They say French is the language of love… Well, we think the same about their food. François-Régis Gaudry and friends present to you ‘Let’s Eat France!’ A beautifully illustrated collection of recipes, facts, maps, tricks and tips on everything you would ever want to know about French food.
With an abundance of rellys you see only a few time a year, and friends arriving to celebrate the festivities, now is the time to get creative with your cooking, and if there’s one thing we really do know – you will have taste testers lining up at your door (and most likely down the road too!) Take a peek at two of our favourite coffee morning, lunch-time, teatime, late night snack delights. Just a quick word of warning- make more than you think, ours had all been gobbled up before the kettle had boiled!
DISCOVERING THE MADELEINE
Before you start cracking the eggs, read all about the origins, anecdotes, even hypotheses to how the bump is created. Oh, and a whole load of pretty photos to inspire you…
Extracted from Let’s Eat France by François-Régis Gaudry (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2018. Photograph by Pierre JavelleINGREDIENTS
2 eggs
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (40g) milk
1 ¼ cups (125g) all-purpose flour (sifted- plus more for dusting)
1/8 ounces (5g) baking powder
9 tablespoons plus 2 tablespoons (140g) unsalted butter, melted and kept warm, plus more at room temperature for greasing the mould.
For the Icing
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (120g) confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons (30g) orange juice
METHOD
Whisk together the eggs and granulated sugar. Whisk in the milk, sift the flour with the baking powder. Using the whisk, stir in the flour, then stir in the warm melted butter until thoroughly combined. Let the batter rest in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours. Grease the mould with butter, then dust with flour, tapping out any excess. Fill each cavity with the batter and bake for 9 to 10 minutes at 400˚F (210˚C).
For the icing, stir together the confectioners’ sugar and orange juice. Using a pastry brush, coat the madeleines with the icing.
Extracted from Let’s Eat France by François-Régis Gaudry (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2018. Photograph by Mélanie Rueda
LA FAMILLE PÂTE À CHOUX
This page includes the most beautiful illustrations with so many ways the choux pastry has worked its way into French cookery. Seriously mouth-watering.
INGREDIENTS
1 ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon (75g) water
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon (72g) whole milk
¾ teaspoon (3g) superfine sugar
½ teaspoon (3g) salt
4 tablespoons plus 1¾ teaspoons (65g) unsalted butter
¾ cup plis 1 tablespoon (80g) all-purpose flour
5 1/8 ounces (145g) whole egg (about 3 large eggs)
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 400˚F (210˚C). Combine the water, milk, sugar, salt, and butter in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the flour all at once and stir until a smooth paste is achieved. The dough will detach from the sides of the pan when it is stirred. Transfer the dough to a bowl and stir in the eggs one at a time with a wooden spoon until the dough forms a fairly firm pint, similar to a bird’s beak, when lifted with the spoon. Fit a pastry bag with a plain piping tube of the desired width and pipe the dough onto a lined baking sheet in the shape and size of your choice. Place in the over and bake for 10 minutes. Set the oven temperature to 300˚F (150˚C) and continue baking for another 25 minutes.
– JPS
FIND IT HERE
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Inspiration/ImageCredits: Extracted from Let’s Eat France by François-Régis Gaudry (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2018.
