orange flower water

mins Cover the porcini with 500ml (18fl oz) of boiling water and soak for 20 minutes. Boil 1.2 litres (2 pints) of water in a pan with the stock cube. Strip the leaves from the bunch of thyme and chop the prunes. Add the polenta to the boiling water in a thin stream, beating until it thickens. Off the heat, stir in the thyme, prunes, salt and black pepper. Beat for three minutes, then tip out on to a chopping-board.

10-20 mins Peel, core and slice the apples and place in a pan with the juice of the lemon. Cook gently, covered, for ten minutes, then sieve into a bowl and cool. Chop all but six bits of Turkish delight and melt in a bowl with 3 tbsp water and the orange flower water over simmering water for 20 minutes.

20-30 mins Drain the porcini, reserving the water, and chop. Chop the onion and celery, and peel and crush the garlic; cook these gently in the butter, with the lemon thyme sprigs for five minutes then stir in the porcini and cook for ten more minutes. For the chicory dressing, squeeze the orange and lemon and whisk the juices with the extra-virgin olive oil. Season. Trim the chicory and put the leaves in a large serving bowl.

30-40 mins Thickly slice the artichokes and add to the pan with the stock and mushroom water. Season, bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes, until tender. Take off the heat, add the milk and cool for ten minutes. When the polenta has cooled and firmed up, cut into quarters then cut each into five thick slices. Brush a baking-sheet with oil and lay these slices on it in a single layer.

40-50 mins Purée the soup and sieve into a clean pan. Peel and chop the shallots and cut the pancetta into little lardons. Cut any membrane from the chicken livers. For the apple snow, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add the melted Turkish delight a spoon at a time, beating well. Stir in the apple purée and whisk until the mixture again forms soft peaks. Spoon into pretty glasses and chill. Heat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6.

50-60 mins Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in each of two frying-pans. Divide the chopped shallots between them and cook for two to three minutes until soft. Add the bacon and cook for a further five minutes until just crisp. Remove and set aside. Keep the pans. Chop the parsley finely. Lightly whip the cream to soft peaks and put a spoonful on top of each glass of apple snow. Chop the pistachios and set aside. While you eat the starter, bake the polenta for 20 minutes, until slightly crisp.

To serve Season the soup and bring back to the boil. Sprinkle each bowlful with parmesan. Whisk the dressing again, pour over the chicory and toss well. Season the chicken livers. Add ½ tbsp of oil and half of the butter to each pan and fry the livers on a moderate to high heat for 30 seconds to a minute a side so that they're brown outside but pink in the middle. Return half the shallot and bacon to each pan with the vinegar and boil rapidly. Place three slices of polenta on each plate, divide the liver mixture between them, sprinkle with parsley and serve. Top each glass of apple snow with a piece of Turkish delight, sprinkle with pistachios and serve with sponge fingers.

Recommended wines from Waitrose

Lori Doran of Flower Mound: The local tourist

What would be your itinerary for a trip to North Texas?


10:33 AM CST on Friday, November 30, 2007

My husband's company has a "Leadership Award" that rewards top performers with a get-away "all expenses paid" weekend to cities such as New York, San Francisco and, more recently, Vancouver. We just returned from a fun-filled trip to beautiful British Columbia.

One of the best parts about the award is that the company gives you $1,500 to "use or lose" for food and entertainment. This money is not available for such things as a shopping spree; you are encouraged to get out and do things that most people like us wouldn't otherwise do.

After all, we've got a kid in college and another headed there soon. Who can spend money on herself? To eat out at a fancy spot ... come on.

Having done this in New York City twice, we decided to try something new and explore Vancouver.

I spent several days reading accounts from past attendees about what they had liked, not liked or wished they had tried. I used the Internet to research theater options, restaurants, museums and possible ball games.

One activity that seemed very promising was whale watching.

My husband loves whales. He'd like to have a Wyland-designed coffee table, complete with a whale base, in our living room. Uhhh, no.

So, whale-watching we went. I like the water and thought it might be extraordinary to go sailing and spot a whale. I pictured nursing a good glass of chardonnay while pointing in the distance to whales frolicking in the bay. Uhhh, no. Sailboats cannot keep up with the whales, thus you need to be speeding through the water at 30 knots on an orange Zodiac boat.

It's very bumpy. Like spine-jarring bumpy. And you should have good hands, because you truly have to hold on for dear life. Otherwise you'll fly right out of the boat and only hope that an Orca will treat you like you're a trainer from SeaWorld, not like you're Jonah.

If you survive the trip to miles off the western Canadian coastline, you are rewarded with a spectacular experience. My, those whales are large. And graceful. And majestic. Can I just say: Wow!

The guide's stories of their lifestyle are fascinating. Did you know that when a matriarch dies (yes, the women are in charge of the pod), the younger females escort her out to sea, where she drifts off and is "buried" at the bottom. My husband noted with interest that whales come into the world the same way they go out. For childbirth, when the time is right, the females take the momma whale out to sea and help her through the process.

So all of this adventure got me to thinking – what would we, as North Texans, recommend to people from around the world if they had three and a half days in the metroplex with $1,500 to spend on food and entertainment?

There is no whale-watching here, but we have just as much to offer as many of those faraway places we often dream about visiting.

Of course, there are football, baseball, soccer, rodeos and whatnot. So there is pretty much a wide selection of sporting events from which to choose.

We have great dining options from barbecue to home cookin' (Babe's is our favorite). Good sushi, great steaks – just can't go wrong with the food. We can even take in some wineries in Grapevine and get a little water action – depending on the time of year.

The Tarantula Train is slow, but timeless, and you definitely get that "Old West" feel at the Stockyards in Fort Worth.

There's Six Flags and Hurricane Harbor – though not exactly romantic, but if you're from Brazil or Canada, that might be fun. Well, it's fun for everyone.

Before we moved to Texas, one of my favorite things to do on a visit to Dallas was to go to the Farmers Market. Sadly, now that it's only minutes away, I seldom find the time. Shopping is pretty darn good too. Who doesn't enjoy walking through Neiman Marcus – even if you can't buy anything?

Now that I think about it, there are tons of things to do. I bet if I spent a couple of days planning a trip to North Texas, I could come up with a whale of an agenda. How about you?


Lori Doran of Flower Mound is an attorney and part-time business