Around My French Table Read Online Free Page B

be from their name. They're truly sablés, sweet, buttery slice-and-bake cookies; truly salty, as salty as pretzels; and truly a Paris trend. Pâtisseries all over the city offer some version of classic sablés with unclassic add-ins like olives (see Pierre Hermé's recipe on [>] ), cheese (see [>] ), bacon, cracked spices, or seasoned salt. The salty cookies are playful, chic, and attention-getting; in other words, the perfect cocktail-party tidbit.
    The recipe for these treats was given to me by cookbook author, pastry chef, blogger, American-in-Paris, and friend David Lebovitz. Originally David made these with French seaweed fleur de sel, but since it is not that easy to come by, I use plain fleur de sel and stir finely chopped toasted nori into the dough.
    BE PREPARED: The dough should chill for at least 1 hour.
6
tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3
tablespoons finely chopped toasted nori
2
teaspoons fleur de sel or 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
½
cup plus 1 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
1
large egg yolk
1½
tablespoons olive oil
1
cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)
    You can make the dough with a mixer, but if your butter is really soft, the dough is easy to make by hand with a sturdy rubber spatula. Beat the butter, nori, and salt together in a bowl until smooth and creamy. Beat in the sugar, then the egg yolk. Stir in the olive oil, then mix in the flour. When the dough is smooth, stop; you don't want to overwork it.
    Divide the dough in half and roll each half into a slender log about 8 inches long. Wrap the logs tightly in plastic wrap and chill them for at least 1 hour, or for up to 5 days.
    When you're ready to bake the sablés, center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
    Working with 1 log at a time, slice the cookies on the scant side of ¼ inch (as David says) and arrange them on the baking sheet—you want to bake these one sheet at a time. If you'd like, sprinkle a couple of grains of salt over the top of each cookie.
    Bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes, or until they are slightly firm but not colored. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool, and repeat with the second log.
     
    MAKES ABOUT 70 COOKIES
     
    SERVING
These can be served with red wine, but they're particularly good with white and sparkling wines that are not very dry.
     
    STORING
The logs of dough can be kept tightly wrapped in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 2 months. You can slice and bake the sablés straight from the freezer—there's no need to defrost the logs—but you might need to bake the cookies an extra minute. Seaweed sablés are best the day they are made, but they can be stored overnight in an airtight container.

Mustard Bâtons
    L IKE ANNE LEBLANC'S STARTLINGLY SIMPLE AVOCADO with pistachio oil ( [>] ), mustard batons are proof that it doesn't take much to make something great tasting, and good looking too. I'm embarrassed to admit that I resisted this recipe for years. No fewer than three friends told me I had to try it, but looking at the ingredient list—puff pastry, Dijon mustard, and an egg for the glaze—I just couldn't drum up the enthusiasm to bake a batch. It wasn't until I was at a party in Paris and tasted the slender strips that I ran home and made them myself. They're a terrific hors d'oeuvre and they're make-aheadable. The only caveat is to make sure your mustard packs some punch—these are best when the mustard is strong. The photo is on [>] .
2
sheets frozen puff pastry (each about 8½ ounces), thawed
All-purpose flour, for rolling
½
cup Dijon mustard
1
large egg
Poppy seeds, for topping (optional)
    Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Have a ruler and a pizza cutter (or sharp knife) at hand.
    Working with