The Little Paris Kitchen Read Online Free Page B

freshness and crunch from the zucchini and peppers.
    SERVES 4 AS A SIDE DISH OR STARTER
    â€¢ 1 clove of garlic, crushed to a paste • 1 onion, finely chopped • 1 sprig of thyme, leaves only • 3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling • 1 eggplant, thinly sliced * • 1 zucchini, thinly sliced * • 1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced • 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced • 6 tomatoes, cut into quarters • a pinch of sugar • salt
    Preheat the oven to 350°F. Gently fry the garlic, onion, and thyme leaves in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Once the onion is translucent and soft, add the eggplant and continue to cook until soft (roughly 5 minutes).
    Toss the remaining vegetables in a large roasting pan with another tablespoon of olive oil. Add the cooked onion and eggplant and mix together.
    Cover the roasting pan with aluminum foil (making sure the foil doesn’t touch the vegetables) or with parchment paper. Bake for an hour, then stir the vegetables a little and add the sugar. Taste for salt. Set under a hot broiler for 3–4 minutes or until the top layer of vegetables is caramelized around the edges. Drizzle with olive oil and serve warm, or cold the next day.
    * A mandoline makes an easy job of cutting vegetables into thin slices.
    Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 1 ¼ hours

Lapin croustillant à la moutarde de Meaux
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Crispy rabbit with Meaux mustard

    It was the Romans who introduced mustard seeds to the Gauls; and by the ninth century, monasteries all over France were making money from selling mustard. The stone quarries in the Meaux region provided the millstones to grind the mustard seeds, turning the area into one of the top French mustard producers, and yet moutarde de Meaux is probably less well known than its southern relative—the spicy yellow mustard from Dijon.
    Unlike Dijon mustard, which is creamy, the grains in the traditional mustard from Meaux are only partially ground, giving it a crunch that makes a great crispy crust when combined with breadcrumbs.
    SERVES 4 AS A MAIN COURSE
    â€¢ 2 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil • 4 rabbit legs * • 4 heaped tbsp Meaux mustard or another grainy mustard • ½ to 1 cup breadcrumbs (fresh or dried)
    Preheat the oven to 400°F. Swirl the oil around a baking sheet and place in the oven to get hot.
    Meanwhile, brush the rabbit legs with plenty of mustard and then press the breadcrumbs onto the mustard to coat the rabbit evenly.
    Place the rabbit legs on the hot baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes or until cooked through. The juices should run clear, not red or pink, when a thick part of the flesh is pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Serve hot.
    * Chicken legs are also good cooked this way.
    Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes

Moules marinières
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Mussels with white wine

    There’s not much you need to make moules marinières . Add a splash of white wine to some softened onion, throw in the mussels, and finish with a dollop of crème fraîche and some crusty bread—that’s more or less it. Who said French food was complicated?
    SERVES 4 AS A STARTER OR 2 AS A MAIN COURSE
    â€¢ 4 lb mussels • 1 onion, thinly sliced • 1 bulb of fennel, thinly sliced * • 1 tbsp butter • 1 bay leaf • 2 sprigs of thyme or a pinch of dried thyme • ⅔ cup dry white wine • ⅔ cup crème fraîche • a handful of chopped parsley
    Clean the mussels using plenty of cold water. Pull out the fibrous beards and scrub off any barnacles. Toss any that have cracked or broken shells, or that do not close when lightly squeezed.
    In a large pot (big enough to hold all the mussels with some extra room to spare), soften the onion and fennel over a low heat with the butter, bay leaf, and thyme. When the onion and fennel are soft and translucent, add the wine followed by the cleaned mussels. Increase