My career in food began 20 years ago, when I volunteered to assist with cooking classes at Sur la Table. It was just a few classes here and there based on my interests, which I already knew was baking at that point. One of the recipes I remember to this day is this heirloom tomato tart. I can still recall my reaction I had when I ate it. Absolutely delicious. Flaky crust, subtle tartness from the Dijon mustard and the juiciest tomatoes. This is my take on the savory tart.
I took a two-hour train ride from Paris to Beaune, a town is situated in the wine-making region of Burgundy. I made the weekend trip to take a day-long cooking class at The Cooks Atelier. The charming school is run by mother-daughter team Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini. There’s a wine shop on the ground floor, kitchen on the second and dining area on the third. It’s a truly idyllic place and I had so much fun prepping and eating a menu of French classics. One of my favorite dishes was the comforting, savory cheese soufflé.
I know what you’re thinking… LEFTOVER croissants? Who has those? Well, bakeries sometimes do at the end of the day, and typically, they use the leftover croissants to make almond croissants. A pretty spectacular round 2 bake, in my opinion. I opted to do a savory twice bake, inspired by the ham and cheese croissant, my favorite morning bakery treat.
These cheddar and scallion biscuits were one of my favorite bakes during the pandemic. The recipe comes from Chef Mei Lin. I cheered her on as she won her season of Top Chef and I’ve been fortunate enough to have met her for work and when I’ve traveled to LA. You must try the cod fish sando at her casual Chinese eatery, daybird in Silverlake. It’s a gourmet filet o’ fish and it’s amazing. Now that you’ve got a food rec, back to biscuits!
She posted about the cheddar and scallion biscuits on Instagram, and I was immediately mesmerized by the gorgeous cross-section. My first batch got turned out decently but the biscuits were a bit lopsided, so after troubleshooting with Mei and getting some great tips that I’ve shared below, my second batch was fantastic. That’s the photo above. Hope you love them as much as I do.
