Beurre blanc sauce

Greek Pesto

You may already know the pesto, this delicious Italian sauce, well here is the Greek variation of the thing: the basil is accompanied by thyme and oregano, and the Parmesan replaced by feta cheese. Greek flavors, but in an Italian spirit, a true European recipe.

How to cook bacon and remove excess fat

To prevent excess fat in a recipe using bacon, you can "blanch" it before use, leaving most of the fat in the pan with the water.

French baguettes

This classic of French baking is rather different from the recipe for leavened bread, it's a question of making a good crust and light crumb along the whole length. To succeed, you should know that there are two secrets: water first of all (much more than for normal bread), and the working of the dough, which is also very different.

How to heat plates

In restaurants serving "à l'assiette", wich means that your dish is presented already served on a plate, it's very important for the plates to be hot, otherwise dishes arrive cold and it's the customer that (rightly) becomes heated. At home it's worth doing the same thing: you are sure to serve hot dishes to your guests, and as a hot plate can wait longer than a cold one, it can sometimes help to avoid panic in the kitchen at serving time. Here are some simple ways to heat your plates.

Crispy spinach rolls

These are rolls of brik pastry (or filo), filled with a mixture of spinach, hard-boiled eggs, bacon and onions. They are served here accompanied by rice with cashew nuts.