A cookbook for lemon lovers.
New cookbook entitled Pucker shows author’s love of citrus fruits
What is sweet without sour? This is not merely an existential question, the kind of query that could easily dominate a boozy, late-night conversation. It’s also the basis of a new cookbook, called Pucker, by Calgary Herald food writer, Gwendolyn Richards — long a lover of life’s lemons (and limes).
“I was always the girl who picked a lemon tart over chocolate cake,” Richards confesses during an interview about Pucker, published by Whitecap just in time for Christmas. She was raised in a food-loving household well-supplied with her grandfather’s homemade pastas and pesto. But it wasn’t until she joined the Herald as a reporter on the police beat more than 10 years ago that Richards found herself ready to turn her love of food and recipes into something more.
With time on her hands when grocery stores were open (cop reporters work a lot of nights), and a deepseated need to do something special with it, she created a food blog called Patent and the Pantry. (Richards loves shoes almost as much as she loves to cook.)
The bright daylight hours in the kitchen, pursuing her twin passions of cooking and photography, provided balance to the nightly chaos crackling from the newsroom’s police scanner.
More often than not, Richards found herself creating dishes with her favourite ingredients: lemons, limes and grapefruit. (She’s not fond of oranges, preferring the fruits that make you pucker and shiver at the same time.) She began sharing those recipes with Herald readers part time (now she’s the paper’s full-time food writer).
When her editor finally banned Richards from more citrus fruit recipes, she knew she was onto something. Citrus is a most flexible ingredient. It balances the sweet in a tart; it brightens sauces and dressings in an ineffable way. Citrus is refreshing in summer, and provides a welcome break from the monotony of winter stews. Unlike many luxe ingredients in gourmet stories, from saffron to Himalayan sea salt, citrus is relatively cheap. Plus the fruits come in cheerful colours.
Pucker is Richards, back to front. She created all the recipes (though some were inspired by Nigella Lawson, Ina Garten and Elizabeth Baird) and took all of the 100 tastebud-tingling photographs.
The citrus-lovers companion covers a wide spectrum, including cocktails, desserts, soups, breakfast foods and main-course dishes.
I’m anxious to try the lemon meringue pie, as Richards promises a Pavlovian take on the meringue that offers a bit of chew. “Everything in the book is highly approachable and do-able,” says Richards. “I want people to cook from it. That’s my goal.”
Here is a recipe for a citrus-inspired appetizer that’s enjoyed by Richards’ family
Serves six to eight as an appetizer. ❚ 1/ 2 cup (125 mL) extra virgin olive oil ❚ peel of 1 lemon, in 1 long piece or several pieces ❚ 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced ❚ 2 bay leaves ❚ 15 wh ol e black peppercorns ❚ 2 tablespoons (30 mL) fresh rosemary (needles pulled from the stem) ❚ 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 mL) coriander seeds ❚ 8 ounces (250 g) goat cheese ❚ zest of 1 lemon In a small saucepan, warm the olive oil over medium-low heat. Remove as much of the bitter white pith from the lemon peel as possible and add the peel to the olive oil, letting it steep for about 15 minutes. The oil should not be hot enough to cook the peel or cause it to spatter. If it does, reduce the heat.
Add the garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, rosemary and coriander seeds and turn up the heat slightly, so small bubbles can be seen around the garlic and spices. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is soft and has lost some of its sharp taste and the oil is fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Slice the cheese into pieces about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick and set them in a serving dish. Spoon the oil, garlic and herbs over the cheese. (Let the oil cool so it doesn’t melt the cheese.) Zest the second lemon on top. Serve with crackers, bread, or both. lfaulder@edmontonjournal.com
Bookmark my blog at edmontonjournal.com/ eatmywords or follow me at twitter.com/eatmywordsblog at Christmas. Make sure and check out a video of Richards preparing the dish, at edmontonjournal.com/food.
Goat C h ee s e with Lemon and He rb Ol ive Oil