PROVENCE, THE COOKBOOK ❘ FOOD
Sprinkle over the rosemary along with the thyme, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pop the dish in the oven. Roast for 1 hour 10 minutes to 1½ hours, depending on the size of your shoulder. Turn the meat over every 30 minutes and keep an eye on the level of liquid in the base: if it ever looks too dry, pour in the remaining stock. After 1½ hours, your shoulder should be ready and hopefully still nice and pink in the centre. Remove the dish from the oven and place the meat on a board to rest, covered in foil. 4 Assess the potatoes: those that have been sitting directly under the meat may lack that desirable golden brown crispy top. If this is the case, turn the oven up to 475˚F (240˚C) while the meat is resting on the counter, and put the potatoes back in for 5–10 minutes to cook to perfection. 5 Carve the rested meat and serve together with the potatoes and copious amounts of red wine.
CHERRY CAKE
Though impractical to bite into a cake and have to spit out a cherry pit, in French baking it is very common to leave them in, since they impart a wonderful flavour.
For this simple cherry cake, the question of to pit or not to pit is left to the baker, though guests will need to be forewarned if they are indeed left in, à la française.
A cherry pitter is the tool for the job if you have decided to remove them; however, if you don’t wish to spend money on a niche item of sporadic use and varying effectiveness, a chopstick can be employed instead if the cherries are ripe enough. Pierce the stalk head and push the chopstick through until the pit pops out the other side.
2 teaspoons baking powder 7 tablespoons (3½ oz/100 g) butter
4 eggs 1
/3 cup (80 ml) Kirsch (optional) Serves 6–8
INGREDIENTS 10½ oz (300 g) cherries
2¼ cups (10 oz/275 g) all-purpose flour Pinch of salt
Scant 1 cup (6 oz/175 g) sugar
1 Preheat the oven to 400˚F (200˚C). Grease and line a deep 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pan. Rinse and dry the cherries and remove the pits if desired. 2 In a bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Place the butter in a small saucepan over low heat and melt it while you beat the eggs into the dry mixture. Pour in the melted butter and beat the mixture together. Stir in the cherries, then spoon into the prepared cake pan. 3 Bake for 1 hour, or until a sharp knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. If the top is browning too fast, cover with foil. 4 Once ready, remove the cake from the pan and flip onto a wire rack to cool. At this stage, it is nice, though by no means obligatory, to pour Kirsch all over the cake while still warm. Serve at room temperature with crème fraîche, if you like.
CHARD TART
The town of Nice has given us more than just salade niçoise. This tart, inspired by the classic local recipe for tourte de blettes, is reminiscent of medieval pies, with its unconventional ingredient combination by modern palate standards. Though here we keep the apples from the traditional tourte, this tart sits firmly in the savoury camp.
I have the food writer and cook Sophie Missing to thank for this delicious pastry recipe. It is blind-baked in two stages, which ensures the bottom stays crisp when the wet filling goes on top. Quiches and savoury tarts can be prepared in advance and served at room temperature: useful when hosting and serving multiple courses.
Serves 8, as a first course, or 4 as a main course with a salad
INGREDIENTS For the pastry
Generous 2 cups (9½ oz/270 g) all- purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
❯❯ Jun/Jul 2023 FRANCE TODAY ❘ 57
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