Showing posts with label desserts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label desserts. Show all posts

Saturday, January 3, 2015

Les treize dessert de Noel

You can pick anything for this celebration.
I carved an apple into a bird!
This Fall I found the Quince, and while searching more about it I stumbled on a celebration from the South of France, the Languedoc-Rousillon region, kind of the Provence area. Well, one thing you may not know is my admiration for all things French. I dream of a world of taking time, of valuing relationships and time, of spending beaucoup money to take time, hours of it really, sitting in a cafe, talking, writing, just being there, knowing your waiter will not interrupt a minute of your time unless you summon him/her. The idea of spending more time talking to your companion at a meal, than you spend answering questions like: "are you done, can I take your plate, do you want dessert, would you like a refill, do you want the check." It is exhausting going out to eat, I would like to spend more time talking to my family than the wait person. So, that means I must return to France. Until I make it back I decided to search for little bits of culture incorporated into my every day life. This is one.

My version includes dried figs and dates, nuts like whole walnuts and almonds, and every rare fruit I can find. I found: persimmons, perscimmons, pomegranates, asian pear, palmello, kiwi, sweet cuties, star fruit, quince (made into membrillo or jam) and the more common honeydew melon.

To serve I make a salad with the fruit, make a French Fogasse shaped like a tree (focaccia in Italian),

This is Quince!

This is the color when
you make it into jam!!!
which I break with my hands (symbolizing breaking bread at the last supper) to serve with quince jam and cheese and a morning orange lime beignet dusted with powdered sugar. 

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Don't wince it's Quince or Membrillo in Mexico

I had wondered where membrillo came from when I tried it in Mexico. A unique sweet flavored treat, pinkish, reddish in color. Texture of a formed jam. Only in small doses. Then I wrote a book for children called "Fruits and Vegetable from A to Z: My Alphabet and Me" and the only fruit or vegetable I could find that started with the Q sound was......Quince. Really!!! Also I had no clue what it was. Learned a lot about it though. Finally I found some at, of all places, Walmart, no I'm not kidding. So I can finally put my own photo in the book and a recipe I have actually tried:
QUINCE JAM
Ingredients
6 cups packed grated coreless (2 lbs) quince
4 1/4 cups water
1/4 cup lemon juie
1 Tbsp lemon zest
4 cups sugar
Directions
Bring water to boil
Add quince, lemon juice, zest
Reduce heat and simmer until soft about 10 minutes
Add sugar and bring to boil
Lower to medium high
Cook, stirring occasionally until pink and thick, about 30 to 50 minutes
Can like usual

resources: Fethiye's Yogurt Land blog, Simply Recipes