The Ratatouille

How not to fall in love with one of the most emblematic recipes of the South of France and more particularly of the cuisine of Nice: the RATATATOUILLE. 

Colourful, tasty, nutritious and so easy to prepare, ratatouille is one of the most typical dishes of the French culinary heritage.

He gave his name to the Pixar studios film released in 2007. 

This dish is only a few centuries old! Indeed, the vegetables essential to this recipe were imported into Provence only very late.

The word "ratatouille" derives from the Occitan word "ratatolha" which indicates, as early as the 14th century, a preparation of vegetable stew. This word comes from military canteens, where dishes were prepared with vegetables, beans, potatoes, bread and very fatty meat. A very simple but extremely nutritious dish, adapted to be prepared quickly to provide the necessary energy to face the fighting.

Like any traditional dish, ratatouille also has a source in the poor environment. The farmers of Provence originally prepared this dish using what they could find more easily at hand, and especially the vegetables from their garden such as aubergines, courgettes and tomatoes, all with garlic.

Served hot or cold as a side dish or starter, it will multiply its flavours by being prepared the day before and then reheated.

Recipe

🕜 Preparation time: 20 mn

🕜 Cooking time: 1h 

👥 Number of portions: 4

For this recipe you will need...

🟊 1 yellow onion 

🟊 2 cloves of garlic 

🟊 2 zucchini 

🟊 1 green pepper

🟊 1 eggplant

🟊 3 tomatoes 

🟊 Olive oil 

🟊 salt, sugar, pepper 

🟊 thyme and bay leaf 

Let's move on! 

1 Wash and cut the zucchini, eggplant, green pepper and red pepper into medium cubes. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and slice the onion. 

 

2 Heat oil in a saucepan and add the onions to cook for 5 minutes. 

At the same time, in a frying pan, pour a little olive oil and fry the different vegetables one after the other for 5 to 10 minutes so that they colour. Start with the peppers, then the aubergines, courgettes and finally the tomatoes with the minced garlic. 

Each time you finish cooking a vegetable, add it to the pan (fire out). 

 

3 After gathering all the vegetables, add a nice bouquet of thyme, rosemary and bay leaves, salt, pepper and cover to simmer for 40 minutes, stirring regularly.

4 About 10 minutes before the end of cooking, do not hesitate to taste and season again according to your taste.

Feel free to leave me your opinion on the recipe if you have tried it at home or if you have already tasted the ratatouille! We'll see you soon for a new recipe. 

Bon appétit ❣

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The Cherry Clafoutis

After introducing you to the gratin dauphinois and the quiche Lorraine, I would like to share with you today one of my favourite desserts: The cherry clafoutis!

As a child, during the summer, I used to pick cherries from the garden with my grandfather to take them back to my grandmother. She knew I loved cherry clafoutis and made it for me every time I came!

This dessert is typical of central France, more precisely the Limousin department, and dates from the middle of the 19th century. The name clafoutis is the subject of an etymological controversy. The word originates from the Occitan dialect clafir or claufir, which means "garnish" or "filling".

Traditionally, clafoutis is a cake made with black cherries. They are dipped in a dough similar to waffles, made of flour, eggs, milk and sugar. According to purists, the secret of this delicious pleasure lies in the cherry pit. It is strongly recommended not to remove the pit in order to preserve the juice of the fruit, its flavour and nutrients. 

Personally, I remove the pits because I find it more pleasant for tasting, it's up to you....

Over time, several versions of clafoutis have appeared, today it has become a dessert for all seasons because instead of cherries, you can use all kinds of fresh fruits. The fruit must be firm and not release too much juice.

But be careful! Purists will still say that any clafoutis that is not prepared with cherries will not be called clafoutis but "flognarde".

Recipe

🕜 Preparation time: 20mn

🕜 Cooking time: 30mn

👥 Number of slices: 8

Ingredients :

✩ 600g of cherries

✩ 60g butter (including 20g to butter the mould)

✩ 20cl of milk

✩ 100g of flour

✩ 60g powdered sugar

✩ 1 sachet of vanilla sugar

✩ 1 pinch of salt

✩ Ice sugar

Preparation steps

1 Preheat your oven to 210°C (thermostat 7). Quickly wash the cherries in a trickle of fresh water, remove the stems and drain.

2 Stone the cherries by cutting them in half with a knife. If the pit is too hard you can cut them in four.

 

3 Melt 40g of butter in the microwave for 20 seconds. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, salt and vanilla sugar. Add the eggs little by little and then the milk little by little while continuing to mix. Add the melted butter.

 

4 Butter the dish generously, put the cherries away and pour in the clafoutis dough. Put in the oven for 10 minutes at 210°C then lower to 180°C and cook for another 20 minutes.

5 Serve the clafoutis cold or warm, sprinkled with icing sugar! 

Bon appétit ❣

I hope you enjoyed the recipe! I want to thank my friend and my cooking partner Jules for his help in making this cake. 

We'll see you next Sunday for a new recipe!         

           

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Lorraine quiche

All the regions of France have their own local recipes, heirs to a past where the village's resources and farm products were used as a community.

Among the community resources we find the well, the washing place and the bread oven.

Under the old regime, the bread oven was a privilege of the lord, who took advantage of it by levying a tax.

During the heating process and when the oven was switched off, it was unusable for baking bread. However, the villagers had the use of it, with the products they had at their disposal. This is how recipes specific to each terroir were created.

Thus, a dough, milk, lardons and eggs made the Lorraine quiche during the 16th century. 

For this recipe you can make the shortcrust pastry yourself (don't be afraid it's easier than you think) or you can find one ready in supermarkets. 

For my part, I have chosen to make the shortcrust pastry, I explain below all the steps involved in its production. 

Recipe

🕜 Preparation time : 30mn without the realisation of the shortcrust pastry, otherwise 45 mn 

🕜  Cooking time : 30mn

👥 Number of portions : Between 4 and 5 

For this recipe you will need...

Ingredients for the shortcrust pastry : 

❋ 250g flour 

❋ 7cl olive oil 

❋ 10cl warm water 

❋ 1 pinch of salt 

Ingredients for the quiche : 

❋ 200g of lardons 

❋ 4 eggs 

❋ 30cl of fresh cream 

❋ 1 teaspoon of salt 

❋ 1 pinch of pepper

❋ 1 pinch of nutmeg 

❋ grated cheese

Here we go! (Let's start with the shortcrust pastry)

1 Put the flour in a bowl and make a well. 

2 Put in the warm water, olive oil and a pinch of salt.

3 Mix well and knead to obtain a homogeneous dough. If your shortcrust pastry is not homogeneous, add a little water and if, on the contrary, it is too liquid, add flour. 

And now let's move on to the preparation of the quiche !

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C. Sprinkle your shortcrust pastry and work surface with flour before flattening it with a rolling pin. Roll out your shortcrust pastry until it matches the size of your dish. 

Put baking paper in your dish and place your shortcrust pastry on top. 

Precook the dough for 10 to 15 minutes in the oven at 200°C to make it crispy at the end. 

2 Beat eggs, cream, pepper and nutmeg in a bowl. 

3 Spread the bacon evenly over the pre-cooked dough and then add the egg and cream mixture, finishing with the grated cheese. 

Reduce the oven temperature to 160°C. Cook the quiche for 30 minutes. Point a knife in the middle of the quiche. If it comes out clean, the quiche is ready! 

Voilà! Once your quiche is out of the oven, let it cool a little before serving. 

Enjoy your meal ❣

PS : I would like to thank my two kitchen teammates Lilou and Léo who greatly helped me with the photos and the recipe. 

12

Gratin Dauphinois

For my first recipe, I chose THE essential French dish, easy to cook and unbeatable, it must be shared with your family and friends: The gratin dauphinois! 

This dish originates from the Dauphiné (old French province in the south-east of France). 

In the 16th century, the first gratins dauphinois were already made, a peasant dish whose name was first pronounced at a banquet in 1788. 

The most important thing is to choose the right raw material: firm flesh potatoes are preferable for this recipe. The cooking time is also a considerable element, it must be slow in order to obtain a melting gratin! 

Recipe

🕜 Preparation time : 30mn  

🕜 Cooking time : Around 1 hour 

👥 Number of portions : Between 4 and 5

For this recipe you will need...

🟊 1kg of potatoes 

🟊 A clove of garlic

🟊 30cl of creme fraiche

🟊 Butter 

🟊 1/2 l of milk 

🟊 Grated cheese 

🟊 Salt

🟊 Pepper 

🟊 Nutmeg

Let's move on! 

1 Peel, wash and cut the potatoes into 3mm thick slices. Do not wash them after cutting them, as starch is necessary for a correct consistency.  

2 In a saucepan, bring the milk to a boil, adding salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste. 

Immerse the potatoes in the mixture, cooking over a very low heat for about 10 minutes. Stir regularly to prevent the potatoes from sticking to the bottom.

3 Preheat the oven to 180°C (Thermostat 6) and rub the gratin dish with the garlic clove before buttering it. 

4 Drain the potatoes, then place them delicately in the bottom of the gratin dish before sprinkling them with the milk from the pan. Finally, cover everything with fresh cream, spread some butter nuts and add the grated cheese IN MODERATION! 

5 Lower your oven to 150°C (Thermostat 5) and put in the oven for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Prick the potatoes to check that they are cooked. 

NB: A successful gratin is characterized by potatoes that have remained a little firm. 

Once your dish is out of the oven, all you have to do is accompany it and enjoy it. For my part, a few spinach leaves in a salad with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper and salt vinaigrette and a ground beef steak! 

Bon appétit ❣

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