Tag Archives: Cook This Not That

Friends Food Fun, Recipes

Ep 8 – Melted Brie with Vegetables

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httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dktYexwJwJc

Well, who said you cannot have an appetizer for dinner? [Was that you, evil editor? Evil editor categorically rejects the accusation because I share your unified grand theory of appetizers!] There are times while dining out when I’ve found the description of the appetizers to be more appealing than the main courses offered. So, in this episode, Helenka and I tried and reviewed Melted Brie with vegetables as our main meal. Of course, because we were cooking with Brie, we just had to show you another easy appetizer that I have been making for many years (and that Helenka has loved each time), namely Brie with Jelly (spicy red pepper jelly in this case). It’s so easy to create but the experience is out of this world. Well, don’t take our word for it – try it! I also bought a special serving dish for this episode to surprise Helenka (as I’m liking the simple white pieces which show off the food best – and also provide great photo ops!).

Here is how our long-time favourite appetizer (Brie with Jelly) was made:
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Place your Brie wheel on a sheet pan (with optional cooking spray to help with the lift off) and bake for about 20 minutes. You may see it oozing out a bit which means it’s done. Remove the sheet pan from the oven and carefully place the Brie wheel on a nice serving tray or dish. Then take your favourite spicy jelly (I’m sure Helenka will provide some options) and spread generously over it. Serve this with some nice crackers (I found some Olive Oil/Herb and Roasted Garlic/Rosemary crackers – both were in the box at Costco).

Options for jelly from Helenka:
Brian used a spicy red pepper jelly with the Brie that he has offered often as an appetizer when entertaining. But melted Brie goes fabulously well with so many flavours that it doesn’t have to be isolated as a savoury appetizer (traditionally served before dinner or as a cocktail party snack).

Do you like tomato or onion relishes? Did you make ratatouille recently and would like to extend the leftovers? Those are some options. What about marmalade and crumpets, for a classier breakfast? Any other fruit jellies such as pear, with split English muffins? See what I mean: just about any tastes that you enjoy along with Brie can be paired with it. And the crackers can be substituted with other breads, buns, etc.

Enjoy!
B&H =:)

Brie with jelly 1

Brie with Veg 3

Brie with Veg 1

Brie with Veg 2

Recipe: Melted Brie with Vegetables From Cook This, Not That!: Kitchen Survival Guide

Notes from the Chef’s Sidekick (Helenka)

The recipe on Page 88 from The Book (as we shall refer to it until further notice) was Melted Brie over Sautéed Veggies (honey sweet onion, summer zucchini, pear, orange bell pepper, deglazed with white wine) and served on multi-grain baguette slices. The special salt, by royal – meaning my – command was the Bolivian Rose. This was the healthy and (in my opinion) exquisite alternative to eating deep-fried, breaded cheesesticks. And, even though the amount of brie was small when compared to how much cheese is usually served in such appetizers, there was enough of a taste of quality where it counted (rather than merely the often mind-numbing quantity of most snack foods). Ohhhhhhhhh. Yup … orgasmic noises. For a laugh, we kept the camera focus on the empty kitchen while we made moaning noises from the couch as we demolished the food (which also included Brian’s old and always yummy standard, Baked Brie with Red Pepper Jelly on melba rounds). And then we perverted the results (yup, we do that to food) by putting the pepper jelly on the recipe from The Book. But, really, we do have tons of fun with cooking (if you hadn’t already figured that out).

Variations

A variation I thought of to extend the flavour of the small amount of brie (deliberately intended to reduce calories, etc.) would be to use standard rye bread slices, spreading the veggie mixture on top before drizzling the melted brie and then eating with a fork and knife. But, really, no matter how it’s served, this was a superb dish. I especially liked how the heated pear (which is no stranger to cheese, especially blue) interacted with the veggies. And the verdict is yes, please!

Cooking time (duration): 45

Diet (other): Low calorie, Reduced fat

Meal type: hors d’oerves

Culinary tradition: USA (General)

My rating:5 stars: ★★★★★

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Friends Food Fun

Ep 6 – French Onion Soup!

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httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Moaijb4p-g

Well, trying to stay on track and releasing an episode on a weekly basis (typically Wednesdays) was foiled this week – seeing as I do have a day job which involves travel, mostly out of the country. Hence the lateness of this post.

As you may have noticed, I have been cleaning out my cupboards of sauces that I had gathered over a period of time. Well, those days are now gone (at least for a while). So, our next adventure in cooking involved a recipe book, as I wanted to learn how to make great tasting dishes that could be accomplished within a reasonable period of time (albeit cut down to 10 minutes for the sake of YouTube). In my shopping travels, I happened upon a book that had caught my eye and whose authors were familiar to me (they write in Menshealth magazine – one of my faves). The book, called Cook This, Not That!: Kitchen Survival Guide , aims to teach people at home how to get the same great flavours of a restaurant meal but with less fat, salt and far fewer calories. By this point, Helenka and I have tried at least 9 different recipes. I must say it’s been an adventure for sure. Most have been fantastic with great ingredients. Although I do try to stay within the bounds of the recipe, I do take some creative leeway while shopping for ingredients.

In this episode, we tried their version of French Onion Soup using an organic beef broth that had the lowest amount of salt I could find. I also substituted garlic Melba toast rounds – a recommendation from a friend of mine (they really worked well and were lower in calories than the original ingredient). Oh – we did notice that ep 5 had sound issues. I will reexamine it and see if I can improve it. [Ya, I admit to being an amateur, but learning from mistakes is just part of this adventure. =;) ]

Please note: We try and review the recipes in the cookbook; however, in an effort to respect copyright, we are not able to reproduce the actual printed recipes here. If you do have the book, please follow along with us!

Enjoy! B&H =:)

FFF French Onion Soup

Recipe: Cook This Not That – French Onion Soup

Notes from the Chef’s Sidekick (Helenka)

The intent of the cookbook’s authors is to provide flavourful, less gasp-inducing versions of high-calorie, high-fat and/or high-sodium recipes. [BTW, we’re planning to cook a whole bunch of dishes from this source.] This was the healthier version of a traditional French onion soup. Normally, the traditional version would use tons of butter to saute the sliced onions. The revised version used much less butter to cook the onions, with the lid being added as an assist in providing more moisture through condensation. Brian used approximately half red and half yellow onions as well as organic beef broth (and more of it, too). More red wine as well. I think we’re going to have a lot of soup. [No kidding!] Herbs used for enhancing the flavour were bay leaves and sprigs of fresh thyme. Where the recipe called for salt, Brian reached into his salt chest and (at my direction) pulled out the most expensive salt: Fumee de Sel, cold smoked in oak wine barrels used to age fine Chardonnay wine. Well, it was the obvious choice to use a French salt for a French soup. When we sniffed it, we really got an intense smoked aroma. After the soup was fully cooked, he ladled it out into soup bowls, gently placing four garlic melba rounds on top of each (instead of the traditional baguette slices) and sprinkling them with aged cheddar cheese (instead of grated swiss). Verdict: a flavourful soup with loads of healthy onions. The pieces of melba had puffed up under the broiler and mixed with the cheese splendidly. Which just goes to prove that you don’t need to dig through a mountain of cheese with fork and shears to enjoy a proper onion soup. I kept getting a hint/aftertaste of caraway, even though it was not listed in the ingredients column on the box of melba rounds. Fascinating. Perhaps it was a chemical reaction to broiling the sesame seeds that were listed. I also enjoyed the leftover soup a few days later with my neighbour, heating it up in a 325 degree oven before adding the melba rounds and aged cheddar and sliding under the broiler.

 

Variations

In retrospect, we felt that the cookbook’s authors didn’t quite get it right with this one as far as flavour is concerned because fat and salt are huge flavour carriers. If you reduce them substantially, you MUST replace the flavour with another ingredient (hint: herbs and spices). We thought that garlic would have made an excellent integral ingredient (and that was just from including the garlic melba rounds). And I’m voting for more fresh thyme.

 

Cooking time (duration): 60

Diet (other): Low calorie, Reduced fat

Meal type: dinner

Culinary tradition: French

My rating: 3 stars:

“brianupward.com is a participant in the Amazon.ca, Inc. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.ca.”