Flammekueche, Flammkuchen, Tarte flambée, Alsation-style pizza - Fantastic breakfast, suppertime, anytime dish from Eastern France

Alsace, is perhaps best known for its crisp white wines, beautiful architecture and nesting storks but it also famous for its distinctive and delicious cuisine. The first Tarte flambée we came across, was served hot and straight from the bread oven at an organic dairy farm gathering in Brittany to celebrate the Fête du lait. This latter, which takes place all across France in early June, is a big open-air breakfast and farm festival and if you ever see one advertised - go! 

Below is my version of this dish, from our woodcooker, so minus the smoky flambée but plus a little abstract art.

You'll probably appreciate this whimsical idea more in the full tin version. 

Framed edible art anyone?

The origins of this recipe were supposedly the result of thrifty bakers testing their bread ovens for temperature but my guess is, this was rather a good excuse for a late supper or hearty breakfast! The three names (see post title) used for this dish, sic., Alsation, German and French, embody and celebrate the crossover of cuisine and cultures.

The traditional ingredients for Flammekueche are crème fraîche, lardons aka cured breast of pork or pork belly cut into strips and onions, all arranged onto a thin pizza-type dough base. However, if you don't eat pork, there are many delicious alternatives, such as diced sun or oven-dried tomatoes. Pictured below are some I prepared last year and I'll be sharing how, why and when I make them in the next blog post.

As you will be aware, if you are following my blog, we eat organic meat on a small budget, so I am always working out ways to get the best value from my butcher. In the case of this recipe, it is paradoxically better for me to use my half price heel of ham or my 5 Euro end of Parma, rather than the more expensive lardons. The cost difference is due to labour, as lardons, although from a cheap cut, are usually sold diced and I can do my own slicing! However, depending on what's available, you may be able to buy a piece of cured pork belly directly from the whole joint, so if you want to be a purist, then I would go for this.

From the point of view of the dough, in this recipe we are using a bread making machine. This because Andy, who is chief bread-maker in our family, developed a flour allergy some years ago, quite common with people who always make their own bread. I actually think our home-raised quail eggs (direct link to my organic quail article) he took for hay fever and eczema will have cured this because he can now make scones by hand but we'd rather not tempt fate with constant contact.

Ingredients

For the dough

300g 11oz strong white flour
½ teaspoon of dried yeast (I use Dove's Farm)
1 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
generous pinch of raw sea salt
170ml water




For the topping
    

Red Onion - One large or two medium 

Raw crème fraîche - 1 tablespoon

Ham - I used two kinds this time, strips cut from a heel of jambon blanc and  jambon braisé et fumé (a braised and smoked ham). These are both essentially what is left of large whole hams, i.e the pieces that will no longer fit the machine to make suitable slices.

A little green pepper for added colour

 
Our Tin (just to give you an idea of coverage) 37cm x 27cm or approx 15" x 11"

Cooking Times

15 - 20 minutes or until just crisp in an oven pre-heated to 230°C or 450°F

Method

Add all the dough ingredients to the basin and set the machine to 'pizza'. Follow the order of introducing the ingredients as per the instructions on your machine. In ours they are thus: yeast, flour, salt, oil, water.

Meanwhile prepare the ingredients for the topping. 



Slicing the pepper and onion into thin rings and/or strips....

....and breaking down some of the ham heel(s) into fine 'lardons'.

When the dough is ready, remove it from the pan and knock it back. This is a process by which CO_² is removed from the dough. This is a flat bread so you don't want it to rise too much.

It is then ready to roll out.

Place dough in the buttered tin, I then leave it to prove for a few minutes on the  top of a rack on top of the wood cooker. This allows it to relax and will make for a lighter base.

Once you notice it is starting to rise, then it is ready for the topping.

Carefully spread the crème fraîche onto the base, if you are using raw thick farm cream like mine then it can be quite tricky to get an even layer. Just do your best, as once in the oven it will melt across the dough.

 

Now let your artistic temperament have free range.

For Cookery is a branch of the Arts

Cook until crisp

Serve with a fresh green salad and if you like, a traditional glass of organic beer.

Some Useful Ingredients & Utensils

If you've enjoyed this post then please feel free to share it, ask questions and/or comment.

Hope to see you here again for another recipe from an old farmhouse in Normandie,

Sue

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© 2014 Sue Cross

Caledonian Cream - A delicious Scottish dessert made with - you guessed it - organic whisky

Caledonian cream has been long associated with Burns' Night suppers and indeed it is a beautifully light finish to what is a substantial meal of soup, haggis, neeps and potatoes. However, it is also, like syllabub, often on wedding breakfast menus and according to a book I have just been reading, a firm favourite of Queen Victoria's Christmas fare at Balmoral. For us it certainly provides some sunshine in a wet Normandie Winter.

This is one of these recipes that is difficult to date because it was often a family one and handed-down by word-of-mouth. Even the fact that one of the elements didn't become available until 1797 isn't decisive, as presumably even that could have been substituted for some other ingredient in an earlier version!

Caledonian cream is easier to make if you have already have this aforementioned ingredient, which is Seville marmalade, tucked away in your cupboards. It is, however, quite simple just to make up a quick batch from a few citrus fruits and their rinds if you are outside the (very short) season for bitter oranges. You may just need to use more lemon juice and less sugar to get that fine aigre-doux balance. This is a dessert that suffers, just as marmalade itself does,  if you overdo the sweetness. I will put a link to my marmalade recipe at the bottom of the page.

This dessert is a real celebration of Scottish ingredients as it contains two of its  famous 'inventions' and exports marmalade and whisky. 

Ingredients

300ml or ½ a pint of raw crème fraîche épaisse*, whipping or thick cream

2 tablespoons of malt whisky (you can also use brandy and we have made it with Calvados aka Normandie apple brandy)

2 tablespoons of Seville marmalade

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon of rapadura or raw cane sugar

This will make four servings.

*This is cream which has been left to stand and cool after full cream milk, such as A2 raw Normandy, has been run through a separator. I know this because some few weeks ago I got up at, what was to me, the crack of dawn to go and film the process. More of this in a later article.

Method

If you are using a thin crème fraîche then you will need to whip this up prior to incorporating the rest of the ingredient. You can over-beat cream so I usually beat it until it forms something that looks like the leaves of a book. However, for the last two years I have been able to get my cream directly from the cow - raw and organic and so thick a spoon will stand up in it.

 


Add the sugar and marmalade to the cream and incorporate by folding into cream with a large spoon







Add the spirit and lemon juice and mix well.



Whisk the mixture together until thick.


You can then spoon into glasses and leave to chill or you can do as I did and use the mixture to assemble our 'Caledonian Sundae'.

I added a layer of pure marmalade to the bottom of the glass and then decorated the top with some home-made chocolate dipped orange peels. A touch more marmalade and some curls of dark chocolate.

If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share it and to comment and/or ask questions.

Thanks for dropping by and 'til the next time for another recipe from an old farm-house in Normandie, all the best,

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© 2014 Sue Cross

Traditional Cider Syllabub - a simple, elegant and ancient festive dessert

Although syllabub puddings in literature are often associated with Wedding feasts they are delicious at any time of year and particularly in the Winter months, imbued with the very essence of festive cheer. The version pictured below is a syllabub coupe made with layers of medlar purée, rose hip syrup, medlar flavoured and plain syllabub and dark chocolate.

However, nothing beats a simple syllabub to accompany the final (third!) crop of figs freshly plucked from the garden.

A little history with a dash of verjus

Ironically syllabub started life not as a classy dessert but as a very special drink. Since Mediaeval times and right up to the end of the 17th century, it was the traditional love-token exchanged between milk-maids and their sweethearts. Known simply as a 'from the cow' recipe, in this version, the cow was milked directly into a bowl of crab apple verjus, sugar or honey. Made, as the name suggests, mainly from pressing unripe grapes or crab apples, verjus was a popular Mediaeval cookery ingredient, being preferred to vinegar or lemon as a condiment or for déglaçage, as it didn't conflict with accompanying wines. In recent years verjus has enjoyed a renaissance, particularly in contemporary organic French and American cuisine, where it is used in vinaigrettes, sauces and marinades and for the same reason. It also fits well into the ethos of organic because it uses fruit thinnings, which would otherwise be discarded. 

So with verjus back as an easily obtainable ingredient, if you would like to venture into making syllabub in the traditional manner and have a tame and/or very accommodating cow, goat or sheep, then I will provide a link at the bottom of the page to some very brave and experimental cooks.

From the 18th century onwards however, syllabub began to change, becoming much easier to prepare and much less the preserve of milk-maids.

Ingredients

1 lemon
2 - 3 tablespoons of rapadura - pure raw cane sugar
100ml or 4 fl oz of dry farm cider
300ml or ½ a pint of raw crème fraîche épaisse*, whipping or thick cream

*This is cream which has been left to stand and cool after full cream milk, such as A2 raw Normandy has been run through a separator. I know this because some few weeks ago I got up at, what was to me, the crack of dawn to go and film the process. More of this in a later article.

You may be looking at this list and thinking sooo simple. Well, not so because with organic quality raw products the depth of flavours is incredible. This is the irony of organic raw materials, which by their very method of production and lack of subsidy, will cost more than those of industrial farming but you do not need a whole host of extra costing ingredients, aromas and additives.

Method

In order to permit this depth of flavour to fully develop, it is best to allow at least an hour for the ingredients other than the cream to rest and infuse. However, if this is a last-minute party-effort do not worry, just make sure you have enough left over to enjoy by yourself the day after, when it will be richer, glossier and most indulgently delicious.

Squeeze the juice from the lemon and remove the outer layer of peel.

Add the sugar and cider and if possible leave for at least an hour to infuse.

Incorporate the cream with a hand whisk or electric beater, until it forms into 'leaves' or peaks.

Ignore cut-and-paste impostors who tell you crème fraîche does not whip, even the organic shop-bought thin version does.

Uses

Sylabub can be used to make up coupes or sundaes, it makes great frosting for a cake and an extra-sumptuous top-layer for a trifle. It is delicious with Christmas pudding read more and divine just eaten on its own.

 

It can be made with wine or spirits (use less!), sherry or Shakespearean sack (whatever that is). Like all great recipes it can be altered to suit. If you prefer, use a fruit juice but make sure it is tart enough to be carried by the cream. Have fun experimenting!

Now if you'd like to sit back and watch the film:


If you've enjoyed this recipe think about sharing it and feel free to ask questions, comment and/or make observations.

Here for the more adventurous is the 'from the goat' recipe and here a most comprehensive essay on syllabub plus'direct from the cow' recipe experience.

All the very best, 'til next time and another recipe from an old farm house in Normandie,
Sue

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© 2014 Sue Cross