lemon cream in the style of pierre herme in pate sucree tartlet shells‏

1 cup sugar
finely grated zest of 3 lemons
4 large eggs
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
280 grams unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces, at room temperature
salt flakes to fold through the emulsion to provide bursts of saltiness

things you'll need: a thermometer, a strainer and a blender.
bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan.
put the sugar and zest in a large heatproof bowl that can be set over the pan of simmering water.
macerate the sugar and zest together until the sugar takes on the lemoniness of the zest.
whisk in the eggs, followed by the lemon juice.
set the bowl over the pan, and start stirring with the whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch. cook the lemon cream until it reaches 82 degrees celcius. as you whisk—you must whisk constantly to keep the eggs from scrambling—you'll see that the cream will start out light and foamy, then the bubbles will get bigger, and then, as it gets closer to 82 degrees celcius, it will start to thicken and the whisk will leave tracks. start to take great care at this point—the tracks mean the cream is almost ready. don't stop whisking or checking the temperature, and have patience—depending on how much heat you're giving the cream, getting to temp can take as long as 10 minutes.as soon as it reaches 82 degrees celcius, remove the cream from the heat and strain it into the container of the blender; discard the zest. let the cream stand, stirring occasionally, until it cools to 68 degrees celcius, about 10 minutes.
turn the blender to high and, with the machine going, add the butter a piece or two at a time. scrape down the sides of the container as needed as you incorporate the butter. once the butter is in, keep the machine going—to get the perfect light, airy texture of lemon-cream dreams, you must continue to blend the cream for another 3 minutes. fold salt flakes through the cream.

pate sucree
120 grams icing sugar
250 grams plain flour
pinch of salt
125 grams butter, softened
1 egg
place the icing suagr, flour butter and egg in to the bowl of a food processor and process until a dough is formed.
dust a work surface lightly with flour. roll dough out and cut rounds to fit tartlet moulds; you should get 36 tartlet cases about 10-12cm in diameter.
prick well and bake for 14 minutes at 180 degrees celcius.
assemble the tarts with a dollop of lemon cream in each tart and top with shards of toffee.
do not attempt to blowtorch sugar sprinkled on the lemon cream as the cream will collapse.

langues de chat (cat's tongues)

when i was young, there was a french patissier in penshurst street, roseville, which had the most wonderful sweet things. of course, there were the pastries, but there would also be little bags of almond tuiles and madeleines. dad was wonderful and indulged me; i'd choose all the goodies and go home to have tastes of a little bit of all of them.
imagine my delight when i tracked down this recipe. admittedly, they were not for almond tuiles, but they possessed the same buttery crisp deliciousness. i loved making them for dad - he'd eat them with such gusto, a little girl could never resist making them for her beloved father. i loved the way my dad ate the biscuits i made - he made me feel so special.

60 grams butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg whites (one whole egg can be used - naturally, the result is slightly different, but still very delicious)
scant 1/2 cup plain flour

preheat the oven to 200 degrees celcius.
line a few baking trays with baking paper.
cream the butter and sugar together until light. whisk in the egg whites until just combined, and fold in the flour.
spoon the batter into a piping bag fitted with a plain 5mm tube.
pipe 5 cm lengths of batter on the lined trays, allowing room for spreading. tap the tray sharply on the kitchen bench to allow the mixture to spread a little.
bake for 7-9 minutes or until the edges are golden - being careful not to let the biscuits burn.

poulet au moutarde

this is a well flavoured casserole which was originally a rabbit recipe. it was the first, and dare i say, last rabbit dish i ever made, not because i'm squirmish or anything, but i like chicken, beef, pork and lamb better than rabbit. if i have to eat rabbit, i will, but i like this dish made with chicken - i loved the flavour of this sauce so much i decided to translate it.
if you do choose to make this dish with rabbit, joint and soak the rabbit overnight in salted water to which some vinegar has been added.
i like serving this dish with rice or mashed potatoes so there's something to absorb the delicious sauce; bread isn't a bad addition either, never mind how uncouth it may be.

2 kilos chicken pieces
1 tablespoon plain flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
30 grams butter
4 onions, quartered
2 rashers bacon, cut into strips
3 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons french mustard
salt and pepper
a bouquet garni consisting of thyme, a bayleaf, celery, parsley and tarragon
1/2 cup cream
parsley to garnish

rinse the chicken pieces and pat dry with paper towels. dust lightly with the flour seasoned with salt and pepper. set aside.
heat the oil and butter in a heavy based casserole and and the onions. colour the onions briefly, remove and set aside.
add the bacon and also allow to colour briefly, remove and set aside.
add the chicken pieces in batches and sear until each piece is golden.
pour in the stock, and add the bouquet garni and mustard.
return the bacon and onions to the casserole.
bring to the boil and lower the heat to a bare simmer for 40 minutes or until tender.
remove the chicken to a warm serving dish and boil the sauce rapidly to reduce and slightly thickened.
skim off the fat.
add the cream and taste for seasoning and correct, if necessary.
pour some of the sauce over the chicken and pour any remainder into a gravy boat for those who like things saucey.
garnish with parsley.
serve.