Terrine or Galantine.... it doesn't matter what you call it, it's fantastic!

Hold on, don't freak out on me thinking: "there she goes again, making crazy food that takes forever to make and it's hard and complicated..", not at all.... it does sound fancy and complicated yet it need not be and I'll show you how. It doesn't take any longer to make than other food and it's actually quite practical since you make it in advance and it's there, waiting for you until you're ready. It's lovely, flavorful, can be made of almost anything, leftovers can be taken advantage of and it looks amazing!

Yes, the French are responsible for it but this doesn't mean it's crazy or hard. It does mean it tastes great and is visually stunning (which is a big deal for me as I like to eat with my eyes first) but it's so flexible, you can please anyone's palate just by being creative and choosing the right ingredients, and no, you don't need to use fancy, imported and expensive ingredients either.....

Okay, you're still with me? Very good! First, I'll tell you what you need. A loaf pan (thin is best but use what you have), or some sort of pan or pot (like the one for a skinny meat loaf, which is kind of a terrine too), which you will cover with plastic wrap leaving 4-6 inches of overhand on all the sides. This will make wrapping and taking it out a snap. Depending on the ingredients you might need another, bigger pan, to use as a water bath or bain marie, to cook it. Just make sure your first pan fits well and there's some room around it to put about 2 inches of water.

Now comes the only hard part: deciding what kind of terrine you want to make. There are so many possibilities and this is such a flexible preparation that this is where it gets hard, just deciding on what to put in it. Maybe you went fishing and have fish, use that. Chicken is great but then so is pork or any meat. Forcemeat is amazing (ground up meat with some fat in it, kind of like the meat used in meat loaf or sausage and can be any kind here too), but then so are vegetables of any kind, roasted, blanched, raw..... Cheese is good, make a spread or salad and use as a filling or just layer different items and create lovely a color combination, there are no rules here and your goal is for it to look lovely and taste amazing!

It also doesn't matter what your eating style is, whether you're vegetarian, lacto-ovo, a meat lover or a fish/shellfish follower- it's all possible. You want a cold salad course or how about a heavy duty fancy supper entree... possible too. You can have it "as is" or have a nice vinaigrette to pour over top or maybe kick it up by having a heavy sauce for it, all this is ok. You see? This is what I said before, the problem is deciding what to make! Here are some suggestions:

Roasted Vegetable Terrine.- I roasted the veggies to bring out more flavor and because this is my preferred method. This is wonderful!

Line your pan with plastic wrap like I mentioned before. you might want to spray it with non-stick spray first (for better cling) or water, this will make removing the terrine much easier.
Have all your selected vegetables on hand. Decide if you will have a free standing one or a wrapped terrine. If you wrap it, you can use lettuce (all kinds), romaine, swiss chard, spinach, leeks, beet greens, zucchini slices, basil leaves, you get the idea. These can be blanched in boiling water for 10-20 seconds then shocked in ice water to conserve their color. Also, cut the hard ribs off and don't worry if they tear a little, you will overlap them so it won't be noticeable anyway. You can also mix and match to create color patterns.

Any hardier vegetables will need to be roasted, blanched or braised so they are tender to eat. But not too much, you don't want mush. You could place them in a sheet pan, drizzle olive oil, salt & pepper over them and broil in the oven on cook on the grill; you could also cook them in a cast-iron pan or use a stove-top grill to get char marks on them if you like.

Here's a basic shopping list:
2 red bell peppers, quartered and seeded
2 yellow bell peppers, quartered and seeded
1 large eggplant, thinly sliced length ways
2 large zucchini, thinly sliced length ways
6 tbl olive oil
1 large red onion, chopped
1/2 cup raisins
1 tbl tomato paste
1 tbl red wine vinegar
1 1/3 cups tomato juice
2 tbl powdered gelatin
fresh basil leaves for garnish
For The Dressing:
6 tbl olive oil
2 tbl red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Brush the peppers with some olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill or broil the peppers, until the skins are blackened. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a plate or in a plastic bag. Let cool. When cooled, peel the skin off the peppers.

Arrange the slices of eggplant and zucchini on the grill, or place them on a baking sheet under the broiler. Brush them with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill or broil, turning occasionally, until they are tender and golden brown. Heat the remaining olive oil in a frying pan and cook the red onion, raisins, tomato paste and red wine vinegar over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is soft and the onion is cooked down quite a bit. Set aside to cool.

Line a terrine pan, or a loaf pan with clear plastic wrap, such that the wrap overhangs the sides of the container. The clear wrap will stick to the sides easier if you spray the pan with a little water first. Pour the tomato juice into a pan and sprinkle with the gelatin. Leave for 5 minutes to soften, then dissolve gently over a low heat, whisking to prevent any lumps from forming. Place half of the grilled (broiled) peppers in the base of the terrine(you can interchange the colors of peppers while layering). Pour in enough of the tomato juice with gelatin to cover them.

Next layer half of the eggplants covered with more tomato juice, then half of the zucchini with tomato juice. Place all the red onions on top of the zucchini layer and cover with tomato juice. This is the center of the terrine. Repeat the layers of eggplant and zucchini one more time, pouring tomato juice over each layer. Finish with the other half of bell peppers. Pour the remaining tomato juice into the terrine and tap hard a couple times to disperse the juice evenly. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours, or until set.

To make the dressing, whisk together the oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Turn out the terrine onto a large platter. Remove the clear film. Serve in thick slices, drizzled with dressing and garnished with chopped basil. Use a serrated knife to cut, seems to work better.

You could also make a layer of goat cheese mixed with spinach or basil if you like. If you don't like goat cheese you could use cream cheese or any creamy cheese, feta or your choice to give more flavor patterns to this. Mix and match vegetables, use your favorites. If you don't want to use gelatin you can use agar agar instead or whatever you prefer. I like to make a roasted red pepper sauce (roast the peppers and put them in the blender with a little sour cream or stock) and use it as a finishing touch.....
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Here go the definitions: Pate: Is a mixture of ground meat and fat minced into a spreadable paste. Terrine: A Terrine is a French forcemeat (like sausage, ground up meat) loaf that is served at room temperature. Similar to a pâté, a terrine uses more coarsely chopped ingredients. A Galantine, is a French dish of de-boned stuffed meat, most commonly poultry or fish, that is poached and served cold, coated with aspic. Galantines are often stuffed with forcemeat, and pressed into a cylindrical shape. A Mousseline, is a dish based on meat, fish, shellfish or foie gras (Goose liver, usually puréed) to which whipped cream or, less frequently, beaten egg whites are added to lighten the texture by incorporating air bubbles. "Mousseline" is a derivative of mousse.

So, similar yet different. They all sound complicated and hard to make yet they are not. They do involve preparation and work but that's about it. If you're into it, this makes a great weekend project which will render very satisfying results. Plus, when it's cut, the patterns that you make can be nothing short of amazing. We've all heard of "Turduckens" right? The Cornish Hen stuffed into a Duck which is then stuffed into a Turkey- they're all de-boned and stuffed as well. This is a prime example of a Galantine. Like I said, meat loaf can be classified as a "terrine" as are sausages, so not so strange after all, right?

I think you can imagine that all these can be made out of almost anything you can think of, from items suitable to even the strictest vegetarians to the most decadent ingredients found on this planet. Chicken, Duck, Pork, Beef, Salmon, Lobster, Scallops, etc. it's all applicable in any shape or form and can be suited to any course within your meal. These make wonderful first courses: a cold smoked salmon stuffed with a prepared cream cheese and horseradish spread served on Boston Bib lettuce leaves and finished with a flavored vinaigrette. Or how about turning it into a main dish with a Lobster or Scallop Gallantine with a Roasted Pepper Sauce or even as a side dish for any meal. You've got some leftover chicken or turkey, grind it and spice it up, add some cream or mayo and turn it into a dry salad and use this, get some veggies to put inside and decide to use some leeks or lettuce leaves as a covering and you're ready to begin. Just think of the possibilities.... You can even use chocolate, nuts and fruits for a dessert course too!

Chocolate, Brittle and Raspberry Dessert Terrine.- Perfect for Valentine's Day or any day for that matter.... try it and you too will be convinced!

1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup sliced almonds
8 ounces quality dark chocolate
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 eggs (at room temperature)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 cups fresh (or frozen and thawed) raspberries

Prepare a 6 cup terrine dish by lining it with plastic wrap. You can also use individual ramekins and sprinkle them with cocoa powder once finished and powdered sugar.

Make the almond brittle by melting the 1/2 cup sugar in a small sauce pan on low heat. Swirl the pan every once in a while, but don't stir the sugar as it melts and turns brown. As soon as all the sugar is completely dissolved, remove from the heat and stir in the almonds. Immediately pour and spread the mixture onto a Silpat or similar non-stick surface. Allow to cool to room temperature, then use a rolling pin to break the brittle into small pieces.

As the almonds are cooling, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. When it has melted, stir in the butter, one tablespoon at a time, then remove from heat. Meanwhile, separate the eggs into two large mixing bowls. Beat the egg whites until stiff and set aside. Beat the yolks with the 3 tablespoons of sugar until light colored and fluffy - about 2 minutes. Stir the melted chocolate and butter into the egg yolks and sugar. Stir just until blended. Gently fold in the egg whites just until combined. Pour 1/2 of the chocolate mousse into the prepared terrine dish. Layer with the raspberries, then the candied almonds. Top with the remaining mousse. Cover with plastic wrap and place a weight on top, then refrigerate for 12 hours or overnight. To serve, you can turn the terrine out onto a serving dish and slice, or just scoop from the terrine dish.
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Please let me know how your projects come out or if you have any problems. I hope you will try some of these as they are really worth incorporating into your culinary repertoire and once you sew how great they are as well as practical, more and more ideas will come to you. Also, keep in mind how these will look when they are cut/served or as one of my Chef Instructors told me first thing: "Cook with the results in mind"..... this will help you "design" the colors and flavors.

Wishing everyone a lovely Valentine's Day full of bubbly, great food and aromas and of course, chocolate! Take care and talk soon.....