Your French Mot du Jour: Le Confinement, which is lockdown lingo. Meals come around really often in Le Confinement, don’t they? I don’t know about you, but I’ve been cooking like a maniac, and struggling to keep up with looming mealtimes.
Worried about food shortages, I signed up for a weekly local farm delivery here in Charleston. In which they deliver a box of 15 pounds (7 kilos) of assorted veggies each week, whatever they’re growing. I can tell you that no matter what shortages occur, we will not starve to death. Fifteen pounds is a LOT of veggies.
So each week on the day before the next delivery, I’m frantically cleaning out the veggie drawer. Soups, salads, pickles, gratins, whatever I can dream up.
And what I dreamed up this week is infinitely versatile: veggie turnovers, with a bit of meat or fish if you like.And if you use pre-made piecrust, you can turn out a terrific turnover in a half hour. I use Pillsbury here, but puff pastry would work too; in France I would use a pâte feuilleté.
We’ve blogged about turnovers before, which were never a French thing, until I discovered that the local traiteur (a fancy catering shop) in Beaune now carries round puffy ones for a quick lunch, in all sorts of varieties.
This week I stuffed mine with zucchini, broccoli, white onions, garlic, and a layer of thinly sliced deli cheddar I happened to have on hand. They were crunchy, creamy, and cheesy all at once. You could also use leftover meat or fish or vegetables, chopped fine, and avoid the stovetop all together.
The possibilities for layering in flavors are as endless as those veggies that are multiplying in my fridge. While we were tucking into them, Ron and I brainstormed some other good combinations for you. But check your fridge for inspiration!
RECIPE: Personalized Turnovers
Traditional French pastries are the sweet ones stuffed with apples, called chaussons aux pommes, but now savory ones are popping up.
For this week’s turnover version, which makes 3 large turnovers, I chopped some zucchini up small, and diced a small white onion. I sliced a few florets of broccoli very thin. I threw in a tiny bit of leftover chicken. I added sea salt and ground pepper and sautéed all this in a combo of butter and olive oil, for maybe 4 minutes, adding chopped garlic for the last minute.
Then I put it into a bowl and added a couple of tablespoons of sour cream and a squeeze of Sriracha sauce. I cut the pie crust into 6 wedges. I put the filling on 3 of them and laid thin deli slices of cheddar on top. Then I topped them with the other wedge, crimped the edges, put a slit in the top, and baked them for 15 minutes at 375, until they were golden and bubbly. If you have leftover topping, heat it up and serve it over a biscuit or toast for tomorrow’s lunch (which will be here before you know it!).
Here are some other combos—no recipe needed! Instead of sour cream, mayo or even Greek yogurt would work as a binder, and any sort of cheese you have on hand will do. Just be sure to chop everything small. Everything should be pre-cooked. You can also add a salsa or creamy sauce on the side, for dipping.
—Shrimp, celery, summer squash (or any veggie), onions, gruyère
—Chicken pie turnovers, with carrots, peas, onions, parmesan
—Italian sausage, sautéed bell peppers, onions, basil , grated mozzarella
—Chopped salmon, scallions, dill, asparagus, gruyère
—Leftover beef and chopped steamed or roasted potatoes, then stir in a little tomato paste or marinara sauce, grated cheddar or parmesan
In the Comments: Jane has many an interesting gougère tip for us. Colleen has solved a cheese puff mystery. Zing makes hers with the added decadence of bacon. And my sister checks in with some family secrets. Iris and Mary James think 5 eggs is too many and I agree, so I tried them agin, using a recipe from Alain Ducasse. Perfection! Here is the photo, cookies no longer:
Favorite READS: If you want to lift yourself out of lockdown for a moment, our loyal reader Natalia has a book for you: Paris in Bloom by Georgianna Lane. "Complete eye candy!!" she says, and she's right! And for anyone who is contemplating air travel, especially to Europe (as we are), you will want to read Karen McCann's hilarious account of her trip from Spain to the states in the middle of the pandemic.
And for another pleasant and beautiful distraction, please check out the work of some of our readers who are fabulous artists. Three new ones to try:
and my dear friend, Susan Altman
7 thoughts on “Cooking in Le Confinement”
Oh, those cheese pubs look fabulous! Stay safe.
I absolutely love this photo of you Lynn! You are such a beautiful woman in so many ways. Like you, I’ve been cooking up a storm too. I discovered a wholesale food supply company that has such wonderful fresh vegetables, fruits & all things in between. We’ve picked up their combo boxes at their warehouse. I couldn’t believe how organized they were with the long line of cars and no contact loading in your car. The deals were too difficult to resist & so much more fresh than any store.
The next time, was a larger order which we had delivered. I had the same problem about what to do with all that food. We ended up giving some away to several neighbors. The remainder of the food was eventually used up with a number of new recipes I’ve discovered.
I do love to cook and bake but it does get tiring at times. Thank you for the new recipes. X
I love your expression! That’s exactly how I feel during the pandemic when I can’t just pop out to the grocery store for any little thing I need. I’m lost.
Lynn,your new haircut looks terrific!!You always look great,and now,even in le confinement,you have make up,earrings and a pretty blouse!(moi?ummm,better not to there)(LOL)
Thank you for these scrumptious recipes (one lucky thing is that we,too,have not suffered a shortage of veggies).All so tempting!!
I will try Ducasse’s recipe for gougere.(they are beautiful!)Have been using one from Henri Paul Pellaprat(think the title of the book is The Great Book of French Cuisine.My wonderful mom gave it to us as a wedding gift,55 years ago).Maybe Ducasse’s is updated(?)
A new book to enjoy!!The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd(she wrote The Mermaid Chair and Secret Life of Bees).Ancient history fiction.A girl named
Ana becomes the special woman in Jesus’,son of Joseph(yes,our Jesus!)life.
I honestly was afraid I might find this blasphemous,but with Sue’s never failing talent it is a book that I just can’t put down.
That’s too funny, I I was just making turnovers too! This is your sister (again) and I know you would think this is a little weird but I needed a quick fancy dessert last night and I had too many Talenti containers in the freezer. So, I used the last of a raspberry sorbet with a dollop of cream cheese, frozen blueberries, sliced almonds and mango-pineapple preserves plus candied ginger.
I folded over the puff pastry square, forked the edges, brushed an egg wash and voila! We ate them warm… yum! And yes, that is a good photo of you!
Hola from New Mexico…where everything delicious has Hatch green chilies! So why am I trying new french recipes…like a pie crust made of 2 ingredients…flour and white wine (I’m going to try flat champagne). Thanks to Kristi’s of French-word-a-day..belle-mare. The filling will be from Bellwether’s french creme fresh+ chocolate recipe….will let you know.
Do any of your readers have recipes using Tarragon vinegar? I made my own with fresh sprigs of Tarragon and white distilled vinegar (didn’t have apple cider vinegar).
Wish you were in France…me too…Betsy
Hey, Lynn, I’m a bit late reading this one. I didn’t know that you are back in Charleston. Temporarily? Or longer? I love your haircut. I’ve been afraid to go get my done, so it is as long as in college days, but surprisingly easy to manage, just not a “total” blonde, ha. Someone was telling me the other day about turnovers. It was my “SO” actually, who hates to cook, but he eats a lot of sardines, and told me about sardine turnovers. I have some puff pastry, and I think I’ll try one of your ideas, or just throw in whatever I have. I’ll also forward to a friend who once asked how to make meat pies. Easy, n’est-ce pas?