Verrines and Picnics

Summers are for Picnics

   

It's picnic time in Mammoth Lakes.  Picnic tables are found at all the lakes and many around town but it's often hard to find one in the shade with a lake view.  I found the perfect solution.  Bring your own table and chairs!  I was visiting in Laguna Beach last summer and found a roll up table in-a-bag.  HOO HAH!  I already had fold-up chairs.  

Anne's champagne in tree roots

Two weeks ago my son Dave, his wife, Anne and their two dogs, Max and Norman came up from Escondido to put in a new kitchen floor for me.  While the floor was in progress, we were eating picnic lunches and dinners out.  Our first picnic lunch was at Lake Mary.  It was a hot day and Max stood with his feet in the water, even though his legs were quivering from the cold effect.

I had packed the lunch in a hurry:  a selection of cheeses from BLEU (our gourmet cheese shop), homemade rosemary-gruyere crackers, assorted berries, and a pear tart.  We had brought a beer for Dave and for Anne and I- two mini bottles of champagne.  I had also packed 2 holders for stemmed glasses which could be secured in the ground.  The only problem was- I hadn't packed any stemmed glasses.  I did have one plastic champagne glass (with no stem).  I gave it to Anne but the ground was too uneven to hold the glass on the table.  Anne looked around and improvised with the roots from the tree we were under. 

The following day we found a spot at Lake Mamie next to the path around the lake.  Again we set up the table and ate a similar lunch to the day before, in other words- leftovers.  We really could see the lake even though it doesn't show in the picture.

Martha & Dave at Lake Mamie with Max & Norman

The pear tart was made with the same pie crust I used for my Second Place Apple Pie from a previous blog but I added Bavarian Wild Berry tea from Lipton.  It seems to give more flavor and aroma to the pie
 crust.  I'm going to try adding other flavored teas for pie crusts in the future.

Making the Pear Pie 

Pie crust- baked in a tart pan 

Lipton tea bag added to the crust

Pears tossed in  Demerara Sugar
Arranged over a cream filling

 Finished Pear Tart- ready for  picnic

Verrines

Verrines

I first learned about verrines in the L.A. Times food section published on February 28, 2007.  According to the article the word verrine refers to the glass itself; literally it means "protective glass".  At the time of publication, verrines were considered to be the hottest trend in Paris.

Verrines can be a dessert, a salad or an appetizer, and can be served at almost any meal.  It is a layered dish served in a glass container.  It is a perfect holiday dish.  At Easter the layers can be in pastels- on patriotic holidays they can be in red, white, and blue- at Christmas choose red and green with gold flakes.  They take some time to prepare but they can be done ahead of time.  

Examples of layers:
      1) A breakfast dish: scrambled eggs, ham "bites", mushrooms, blueberries, hollandaise sauce.       2) Cocktail hour: Guacamole, mini heirloom tomatoes, re-fried beans, black olives, salsa, seasoned sour cream.
      3) Dessert: Chocolate mousse, rice pudding, caramelized almonds, raspberry sauce.  

Always there are distinct layers that are visible through the glass.  I recently found a recipe for a verrine in my Elle Decor magazine- Jul/Aug 2014.
Every issue features a recipe by Daniel Boulud called "Daniel's Dish".    In this latest issue he featured a verrine of Pistachio Pound Cake layered with white chocolate, lemon verbena mousse, sweet cherries with kirsch liquer, and cherry jam.  

In my version I used his recipe for the pound cake but substituted Rainier cherries for the darker Bing cherries and my own microwaved cherry jam using again the Rainier cherries.  I used heat proof glass coffee cups to layer the ingredients. 

Microwaved Rainier Cherry Jam

Cherry Jam and Pistachio Cake

2 cups Rainier cherries

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons Kirschwasser

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon butter

Puree one cup of the cherries.  Pit and chop the second cup cherries.  Place in a large, microwave-safe glass bowl (3-quart or more).  Add other ingredients.  Cover. 

Finished Verrines

Cook on HIGH for 15 minutes stirring every 2 minutes after it comes to a boil.  Watch carefully to prevent boiling over.  It makes about 2 cups of jam.  Pour into sterile glass jars.  

Toasting the Pistachios