Making Marmalade with Vivian Lloyd

Vivien's handful of just picked bitter orange

Back in February when I told one of my foodie friends that marmalade expert Vivien Lloyd was paying me a visit, our conversation went something like this...

"Vivien Lloyd?" she asked, her voice rising with excitement.  "You mean THE Vivien Lloyd, the marmalade expert?"

"Yes, that Vivien Lloyd," I replied, cool as a cucumber.  "Do you know her?"

"Of course I do,"  "I have all her books," she replied. "You're kidding right?"

"No I'm not kidding," I countered.  "She'll be here for a few days during the Lemon Festival and we're going to make marmalade together."

"OMG!" she yelped, a note of envy in her voice.

OMG indeed!  I couldn't believe my luck.

Citron Carpaccio and a Change of Heart

Every spring, I go on a bit of a citrus binge at the local markets, buying up bergamots, kumquats, grapefruit and citron whenever I spot them followed by a leisurely afternoon in the kitchen making marmalade and jam.  I've been getting some interesting results with poaching citron peel so I'm always especially on the lookout for them.

Changing the Way we Start the Day

 
I don't know about you but of all the meals I prepare in a day, breakfast is usually the one stuck in a rut.

Same thing, same room, same time.  Yawn!

This morning I changed all that ... Instead of putting our morning fruit in a bowl or a plate, I made brochettes. I cut the fruit into pieces and impaled on sticks and put the brochettes into a vintage vase I had never used, sitting in a cupboard.

It was a small change, brochettes are nothing new.  it was quick to make and nothing elaborate but it was different and it started our day off with a laugh.

Sometimes it's all about taking a moment to rethink what you do all the time and making a small change that can open you up to larger ones.

Lemon Pudding with Fresh Almond Milk

I love lemons and always have, so it's lucky for me that we live just a short drive away from the pretty sea side town of Menton, France where some of the world's best lemons grow. 

But that's not all.

For the past 80 years, Menton has hosted a charming festival called,  La Fête du Citron.  It's pure heaven for a lemon lover like me.

To showcase the humble lemon, a team of workers create enormous, elaborate sculptures made from sturdy iron frames and chicken wire that they then cover with plump lemons and oranges using millions of thick, wide elastics.  These days, the lemons and oranges come from Spain since they're cheaper and more plentiful than the ones grown in Menton.  In all, they use about 120 metric tons to decorate the sculptures on display in the Jardin Biovès and to coat the parade floats that circle the downtown core a few times a week during the three week festival.

Everyone in Menton gets into the act.  The restaurants serve dishes with Mentonaise lemons, bakeries do a booming business in lemon tarts and the local market is filled with baskets of Menton's famous lemons for sale.

For years I've wondered what the town does with all those lemons and oranges when the festival is over and today I found out.  About 90% of them are still considered edible and are up for grabs for a Euro or two per kilo, about half the price of the fresh ones.  The day they disassemble the sculptures you just need to show up with a basket, a grocery cart or pickup truck and fill 'er up.  The mind boggles!

I know what I'd to do with a ton or two:  make a giant bowl of my Lemon-Almond pudding for everyone in Menton.

 Lemon Pudding with Fresh Almond Milk

I make almond milk all the time and it couldn't be easier.  Its bright white colour and clean, rich taste pairs perfectly with lemon. 

Serves 4-6

Equipment

Lemon zester or fine grater

Fine sieve or cheesecloth

Blender

Medium saucepan

Ingredients

3/4 cup (105g) raw almonds, soaked for a few hours or overnight

3 cups (750ml) water

2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar

2 tablespoons lemon zest

1/2 cup (85g) fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons)

1/4 cup (28g) cornstarch

2 1/2 (590g) cups almond milk

3 egg yolks, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons (30g) unsalted butter

Method

1.  Prepare the almond milk.   Suspend a fine sieve* (see Tip #1 below) over a 1 litre bowl.  Rinse the soaked almonds until the water runs clear, place them in a blender with the 3 cups (750 ml) water and blend on high for 3-4 minutes.  Pour the mixture through the sieve and measure 2 1/2 cups.  Set aside.

2.  Add the lemon zest to the sugar and rub the two together with your fingers.  This will release the oils in the zest and give the pudding a lovely flavour.

3  In a medium saucepan, combine all the ingredients. Suspend a fine sieve over a bowl large enough to hold the pudding and keep it by the stove. Stir the mixture on medium heat until it just starts to boil and continue stirring the pudding for a minute more.  Pour the hot pudding through the sieve into the bowl and press it through the sieve.  Press some cling film directly on to the surface of the pudding and refrigerate until serving.

Tips

1.  To make a smooth, silky pudding, you need to remove as many of the fine particles of almond that remain after you process them in the blender.  If you don't have a really fine sieve, pour the blended mixture through 3-4 layers of cheesecloth.  Alternatively, you can let the almond milk sit for an hour or so to allow the particles to settle to the bottom.  You can then ladle the milk off the top, leaving the particles at the bottom.

2.  I sometimes garnish these puddings with candied lemon zest that I make by simmering the zest of one lemon in 1 cup of water and 1/4 cup of sugar for about 15 minutes.  You could also sprinkle on some crushed commercial Amaretti biscuits, slivered toasted almonds or just enjoy it unadorned.

Huckleberry Curd Tartelettes

I'd never seen huckleberries live and in person before so when I spotted a "Huckleberries" sign at Needham's Market Garden Stand at the Ottawa Farmers' Market in Brewer Park recently, I zoomed in for a closer look. 

Just last week I saw chefs on the Food Network show, Chopped, use them as a surprise ingredient in combination with octopus.  Very weird!

Mr Needham's huckleberries were beautiful.  They were shiny, fresh, dark purple, almost black, and very tempting.  I was about to learn their deep, dark secret...

Before buying them, I asked for a taste and popped a few in my mouth.

What a mistake that was!  They tasted awful.  They also brought an unpleasant, astringent, oily, spicy sensation to my mouth. 

Then I did something I haven't done since I was 6 years old.  I spit them out on the ground.  In broad daylight.  With other people standing around.  I couldn't help it.

I'm not certain what Mr Needham thought about my breach of etiquette but the following week, I noticed that he'd placed a sign in front of his huckleberries that read, "Not to be Eaten Raw."   I guess I wasn't the only one who had tried the darned things!

Instead of discouraging me, I was even more motivated to explore their attributes.

Once cooked, the unpleasant flavours disappeared and lovely, complex sweetness emerged.  Redemption!

I think this recipe does the enigmatic huckleberry justice and brings out their unique flavour. 

If you don't have time to make the tarts you can still eat the curd on its own.  It's delicious on toasted baguette, scones, or straight from the spoon.

Who knew that something so delicious would come from something that tasted so bad?

 

Huckleberry Curd Tartelettes

Makes 10-12 Tartelettes

375°F/195°C

Equipment
Fine grater
10-12  2" (5cm) fluted tart tins
Round cookie cutter, 3" (8cms)
Rolling pin
Large fine meshed sieve
Small fine sieve
Potato masher
Hand held beaters or stand mixer
Parchment or waxed paper
Baking tray
Offset spatula

Optional:  food processor with a food mill attachment or a food mill
2 Piping bags, each with a Wilton 2A plain tip (10mm)


Curd
1 pint huckleberries to make: 1/2 cup (120g) huckleberry purée
1/2 cup (120g) water
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon (20g) strained lemon juice
1/4 cup (50g) sugar
4 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
pinch of salt


Pastry
(pâte sucrée)
50g cold, unsalted butter

1/8 cup (25g) sugar

3/4 cup (100g) all purpose flour, sifted

⅛ teaspoon salt

1 small egg yolk or 1/2 large yolk

1/2 teaspoon cream

Whipped Cream
1/4 cup (57g) heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon (3g) sugar

Optional:  dragées to top the tarts.

METHOD

Prepare the pastry

1.  Mix together the egg yolk and cream.  Set aside.

2. Using your hands or a food processor, mix the butter, salt, and sugar together into a paste. There shouldn't be any lumps of butter visible.  If you're using your hands, work quickly so you don't melt the butter. Combine the butter and egg mixtures.
3.  Mix the flour gently into the paste until the two are just combined.  Don't overwork the dough or it will become tough.
4. Roll the dough between 2 sheets of waxed or parchment paper to 1/8" thick. 
5. Remove the top paper and using your cookie cutter, make circles in the dough but don't remove the circles.  Re-cover the rolled dough with the paper you removed earlier and place it in the fridge to firm up. Place your tart tins in the fridge at the same time.

Prepare the huckleberry purée
1. Wash the huckleberries and cut off the tough stems. (it's OK to leave the small ones that attached directly to the berries)
2. Place the huckleberries and 1/4 cup water in a saucepan.  Cover the saucepan and cook the berries over low heat.  After 10 minutes of simmering, mash the berries in the pot and add a bit more water, just enough to ensure that the berries won't boil dry.  When you mash them they'll squirt their juice - be careful - the juice stains. Cover and repeat the process one more time.  The berries are finished cooking when all the little seeds have burst out of their skins and the skins become soft.  Let the cooked berries cool completely.

Good all by itself

3. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve, or food processor with a food mill attachment.  If you've used a food processor, pass the purée through a fine meshed sieve afterwards to make it smooth.  Measure 1/2 cup of purée.

Prepare the Curd
1. In a medium saucepan, mix together the sugar and egg yolks, corn starch until well blended. Add the lemon zest, huckleberry purée, lemon juice and pinch of salt.  

2. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thick. Be careful not to let it boil or it will curdle.  If you notice it nearing the boiling point, remove it from the heat and stir it to let it cool a bit.  Remove from the heat and pour the curd through the fine meshed sieve into a bowl.

3. Press some plastic wrap directly on the top of the curd and refrigerate.

Prepare and pre-bake the tart shells

1.  Preheat the oven to 375°F(190°C)

Roll the dough between waxed paper and make pastry circles

2.  Remove the rolled pastry from the fridge.
3. One by one, peel off the pastry discs and gently press them into the tart tins, trim any overage and refrigerate them as you make them.

4.  Re-roll the leftover dough between the paper sheets and repeat the process until you've filled all your tins.
5.  To bake them, arrange the tins on a cookie sheet.

6.  Bake the shells for 14-16 minutes until lightly browned.  Remove from the oven, set aside to cool.

7.  One at a time, flip the tins over onto your palm and very gently squeeze the sides of each of the tart tins.  The shells should pop out easily.

Whip the Cream
1.  Whip the chilled cream together with the icing sugar to firm peaks.

Assembly

1.  Stir the curd a bit to soften it.  Spoon or pipe the curd into each of the tart shells, top with the whipped cream and finish with dragées if you're using them.  You'll probably have some curd left over.
2.  Refrigerate the tartelettes if you're not serving them right away.


Tips

Huckleberries stain like the dickens!  If you have a dark apron on hand you may want to wear it.

Ariane. The French Apple with its own Ambassador.

As I do every spring, I start to feel a bit homesick for the "old country," which in my case is Canada, so I dug around the fruit keeper in my "frigo" for a taste of home:  my secret cache of McIntosh apples or "Macs" as they are affectionately called by Canadians.  I brought them back with me in December and I've been rationing them like Scrooge to make them last as long as I could.

I guess I'd eaten them all and not remembered because after a few minutes of digging, I came up empty handed.  I suspected hubby until his whereabouts were verified.

Just by chance when I was at our local Health Food shop the next day, I was cruising the produce section when I spotted some apples called, "Ariane" that looked a lot like McIntosh.  I filled a bag with a few, hoping that they tasted like a McIntosh as much as they looked like one.  

I adore McIntosh apples, especially in the fall when they're straight from the tree, all crisp and intense, acidic and sweet all at the same time.  Believe it or not, I've delayed our return to Monaco in the fall just so I could enjoy the McIntosh season in Canada!

Generally speaking, I find French apples too sweet and their taste for me at least, is a bit monotone.  When I do buy apples in France, more often than not, I reach for the Granny Smiths.

What a pleasant surprise when I tasted the Arianes and discovered that indeed, they are remarkably like a Mac!  They were  a bit sweeter than a Mac but they had a good balance of sweet to sour, crisp and delicious.

After devouring a few, they were small after all, I did a bit of research to learn more about them.

The Ariane apple was developed by French Company, Pomalia and was launched commercially in 2003.  It's claim to fame, besides it's excellent flavour, is that it's scab resistant and so can be grown more or less organically.

The Ariane is currently grown by 250 producers around France, primarily in the Loire Valley (in the west), the Monts du Lyonnais (to the east of central France), the Périgord and Tarn & Garonne (in the south-west), and Provence (in south- east).   In 2011, 20,000 tons of Arianes were grown.

The Ariane had its moment of glory this February when it was showcased at the annual Fruit Logistica tradeshow in Berlin where 2,400 fruit and vegetable producers from around the world gather to showcase their goodies.  The mind boggles.  I plan to go next year.

It seems I'm not alone in my appreciation for the Ariane apple.  Alain Baraton, Head Gardener of the Château de Versailles is Ariane's official ambassador.  You've got to love an apple with its own ambassador.

Well, with this sort of taste and pedigree, I think I've found a worthy replacement for the McIntosh.  At least until the fall.

Mixed Citrus and Mandarin Marmalade

Well, six kilo of the 10 kilo of  those fabulous mandarins I scored from my neighbour have been accounted for!  Most of them ended up as morning juice, some as sorbet (divine!) and some were made into tarts. 

When life gives you mandarins...

The last of the little gems are destined for the preserving pan and then whisked off to Canada this summer for my annual Great Glebe Garage Sale fundraiser and assorted family and friends. 

For this marmalade, I used Vitpris which is essentially powdered pectin.  It's very easy to use - you just add it to sugar and fruit and cook it.  It always reliable, even in this recipe where I've reduced the sugar slightly and increased the amount of fruit.

I posted about some of the jam making products available in France but if you're in North America,  pectin products from Bernardin or Kraft's Certo work perfectly too.

If you're new to home canning, you may want to visit the Ball Preserving web site before you start.  It's a comprehensive "how to" guide for the novice home canner.  I also recommend that you follow the recipe that comes with whatever product you're using then as you gain more confidence and experience you can fiddle with the quantities.  After all, your first try should be a happy success!

Mixed Citrus and Mandarin Marmalade

 
Makes 9-250ml jars of marmalade

Ingredients
800g granulated white sugar
1 envelope Vitpris
110g kumquats, each sliced lengthwise into eight pieces
220g bitter orange juice
450g mandarin pieces
100g orange pieces
80g   lemon juice
70g   lemon peel, finely shredded
70g   bitter orange peel, finely shredded

Equipment
9 - 250 ml preserving jars, washed
9 lids
2 large preserving pans:  1 for boiling the jars and large enough to accommodate the jars without them touching, and one in which to make the marmalade
Large sieve 
Kitchen timer
Ladle
Large mouth funnel
Long handled tongs
Dish towels
Paper towels
Tray, jelly roll pan or cookie sheet large enough to accommodate all 9 jars


Method

1.  Place the clean jars in a large preserving pan, fill with water until the water reaches 2"  (5cm) or more above the rims.  Boil for 15 minutes to sterilize. the jars.  After 15 minutes, turn down the heat to simmer but leave them in the water while you prepare the fruit.  Add more water if the water has fallen below the rims.

2.  Using a vegetable peeler, remove the skin from the lemons and bitter oranges  You'll need  70g of each.   Finely shred the peel crosswise so that the strips are about 1" (2-3cm) in length.  Place the peel in a saucepan, add water to cover and boil for 3 minutes.  Drain and set aside.

3.  Peel the mandarins and oranges, remove the seeds and cut them into chunks.  Juice the bitter oranges and lemons and strain the juice to remove the seeds.  Weigh each of the fruits as you prepare them and place them together in a large preserving pan.  Make sure that your pan is large enough so that there is at least 6"  (15cm) from the top of the fruit to the top of the pan.

4.  Increase the heat under the pan holding your jars so that the water is boiling.

5.  Set up an assembly area where you'll be filling the jars with hot marmalade.  Lay out a dish towel on your counter top.  Place a dish towel on a tray large enough to accommodate all 9 jars.  Set out your funnel, ladle, paper towels, lids and tongs.

6.  Mix the Vitpris together with two heaping spoonfuls of sugar taken from your 800 grams of sugar.  Add to the pan with your fruit and mix well.

7.  Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.  Once it's boiling, set a timer for 3 minutes.  After 3 minutes, add the remaining sugar, stir well and return to a boil, stirring constantly.  Once it's boiling, set your timer for 3 minutes.  When the 3 minutes is up, remove your pan from the heat and place it on your tea towel in your assembly area.

8.  Remove the jars from the hot water, set them on your tray and bring them to the staging area.  One by one, place the wide-mouthed funnel into each jar and fill with marmalade leaving about 1/4" (1/2 cm) clearance at the top.  Wipe the rims clean with paper towels dipped in hot water.  The rims must be perfectly clean otherwise the lids will not seal properly.  Screw the lids securely onto each of the jars and using the tongs, return the jars to the boiling water bath.

9.  Once the water is boiling set your timer for 10 minutes.  When the time is up, remove each of the jars without tilting them, and set  them on your tray.  After the jars have been out of the water for a minute or so, the lids will start to curve downward with a "pop."  This means that a vacuum seal has been achieved and the marmalade will be safe to store without being refrigerated.  Leave the jars overnight, undisturbed.

Tips

1. Try to keep pets and children out of your kitchen while you're making preserves.  Hot liquids in large quantities can be dangerous and if you're distracted, time sensitive things tend to burn!

2.  If you have a round cooling rack, place it in the bottom of the hot water bath.  This way the jars won't clatter around when you're boiling them.

3.  To reduce the probability of the marmalade boiling over while you're cooking it, spray  a fine layer of oil around the top of the inside of the pan or wipe a bit of oil around it.

Mandarin Orange Curd Tartelettes

Remember the all those fabulous Mentonnaise mandarins I rescued recently from my neighbour's garden?  Well this afternoon I locked myself in the kitchen, sun streaming in,  to  create a few recipes with them.  Happy work indeed!

These little tartelettes are filled with a tangy, creamy curd made with fragrant, perfumed Mentonnaise mandarins and lemons.  If you're lucky enough to get your hands on some, this recipe will do them justice although mineolas and tangerines work well too.  Either way, I think these have a pleasing balance of sweet and sour, and aren't so rich that you wouldn't reach for a second one.

To concentrate the flavour of the mandarins, you'll boil the juice gently to reduce it by half and then add the lemon juice.

Sublime!

Mandarin Orange Curd Tartelettes

Makes 9 Tartelettes

360°F/185°C

Equipment
Fine grater
9 -  3" (7½ cm) Fluted tart tins
Round cookie cutter, 4" (10cms)
Rolling pin
Medium sized, fine sieve
Small fine sieve

Pastry
(Pâte sucrée)
100g cold, unsalted butter

70g icing sugar

200g all purpose flour, sifted

⅛ teaspoon salt

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon milk

Mandarin Curd (makes 14oz (400ml))

2 tablespoons(22g)  lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)

1 cup mandarin juice (225g), about 12

Fine zest of one lemon 
2 teaspoons mandarin  zest

1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (112g) granulated sugar

2 teaspoons(4g) corn starch

4 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons (26g) cream

4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter at room temperature

Pinch of salt

Finishing
2 teaspoons (4g) icing sugar OR
1 cup (250ml) lightly sweetened whipped cream

Method
1. Put the tart tins in the refrigerator to chill.

Prepare the pastry

1.  Mix together the egg yolks and milk.  Set aside.

2.  Using your hands or a food processor, mix the butter, salt, and icing sugar together until well mixed. There shouldn't be any lumps of butter visible.  If you're using your hands, work quickly so you don't melt the butter.  The final mixture will be a thick paste.

3. Add the flour and mix gently or pulse a few times.  Add the egg yolk and milk mixture and mix until just incorporated.  Do not overwork the dough or it will become tough.  Knead once or twice to bring the mixture together. 
 4.  Form the dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator to rest while you prepare the curd.

Prepare the Curd

1.  In a saucepan over medium heat, boil the mandarin juice gently to reduce it to 1/2 cup.  This should take about 10 minutes.  Pour the reduced mixture into a bowl,  then add  the lemon juice and the zests.

2.  Place the medium sized, fine sieve over a medium bowl and set aside.  In a medium saucepan, mix the egg yolks, sugar, salt, corn starch and cream.  Add the juice mixture and stir well.

3.  In a medium bowl over simmering water, the mixture stirring constantly until thick and translucent. Remove from the heat and pour  the curd through the fine sieve into a bowl.
4.  Add the butter in small pieces and stir until melted.  Press some plastic wrap directly on the top of the curd and refrigerate.

Prepare and pre-bake the tart shells

1.  Lightly flour your work surface and pin and roll out the pastry dough to about 3mm thick.

2.  Using your cookie cutter, make about 9-10 circles. Gently press each of the circles into the tart tins, trim any overage and refrigerate them for at least 1/2 hour.

3.   Preheat the oven to 360°F(185°C)

4.   Prick the dough on the bottom of each pastry shell a few times.  Line each with foil or parchment and fill with baking weights.  Arrange them on a cookie sheet. 

5.   Bake the shells for 15 minutes, then remove them from the oven, remove the foil and baking weights, and return them to the oven  for another 5-8 minutes until golden brown.  Remove and set aside to cool.

6.  One at a time, flip them over onto your hand and very gently squeeze the sides of each of the tart tins.  They should pop out easily.  Set them aside

Assembly

1.  Stir the curd a bit to soften it.  Spoon the curd into each of the tart shells, placing each onto a cookie sheet as you go.  Refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour.

Serving 

1.  Put the icing sugar in the fine sieve and tap it gently to evenly dust top of the tarts.   Arrange them on a serving plate.  These tarts are also great with a dollop of whipped cream on top.

Tips

• Don't over mix the pastry dough, your tart shells will be tough.
• Keep an eye on the mandarin juice when you're reducing it.  It can go from ready to syrupy and overcooked in a few minutes.  Set a timer at 5 minute intervals just to be sure!
• Because there is corn starch in the curd mixture, you can cook it directly on the stove instead of a double boiler but  you should still keep an eye on it though - if it boils it will still curdle.
• Refrigerating your tart tins will make it easier to line with dough.
• Tea pairing:  an aged Pu'er goes well with these tarts and balances out the acidity of the curd quite nicely.

Rescuing Mandarins

Here in Menton, France, the mandarin oranges are literally falling from above and landing with a splat on the street in front of my neighbour's house, right across from the front door of our weekend hide away.  Judging from the ugly pile of them, this has been happening for the past week.

I don't know about you, but food being wasted troubles me, especially when the food is Mentonnaise mandarins, for goodness sake, some of the most fragrant, sweet and delicious citrus grown here. 

Since our own mandarin trees produced hardly any fruit this year, I was especially disheartened to see so many of them smashed on the road, falling into the sewer and being run over by passing cars.

So this morning when I spotted two men in my neighbour's mandarin trees picking them and dropping them into buckets, I sprung into action.

"Could I buy some?"  I asked.  "Yes," came the reply, their boss would be here soon and we could work out a deal with him.

About an hour later the Patron or boss came by in his truck, out came his scale, and he started weighing out the mandarins.

Well, thirty euro  later, 10kg of luscious, perfumed mandarins were all mine but once we hauled the crates into our hallway I was a bit concerned.   With the 5 or so kg extra that he'd thrown in, this was a lot of mandarins!  I guess I'll be spending the next few days making all things mandarin.

Despite the mandarins' fabulous taste they're full of seeds so peeling and eating them takes a bit of effort and lots of seed spitting.

Out of necessity comes action so off we dashed to the supermarket in Latte to buy preserving jars and sugar.

What doesn't go into the preserving pan I'll use to make hubby's morning juice, some mandarin sorbet, and some pâte de fruits for friends. 

It looks like my "waste not want not" mandarin rescue mission is turning out to be a lot of work!

Pass the Whipped Cream, Les Gariguettes sont Arrivées!

Ahhh... Spring in the South of France...  

Just about the time the Mimosa have stopped  propelling pollen everywhere, coating everything in a fine yellow dust and sending everyone to the Pharmacie for allergy meds, Les Gariguettes are making their first appearance on the scene.  Rejoice!

Today was my first heavenly taste of this season's Gariguette de Plougastel from Plougastel-Daoulas in Brittany.  I remember the first time I ate them.  I couldn't believe my mouth, it being accustomed to the hardy Canadian, Spanish or American varieties.  It was a revelation at the time, as though someone turned up an invisible strawberry flavour knob.

I've been buying them for years from the Place d'Armes Market in Monaco and my regular vendeuse smiles knowingly when I approach, euro in my hand like an addict seeking a fix.  "Ah, oui, les Gariguettes"... she purrs, placing them gently into a crinkly paper bag.  Sometimes they never make it as far as home.

In France, strawberries aren't just strawberries, they have names, and deservedly so.  My three favourite are the Gariguette, which appear from March until June, the Ciflorette which straddle the Gariguette season and linger until July, and the sweet little Mara des Bois which hit the scene in April and May and are available into October. Many French producers now use greenhouses to manipulate the growing season and to ensure reliable growing conditions and thank goodness for that!

The Gariguette are a balanced mix of sweet and sour with a slightly perfumed finish and a soft texture that yields in the mouth.  In fact you can eat them by using only your tongue to break them up.  This brings me comfort because when I am really, really old and have no teeth I'll still be able to enjoy them. 

Worth the price

Years ago, I passed bowls of Gariguette as hors d'oeuvres at a cocktail party  with only whipped cream as an accompaniment and friends are still talking about them to this day.

How do you tell a Gariguette apart from the others?  First is the price.  At €32 per kilo or about €5-6 per pint when they first appear it's a bit of a shock to the system but thankfully they become cheaper later in the season.  Not that I wouldn't think twice about paying full pop for them and eat them all like a little piggy.

Some of the best Gariguette are often sold individually so you can buy as many as you can afford.  I like the ones I buy in the outdoor markets with in little pint sized wooden baskets lined with pink tissue.  Peel back the tissue and voila! There they are, slightly elongated, orange-red, and very shiny.  Each berry is conveniently topped with a calyx that stands straight up like a little hat, so you can pinch it like a handle and bite the fruit into your mouth.

You can often find Gariguettes by larger producers such as  Rougeline in your local supermarket.   Just look for the proud producer's face on the box, eating strawberries, making you jealous.

It's rare to find these strawberries outside of France because they're so fragile and not meant to be shipped any distance.  This way the French get to keep them all to themselves.  How lucky are they?

They're best served at room temperature, all by themselves or with something creamy and simple like lightly sweetened whipped cream or fresh ricotta.

If you do ever find them where you live, buy them, run home, call your friends, and share them.  That is, of course, if you don't eat them all yourself.

They'll thank you.  

And if you didn't eat them all yourself, here are some recipes:

Swedish Roll Cake with Berries and Cream
Fraises des Bois in Meringue Nests
Cream Filled Genoise with Strawberries

Lemon Sponge Pudding. Easy, Delicious

Lemons, lemons everywhere!  At least that's what it seems during the 19  fun-filled days of Menton's annual Fête du Citron or Lemon Festival.  

I got caught up in the lemon frenzy this Sunday when I bought  a big bag of lemons from the Menton market and then poked through my recipes for a lemon dessert that could be made by anyone, including my dear friend Puddy, who never believes me when I say that something I served her was easy to make.

This pudding is magic.  During baking, it separates into two layers. The top becomes a lighter than air sponge cake and underneath is a luscious lemon curd.  It's fabulous served warm or cold but I think warm is better.

Citrus vendor in Menton

I found the recipe in my late mother's recipe collection.  For the life of me, I can't remember her ever having made it but there it was, mixed in with all of her other fruit dessert recipes.

Since finding it, I've made it often at home, for my Seniors' baking group, and given it out to friends who often ask for it.  It always get rave reviews.  The last time I made it was for lunch during our annual Olive Harvest Party and It was devoured minutes after I set it on the table.

Puddy, this pudding is for you!

Lemon Sponge Pudding

You can make this pudding with lemons or Meyer lemons with the same results.  Sometimes I add 1/4 teaspoon of zest from a Keffir lime and it turns it into something more exotic.  If you find lemons from Menton, definitely use them!

325°F/175°C

30-35 Minutes

Serves 6

Equipment

9"x9" baking dish or 8" (20cm) round dish or 6- 6 ounce (8cm) ramekins

Roasting pan large enough to accommodate your baking dish or ramekins with room for water

Microplane or other fine grater

Whisk

Stand mixer or hand held mixer

Ingredients

3 tablespoons (43g) unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup (150g) granulated sugar

pinch of salt

3 large eggs, separated

3 tablespoons (26g) all purpose flour

1 cup (225g) full fat or partly skimmed milk

6 tablespoons or 3 ounces (50 g) fresh lemon juice

zest of 2 lemons

Method

1.  Preheat the oven to 325°F/175°C.  Set your oven rack to the lowest level.  Butter your baking dish or ramekins and set aside.

2.  Put some water on to boil.  You'll need enough boiling water to come up halfway up the sides of your baking dish once you place it in the roasting pan.

3. In a large bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, zest, egg yolks and salt until the mixture is smooth and uniform.  Whisk in the lemon juice, flour and finally the milk.  Set aside.

4.  In your mixer or with hand held beaters, beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry.

5.  Add the beaten egg whites to the first mixture and using a spatula, gently mix the two together.  Use your whisk and whisk the mixture to make sure the egg white is fully incorporated and the mixture is uniform.   The mixture will look curdled but that's OK.

6.  Pour the batter into the baking dish or divide it evenly amongst the ramekins.

7.  Place the baking dish or ramekins into the roasting pan.

8.  Place the roasting pan into the oven and add boiling water to it to come up to half way up the sides of your baking dish or ramekins.

9.  Bake for 30-35 minutes.

10.  Remove the baking dish from the roasting pan.

11.  Allow to the pudding to cool and dust with icing sugar before serving.

Tips 
I recommend that you place the baking dish or dishes in the roasting pan, put it in the oven and then add the boiling water.  Carrying a roasting pan with boiling water is a recipe for burns!  When the baking is done, remove the baking dish from the roasting pan and leave the roasting pan with the water in the oven to cool.  If you need the oven and have to remove the roasting pan, do so after you've removed the baking dish.  The water level will have lowered  somewhat and be safer to remove.

Fairy Cakes with Feijoa Glaze and Lime Sugar

Fairy Cakes with Feijoa Glaze and Lime Sugar

If you're lucky enough to find some Foraged Feijoa or if you're really lucky and happen to have a bush or two, here's a good way to enjoy them.

Fairy Cakes are traditionally made in mini cupcake cases but you can make them in larger ones if you can't find the small ones.  Since this batter makes lovely sponge and is quite versatile, you can use it for making  little cakes of other shapes and sizes too, just use your imagination and any other pan you have on hand. Just be sure to not  to over bake them.  Remove them from the oven when they spring back when touched.  Don't let them brown!

If you don't have any Feijoa on hand you can substitute passion fruit with equal success.

Makes 24 mini-cakes

or 12 regular cupcakes 

350ºF/180ºC

10 minutes for mini-cakes

15 minutes for regular cupcakes

Equipment 

24 mini cupcake cases or 12 regular cupcake cases

2-12 hole mini cupcake baking pans or 1 12 hole regular cupcake pan

Fine mesh sieve

Microplane zester or other fine grater

Ingredients

1/2 cup (110g) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup (95g) granulated white sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 plus 1/3 cups (115g) of all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

For the glaze 

12 ripe Feijoa to make 1 cup of deseeded pulp

1 teaspoon lime juice

1/2 cup (55g) icing sugar, sifted

A few drops of yellow food colouring 

For the lime sugar 

Finely grated zest of one lime

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Method 

1.  Line your muffin tins with paper or silicon cases. 

2.  Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt together.  Set aside.

3.  Mix the milk and vanilla together. Set aside.

4.  In the bowl of an electric mixer or using a hand-held mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time and beat well after each.  It's OK if the mixture looks curdled.  This is normal.

5.  With the mixer on low or by hand, alternate adding the flour and milk to the butter mixture in two additions until just incorporated. 

6.  Fill each of the cases or mini cake moulds until one third full.  You can use a pastry bag, or drop the batter from a spoon.  Be sure not to overfill the cases and try not to get batter on the sides.   When they are finished they should not be higher than the height of the case.

7.  Bake until they just spring back, they should not be browned at all.

8.  When they are finished baking, pop them from the baking pan onto a cooling rack but leave the cakes in their individual cases.

While the cakes are cooling, prepare the glaze and lime sugar.

Glaze 

1.  Cut the Feijoa in half and scoop out the soft insides into a sieve and press them through the sieve to remove the seeds.  You should have about 1 cup of Feijoa pulp.  Pour the mixture into a blender or food processor.  Add the lime juice and process until smooth.  

2.  Pour the puréed Feijoa into a sieve resting over a medium sized bowl.  Using a spoon, stir and press the purée through the sieve into the bowl.  

3.  Add the icing sugar and stir well.  Add the food colouring a drop at a time until the colour is pleasing to you.  Pour the glaze into a measuring cup with a lip or a pitcher for pouring.

Lime Sugar

Grate the lime zest into a bowl and add the sugar.  Using your fingers, rub the zest and the sugar together until it's well mixed.  It will smell wonderful.

Finishing

Arrange the cakes on a baking tray and carefully pour a bit of the glaze on top of each until the top appears level.  Allow the glaze to crust for about 1/2 hour.

Sprinkle a bit of the lime sugar in the centre of each.  Allow the glaze to crust for an additional 1/2 hour or so and serve.  Enjoy!

Operation "Voulez-Vous a Pumpkin Pie?"

Even though I'm Canadian, I feel for the Americans who live here in Monaco, about 300 in total, who don't bake and can't find a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving.  Quite sad really.

Pumpkin pie is completely unknown here and generally viewed by the French with anything from suspicion to curiosity depending to whom you are describing it.  They don't know what they're missing!

Well something had to be done so this year I'm putting my oven where my mouth is and I'm offering to make pumpkin pies for anyone who wants one, well, any 20 people at least.  I have launched, operation ""Voulez-Vous a Pumpkin Pie?", whereby for a €50 donation, you can have a pumpkin pie, lovingly made by me, delivered to you in a pretty box on November 24.  For €5 more, you can have real whipped cream too.

All of the proceeds from operation ""Voulez-Vous a Pumpkin Pie?" will go towards either Monaco Aide et Presence or the Nepal Youth Foundation, just like the proceeds from the cakes I make through my charitable bakery,  Cakes for a Cause.  If you'd like to order a pie, just click on the small pie on the top right of the page for more information.

I'm really looking forward to firing up the oven, savouring the heady aroma when I grind the spices and of course having my house smell like pumpkin pie for a few days.

Hopefully all 20 pies will be scooped up.  Well, maybe 19.  That way I can keep one for myself.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Classic Swedish Baking: Jelly Roll Slices with Berries and Cream

During a "let's catch up" drink this Friday, my Swedish friend surprised me with a lovely gift from a recent trip to her native Sweden:  a classic Swedish baking book entitled, Sju Sorters Kakor by Ica Bokförlag. 

After a bit of research and setting up a short cut key for an umlaut, the whole sweet picture came into focus.

Sju Sorters Kakor was first published in 1945 as the result of a baking contest held after the end of World War II and since then 3,657,000 copies have been printed.    In 2008 it was translated into English and was renamed, "Swedish Cakes and Cookies."  My Swedish friend translated it as, "Seven Kinds of Cookies" even though there are far more than that in the book.

Some of the goodies from Sju Sorters Kakor

The minute she gave it to me I flipped through it and became inspired.  I know nothing about Swedish baking so here was something new to explore and play with.  There were so many interesting recipes that I'd like to try but the first one I chose is Rulltårtsbakelese Med Bär or Jelly Roll Slices with Berries and Cream.  It's a pretty cake that could be served at a formal tea or as a luncheon or dinner dessert.

I translated and interpreted the recipe from Swedish, added some vanilla and salt to the sponge and some details to the method for clarity but the essence and final product remain the same.  I was stymied by one word however, Vispgrädde.  My Swedish friend says its a thick cream with a fat content of 40%.  Yowza!  I wish I could find Vispgrädde here in France!

The biggest difference I found between Swedish and English recipes was that Swedish measurements are in decilitres (dl) which is a liquid measure.  One dl = 100 ml.  If you have a liquid measuring cup you should use it.  I've left the "dl" measurements in the recipe so you can measure in Swedish too.

When was the last time you made something from Sweden?  Give it a try - it's delicious!

Rulltårtsbakelse Med Bär  
or 
Jelly Roll Slices with Berries and Cream

Serves 10-12

Preheat to 250ºC/480ºF then bake at 200ºC/390ºF for 5 minutes

The original recipe in Swedish

Equipment

1 - 12" x 16" (30 x 40 cm)  jelly roll pan

Wide parchment paper

Medium offset spatula

Hand held beaters, whisk or stand mixer

Piping bag with the tip or your choice

For the Sponge Roll 

3 large eggs

2dl or 200 ml or 174g granulated sugar  

2dl or 134g all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2dl or 46g milk or cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Filling

2dl/280g seedless black currant or seedless raspberry jam or 

2dl/280g strawberry jam

Topping

3dl/ 720g whipping cream

1dl/55g powdered sugar 

2 pints fresh berries such as raspberries, red currants, strawberries, blackberries or a combination

2 teaspoons powdered sugar for dusting (optional)