plump for pissaladière

Edinburgh 2013 is experiencing one of its best summers in years. We have all been enjoying an almost consistently high standard of sunny weather for the last month or so. But, as our family has not made it to the Gard this season, I chose to sort of bring it to us instead by making that most celebrated of onion tart/pizzas from the sunny South of France, the pissaladière. The thyme is the all important bit you really should try not to miss out. The herb ensures you are serving up a taste of the real deal; one whiff of it transports me immediately to the hills up behind my grandparent's house in the Languedoc-Rousillon. A fan of fishy fare, my Scottish francophile chum, Claire, was summoned round to sample this Gallic beauty. Recipe below if you fancy a go yourself at home (dead easy to make):

pissaladière

4 tbsp olive oil
ready-rolled shortcrust pastry (do make it yourself if you have the time)
4 large onions
handful of fresh/dried thyme
3 ripe tomatoes skinned, de-seeded and roughly chopped
2 x 50g anchovy fillets, drained
20 or so black olives
ground black pepper
salt

Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the onions on a medium heat for about 10 minutes until softened. Add the tomatoes, thyme, along with a good amount of salt and ground black pepper. Switch the oven to 220 degrees C. Continue cooking the onions on a lower heat for about 20/30 minutes until golden in colour and slightly caramelised.  Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and cover with the pastry. Spread the onion mixture over the top of the pastry. Arrange the anchovies in a criss-cross shape over the onions and fill each diamond with a black olive. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

It was a thumbs up from Claire, by-the-way. This one is for you doll (and anyone else with a bit of a savoury tooth). Really good straight out of the oven, but my favourite is eaten once left to cool and had warm, or cold. Serve as mini appetisers or as part of a perfect picnic.

it's a family affair

I wrote a few months back of my love of cheese and the dish my husband first wooed me with, all those years ago. What I omitted to mention was that he had another up his sleeve. In fact, this dish was first made for me by my mother-in-law at their home in the Côte d'Or, the first time I met them. From that point on, I knew things were going to be ok. Gougères are believed to originate from Burgundy and are made from a type of cheese choux pastry (think savoury profiteroles), and they are quite the business. They are readily available, ready-made, in most boulangeries in Burgundy and many other areas of France. A busy morning of splashing and jumping at the swimming pool made for hungry work and we arrived home to be treated to my husband busy at the stove preparing a big gougère for lunch. If this post had smell-o-vision, you would be in your element right now. Friends look forward to birthdays and any special celebration round at our place as the gougère almost always makes an appearance. My husband even gets requests in advance of such occasions, by way of a polite hint at what is expected on the day. If you cannot quite read the recipe above, or indeed do not have the time to translate into English, here is it below:

Gougère

Makes 1 large gougère (that can be shaped into a ring or round loaf) or several smaller apéritif-sized versions (place a tablespoon amount of the mixture onto the baking tray to create mini ones).

200ml water
100g butter
125g plain flour
3 eggs
100g gruyère/comté/uncoloured cheddar cut into little cubes
salt
pepper


Preheat the oven at 240°C. Place the water, butter, salt and pepper in a saucepan. Slowly bring to the boil. Remove from heat and add all the flour in one go. Mix together with a wooden spoon to form a large ball (mixing for 2/3 minutes on the stove at a very low temperature can sometimes help, too). Off the heat again, add the eggs one-by-one and mix well. Add the cheese. Mix well again to incorporate all the ingredients. Butter an oven tray. Spoon your preferred amount of mixture onto the tray for a large or lots of mini gougères.

Serve immediately accompanied by a green salad. Get this one right and your friends will be with you for life.

Source: author's mother-in-law

mon amour

Cheese. It's amazing. The fact it comes in so many varieties, is amazing. Even the way it's made is amazing. I have not eaten meat for a few years and really make up for it with cheese. My appreciation of cheese began at a very young age, with the softer, more simple tastes and textures of Brie and Camembert. By my teenager years, I, of course, thought I'd tried it all. Moving to Burgundy in my twenties, I was however introduced to the hardcore Soumantrain and Epoisse. This was also where I was made my first tartiflette, by the man who is now my husband. I have finally repaid the favour.

Tartiflette 
(for 4 people - or 2 very hungry people)

1 onion 
2 tbsp crème fraîche
100ml milk
1kg potatoes
1 reblochon
black pepper

Preheat the oven at 180°C. Chop the onion and place in the bottom of a large oven proof dish. Peel and slice the potatoes and scatter on top of the onions. Pour the milk over the potatoes and spoon on the crème fraîche. Slice the reblochon in two and plop the halves directly on the top. Finish off with a grinding of black pepper. Bung in the oven for an hour and ta-da. 
Source: author's own

In my opinion, the perfect autumn/winter dish.
Bon appétit!