Using HEART OF PALM in your cooking

Have you ever tried heart of palm? This is what grows inside certain types of palm trees like the açaí palm. You know, açaí the little red fruit that's all the rage in the U.S right now in energy drinks? Well the palm tree that produces the yummy little red fruit also produces this white delicious soft heart of palm. It tastes a bit like artichoke. I like using it in my cooking but don't get the chance to as much as I would like because it's fairly expensive and hard to find. So why am I encouraging you to use it in your cooking? well basically because whenever I do I realize that it's worth the price and the effort to find it so I think you should try it out.


Spinach and heart of palm crepe with brie cheese
I'm usually too chicken to make up my own recipes but this one I am proud of.



crepe (my grandma's recipe)

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs

1. blend everything in the blender until there are no lumps
2. Heat a lightly oiled frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the pan, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.

spinach and heart of palm filling with brie

• 5 cups spinach
• 1 can or jar heart of palm (rinse it out and dice it before you use)
• 1 small onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• mushrooms (optional)
• 1/2 cup dices brie cheese
  

1. sautée the diced onion and minced garlic
2. add the spinach and stir occasionally
3. when the spinach is cooked add about 1 cup dices mushrooms and the diced heart of palm
4. take off the heat and stir in the brie cheese

White sauce
(this is also my own creation. someone complained once that it's too cheesey. Modify it as you like or use your own favorite white sauce recipe)

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 1 cube chicken bouillon
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1. heat 1/2 cup milk and the butter until the butter is completely melted
2. in a cup mix the other 1/2 cup of milk and the corn starch until it is totally smooth. Corn starch lumps are nasty, trust me!
3. add the corn starch mixture to the butter mixture and the chicken bouillon. Stir constantly on LOW until it begins to thicken.
4. take off the heat and add the Parmesan cheese
   

assembling the crepe

1. put about 1-2 heaping spoonfuls of spinach filling inside each crepe and roll it up.
2. assemble it in a casserole pan.
3. after all the crepes are rolled pour the white sauce over the crepes
4. I added fresh Romano cheese on top
5. bake on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes.