fruit – Page 25 – Myfrenchkitchen

Except for a scoop of ice cream from the fridge, I don’t think there is a quicker, easier and more delicious dessert than a crumble.

I grew up with crumble in my mother’s house. Usually an apple crumble, made in her usual pyrex glass baking dish and she served it with fresh cream scooped from the full cream milk my father brought home from the farm every other day.

Crumbles have changed a little face today, being now made with all kinds of fruit, topped with all kinds of different toppings, either sweet or salty, served from a big dish or as individually petite servings. It is popular with old and young and equally at home at the family table or finishing off an elegant meal.

…frozen berries whole year long…

I especially favour red berris for a crumble. I love the colour and I love the sweet/tartiness of the berries and now that we can have berries available the whole year in frozen form, I could’nt be happier. I don’t feel guilty for eating berries frozen out of season, for the simple reason that they are so healthy and low in sugars, and they add some welcome colour towards the end of winter when the root vegetables and bleak winter foods start getting a bit difficult to swallow down.

…slowly and deliberately…

Suggestions:

With a bag or two of frozen red berries in the freezer you have dessert at the tip of your spoon whole year. *Add beaten egg whites and some whipped cream and refrigerate for a feather light mousse. *Defrost in the firdge and add to a salad. *Mix to a puree and add to a vinaigrette. *Make a coulis for ice cream or a chutney for foie gras or roasted duck. *Bake a muffin on a sunday morning. *Simply saute with a bit of honey in a pan and spoon over french toast. *Make a sorbet to lift a heavy winter casserole. *Spoon over joghurt for an evening snack. *Simply defrost to room temperature and nibble on a handful. Any more ideas?

…old wishes…

When I was born all those years ago, a neighbour further down our street came over to see the newborn baby, me. She congratulated my parents and gave my mother this little cup and saucer with the wish that when I turn 21 one day, I should drink from this cup, and with it all the good wishes and happiness she wishes for me in life. So. I turned 21 and I did drink tea from this cup and I am a happy person! I own this little cup today and it got damaged with all our moving around, but I carefully glued it all together and low and behold, it still holds a cup of tea without leaking…. and even in that I find solace. Our lives aren’t perfect either, but we can be happy and content, by opening up to it. Not that I dedicate my happiness to the drinking from the cup, but symbolically it means to me that every good wish we receive will eventually help fill our cup. Given of course that the wishes are really meant and not only empty words!

I love this little cup and saucer and have started carrying on the tradition. This specific cup and saucer is promised to a little six year old girl named Karla, who will one day have her tea poured into this imperfect, but beautiful and unleaking cup. I have in the meantime started collecting my own special little anitique cups and saucers to pass onto my grandchildren one day and other new born babies who come into my life. My wish will also be that their cup be filled with happiness.

…ongoing tradition…

LASTLY: An update on the spices of Zlamushka:

My husband drew a name from all the comments recieved on the two pervious posts and Monique at latabledenana, is the lucky winner and her parcel as well as Zlamushka’s will soon be on its way.
The list of the secret ingredients can be seen in an update on Zlamushka’s spices.

Similar posts you might be interested in :

Sun and summer are still plentiful here in Montlouis. On arriving home, we opened the gates to a jungle of green. . Mosquitoes in the switched off fountain. Boxwood in pots dried and sad. Rosebushes hanging heavy with hips, spiderwebs in every corner, dust swirling around in the streams of sun light. Mail overflowing. Advertisements strewn over the entrance…does it sound familiar?

…bienvenue chez nous!…

…entrez!…

fenetre chez nous

Back bending and hopeful we dug in. Into the garden. Into the house. Scraping, digging, pruning shoveling. We drank water by the liters and turned to icy cold colas. We washed and rinsed, dusted and coughed, groaned and polished. Not to mention attacking the washing machine with vigour and gratitude! I forgot how to set the time on my microwave oven and wondered if I still needed it? I listened to the murmur of my dishwasher and wondered how on ever I got by for 5 months without! I now once agin appreciate my comfy and (for me), simple but luxurious kitchen and delighted in putting together a meal of fish and citrus fruit. Then we indulged in our dinner under the parasol, hearing the fountain, smelling the September bloom of jasmin, dreaming and planning for this second half of 2009.

…indulgement…

Suggestions:

Scorpion fish is really delicious and reminds somewhat of lobster flesh. But of course any fish can be used for this recipe and the method of cooking can be adapted as well. If on a diet and you want to stay away from sauteing, then go for poaching, or even roasting in the oven. Just make sure NOT to overcook the fish filets. In any case, fish should ALWAYS be done quickly, because a little standing time cooks the fish even further. Nothing is more off- putting than rubbered fish!! Another note on fish…do your guests the honour and favour, by removing ALL the fish bones…the reason why many people shy away from fish!
Don’t raise the eyebrows for the amount of lemon segments…it really flavours the dish and it isn’t noticeable as..”eeuww…lemon!”
For a suggestion on how a citrus fruit is segmented you can seethe slide show in a previous post here: Citrus and carrot salad – how to segment an orange.
the orange flower water enhances the salad and it is a good idea to have it in your pantry as a few drops enhances many a dish. To harmonize with the citrus and orange flower flavour, the addition of a citrus honey would be perfect, but a flower honey is nice too, which is what I used. Try not to use acacia, since it competes with the orange flower water.
And lastly…DO have fun when cooking! Remember, cooking is all about Try, Test and Taste!!

…letting it marinate…

Montlouis is situated on the banks of the wild, untamed Loire river in Touraine, 10 minutes from Tours, and on the route touristique…wines, chateaux, promenades, photograph tours and the special troglodytes of Touraines, where many people adore living in the caves. We also have 3 caves at the back in our property, going into the cliff. But more on that and les troglodytes and its lifestyles next time. For now, a taste of la vie quotidienne d’une Montlouisienne(moi!)!

…je vous prèsente Montlouis…

…then you turn right, then go up the hill, then.. then…

In the photo at the top left can be seen…an enormous bunch of grapes! Which at some stage was lit at night and it was a fountain, but now it only serves as the land mark of our little town. It forms part of every direction giving to deliveries and strangers and visitors: “…et puis on va tout droit, et puis on tombe sur une horrible grappe de raisin, et puis on tourne à droite et puis….(then you go straight, then you will see a huge ugly bunch of grapes right next to the Loire, then you turn right up the hill, then…”)

Turning at this bunch of grapes takes you up a steep hill to la centre ville, where cars play second fiddle to walking and cycling, shopping and chatting.

…centre ville…

…walking and shopping…

It is a busy little town with festivals going on throughout the year..brocantes et vide greniers, jazz festivals in September, tomato festival at the chateau bourdaisiere in September, garden festival in april, bread festvals, wine festivals, food festvals, fresh market every Thursday. We have the jour de Loire, with all activities and actions circling around the river Loire. And just as we think by the end of the year that the festivals are over, along comes the Christmas market, and we eat again, chat again, drink and buy wine again, shop for that star for le sapin noël…

…religion, homes and war..

…need directions?…

Life is a hustle and bustle at Montlouis, while the Loire just nonchalantly continues snaking forward – silently in summer and filling up with winterrains to a passionate and powerful flood..

Voilà a short introduction to the place we call home. There is more to come in follow ups- the festivals, the people of Montlouis, interviews with les vignerons(winemakers) and their pleasures, artists of the area, the caves and their history and all kinds of food, fun and flair! A bientôt!

…la Loire en septembre…