When Pim suggested we food bloggers try and raise some funds for the tsunami relief effort, her idea was that we would jointly create a twelve course menu of Southeast Asian inspiration, complete with recipes, drink pairings and translations. It is not my habit to let the big bad thnigs of the world take up too much space on C&Z (I think of it as a sheltered little place and I don’t think anyone comes here to know about my political opinions), but this is a highly worthy cause and I loved Pim’s idea.

In creating this Menu For Hope and posting it on our blogs today, we would like to invite all of our readers to donate something, however small, to the charity we have chosen to support: Unicef. The media will likely loose all interest in this catastrophe very soon, but of course (and you don’t need me to tell you that) the people who have lost everything can still use our help.

The full menu (with links to all other recipes) can be found here.

I volunteered to create an appetizer, and promptly started to chip my nailpolish with worry. Although I enjoy Asian food very much when I eat out, I know very little about cooking it myself: I have just a tiny bit of humble experience with Japanese cooking, but none whatsoever when it comes to Southeast Asian gastronomy.

I thus make no claim as to the authenticity of my mini summer rolls — can I just call them fusion and run with it? But what I can certainly vouch for is their delicious taste and pretty presentation. Filled with aromatic components (mushrooms, coriander, basil, peanut, shrimp), they have a very clean, very fresh taste, beautifully complemented by the dipping sauce.

They were also a lot of fun to make, if a little tricky because of the rolling skills they required: interestingly enough, my first rolls were almost perfect, but after two or three I started thinking about the technique too much and I suddenly had much more trouble getting them to look right. So my advice to you is: tell that left brain to shut up while you roll!

They will make fabulous finger food (as generally observed, boys will cram them in their mouths in one swift bite, girls in two or three dainty ones), but since they are somewhat time-consuming to prepare, I would avoid making them for too big a party unless a) you’re the fastest roll-roller in the universe or b) you can enroll fellow rollers to help you out. And of course, you could also roll them in larger rice-paper rounds (but that would take out the “mini” in “mini summer rolls”).

As for your donation, click on the button above to get to the Just Giving website that was set up for the occasion (Just Giving is a trusted service for online fund-raising). And remember, give as little or as much as you can afford, every coin helps. Thank you!

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And today, I’d like to invite you to hop on over to NPR.org for my new Kitchen Window column! What you will find this time is a recipe for an Artichoke and Goat-Cheese Mille-Feuille — a tasty, fun-to-make and elegant starter for your next dinner party…

Have you tried this? Share your pics on Instagram!

Please tag your pictures with #cnzrecipes. I'll share my favorites!

(Previous Kitchen Window pieces:
– Asparagus Confit with Almonds and Rosemary,
– Chocolate and Candied Ginger Tartlets.)

Salade de Concombre au Crabe

Paris went through a miniature heatwave last week — it certainly felt nice to take the skirts, tank tops and strappy sandals out of their winter residence — and lunchtime on Saturday found me craving for something easy and fresh.

I slipped on my creative goggles and took another look through the contents of the fridge. A cucumber salad was quickly envisioned, and I decided to finally use one of the crab meat cans I’d bought many moons ago to make crab cakes (and never did).

The refrigerator was in dire need of replenishing, not exactly empty but certainly devoid of exciting things. I considered going out to buy a few things, but quickly decided against it. Midday is the worst time to be out running food errands, as the stores then are crowded with hungry people whose very hunger makes them impatient and crabby — or maybe it’s just me.

So. I slipped on my creative goggles and took another look through the contents of the fridge. A cucumber salad was quickly envisioned, and I decided to finally — finally! — use one of the crab meat cans I had bought many moons ago to make crab cakes and never did. Thankfully those things keep for zillions of moons so they were still fresh as a bud, if a little dusty.

The resulting salad turned out to be exactly what we needed — super easy to make, fresh and zingy, and lovely to look at, too, with its soft green soft pink accents.

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Photography by cmiper

Well, it looks like Maxence and I will be spending a few days in New York City this June — my excitement can barely be contained. I have long wanted to return to this city, which I visited just once when I was 15.

Ten years later, I have read a lot more books and articles and restaurant reviews and blogs, I have seen a lot more movies (not to mention episodes of Sex and the City), and I feel I have an infinity of things to discover, see, hear, experience — and more importantly, taste.

So. Plane tickets, check. Hotel room, check. Guidebook, check. I have a few things in mind and a lot of reading up to do in the archives of NYC food bloggers, but I would also like to turn to you, readers of C&Z, for advice!

If you were me — more interested in exploring the streets than visiting museums, thirsty for the quirky and the authentic, and undeniably tastebud-driven — what would you do, where would you go, what would you eat, what would you absolutely not want to miss?

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Update: Oh wow, what a response! I knew I could count on you, many thanks for the terrific suggestions. It will probably take me a dozen more trips to cover them all, but I will take your good advice with me and try to make the most of my stay. It certainly seems like I won’t go hungry!