Keep Summer Going with these 4 Southern France Recipes

In her new book, Rebekah Peppler explores the food, drink and lifestyle of southeastern France, featuring 100 recipes that reflect the simple, seasonal and multicultural French table from a modern perspective.

SARDINES + PIMENT D’ESPELETTE

Serves 6

While sick with long Covid, I spent the month of October in La Ciotat, a port city on the Mediterranean near Bandol, attempting to harness the restorative powers of the sea. One day, a friend drove in to meet me for a picnic and, my recovery pantry sparse, I grabbed a tin of sardines to contribute. In a story too long for this headnote, that tin of sardines directly led to meeting the woman who is now my wife. TL;DR: tinned fish flowers.

INGREDIENTS

• Two 5 oz (140 g) tins sardines packed in oil
• 1 lemon, zested and quartered
• 1 teaspoon piment d’Espelette, plus more for serving
• Flaky sea salt
• Crusty bread, for serving Salted butter, for serving

METHOD

1. Open the sardine tins. Top with lemon zest and piment d’Espelette. Sprinkle with salt and serve with bread, butter, lemon quarters and more salt and piment d’Espelette.

Note:

Piment d’Espelette is a lightly spiced chilli from France’s Basque country. I highly recommend seeking it out at speciality shops or online and then putting it on most things – it’s very special but hot paprika can be substituted here if necessary.

HARICOTS VERTS WITH SHALLOTS, CAPERS, PRESERVED LEMON

Serves 6

At marchés across Provence, haricots verts pile high from July to September. After spending half the summer grabbing them by the handful, barely blanching them (harvested young, they’re a dream to cook, by which I mean they take barely any time), and then tossing the long, thin, tender beans with salted butter and herbs a classic, delicate side – I get bored and want more. Enter this shallot, garlic, caper, preserved lemon and harissa combination.

INGREDIENTS

• 1% lbs (570 g) haricots verts or green beans, trimmed
• 5 tablespoons (75 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 medium shallots, thinly sliced into rounds
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ¼ cup (30 g) salted capers, soaked, rinsed, drained, and coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped preserved lemons
• 2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
• 1 to 2 tablespoons harissa
• Flaky sea salt

METHOD

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the haricots verts and cook until bright green and crisp-tender, 2 minutes. Drain the beans and set aside.

2. Set a large skillet over medium heat and add 4 tablespoons (60 ml) of the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots are tender and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the garlic and capers and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the preserved lemon, vinegar, and harissa. Add the beans and 2 tablespoons of water. Toss to coat the beans with the mixture and heat through, then transfer to a serving platter. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, season with salt, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Note:

Keep in mind that if you use shorter, thicker, heartier green beans rather than haricots verts (which, yes, means ‘green beans’ in French), they’ll take a little longer to cook.

A VERY CLASSIC PISTOU

Makes 120ml

INGREDIENTS

• 2 garlic cloves
• ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
• 3 cups (75 g) basil leaves
• 1/2 cup (80 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

METHOD

If you are making the pistou with a mortar and pestle:

1. Place the garlic and salt in a mortar and grind until a paste forms. Add the basil leaves by the handful and pound them, scraping the sides of the mortar often, until they are almost smooth and all the basil is incorporated. Slowly add the oil, I tablespoon at a time, smashing until it’s all combined. Season with salt to taste.

If you are making the pistou with a blender.

1. Place the garlic cloves in the blender and pulse until roughly chopped. Add the salt and basil and pulse, scraping the sides of the blender often, until nearly smooth. With the blender running, slowly pour in the oil until it’s all combined. Season with salt.

2. The pistou can be made and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days in advance.

STRAWBERRY GÂTEAU

Makes one 9 in (23 cm) gâteau

In France, we enjoy a rolling strawberry season from early spring until the first frosts of autumn. The long, sweet, delicate Gariguette begins. Next comes the juicy, aromatic Ciflorette, the bright red Clery, the heart-shaped Charlotte. Then the ascendance of the tiny in size, big in sweet, acidic flavoured Fraise du Bois. The Mara des Bois is the latest to appear. The beauty of recipe testing (and testing and testing) for a book means you test throughout multiple seasons, meaning I’ve made this with multiple varieties. Some hold their shape better, others are sweeter, some are larger, all are highly recommended. And if your strawberry season is more of the “the good stuff peaks in June” variety, use those June berries.

INGREDIENTS

• Strawberries 1 lb (455 g) fresh strawberries, stemmed and halved
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• Pinch of flaky sea salt
• 1/3 cup (80 ml) dry rosé Gâteau
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (130 g) granulated sugar
• 1½ cups (245 g) all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 1½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more to finish
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 large eggs
• ½ cup (120 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup (80 ml) strawberry- rosé soaking liquid
• 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract or ½ vanilla bean, split and scraped, pod reserved for another use
• Crème fraîche, for serving

Method:

To make the strawberries:

1. In a medium bowl, combine the strawberries, sugar, and salt. Add the rosé, toss gently to combine, and set aside to macerate for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

To make the gateau:

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Butter a 9 in (23 cm) round springform pan. Sprinkle the pan evenly with I tablespoon of the granulated sugar.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. In a separate medium bowl, vigorously whisk together ½ cup (100 g) of the sugar and the eggs until lightened in colour and the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil, strawberry-rosé soaking liquid (reserve any remaining liquid for later), and the vanilla. Use a spatula to gently fold in the flour mixture until just combined. Transfer to the prepared pan and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar. Arrange the berries on top in a circle, cut-side up (or just dump them all on evenly). Bake until the gâteau is golden and set and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean, 1 hour to 75 minutes, gently rotating the pan halfway through baking.

3. Brush the top of the gâteau with the remaining strawberry-rosé soaking liquid. sprinkle with salt, and let cool in the pan for 15 to 20 minutes before removing. Cool completely on a cooling rack or serve warm with crème fraîche. Leftover slices of the gâteau will keep, covered, in the refrigerator, for 3 to 4 days.

Note:

Sure, yes, the recipe title here is Strawberry Gâteau but depending on what you have/love, it could just as easily be apricot gâteau or donut peach gâteau or currant gâteau or cherry gâteau… you get the idea.

From France Today Magazine