“I can’t think of a specific meal, but my favourite country for food has got to be France.” ~ Giles Foden

Good morning, my friends.  Welcome to ‘At Table.’  Today, I would like to talk about a remarkable young woman, Mimi Thorisson. There are many reasons I feel Thorisson is remarkable.  One, in particular, she is the mother of eight.  And in my opinion, that qualifies her as ‘truly remarkable.’  However, there is more ~ much more.  And just in case you are not familiar with her, I will share a little background information.

Mimi Thorisson in her kitchen in Medoc.

I first became acquainted with Mimi Thorisson through her blog, Manger (translation, to eat).  Thorisson was born and raised in China.  Her father was Chinese and her mother was French.  She would spend summers and holidays in France with her grandmother and aunts.  It was there she learned her way around a kitchen, the love of good food, and the art of skillful preparation. Her grandmother and her aunts were all wonderful cooks and she thoroughly enjoyed learning from them.

Going forward a few years, when Thorisson and her husband, Oddur (a professional photographer from Iceland), were in their mid-30s they made a life-changing move.  A move that would lead them down many new and different roads.   They moved from their small Paris apartment to a large stone farmhouse in Médoc, France.  Médoc (French pronunciation: meˈdok) is a region of France, well known as a wine-growing region, located north of Bordeaux.    This peninsula on the Atlantic was considered one of France’s last frontiers until Thorisson arrived and her blog, Manger, captured the hearts of its readers.  In April 2013, Manger was named Saveur’s Best Regional Food Blog.  Quite an honor.

Following this award of her successful blog, her first cookbook, A Kitchen In France, was published in 2014.  Followed in 2016, by the publishing of French Country Cooking: Meals and Moments from a Village in the Vineyards.

 

“No one who cooks, cooks alone. Even at her most solitary, a cook in the kitchen is surrounded by generations of cooks past, the advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of cookbook writers.” ~ Laurie Colwin

 

Pear Flognarde

A Pear Flognarde is a rustic cake with origins in the Limousin region of France.  It is rather like a big pancake filled with marvelous pears.  In the Occitan language, flognarde means “soft.”  This is a lovely and easy dessert – be sure to give it a try.

Ingredients

4 Tbls. unsalted butter, plus more for the cake pan

6 medium pears, such as Bartlett

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 Tbls. dark run

4 large eggs

1 Tbls. honey

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped out and reserved

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 2/3 cup whole milk

1 Tbls. brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350.  Peel pears, cut into quarters and remove the cores.  In a large sauté pan, heat 2 Tbls. of the butter.  Add pears, sprinkle with 1 1/2 Tbls of granulated sugar, and cook, turning them once, until golden, about 8 minutes.  Sprinkle with rum and simmer for about 2 to 3 minutes.  Set aside to cool.  In a large bowl, combine the eggs, remaining sugar, honey, vanilla seeds, and salt.  Whisk until frothy.  Melt the remaining 2 Tbls. of butter and whisk into the batter, along with the flour and milk, whisking until smooth.  Scrape the pears and all of their juices into the prepared pan.  Pour the batter on top and sprinkle with brown sugar.  Bake until puffed and golden, about 35 to 40 minutes.  Let cool for at least 15 minutes on a wire rack before unmolding.  The cake will deflate gradually as it cools.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  It is quite lovely with rum ice cream or a dollop of crème fraîche.

“We all eat, and it would be a sad waste of opportunity to eat badly.” ~ Anna Thomas

 

 

In closing, I hope you have enjoyed being ‘At Table’ today. 

Know how much I appreciate your visit and I do hope you will try the recipes. 

Wishing you…

Beautiful autumn days with special times, ‘At Table.’

Bon Appétit,

Sandra

 

The next post of ‘At Table’ will be November 20, 2019. 

Notes on the Chou Farçi ~ what I did differently.  I had on hand a regular head of green cabbage, so this is what I used (as you can see in the photo).  Because I do not have a Charlotte mold, I made it in a single layer.  It was about one and a half-inch thick.  However, in using a 9 inch round glass cake pan, it turned out perfectly.  The next time I make it, I will use the Savoy cabbage, as the leaves are larger, more flexible and prettier too.  Also, when you cut this, use a very sharp knife in order to prevent smashing the slices. Charlotte molds are readily available at several online sources, I think I will purchase one. 

Rabelais spice is a mix of allspice, nutmeg, and curry ~ a traditional spice in France since 1820.

Both recipes given today are from Thorisson’s book, A Kitchen In France.

 

Images:  Pinterest, tumblr, S. Lambiotte