My Favorite French Dishes

I know you've heard it before, but it is true...you simply cannot think of France and not think of the food.
Also, you most definitely cannot live in France and not become obsessed with food, and with finding the best that is available, both locally and regionally.

The most heavenly fromage de chèvre. The firmest, most perfect asparagus. The crispiest baguette. The fruitiest olive oil. The butcher with the best cuts of meat. The richest farm eggs. The sweetest apricots, melons and cherries. The juiciest magret de canard. The flakiest croissants. The charcuterie with the most flavorful sausages.

France is a paradise for food lovers.


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Trying Something Different - Savory Carrot and Topinambour Clafoutis

A love affair has blossomed. Between me and a humble tuber.

The topinambour.

After many winters of eying them at the market, I finally broke down and bought a half a kilo of these knobby, funny looking vegetables. Their strange appearance, like a bloated, rosy pink ginger root, has always intrigued me, but they have a bad reputation that made me keep my distance.

Our French friends all detest topinambours, also known as sunchokes or Jersualem artichokes. As they tell it, during WWII many of their parents or grandparents were forced to subsist on them when food was scarce, leaving a negative association of poverty and suffering, which they have since passed on to the subsequent generations.
Other friends admitted to being plagued by flatulence after eating topinambours. Charming.


Curiosity won in the end.

And I am so glad that it did. Topinambours have a wonderful, distinctive flavor that reminded me of sweet, nutty artichoke hearts, which I absolutely love.


So, these alien things sat in my kitchen for a few days until I finally decided what to do with them. Soups, salads and sautés were popular answers to searches for "Jerusalem artichoke recipes" or "recettes topinambours."
Then I saw Clafoutis de Carottes et Topinambours on a French blog, Dans la Cuisine d'Audinette, and was intrigued.


Intrigued enough to fiddle with the recipe a bit and voilà, my adapted version.

Savory Carrot and Topinambour Clafoutis
serves 6-8

• 3 large carrots
• 5 big topinambours
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
  

Peel the carrots and the topinambours and cut into rounds about ¼-inch thick.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the vegetables until tender when pierced with a knife, about 12-14 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, heavy cream, milk and thyme leaves together in a bowl.
Butter a medium sized gratin dish and scatter the carrots and topinambours over the bottom.
Pour the egg and cream mixture over the vegetables and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese and some salt over the top. Grind some black pepper over.
Bake in the center of the oven until the egg mixture is set and the top is golden, about 30 minutes.

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Apricot Clafoutis

A Clafoutis is a luscious fruit and custard dessert that I make all year around, either with fresh, seasonal fruit or aromatic dried fruit. It is simple to throw together and is always appreciated!

(And if there is any left over, a cold slice out of the fridge is really good for breakfast).

In the autumn I love a clafoutis made with fresh pears, in the wintertime a combination of dried plums and raisins with Armagnac is amazing, in the height of summer the figs and peaches are delicious, sweet clafoutis ingredients and in the spring I use the ripest cherries and apricots I can find.



Apricot Clafoutis

12 ounces fresh apricots, pitted and cut in half
1 cup minus 2 tablespoons sifted flour
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups whole milk
3 large eggs
½ cup vanilla sugar*
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter, cut into 6 pieces

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees F.
Butter and lightly flour a 9½ inch round tart pan or baking dish with deep sides.
Place the apricots, cut side down, in the tart pan,
Combine the flour and the salt in a large bowl and whisk together.
Add 1 cup of the milk and whisk until completely smooth, then add the eggs, one by one, whisking briefly after each addition.
Whisk in the vanilla sugar, the vanilla extract and the remaining 1 cup of milk.
Pour the batter over the apricots and dot with the butter pieces.
Place in the center of the oven and bake for about 25 minutes, until puffed and golden brown.
Let cool completely before serving,

Serves 6-8

This recipe isn't overly sweet. I like the contrast of the tangy apricot with the sweet custard. If you enjoy a really sweet dessert then add a bit more sugar.

*vanilla sugar - place a cut vanilla bean and 2-3 cups of sugar in a glass, airtight container and let sit for a couple of weeks to infuse the sugar with flavor. Pin It

Photo du Jour - 24K Gold

Golden apricots ripening on the tree.

We're in the midst of Clafoutis Season. Also know as cherry and apricot season.

Apricots thrive in our Mediterranean climate of long, hot summers and cool, fairly wet winters. They ripen in early summer, just after the local cherries.


Here's a little tease...
the recipe will come tomorrow.

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