweetness goes wonderfully well with soft cheeses such as goat cheese, ricotta, etc… You can add some sundried tomatoes on top of the ricotta or a crispy pancetta slice. It’s also delicious served with toasted country bread on the side, so you can spread some of the beet/ricotta mixture on top.
Ingredients for 4 verrines
For the beets
- 4 medium size golden beets, thinly diced
- 2 tbs sunflower seeds
- 1 tbs red onion, thinly chopped
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 1 tsp raspberry vinegar
- salt and pepper
For the ricotta
- 8 tbs ricotta
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tsp chives, chopped
- 1 tsp parsley, chopped
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp olive oil
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Wash beets and cook them in water or steam them for about 30 minutes or until they’re cooked all the way through. When cooked let them cool and peel them. Cut them is small cubes (1/3 of an inch). In a container, add beats and all other ingredients. Set aside
In a bowl, mix ricotta with all the ingredients.
Using a small glass container, add 2-3 tbs beets (depending on the size of your glass). Place 2-3 tbs ricotta on top. sprinkle with fresh pepper and a little olive oil. Decorate with chives and a cherry tomato cut in half.
Eat with toasted country bread.
No I did not miss you – Roasted chicken thighs with lemon, herbs, olives and sunburst squash
Nov 17th
Non, tu ne m’as pas manqué - Cuisses de poulet rôties aux herbes, citron et olives à la courge
Since I don’t really eat meat, I know my blog lacks meat recipes, I figured that when I cook for some non-vegetarian people who do eat meat, I take the opportunity for putting up the recipe on the blog. I look at those chicken thighs and it reminds me of my cute and sweet parakeet and I really have to think about something else or I won’t be able to cook them. Sometimes, I have to detach myself from things that bother me, or I won’t be able to do anything.
I love fresh herbs, all of them! When I first moved to California, I was amazed to see tons of houses with bushes of rosemary as a decoration plant. I thought that was funny, I was wondering if people used it for cooking or if it was just as a decoration…and still I have no answer to that. I used to live on a street where almost all houses had huge rosemary plants bordering them and coming all the way on the sidewalk. Sometimes, when I was out of rosemary, I would help myself. I know it’s not very appropriate but at the time, I thought it was not a big deal especially considering the size of the rosemary spreading in a public zone.
This chicken is very flavorful and mainly due to the tons of herbs I use in it. Sometimes I marinate it overnight so it gets infused with herbs and you get a wonderful roasted chicken. You can also use pearl onions instead of yellow onions.
Squash being in season, I figured I would use it, but some other vegetables like potatoes, carrots, turnips, etc…would work as well. If you have guests over, and want to spend time with them rather in your kitchen, roasted chicken is the key, you just need to baste it once in a while and that’s it. It’s like the kid that doesn’t need any attention, you just give him a toy and he keeps himself busy.
You might need to cover the dish with some aluminum foil for about 20-30 minutes, depending on how your oven cooks, then removing the foil to let the chicken brown. I am still trying to figure out how my oven works with the circular heat.
Ingredients for 4 people
- 4 chicken legs
- 1 whole butternut squash, cut in large pieces
- 2 tbs green olives
- 1 tbs strong Dijon mustard
- 3 rosemary sprigs and chopped
- 3 thyme, sprigs and chopped
- 3 tarragon sprigs and chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 1 tbs lemon juice
- 5 lemon slices
- 4 tbs chicken broth
- chili flakes
- salt and pepper
Preparation
You can marinated the chicken overnight with herbs, garlic, mustard and onion, but it’s optional. You can get a fragrant chicken even if you don’t marinate it.
Keep some herb sprigs, chop some of it. Mix all ingredients together in a mixing container except chicken broth and mustard. Place chicken in a oven tray, add herb mixture on top of chicken and coat chicken with it. Spread mustard on both sides of legs.
Cook in a pre-heated oven at 370F for about 30 min, then add broth and regularly baste chicken with it.
Add squash, salt and pepper, and cook until chicken is well roasted and squash tender.
Mother duck just laid some eggs! – Duck egg omelette with onions, tomatoes, goat cheese and herbs
Nov 12th
Mère canard a aussi pondu – Omelette aux oeufs de canard, onions, tomates, chèvre et herbes
I found those beautiful duck eggs at Whole Foods a couple of days ago, among quail and ostrich eggs! I bought six and just two were left so I figured that was going to be my lunch. First I wasn’t sure if I was going to post it or not, then I decided it would all depend on the final look. Pretty and tasty was going to be posted. Just pretty could have been, but just tasty was not. Obviously it was both.
I am not a huge fan of Whole Foods but some of my clients want only organic products and the only place I can find them is Whole Foods, since the Rainbow does not have any animal-based products. So, I have been shopping there for myself digging for some interesting products as well and I have to admit that they do carry some unusual and local products which makes the shopping quite fun.
I haven’t had duck eggs for such a long time, my mom used to make homemade pasta with them and it makes a beautiful yellow dough. They contain more fat and are tastier than regular eggs. You can use them instead of using regular eggs, but they’re heavier and bigger, and the yolk has a deep orange color. When using duck eggs in recipes, you might need to change proportions, since they’re bigger than regular eggs.
You might wonder what’s the big deal of eating duck eggs? They make great pastries, and do have a special flavorful taste. So those are good enough reasons.
Omelette is the French word for frittata but not sure how to call it in English, I think Americans use the Italian word if I’m not mistaken. This omelette is really delightful, enhanced by herbs and goat cheese combined with the sweetness of caramelized onions, it all makes a great brunch dish.
I love omelettes, but never make them. Don’t you have something you love but never think of making it? In my case, that’s omelette…
Ingredients for 2 omelettes
- 4 duck eggs
- 2 tomatoes, seedless and peeled, roughly chopped
- 1 large yellow onion, sliced
- 2 tbs mixed herbs (basil, chives, parsley, etc..), finely chopped
- 3 tbs goat cheese, crumbled
- 2 tbs olive oil
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Heat olive oil in a pan, add onions and brown them. Add tomatoes, cook for a few minutes, but do not let it turn mushy. Add salt and pepper.
In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs with herbs salt and pepper. Pour on top of onion mixture. Cover with a lid and cookd until the bottom part is golden brown, and top of omelette is cooked. Add goat cheese on half the side of the omelette and fold the other half on top. Cook for a few more minutes and serve with a green salad.
A close cousin has just arrived – Whole wheat orzotto with shrimps, sea scallops, fennel, radicchio and herbs
Aug 24th
Un cugino è appena arrivato – Risoni integrali con gamberi, cappesante, finocchio, radicchio ed erbette
Orzo in the US, is that tiny pasta shape like a bird’s tongue, orzo in Italian means barley, so when I just arrived to the US, I got confused. Now since I am in the US, I will try to use american names so that people don’t get confused either. I have known orzo to be a cereal whole my life, in Italy they use it even as a drink, caffè d’orzo, it’s basically a powder like the instant coffee, you add hot water, dilute it and you get a cup of dark drink that somehow tastes like coffee and has no caffeine. It’s an alternative to coffee.
My mom used to make me soups with this pasta when I was a child and called it “bicca” meaning “seed” in her local dialect, they’re called Risoni in Italian (riso = rice, big rice grain).
Anyway going back to the other orzo, the pasta-orzo, in this dish I cooked it like risotto, coating it with olive oil, then adding broth and white wine gradually. You can also cook pasta this way. The water is absorbed gradually and pasta gets all the flavors of the stock.
I love this dish, it’s healthy, flavorful and very delicate and an alternative to risotto, if you want once in a while get some whole wheat grain in your diet and still be fully satisfied with your meal, this would be be perfect. I love risotto, a well-made risotto is heavenly but sometime I just want some whole wheat grains.
Ingredients for 2-3
- 1 cup whole wheat orzo
- 12 shrimps with shell and heads on
- 2/3 cups small sea scallops
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 1 carrot
- 1/2 onion
- 3 cloves
- celery stick
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 tbs fresh tarragon
- 12 mint leaves
- 6 large basil leaves
- 2 tbs parlsey
- 1 tbs fresh oregano
- 1/2 fennel, finely diced
- 1 cup shredded radicchio
- 1 tbs olive oil
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Start making the stock. Place 3 cups of water to a boil and add all the herbs, the fennel, the radicchio, let cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the water and drain. Chop the herbs finely and set aside.
Add carrot, celeri stick, stick cloves inside the onion, and add to the stock. Peel the shrimps, head and shell and add to the stock, reduce until you have about 2 cups of stock. Let it simmer for about 30-40 minutes, adding a little water if the water evaporates.
When the stock is ready, drain and keep the liquid.
In a pot, heat olive oil, add shallot and let it brown. Add risoni, coat them with olive like you would for a risotto. Add a little stock and wine, stir until the liquid has evaporated, and add continue stiring and adding stock and wine.
10 minutes before the orzo is almost cooked, add sea scallops and 9 shrimps cut in pieces, leave 3 or 4 for decoration. Stir well and cook until the seafood is cooked all the way through. Add the herbs, radicchio, fennel mixture. Stir well and let rest for about 5-7 minutes. Drizzle with olive oil and serve very hot.
The tartine that works an appetite – Salmon tartine with a ginger, caper, mustard and herb dressing
Aug 11th
La tartine qui met en appétit – Tartine de saumon au gingembre, câpres, et herbes mixtes
After a beautiful and sunny day, we are back to the grisaille, which literally translates to “greyness”, the good thing about this type of weather is that you can stay home and cook. hat would be the positive thing. I have really never experienced the San Francisco summer, and it can be overwhelming if you need the natural light to enhance your spirit. This summer has been quiet in terms of business, but it will pick up in the fall. Usually in summer I am in Europe, visiting my family but this year I will probably go home a little later.
What about a nice tartine of salmon enhanced with lots of various fragrant herbs on a slice of toasted baguette? It will color your day. It surely did color mine.
The first time I made those toasts, I used smoked salmon instead of fresh, on small toasted baguette as an amuse-gueule or amuse bouche as they would say in the US, and everyone loved it. You can use either fresh salmon or smoked, depending on what you feel like. I put it on toasted bread but you can serve it on a plate, and on top of a mâche salad and with a slice of bread on the side. You can play with it. It’s very versatile.
For 4 medium size tartines
- 1 salmon fillet
- 4 slices of Italian country bread, toasted
- 1 tsp capers, chopped
- 1 tsp chives, chopped
- 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
- 1 tsp cilantro chopped
- 1 tsp red bell pepper, finely chopped
- chili flakes
- 1/2 tsp ginger, grated
- 1 tbs red onion, chopped
- 1/2 tsp strong Dijon mustard
- 1/2 lemon juice
- 1 tsp olive oil
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Broil salmon under broiler. When cooked all the way through, remove and shred in medium size pieces and place in a mixing bowl. For the dressing, add olive oil and all other ingredients and mix well. Add on top of salmon, adjust with salt and pepper. Toast a slice of baguette and add salmon on top.
It's warm, it's flavorful, it's a salad – Warm quinoa salad, with cannelli beans, carrots and cauliflower with a four herb salsa
Jul 25th
C’est tiède, c’est plein de saveur, c’est une salade – Salade tiède de quinoa aux carottes, cocos, chou fleur et salsa aux quatres herbes
Today I said goodbye to my long time and faithful friend, my VW Golf I had for over 10 years, and that over the years turned into an old lady. I gave it to a charity and I have to admit that when the tow-truck came pick it up, I was somehow sad. I know it’s just a thing, and I should not get attached to material, but still, it was the first car I got in the US and I was somehow attached to it. We went through some good and bad times together. I did not feel comfortable selling it, since the steering wheel was really hard to manoeuvre and I stopped driving it for a month, fearing it would break down in the middle of the street…and many other things were wrong with it, so I figured I would give it to charity. C’est la vie, nothing lasts and things like people sooner or later quietly go.
OK, let’s not dwell on this, it’s just a car after all!
Let’s go back to the fun world of cooking, I love to play with quinoa, it’s delicious in soups, salads, taboule and any kind of side dishes. The great flavor comes from the herb salsa I made, which enhanced this whole salad.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup quinoa
- 1/2 cauliflower
- 2 carrots
- 1 cup cooked cannelli beans
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 celeri stick
- 3 cloves
For the salsa
- 2 scallions
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/2 bunch parsley
- 1/2 bunch cilantro
- 1/3 bunch mint
- 5 tbs olive oil
- 1 tbs balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- a pinch chili powder
- salt and pepper
Preparation
If you are using dried cannelli beans, they need to be soaked overnight in water, if you didn’t have any and don’t have time, you can use canned beans, but they don’t taste as good as the dried ones.
Cook quinoa by steaming it, like you would make steamed rice. Add double its volume of water, bring to a boil, and reduce heat to a minimum and cover with lid. Cook for about 20 minutes.
If used, dried cannelli beans, cook them in water for about 30 minutes with 1/2 onion, 3 cloves, 1 celery stick, and 2 bay leaves. When cooked remove onion, cloves, celery, bay leaves, and drain beans.
Cut cauliflower in small florets, cut carrots in slices, then cut in half. Steam for about 10 minutes and set aside.
Mix the salsa ingredients in a mixer to make it into a smooth mixture.
When quinoa is cooked, place in a mixing bowl, add vegetables. Spoon salsa at the end and mix well.
C'est si bon… – Asparagus flan, sesame-thyme chicken and herb coulis
Jun 16th
C’est si bon… – Flan d’asperges, poulet pané au sésame et thym, coulis d’herbes
I haven’t posted anything lately…I was tired and sick for about a week, let’s not pretend the San Francisco summer weather has nothing to do with it. It’s been muggy, foggy and obviously very gloomy, and that really does not help with the low energy level. But that’s enough, I will not let anything come in between me and my cooking experiments, and let’s not dwell on the weather…but still when I think that in the South Bay, starting from the San Francisco airport, they get the sun and a real summer, it makes you wonder that maybe life in the suburb is not that bad.
So for those gloomy San Francisco days, you need something fresh, flavorful and exciting to keep your spirit up.
Since I bought silicon molds last time I went to France, I fell in love with them. They’re wonderful in all their aspects. Whatever you make in them cooks very quickly, they’re so easy to use and even go in the dishwasher and they don’t take much space. So if you don’t yet have silicon molds, go and buy some. You’ll love them and become addicted to cooking with them.
Lately I have been in the mood for green vegetables, probably to color my days, and I realized that if it’s not green, it will not be eaten. It needs to be green, delicious and healthy.
I never made asparagus flan before, I did not add too many spices, I wanted them to keep their natural and delicate flavor. I think asparagus have this very special and refined taste that it’s a pity to kill it with spices. The flan is enhanced with a fragrant herb coulis.
You can serve those flans with chicken but with white fish also, they go perfectly well with any fish or white meat.
Ingredients for 6
For the asparagus flans
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 2 eggs
- 3 tbs heavy cream
- salt and pepper
For the chicken
- 4 chicken breasts, cut in large cubes
- 1 cup plain bread crumbs
- 2 tbs sesame seeds
- 2 tbs fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 eggs, beaten
- salt and pepper
For the herb coulis
- 1/2 bunch flat parsley
- 1/2 bunch cilantro
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 1 bouillon cube
For the side dishes
- 4 asparagus
- 4 tomatoes, peeled, seedless and diced
- Rock salt
Preparation
For the flans
Wash asparagus, set 4 whole asparagus aside to use later. Cut the tips of the other asparagus and cook in boiling water for 3 minutes. Remove and place in a bowl with cold water to keep their green color. In the same water, cook the rest of the asparagus, cut in pieces. Cook for about 5-10 minutes until soft. Mix in a blender to produce a purée. Add cream and eggs, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add tips of asparagus at the end, and mix carefully not to break them.
Place the mixture in silicon molds and cook in the oven for about 25 minutes at 375F. If you don’t have silicon molds use other ceramic molds but they need to be buttered or the flan will stick at the bottom.
Slice the 4 asparagus left aside with a potato peeler, making thin slices of asparagus. Cook in boiling water for one minute and place in a bowl of cold water to keep the green color. Pat dry before serving on the plate.
For the chicken
Cut chicken in squares about 2 x2 inches. Add salt and pepper on all sides. Dip in flour, then in egg, then in the mixture made of breadcrumbs, thyme, sesame seeds, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Cook in the oven on broiler mode, do not place chicken too close to broiler or it will burn, place mid oven.
For the herb coulis
In a small pot dilute bouillon cube with 1/3 cup water, bring to a boil. In a blender, mix herbs, olive oil and some of the broth you made with bouillon cube. Blend for a while to get a nice green mixture. Add lemon juice and adjust with salt and pepper if needed. The bouillon cube has salt in it, so you might want to check to taste if it needs additional salt.
Serve with a flan, add some sliced asparagus on the side, two pieces of chicken, add one tbs of tomatoes topped with rock salt, and drizzle with herb coulis.
