Gaul is subdued.
~Julius Caesar writing the Roman Senate on his victory over Vercingetorix

A sumptuous stick-to-the-ribs speciality of the Auvergne region in south central France, a bucolic land of abrupt volcanic plateaus, plunging cascades, verdant meadows (and carbo-loading potato dishes). Audrey Tautou, who played the winsome and waifish Amélie Poulain in the acclaimed film Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain (Amélie), was born and raised in Auvergne. In France, many consider her as the typical Occitan Auvergnate.

Auvergne was also home to Vercingetorix, the renowned chieftain of the Arverni who united otherwise diverse Gallic tribes in a relentless revolt against Roman armies during the last phase of Julius Caesar’s Gallic Wars. An astute warrior, he defeated Caesar in several skirmishes including the battle of Gergovia and adopted a scorched earth policy—retreating to heavy, natural fortifications while burning hamlets behind to prevent Roman soldiers from using their abandonded lands and shelter. Vastly outnumbered though, Vercingetorix finally relented and surrendered to Caesar after being defeated at the famed, lengthy siege of Alesia (near present day Dijon) in 51 B.C. He was imprisoned and tortured in the Tullianum for five miserable years, was paraded through the streets of Rome and then summarily executed.

Millennia later, shamefully brutal rituals still perservere in some self proclaimed noble and civilized societies. Profoundly sad to say.

Vercingetorix is often hailed as a notable progenitor of French pride, passion, resilience and resolve.

Suit your mood…the first aligote version is a touch more rustic and textural, the second elegant and smooth. Yet both have that celestial courtship of earthy potatoes and nutty, buttery cheese with a salaciously molten finish.

SMASHED POTATOES ALIGOTE

3 lbs russet potatoes, halfway peeled and quartered
Sea salt, for water

2 T sea salt
2 T freshly ground pepper
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 t white pepper
1 stick+ (8 T) butter, room temperature

3/4 C heavy cream
1/2 C milk

12 ozs Tomme, Gruyère, Cantal or Compté cheese, cut into 1/2″ cubes

Chives, minced (optional)

Warm cream and milk either in microwave or in a pan on the stove.

Put potatoes into a pot with liberally salted cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat some and gently boil about 15-20 minutes, or until tender—a fork should easily pierce the kids. Undercooked potatoes do not mash properly. Drain water from potatoes in a colander and return to still warm pot. The additional time in the pot dries them a bit so they absorb the fats better.

In stages, add cream and milk, butter, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and white pepper. Use a potato masher to smash the potatoes, and then a strong spoon or dough hook to beat further, adding more milk and cream if necessary to achieve a coarse consistency, being careful to leave in some lumps. Whether coarsely smashed or mashed smooth, do not overzealously beat the potatoes or they will become like glue or paste.

Remove from the heat, add the cheese, and stir until it melts (if the cheese is not especially ripe, you might have to return the pan to the stove over very low heat). Season to taste and serve.

Top with minced chives, should you so please.

PUREED POTATOES ALIGOTE

3 lbs Russet potatoes, washed and scrubbed
1 1/2 to 2 C whole milk
3 to 4 (24-32 T) sticks unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pads
Sea salt
Freshly ground white and black peppers

12 ozs Tomme, Gruyère, Cantal or Compté cheese, cut into 1/2″ cubes

Place the potatoes in a large heavy pot of salted water. Simmer over medium high heat until a fork easily pierces them, around 30 minutes. Drain in a colander.

In a heavy saucepan, heat milk until just about to boil. Remove from stove.

Peel the potatoes, then pass them through a finely gridded food mill. Place the potatoes in a large, heavy saucepan over low heat. With a wooden spoon, stir the potatoes thoroughly in order to dry them some. Add the butter, a couple of tablespoons at a time, still stirring vigorously, until butter is entirely incorporated. Slowly add most of the milk while stirring, reserving some for later if needed.

Again pass through the finest grid of the food mill into another large, heavy saucepan. Stir vigorously throughout, adjust the amounts of milk and butter to your preferrence. The texture should be smooth and creamy.

Remove from the heat, add the cheese, and stir until it melts (if the cheese is not especially ripe, you might have to return the pan to the stove over very low heat). Season to taste and serve.

Pesto is the quiche of the ’80s.
~Nora Ephron

I have no clue how this marvelous egg and cheese open faced custard pie which was such in the vogue in the 60’s fell so precipitously out of favor—even becoming homophobically contemptible—in just a matter of a couple of decades. It is much too savory to be ill treated.

Although widely considered a classic French dish, quiche actually originated in the German medieval kingdom of Lothringen which the French later occupied and named Lorraine, as in Alsace-Lorraine. (For more on this intriguing region, see Onion Tart (Tarte aux Oignons) 06.02.09.)

The word “quiche” originally derived from the German “Kuchen,” meaning cake. The German dialect spoken in the region altered “Kuchen” to “küche,” not to be confused with cooch, cooche, coochee or coochie. Over time, further linguisitic changes unrounded the ü and shifted the “ch” to “sh,” resulting in “kische,” which in standard French became spelled and pronounced “quiche.”

Authentic Quiche Lorraine is supposed to be cheeseless, but I cannot resist the temptation.

QUICHE LORRAINE

Savory pie dough (pâte brisée*)

2 T shallots, minced
2 T butter
8 strips bacon cut into 1/4″ lardons

1 1/2 C heavy whipping cream
3-4 farm fresh large eggs, room temperature
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Nutmeg, grated

Optional: 1/4 C Gruyère or Compté, grated
1/4 C Emmental, grated

Preheat oven to 350 F

Prepare pâte brisée dough and after it has chilled, roll out to about 1/8″ thick. Place a 9″ pie or quiche dish on a baking sheet. Roll the pastry up on your rolling pin and then unroll and lay it into the dish. There should be plenty of dough overhanging the edges. Reserve a small piece of dough to fill any cracks that might open in the dough as it bakes.

Line the dough with parchment paper and fill it with dried beans or pie weights. Place in oven to bake. After 30 minutes, remove the weights and parchment. Gently patch any cracks that may have formed with the reserved dough, and continue baking until the bottom of the crust is golden and cooked, about 15 more minutes. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.

Increase the oven temperaturee to 375 F

In a heavy medium skillet, sauté shallots over medium heat in butter until soft and translucent. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.

Sauté the bacon lardons over medium heat until crisp. Drain well on paper towels and combine with the shallots.

Combine and vigorously whisk together eggs, cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper until frothy. Strew the shallots and bacon evenly over the bottom of the shell. If you opt for cheese, sprinkle over the shallots and bacon, reserving 1-2 tablespoons. Pour the custard to within 1/4″ of the rim of the dish and top evenly with the reserved cheese.

Bake until puffy and brown, about 30-35 minutes.

Allow the quiche to cool to room temperature before serving.

*Pâte Brisée

1 1/4 C all-purpose flour
6 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 T lard or shortening
1/4 teaspoon salt

3 T ice water

Place all the ingredients except the water, in a large bowl. Add the water mash and work with your hands and fingers so that is assembled into a solid, smooth ball. If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Crotte de schnauzer, CROTTE DE SCHNAUZER, CROTTE-DE-SCHNAUZER !

Je n’arrive plus à me connecter à mon compte Youtube ! Je crois que je me suis fait voler mon compte ! Et je n’ai aucune idée de comment ça a pu arriver. Je n’ai aucune vidéo faites par moi sur ce compte, mais il y a quand même des renseignements sur ma personne. J’utilise le compte que pour laisser des commentaires. Et là, j’explique plus en détails…

Lorsque je rentre mon e-mail, je reçois un message disant que brainexplosion (mon compte) est rattaché à ce e-mail. Il faut simplement que je rentre brainexplosion dans la boîte à gauche.

Rendu à ce stade, j’ai entré mon nom d’utilisateur (soit brainexplosion). Mais, depuis hier, toujours pas de e-mail reçu. J’ai réessayer plusieurs fois ce matin, mais sans succès. Si ce nom d’utilisateur est rattaché à mon adresse e-mail, le message devrait ce rendre à ma boîte de réception, non ?

Sinon… ben j’espère que c’est juste un problème technique temporaire sur le site.