The Fat of the Matter

Before I left for Tokyo, my friend G’s very kind mother-in-law invited me to their home for a lesson in de-veining foie gras and foie gras terrine. I adore foie gras. I had my first taste of it back in the day, at the tender age of 18, in a mock aircraft while undergoing training to be an air stewardess. It was a lesson in in-flight meal service; the most fun part of the class was devouring the food we were pretending to serve.

It probably wasn’t even real foie gras, come to think of it. More like duck liver as opposed to goose, but at that age, how was I to know? All I knew was that it was delicious. The most delicious, unctuous, deep-tasting moussy thing my palate had ever known. I was hooked—even if for years I had made it very clear to my mother that I did not like and would never eat any kind of liver.

Over the months that followed, I stole pieces of foie gras from my colleagues’ meal trays the moment any of them so much as hinted that they didn’t care for foie gras. Over the years, I indulged like a true freeloader at media events—the most memorable being under a huge white tent lining up more than a few times with a colleague for nuggets of pan-fried foie gras just before the Chanel show. If the models weren’t eating, I certainly was.

One of my family’s favourite Sunday brunches is at Raffles Hotel’s Bar and Billiard Room, where they serve all the foie gras you can eat—pan-fried or terrine. So far the record stands at 15 servings of pan-fried foie gras, set by my cousin G. Granted he arrived at brunch fresh from completing a full marathon, but he also devoured four lobsters, three servings of terrine, countless oysters, lots of grilled meats, cheese, some salad and dessert. Good thing both he and his father are doctors—he’ll need all the cholesterol meds he can get.

The little hole in the terrine you see here comes from not packing the foie gras in the dish tightly enough.

Back in my friend’s kitchen, her mother-in-law M, who was visiting from Lyon, showed me the intricacies of de-veining the goose liver. Her version of foie gras terrine is extremely simple—“home-style” as she likes to call it. Seasoned with herb salt, pepper and a sprinkling of nutmeg, the foie gras is tucked neatly into a terrine dish which was sealed with paste of flour and water and carefully cooked in a bain-marie. M even thoughtfully brought me a terrine dish from Lyon since they seem to cost a fortune here in Singapore.

With strict instructions to let the dish rest in the fridge for five days, she sent me along. It was a good thing then that I was off to Tokyo for exactly that duration, and when I came home, it was foie gras all week. Even then, at the end of week, I had to call in The Cleaners, otherwise known as my cousins, who lived up to their moniker impeccably.

Key Lime Bars sponsored by FedEx

First of all, I apologize for my blogging frequency. The good news is I am too busy with my new gig to cook as often and to blog...maybe, I have more of a life now? Amy- try to resist. I also don't have time for pretty photos, but read the comments (READ: co-workers insert how much you liked my key lime bars) and you will see I am not messing around.

Anyway, Lee and I were in Florida last month for Grandma's 90th Bday. My aunt Beth and uncle Jack hosted a beautiful dinner at their house. Aunt Beth made beautiful floral arrangements, set a gorgeous table with tasty food and had a chocolate fountain (I got it to work!). She made a delicious key lime pie from Joe's Stone Crab. It was my first time enjoying key lime pie with real key limes. Within 24 hours, aunt Beth had stopped by Publix to pick up a bag of key limes that I could take back to New York. Somewhere between the front desk of the Marriott and my room, my limes faded into oblivion. Maybe someone wanted to make a pie, hope they didn't choke on it. Thieves! Make a long story short: a couple of days later, a FedEx arrived with a bag of key limes and a pack of Knorr's vegetable soup mix (I liked her dip recipe!). Aunt Beth was determined to get me my limes and when she is determined, stay out of her way, she will make it happen!

What was I to do with these key limes? I wanted to try something new and am very loyal to my own key lime pie recipe. A few weeks went by and I started getting scared that I was going to waste all the effort that had been invested in getting me my limes. At the prompting of Beatus and Bernstein, I was forced into action. Beatus told me she had had enough of my almond macaroons and Bernstein told me that he thought I was all talk. To the kitchen I went.

As mentioned in my last post, I just got a subscription to cooksillustrated.com and found this recipe online. So far, they are 2 for 2. Initially, I wasn't thrilled about paying $24.95 for an annual membership for something that should be free. However, if I look at ROI, this might not be such a bad idea considering I pay more than that for each cookbook and haven't opened many of them!

I tweaked the recipe by changing the crust from animal crackers to Keebler graham crackers.

The result was a tart bar with buttery sugary crust. Perfect for a summer treat and would look great on a plate with my lemon bars- a little lemon and lime!

Key Lime Bars

Cooks Illustrated July 2006, Makes 16 2-inch bars

If you aren't lucky enough to have aunt Beth send you Key limes, use regular (Persian) limes. Do not use bottled lime juice. Grate the zest from the limes before juicing them, avoiding the bitter white pith that lies just beneath the outermost skin. The optional coconut garnish adds textural interest and tames the lime flavor for those who find it too intense. I am not a coconut fan, so left it off. The recipe can be doubled and baked in a 13- by 9-inch baking pan (I will do this next time I bring these to work!); you will need a double layer of extra-wide foil for the pan (each sheet about 20 inches in length) and should increase the baking times by a minute or two.

Crust
5 ounces Keebler graham crackers (recipe calls for animal crackers)
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar (light or dark)
Pinch table salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly

Filling
2 ounces cream cheese , room temperature (YES, I ATE CHEESE!)
1 tablespoon grated lime zest , minced
Pinch table salt
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup fresh lime juice , either Key lime or regular

Garnish (optional)
3/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut , toasted until golden and crisp

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Place foil in a 8 x 8 pan and let foil hang over the sides. Spray foil with nonstick cooking spray.

2. TO MAKE THE CRUST: In workbowl of food processor, pulse graham crackers until broken down, about ten 1-second pulses; process crumbs until evenly fine, about 10 seconds (you should have about 1 1/4 cups crumbs). Add brown sugar and salt; process to combine, ten to twelve 1-second pulses (if large sugar lumps remain, break them apart with fingers). Drizzle butter over crumbs and pulse until crumbs are evenly moistened with butter, about ten 1-second pulses. Press crumbs evenly and firmly into bottom of prepared pan. Bake until deep golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Cool on wire rack while making filling. Do not turn off oven.

3. TO MAKE THE FILLING: While crust cools, in medium bowl, stir cream cheese, zest, and salt with rubber spatula until softened, creamy, and thoroughly combined. Add sweetened condensed milk and whisk vigorously until incorporated and no lumps of cream cheese remain; whisk in egg yolk. Add lime juice and whisk gently until incorporated (mixture will thicken slightly).

4. TO ASSEMBLE AND BAKE: Pour filling into crust; spread to corners and smooth surface with rubber spatula. Bake until set and edges begin to pull away slightly from sides, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool on wire rack to room temperature, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Cover with foil and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours.5. Loosen edges with paring knife and lift bars from baking pan using foil extensions; cut bars into 16 squares. Sprinkle with toasted coconut, if using, and serve.

Leftovers can be refrigerated up to 2 days; crust will soften slightly. Let bars stand at room temperature about 15 minutes before serving.