Boursin’s story began in 1957, in a small Normandy village, located in France, when cheese maker François Boursin set up a factory producing soft cheese. At that time, he had no idea his name would become internationally famous.
Boursin Garlic & Herbs was launched in 1963 and quickly became a household name across France. Sixty years later, the original recipe remains unchanged and food lovers in more than 35 countries have spread their passion for Boursin all around the world. Perfect on bread, as appetizers or in a creamy sauce for main or side dishes. Since 2011, Boursin has been made in Canada in St. Hyacinthe, Québec, by Agropur, the Canadian dairy co-operative, for Bel Cheese Canada, the Canadian arm of Bel Group, the France-based multinational.
There are seven flavors of Boursin Cheese sold in Canada: Garlic & Fine Herbs, Shallot & Chive, Bouquet of Basil & Chive, Cranberry & Pepper, Cracked Black Pepper, Fig & Balsamic, Apple & Maple.
Boursin is sometimes dubbed a Gournay cheese, Gournay being the name of the region in Normandy where Boursin was first made. The cheesemaker used the name when he was first asked to classify the cheese for customs purposes.
Today, I’m making a simple little dessert using some crescent dough with some Apple Maple Boursin. The apple flavor and the silkiness of maple syrup perfectly complement Boursin’s incomparable texture along with some apples, dates and pepita seeds. The whole combination creates an exceptional sweet and savory cheese pairing with minimal effort.
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Apple Maple Boursin Crescents
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Instructions
Filling
In a saucepan, melt butter. Add prepared apples & sauté until they start to soften, about 10 minutes. Add spices, honey & dates. Combine & cook for another minute. Remove from heat & allow to cool to lukewarm.
Topping
In a small dish combine pepitas, sugar & cinnamon. Set aside.
Pastry
In a medium bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder & salt. With a pastry blender, cut in cream cheese & shortening until mixture resembles coarse peas. Stir in milk. On a lightly floured work surface, knead dough gently 20 times.
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Roll out dough into a 12 X 8-INCH rectangle. Cut into 8 triangles. Crumble Boursin in a dish then divide into 8 equal portions.
Top each triangle with a portion of the Boursin. Divide apple filling into 8 equal amounts then top each triangle with a portion of apple filling.
Roll each triangle up 'croissant" style. Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Combine egg & water to make egg wash & brush some over each roll. Sprinkle with prepared topping.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven & place on a wire rack to cool.
Recipe Notes
• Alternately you could use refrigerated crescent rolls to speed up the process if you wish.
CELEBRATING ST. PATRICK’S DAY!
The term ‘green food’ can mean several things. More and more households are ‘going green’ with their menus, buying food from sustainable local sources. People who are ‘eating greener’ include those who grow their own food and compost all their waste to those who simply take a re-useable bag to the supermarket. Most of us are interested in making decisions that are better for the environment.
Others immediately think ‘green vegetables’. Then of course there are those who, especially at this time of year, may think of the color green and foods with which to celebrate St Patrick’s Day. There is so much you could do with this holiday in terms of food such as rainbows, leprechauns, shamrocks, pot of gold ………
In North America, St. Patrick’s Day is pretty much just a fun day here. Green food has been getting more and more ‘creative’ on this particular holiday. For the most part, it’s an excuse to party and drink some green beer.
In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, I wanted to incorporate some ‘green’ food into our day. I decided on some ‘magic’ sunflower seed cookies. These cookies are quite unique in that when you use sunflower butter combined with baking soda in the batter the bread turns green. The green color is a harmless result of natural chemical reactions and doesn’t affect the taste or safety of the cookies.
Sunflower seed butter, often called Sunbutter, naturally turns green when these two ingredients meet during baking. The alkaline baking soda interacts with the acidic chlorogenic acid, producing a green pigment called chlorophyllin. This reaction intensifies as the cookies cool down, leading to the characteristic green hue.
Nevertheless, I thought it was a fun way to put a different twist on today’s green celebrations.
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Green Sunflower Seed Cookies
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Instructions
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Mix everything together in one bowl until well combined.
Scoop the dough, roll in seeds & place onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. This amount will make 12 large balls or 15 small ones.
Bake 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven & cool on wire rack.
Recipe Notes
- It's definitely very important to use baking soda and make sure to mix the batter adequately to disperse the baking soda fully, otherwise the chemical reaction that produces the green color won't happen. It also needs to sit for a few minutes after baking. Some brands (or even jars) of sunflower butter do work better than others, whether it has to do with freshness, added ingredients, or what. It's the secret ingredient to the green color - any other nut butter will just be brown! Look for a jar with as few additives as possible.
Back in the later part of August (2019), I had made some buns using Teff flour that my neighbor had shared with me. We had really enjoyed them so this is my next adventure using this unique flour.
Just a bit of history — officially the world’s smallest grain, teff is only about the size of a poppy seed. It’s origin is thought to be Ethiopia and Eritrea, where it’s ability to grow in harsh conditions has made it a staple grain of these cultures.
Teff flour is high in protein, iron, calcium and it contains all 8 essential amino acids. This is due to the fact the tiny grains are so small, when they are milled, the hull is left intact rather than removed.
Teff is rich tasting and very versatile, lending a subtle nuttiness and mild molasses-like sweetness to any baked good. Teff grain and flour are good alternatives to wheat, barley and rye for those on a gluten-free diet.
These muffins are an interesting combination of flavors well worth a try.
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Pumpkin Hazelnut Muffins with Teff Flour
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Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the hot water & ground chia to form a slurry. Add the remaining wet ingredients & beat together using an electric mixer. Pour the wet into the dry & whisk together. Spoon into muffin cups.
Bake about 30 minutes or until test done. Remove from oven & pan; cool on a wire rack.
When I think back over the years, I have many fond memories of picnics. For the most part, picnics differ from barbecues in that the food is usually served cold. They can be large or small events with the food varying from a simple sandwich or pot luck to an elegant gourmet feast. In any case, it’s a fact that dining ‘al fresco’ makes food taste so much better.
Having been raised in rural Alberta, Canada a community summer picnic was always a special event. It would be held at a one of the ‘country schools’ in our farming community. The men would play a game called ‘horseshoe’ while they visited. This game involved throwing metal horseshoes a set distance to land over a metal peg that had been pounded in the ground. Each family would bring a contribution to the picnic food. The women would set up this wonderful feast on picnic tables at lunch time. The kids ‘mingled’, chased around, drank kool-aid and loved every minute of it. The variety of pot luck meals the women would bring made it so special.
Later on in my life, I recall a few other picnic memories that are precious to me. One occasion when Brion and I were staying in Carmel, California, USA. Just outside Carmel is the Point Lobos State Reserve. It runs adjacent to the beautiful Pacific ocean. Numerous times we would pick up a sandwich with a juice/pop and spend the afternoon walking the beach and enjoy our ‘picnic’ lunch there. Another time we were staying further down the California coast and decided to take a wine country tour. The tour was with a company called Wine Affair. You were picked up at your hotel and it lasted about 5 1/2 hours. It was very personal with only one other couple, ourselves, and the driver/guide. He took us on a scenic drive through the Paso Robles wine country. We enjoyed breathtaking views of the countryside with it’s beautiful vineyards as well as wine tasting at six different wineries. At lunch time we arrived at a estate winery called Summerwood (which I have show cased in my blog photos). Here our guide took us to a lovely patio setting overlooking the estate vineyards. He then laid out an amazing gourmet ‘picnic’ lunch for the four of us to enjoy. What’s not to love about picnics!
Over the next few blogs, I thought it would be fun to create four picnic menus that maybe would inspire some summer picnic ideas. Some of the recipes I have featured in earlier blogs and a few new ones I’ve added.
The first one includes Easy Pork Short Ribs, Picnic Oven Fried Chicken (from the April 11/16 blog), Potato Salad (from June 9/16 blog) Oriental Rice Salad, and Easy Individual Fruit Pizzas.
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Summer Picnics - Part One
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Ingredients
Easy Individual Fruit Pizzas
Ingredients
Easy Individual Fruit Pizzas
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Instructions
Easy Pork Short Ribs
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Remove any fat & cut ribs into serving size pieces; place in a large resealable plastic bag. In a small bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients; pour over ribs. Seal bag & turn to coat; Refrigerate for several hours, turning bag occasionally.
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Preheat oven to 350 F. Place a large piece of foil paper on a baking tray. Make 'temporary' sides on sheet of foil paper. Lay ribs in the center & pour marinade over them. Bring up two edges over center & fold down twice. Fold in side edges, allowing a each to have a small 'air vent'. Bake for 1 1/4 hours or until meat is tender. Remove ribs to a platter to cool. Ribs will be a great served cold with the rest of your picnic menu.
Oriental Rice Salad
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To cold, cooked rice add peas, celery, onion & water chestnuts. Combine with salad dressing & refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Toss with chow mein noodles shortly before serving time.
Easy Individual Fruit Pizzas
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In a small bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar & orange zest until smooth. Beat in 1/2 cup strawberries until well blended. Spread 2 Tbsp on one side of each rice cake. Arrange prepared fresh fruit on top of strawberry cream cheese in patterns of your choice.
Recipe Notes
- This recipe for Oriental Rice Salad I had been given by a friend in 1988. She had made it with a dressing which contained curry. I have never enjoyed the flavor of curry so I have been using other dressing ideas. Being such a simple salad it will lend itself easily to other choices.
