TO PROMOTE THE AUTHENTICITY OF NICE ’ S CUISINE, THE
CUISINE NISSARDE , LE RESPECT DE LA TRADITION
( NICE CUISINE RESPECTING TRADITION )
LABEL IS PUBLICLY RECOGNIZED BY THE NICE CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU. RESTAURANT OWNERS CAN BE AWARDED THIS LABEL BY OFFERING SELECTED TRADITIONAL DISHES ON THEIR MENUS
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A HISTORY OF NICE ’ S CUISINE
LAND
The Nice region is a land of age-old culture and history that has learnt over the centuries to use external influences to its advantage while building on its traditions. The Middle Ages ushered in the development of the salt trade, with mule caravans winding their way down the salt trails that fed into the valleys in Nice’s hinterland. As local salt production was practically non-existent, boats from Provence would stop off in Nice on their way to Liguria to unload their cargo. But the development of trade routes from the 18th century onwards was the biggest contributing factor in spreading awareness of Mediterranean food and Nice’s cuisine.
The earliest forms of barley cultivation appeared in our region 3000 years ago, thanks to the indigenous Celtic-Ligurian peoples who worked the plots of land scattered around the little parcels on which they lived (castellaras). They also built hard stone enclosures to keep and safeguard their herds (mainly sheep). These earthy people encountered Greek sailors who lived in the trading posts that ran along the coastline, and thus developed an economy of exchange. This was the case in Nice with the Nikaia trading post set up at the foot of the Castle Hill. Although the Greeks developed grape growing in the 6th century BC, the Romans were the first to truly shape farming land on which to grow olive trees, vines and wheat. For a long time, a culture of subsistence agriculture with poor harvests dominated, as the natural environment was harsh: the soil was poor, water was scarce and the craggy landscape called for ‘faissas’ to be built - little sloped terraces that had to be cleared and held up by dry stone walls.
Wheat was used to make bread and pasta. Vegetables such as beans, peas, lentils, broad beans, chard, aubergines, leeks, onions, marrow, cabbage, cardoon, radishes and carrots, among others, were grown in family vegetable patches. Brought back from the Americas in the 16th century, tomatoes, peppers, pota toes and corn were only grown in the County of Nice beginning in the 17th and 18th centuries. Harvesting and gathering supplemented these foods, bringing herbs and mushrooms with which to flavour and garnish dishes, while the wide variety of wild salad leaves and greens gave us what we now call «mesclun».
Local fruits such as figs, grapes, chestnuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, pears and apples provided sugar. Almonds, apricots, peaches, prunes, melons and watermelons were introduced to the region by the Greeks and Ro mans. Originally from Asia, citrus fruits were successfully grown in our region beginning in the 16th century, as were persimmon and medlar fruits much later.
CLIMATE
Although the climate in the Nice area and the Côte d’Azur has done much to boost tourism development in the region, for a long time it was a significant obstacle to local farming life. Long periods of drought broken up by violent, sometimes devastating storms, threatened good harvests and pastoral activity. Communi ties were consequently forced to adapt farming to the climate, which explains why plant species requiring little water such as olive and fig trees, vines, almond trees, etc. were introduced. The olive tree has been grown since Antiquity and became the ultimate symbol of Mediterranean culture for a multitude of rea sons. For a long time, olive oil was the only grease used in cooking, seasoning and preserving food. Olives are also eaten at the dinner table or turned into tapenade, a condiment that was already known to and loved by the Romans. Olive oil boasts a number of dietary virtues that combine to make it a much-desired product today. The cultivation of vines was an integral part of the agricultural landscape for a long time, before being concentrated into fine wine production. This lead to the «Vins de Bellet» appellation, drawing its name from the hills upon which the vineyards unfurl. Wines from Villars sur Var and Baous are also very well-known and much-appreciated.
COAST
Tucked between sea and mountain, the inhabitants of the Nice region were also forced to adapt their pastoral activities to the hilly surroundings and difficult climate by choosing to raise goats and sheep - animals which survive on little grass and live on craggy land. Locals have always eaten little meat, as it was a rarity and thus too expensive. Traditionally at times of celebration, mutton or kid goat was served for Easter, offal was prepared as were local tripe specialities, ‘trule’ blood pudding, caillettes from the valleys, or cheaper cuts of meat such as veal breast or stewing meat. Hens were mainly reared for eggs, while rabbit and sometimes pork provided the occasional treat. Hunting and fishing allowed locals to add some much-appreciated variety to their diets.
Down by the coast, the sea is sadly lacking in fish. Locals mainly eat sardines, anchovies, some types of rock fish, octopus and crustaceans (sea urchins, crabs) fished locally, as well as salted (cod) or dried (stockfish) fish, brought back from the ocean thanks to maritime exchanges with Northern Europe. «Poutine» sardines and sand-smelt in their larval state and «Nonnat» gobies are highly sought-after and original local specia lities. Authorised from January to March by derogation, this fishing ought to have been forbidden from 1 January 1997 by a European provision, but local fishermen applied for a 30-year derogation to this act.
TRADITIONS
Nice’s cuisine follows the natural cycle of the seasons and festivities. Meals are determined according to the family harvest: in summer, the main dish includes a tomato salad with sauce and bread, vegetable stuffing, ratatouille and omelettes, while in the winter cabbage, leek, pulses, soups, baked sliced marrow, and fish or meat stews take centre stage. Sunday dinner is a more elaborate affair. It usually includes a starter of tomato salad in the summer or onion, anchovy and olive pizza followed by a main dish of pasta, gnocchi or ravioli, designed to fill guests up. On special occasions, a meat dish with sauce would generally follow. Dishes are eaten one at a time. Cheese is rarely served. Meals end with fresh fruit in the summer, and dried fruit in winter. Sweets are prepared for some special occasions: sweet chard pie and ganse doughnut pastries are made for Carnival, and the 13 traditional desserts are served at Christmas… During the week, housewives draw on their creativity, using leftovers and what they have to hand. Leftover meat from Sunday dinner can be turned into stuffing that is used in many of the different dishes that have become special delicacies unique to Nice’s cuisine: vegetable stuffing, stuffed veal breast, ravioli, etc.
Known as a ‘merenda’, a typical snack in Nice involves drenching round crusty bread in olive oil garnished with the ingredients of a Niçois salad, the succulent ‘pan bagnat’ or ‘socca’, a thin chickpea flour pancake cooked on a large tray and cut up into little portions.
VIN DE BELLET
APPELLATION D ’ ORIGINE CONTRÔLÉE ( AOC )
( REGISTERED DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN )
HISTORY
The Bellet vineyard is undoubtedly one of the oldest in France, and its plantation seems to date back to when the Phoenicians founded Marseille, although a lack of historic sources means it remains unproven. In the Middle Ages, wine trade became an important source of income for the abbeys, particularly the Saint-Pons Abbey in Nice. But it was mainly in the 18th and 19th centuries that wine was elevated to a higher status due to the royal and imperial courts, and the rich wine merchants who helped fashion wine’s international reputation.
Having been granted its AOC in 1941, today Bellet wine is known around the world, and can be found at the grandest of tables.
REGIONS
The AOC covers approximately 650ha of which 50ha are in use.
The hillsides are located on the final foothills of the Alps, at an altitude of between approximately 200 and 300 metres, all within the territory of the commune de Nice municipality. The vineyard enjoys full sunlight (approximately 2700 hours per year), nourishing rainfall (838mm per year) and a unique micro-climate due to its altitude and winds (the Mistral and Tramontane) that sweep almost continuously across the valley.
This climate allows for a slow maturing process that is crucial to the crisp refinement of white and rosé wines.
The vines take root in narrow beds of rounded pebbles known as ‘restanques’, which are mixed with a very light-coloured sand (poudingue) along with a little clay. Together, these excellent conditions draw out the character and full maturity of the grapes to create smooth red wines. The main grape varieties are Rolle, Chardonnay, Folle noire, Braquet, and Grenache.
OLIVES & OLIVE OIL
APPELLATION D ’ ORIGINE PROTÉGÉE ( AOP )
( PROTECTED DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN )
For a long time, olive growing and trade was one of Nice’s major economic sectors. Its decline was ushered in by the two world wars that drained the region of its workforce and changed both production costs and diets.
The renowned caillette (the name given to olives from Nice) is noted for its quality and delicacy in the Encyclopaedia of Diderot and d’Alembert.
Table olives are steeped in sea salt brine. After six months of salting, their flesh is subtle, slightly crunchy under the tooth, with an unparalleled fruity flavour.
Nice’s AOP olive oil is made from olives harvested from the hillsides between November and April. Harvesting is traditionally carried out by hand-pole beating. The Alziari oil mill is the only one of its kind in operation in Nice, and offers visitors the chance to discover how oil is made for themselves.
THE “CENTRE DU P WITHATRIMOINE” THE P ARTI CIP ATION OF
RECIPES
5 Pan Bagnat
Lou Pan Bagnat
6 Socca
La Soca
7 Soupe au Pistou
La Soupa au Pistou
8 Fish Soup
La Soupa de Pei
9 Salade Niçoise
La Salada Nissarda
10 La Bagna Cauda
11 Le Mesclun
Lou Mesclun
12 La Pissaladière
La Pissaladièra
13 Aubergine, Courgettes and Courgette Flower Fritters
Li Bignéta de Mérenjaïna, de Cougourdéta e Flou de Cougourdéta
14 La Troucha
15 Panisses
Li Panissa
16 Raviolis Niçois
Li Raiola à la nissarda
17 Gnocchis Niçois
Lu Gnocchi nissart
18 Li Merda de Can
19 Stew Niçoise
La Doba nissarda
20 Rabbit stew à la Niçoise
Counieu à la nissarda
21 Stuffed Veal Breast
Lou Pièch
22 Tripes à la Niço ise
Li Tripa à la nissarda
23 Stuffed Sardines à la Niçoise
Li Sardina à la nissarda
24 Le Stockfish
Estocaficada
26 Niçois stuffed vegetables
Lu Farcit Nissart
32 Ratatouille Niçoise
Ratatouia
33 Tian of Courgettes or Pumpkin
Tian de Cougourdeta o de Cougourda
34 La Tourte de Blette
La Tourta de blea
36 Ganses Niçoises
Li Gansa à la nissarda
37 Apple-Raisin Fritters
Poum e asebic en Bigneta
Pan Bagnat Lou Pan Bagnat
Ingredients per person
> 1 round loaf (between 15cm and 20cm diameter),
> 2 tomatoes (including a really ripe one to favour the bread),
> 1 spring onion,
> 1/2 a small salad pepper,
> 1 hard-boiled egg,
> 2 bean pods ; only use the baby beans (in season),
> 1 small purple artichoke : only use the finely chopped heart (in season),
> 5 radishes, > 5 or 6 black olives,
> 40 g tuna flakes in olive oil,
> 1 salted anchovy (2 fllets),
> 2 basil leaves,
> 20 to 30 ml olive oil,
> 10 ml vinegar,
> 1 clove of garlic,
> Fine salt & ground pepper.
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 8 minutes (hard eggs)
Season: summer
Cut the bread in 2, leaving the lower part which will hold the filling with the larger volume; remove the surplus dough. Rub the inside of the bread with garlic (according to taste). Impregnate the two parts of the bread with the ripest tomato cut in two, the olive oil, and vinegar, add salt and pepper. Place the ingredients on the lower part of the bread: the tomato cut into slices, the thin slices of radish and spring onion, the hard-boiled egg sliced into rings, the shelled baby beans, and the thinly sliced artichoke heart (in season), flakes of tuna or anchovy fillets, basil and pitted olives, add salt and pepper and close by pressing down well on the lid to compress the ingredients inside the pan bagnat.
5
Socca La Soca
Ingredients for 8 people
> 1 litre water, > 300 g chickpea flour, > 8 tablespoons olive oil, > 1 tablespoon fine salt.
> Socca can be cooked in a non-stick frying pan.
> Heat some oil in the frying pan beforehand, and cook both sides like a pancake.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes per tray Season: throughout the year
Pour the cold water, chickpea flour, olive oil and salt into a salad bowl. Beat briskly with a whisk to remove any lumps. Strain.
Heat a thickly-oiled 50 cm diameter copper baking tray. When it is nice and hot, pour and spread the mixture over the tray (around 2 to 3 mm thick). Cook in a very hot oven (around 280°).
Remove the tray from the oven when the pastry is golden and crusty, and even slightly burnt in places.
Cut into small pieces, season with pepper and serve quickly.
6
Pistou soup
La Soupa au Pistou
Ingredients for 8 people
> 3.5 litres water, > 4 carrots, > 2 turnips, > 100 g white, shelled beans, > 100 g red, shelled beans, > 200 g green beans, > 2 tomatoes, > 3 long Nice courgettes, > 3 leeks, > 2 celery branches, > 3 potatoes, > 2 onions.
PISTOU
> 3 big cloves of garlic, > Salt & pepper, > 100 g of grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz), > 15 large basil leaves, > 5 tablespoons olive oil.
> Small pieces of pasta can be added to the soup 15 minutes before the end of cooking, as is done inland.
Preparation time: 20 minutes for the soup (apart from soaking the beans if required), 10 minutes for the pistou
Cooking time: 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes
Season: spring, summer, autumn
Soup
Brown the thinly sliced onions in olive oil, then the sliced leeks, and then the peeled, seeded and crushed tomatoes in a cooking pot on a low heat.
Add the other vegetables, cut into small cubes, the salt and pepper and cover with pre-heated water.
Bring to the boil and then simmer on a low heat without a lid for 1 hour. Pistou
Crush the garlic and the basil leaves in a bowl. Add the grated cheese and the olive oil. Possibly dilute the pistou with a ladle of hot stock. The pistou must never cook. It must be added off the heat, in the dish or the plates when serving.
Remark:
If the beans are dry, soak them for around two hours in cold water and remove the skins.
7
Fish soup La Soupa de Pei
Ingredients for 8 people
> 4 litres water, > 2 kg nice small rock fish, > some small green, ‘charlatans’ or ‘charloù’ crabs, > 1 kg conger eel, > 4 good sized onions, > 4 cloves of garlic, > 1 kg fresh tomatoes, > Cayenne pepper, > 4 cubes saffron powder, > 1 bouquet garni with fennel or 1 glass of pastis, > White wine, > Olive oil, salt.
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 35/45 minutes Season: throughout the year
Cook the fish and shellfish in warm olive oil, adding sliced onion rings and finely chopped garlic cloves. Deglaze with a large glass of white wine.
Put the cooking pot on an average heat and add the cold water. Add the peeled, deseeded tomatoes, fennel (or pastis) the bouquet garni, the pepper and the saffron. Cook for 35 /45 minutes.
Remove the fish soup from the heat and put through a vegetable mill (average grille) and then through a fine sieve.
Put the sieved soup back into a saucepan, bring it to the boil, and gradually add seasoning to taste. Serve with rouille sauce, garlic, croutons and parmesan.
8
Salade Niçoise
La Salada Nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 1 50 g mesclun,
> 500 g tomatoes,
> 100 g spring onion, > 100 g small white celery hearts, > 400 g small purple artichoke, > 160 g small green salad peppers,
> 250 g long “18 day” radishes, > 50 g black Nice olives, > 200 g tuna in olive oil, > 8 salted anchovies (i.e. 16 fllets),
> 20 g garlic, > 100 ml olive oil, > 4 eggs, > 8 to 12 basil leaves (to taste),
> Fine salt & ground pepper.
> red wine vinegar
> 200 g cucumber*
> 400 g baby beans* (non-shelled)
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 8 minutes (cooking the eggs)
Season: spring - summer
Wash the vegetables. Clean the radishes, keeping them whole with the tender leaves. Decorate the edges of a salad bowl previously rubbed with garlic (using a peeled clove) with the mesclun.
Cut the tomatoes into quarters and place them on the leaves of mesclun, salt. Thinly slice the cucumber* (possibly sprinkled with salt), the celery and the tender part (heart) of the artichokes, the green peppers and the spring onion. Shell the baby beans* (in season).
Place all these vegetables on the tomatoes, taking care over the presentation, salt.
Add the tuna leaving fairly large pieces, the snipped basil and decorate with hard eggs cut into quarters, the anchovy fillets, and the black olives.
Pour the olive oil, at the last minute, and the ground pepper, and toss the salad in front of the guests. When serving, ensure the ingredients are distributed properly on each plate.
9
La Bagna Cauda
Ingredients for 8 people
> Radishes, > Celery, > Purple artichokes, > Tomatoes, > Cauliflower, > Fennel, > Endives, > Green salad pepper, > Carrots,
> Button mushrooms, > White cardoon, > ½ litre olive oil, > 12 salted anchovy fillets, salt removed in fresh water and dried, > 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, > 50 g butter.
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes (sauce) Season: spring summer autumn
Prepare the vegetables:
>Radishes: remove the roots and leave the young leaves, >Celery: use the white part and cut into sticks, >Artichokes: use the tender part, rub with lemon, >Tomatoes: cut into quarters or use cherry tomatoes, >Cauliflower: remove the florets and cut into two, >Chicory: separate the leaves, >Carrots: peel and cut into thin slices, >Cardoon: use the white part and precook, >Mushrooms: cut the feet and dry well.
Make a sauce with the olive oil, the anchovy fillets, the crushed garlic cloves, and butter for a mellower taste. Carefully mix the ingredients to obtain a well-balanced sauce. Very slowly heat in a cast-iron dish, the sauce must not boil or risk burning. Serve in a fondue dish. Dip the vegetables in like a normal fondue.
10
Mesclun
Lou Mesclun Mesclun, «mixture» in the Niçard dialect, is an assortment of young salad leaves.
It must be composed of a minimum of 5 different sorts of salad vegetables from the following list:
> Dandelion,
> Small lettuce (young lettuce sprouts, certainly no lettuce leaves),
> Oak leaf lettuce, sow thistle (cardèia),
> Lamb’s lettuce (doçeta),
> Cress (aigret),
> Wild chicory (or escarole or curly endive, only young leaves),
> Some branches of chervil,
> Wild nut lettuce (pomasca),
> Purslane DIN-LightItalic ,
> A few rocket leaves (riquette),
> Dandelion and spinach shoots can be added in spring.
11
Pissaladière
La Pissaladièra
Ingredients for 8 people
BREAD DOUGH
> 10 to 15 ml water, > 10 g salt, > 15 to 20 g baker’s yeast, > 15 ml olive oil.
FILLING
> 2 kg onions, > 100 ml olive oil, > 1 bouquet garni (thyme, bay leaf, rosemary),
> 10 g garlic (1 clove),
> 8 fillets of salted anchovies, > Black Nice olives, > Salt & pepper.
> 25 g pissalat
The pissalat can be spread on the dough before adding the onions or mixed directly with the cooked onions before they are spread on the dough.
Preparation time: 30 minutes / Resting time for the dough: 1 hour 30 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes for the onions / Pissaladière: 20 minutes
Season: throughout the year
Peel the onions, slice them finely and place them in a cooking pot with the olive oil, the unpeeled garlic cloves and the bouquet garni, salt and pepper, cover and leave to cook on a low heat for 45 minutes (allowing the water to evaporate). Remove the garlic at the end of cooking. Making sourdough: place 125 of flour in a heap on a flat surface, make a hole, and add the yeast, moistened with some warm water. Knead the flour and the yeast to obtain a ball of dough and leave it to rest in a terrine dish covered with a cloth. The dough should double in size in 30 minutes. Make a ring out of the rest of the flour, put water, olive oil and salt in the middle. Knead the dough, adding water for a good consistency. Add the sourdough and knead the whole. Allow to rest for an hour covered. Grease a tart dish or plate, spread the dough over, ½ cm thick, add the onions, and decorate with anchovies and olives.
Put in a preheated oven for 20 minutes at 180/200°. Pepper on leaving the oven. Allow to cool before serving.
12
Aubergine, Courgettes and Courgette Flower Fritters
Ingredients for 8 people
> Medium-sized aubergines, > Courgette flowers,
> Round local courgettes, > 150 g flour, > 2 eggs, > 25 cl milk, > 5 cl beer, > Garlic, > Parsley, > Olive oil,
> Frying oil (nut or sunfower), > Salt & pepper.
> The yolks can be separated from the egg whites: mix the yolks with the other ingredients, and then carefully fold in the beaten egg white.
> The fritter dough can be made with yeast instead of beer.
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: between 3 and 5 minutes per frying bath Season: May to October for aubergine fritters March to September for courgette fritters
Cut the aubergines and courgettes into 1 cm thick slices. Remove the stalks from the courgette flowers. Put the flour, eggs, one pinch of salt, and 1 teaspoonful of olive oil into a salad bowl. Gradually add the cold milk, folding-in with a whisk. Add the beer, garlic and finely chopped parsley. Mix the ingredients and allow the dough to rest.
Plunge the vegetables, one after the other, into the dough and then fry them in the hot oil. Once they are golden, drain them and place them on absorbent paper.
Li Bigneta de Merenjaina, de Cougourdeta e Flou de Cougourdeta
13
La Troucha
Ingredients for 8 people
> 8 large eggs, > 4 kg chard, > 1 bouquet of chervil, > 1 bouquet of parsley, > 1 onion, > 200 g parmesan or grated sbrinz cheese, > Olive oil, > Ground salt and pepper.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes Season: throughout the year
Remove the ribs from the chard leaves and cut them in slices. Blanch and drain the slices. Beat the eggs in a bowl, add the grated cheese, the slices of chard leaves, the chervil and the finely chopped parsley. Add salt and pepper. Brown the onion in a frying pan, and mix it into the mixture. Put some oil in the frying pan. Pour in the mixture and cook on a medium heat, compressing it to obtain an omelette 2 to 3 centimetres thick. Cover the pan and steam on a low heat for 15 minutes. Turn the omelette to cook the other side, adding more oil to the pan first. Cover the pan and cook for another 15 minutes on a low heat.
> The chard leaves can also be cooked in a little olive oil beforehand.
14
Panisses
Li Panissa
Ingredients for 8 people
> 2 litres water, > 600 g sieved chickpea flour, > Olive oil, > Cooking oil (peanut or sunfower), > Salt, pepper.
> Panisses are also eaten cold as desserts, sprinkled with sugar or covered in chocolate.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes for the dough / 5 minutes for frying Season: throughout the year
Boil the water in a saucepan with very little salt and 8 tablespoons of olive oil. When the water is boiling, sprinkle the chickpea flour into the water, beating constantly until it thickens. Dry the dough over a low heat for about 5 minutes stirring with a wooden spatula.
Line up 10 lightly oiled saucers.
Fill each saucer to the brim. Compact the mixture down using the wooden spatula dipped in cold water. Allow to cool.
Remove the panisses from their moulds, cut them into sticks 1 to 2 cm wide (like big chips).
Fry the panisses in the hot oil. When they are golden, drain them and put them on absorbent paper to remove the surplus oil.
Add salt and pepper and serve hot.
15
Raviolis Niçois
Li Raiola à la nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
DOUGH
> 800 g flour, > 4 eggs (category 60, 65, or bigger),
> 30 g salt,
> 150 ml water (if required),
> 20 ml to 30 ml olive oil (optional)
FILLING
> 800 g braised beef, > 1.5 kg green chard,
> 3 eggs, > 200 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> Fine salt & ground pepper.
Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: from 8 to 10 minutes before serving (excluding cooking time for the braised beef and the sauce)
Season: throughout the year
Making the dough: put the flour on a work surface. Make a well and add the eggs, salt, and a teaspoonful of water and knead the whole. If needed, add the water as required until a uniform, firm and elastic dough is obtained (it should not stick to the roller) and leave it to rest, whilst making the filling.
Preparing the filling: Cut up the braised beef, the green chard (previously blanched) and mix with the eggs, the fine salt and pepper. If the filling appears to be a little dry, add a spoonful of juice from the braised meat. Roll the dough until it is as thin as possible. Place a row of small piles of filling (a teas poonful) at regular 2 cm intervals, on the dough sheet beginning 5 cm from the top. Fold the top side of the dough over the row of small piles and press the two sides of dough between the small piles of filling together with a light pressure of the tips of the fingers. Cut the ravioli out using a pastry cutting wheel, sprinkled well with flour and put them aside on a board. Before, serving, place the ravioli gently in a pan of boiling water (between 6 and 7 litres) and let them cook for 10 to 12 minutes, removing them with a ladle. Serve the ravioli with the braised meat sauce and grated cheese.
Remark: If the dough is put through a rolling mill, make it more elastic.
16
Gnocchis Niçois
Lu Gnocchi Nissart
Ingredients for 8 people
> 2 kg old potatoes*,
> 500 g flour**,
> 2 to 4 egg yolks,
> 150 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> Coarse salt, fine salt or ground pepper, > 20 ml to 30 ml of olive oil (i.e. one to two soupspoons)
> Some use whole eggs, others don’t put eggs in!
Preparation time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Cooking time: around 5 minutes (for the gnocchis)
Season: throughout the year
Wash the potatoes*. Put them into normally salted boiling water in their skins for between 35 to 55 minutes (depending on their size). Test them to see if they are cooked by sticking a knife into them. Drain and peel them hot before putting them in the potato masher on the work surface. Add the flour, the egg yolks, the olive oil and the pepper to this purée.**
Check the seasoning; knead the dough as little as possible until it is uniform.
Place a quarter or a sixth of the dough on a floured work surface, roll it by hand until a cylinder of (around) a centimetre in diameter is obtained, and continue in the same way for the rest of the dough. Cut the dough with a knife every 2 cm. Shape the gnocchis from these pieces of dough by rolling them with a fork (ridged shell shape for better cooking).
Just before serving, plunge the gnocchis into a large pan of ordinary salted boiling water (6 to 7 litres).
The gnocchis are cooked as soon as they rise to the surface of the water. Drain them and put them on a preheated plate. Serve them seasoned with butter, or tomato sauce or a meat sauce or rabbit à la niçoise sauce and grated cheese.
Remark:
*It is important to choose the potatoes carefully to ensure their quality. It is preferable to use old potatoes which are rich in starch (e.g. “bintje”, especially from Manosque). New potatoes should not be used.
**In general, the proportion of flour must correspond to a ¼ of the weight of the potatoes but the flour should be added “whilst the potatoes need it”.
If the cooking pan is not big enough, it is preferable to cook twice in the same water and serve the gnocchis as they are cooked.
17
Li Merda de Can
Ingredients for 8 people
> 500 g green chard, > 1 kg old and starchy potatoes, mashed potatoes variety (eg. bintje)
> Around ½ kg of flour, > 1 egg, > 10 cl olive oil,
> Salt, pepper,
> Dry cheese for grating (parmesan or sbrinz)
Preparation time: 40 - 45 minutes (including cooking the potatoes and the chard)
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Season: throughout the year
Remove the chard leaves. Rinse them well.
Boil 2 litres of water in a cooking pot and plunge the chard leaves and potatoes into the water.
When the chard leaves are cooked, drain them, rinse them again, and then press heavily down on the leaves to extract most of the water. Chop them finely.
When the potatoes are cooked, rinse them and remove the skin. Crush them in a vegetable mixer or with a fork.
Mix the mashed potatoes and chard on a plate. Add the flour and the egg and then mix all together. Add enough flour to ensure a good consistency. A spoonful of olive oil can be added to make the dough creamier. The important thing is that the dough does not stick to the fingers.
On a flour covered board, shape long rolls pointed at the ends, with your fingers. Then cut the rolls into 1 ½ cm pieces.
Heat a cooking pan of water until the water is boiling, add salt and a spoonful of olive oil. Throw the merda de can in, stirring slowly to prevent them sticking. Let them cook for 5 minutes. As they rise to the surface, take them out one by one and drain them. Transfer them to a dish containing the rest of the olive oil. Stir gently to cover with the oil. Add the cheese.
18
Stew Niçoise
La Doba Nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 2 kg boned beef for braising (chuck and shin),
> 250 g brown onions, > 250 g tomatoes, > 200 g carrots, > 80 g dry cep mushrooms, > 30 g garlic,
> 1 branch of celery,
> 1 bouquet garni: thyme, bay leaf, sprigs of flat parsley, > 30 ml olive oil,
> Fine salt & ground pepper, > 1½ litre red wine.
> 50 ml of brandy (1 liqueur glass) *
> 1 orange peel *
> 1 clove *
> 1 veal bone or rind *
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 3 to 4 hours depending on the quality of the meat Season: throughout the year
Soak the ceps in lukewarm water. Cut the meat into 60 g cubes. Vegetables: wash them, slice the carrots, celery, onions into cubes (1.5 cm each side). Brown the pieces of beef in a frying pan with tablespoon of hot oil on a high heat, reserve them in a cast-iron casserole dish. Brown the onions, the crushed garlic, celery, and the carrots in the same frying pan after the meat, and then add them to the meat in the casserole dish, with the salt, pepper, the peeled, deseeded and crushed tomatoes, the orange peel*, the bouquet garni, the clove* , the rind or veal bone*. Immediately add the brandy* (the brandy can be flambéed) and the red wine and cover the ingredients with water. Bring to the boil and allow to simmer on a low heat for three hours or more.
30 minutes before the end of cooking, add the drained mushrooms, possibly cut. At the end of cooking, remove the rind, and cut it into even strips, take out the veal bone.
Remark:
If the stew is also to be used to make the stuffing for the ravioli, don’t include the orange peel.
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Rabbit stew à la Niçoise
Counieu à la nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 1 rabbit 1.6 - 2 kg, > 150 g thin streaky bacon, > 2 medium onions, > 6 well ripened tomatoes, > 2 garlic cloves, > 1 bouquet garni with sprigs of parsley, rosemary, bay leaf and sweet marjoram, > 100 g black Nice olives, > 1 glass of dry white wine, > Flour, > Olive oil, > Salt, pepper.
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 30 minutes Season: throughout the year
Lightly flour the pieces of rabbit. Heat the oil in a cooking pot and brown the pieces of rabbit in it. Reserve.
Brown the onions, garlic and rindless streaky bacon in the cooking pot. Deglaze with white wine and reduce. Add the peeled and deseeded tomatoes. Season. Add the rabbit and the bouquet garni. Allow to cook gently for about 20 minutes on a medium heat and allow to reduce by half on a low heat.
At the last minute, add a handful of local black olives.
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Stuffed Veal Breast
Lou Pièch
Ingredients for 8 people
> 2 kg to 2.4 kg veal breast,
> 200 g thin streaky bacon,
> 10 eggs (6 hardboiled for decoration and 4 as binder for the stuffng),
> 1.5 kg chard leaves (green),
> 500 g small peas to be shelled (150 g to 180 g when shelled),
> 500 g white onions or spring onions,
> 400 g small violet artichokes (in season),
> 500 g beans to be shelled (in season),
> 50 g Piémont or Camargue rice,
> 100 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (sbrinz cheese),
> 50 g garlic,
> 50 g parsley,
> Coarse & fine salt, ground pepper.
In season:
> 4 courgette flowers*
> 200 g long courgettes from Nice*
> After cooking, the whole veal breast can be browned (braised) in an oven, moistening with stock several times which, when reduced, will colour, and thicken, forming a skin.
> Veal breast can also be served with a tomato sauce or accompanied by vegetables cooked in stock like pot-au-feu for example.
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Season: the year: the vegetables in the forcemeat differ depending on the seasons.
Open the veal breast (either on a single or two ribs). Prepare the vegetables: shell the beans and peas, peel the onions, wash the chard leaves and remove the stalks, wash the flowers and courgettes, only keep the artichoke hearts. Finely slice the blanched and pressed chard leaves, the onions, the artichoke hearts, the courgettes and the courgette flowers*, chop the garlic and parsley and put all the prepared vegetables into a bowl. Blanch the rice in boiling water for 5 to 6 minutes, drain, rinse in cold water, hard boil 6 eggs and remove their shells. Add the vegetables to the rice, the finely chopped streaky bacon, 4 eggs (raw) and grated cheese. Mix, add salt and pepper.
Fill the calf’s breast with the stuffing. Press the whole hard boiled eggs into the forcemeat (they will be a decorative item when the bag is cut into slices). Sew up the opening with string. Plunge the stuffed breast into boiling water or meat stock (white stock), and cook on an average heat for 1 hour 30 minutes. Allow the stuffed breast to cool. It can be served as a cold dish, or reheated in the oven. Cut the stuffed breast into 1 cm thick slices (it will cut more easily if it is cooled in the fridge first) and serve at room temperature or reheat in a low oven after moistening with a little stock.
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Tripe à la Niçoise
Li Tripa à la nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 2.5 kg tripe,
> Two halves of calf feet, > 3 to 4 onions, > 6 cloves of garlic, > 1.5 kg tomatoes, > ½ litre dry white wine,
> A dozen carrots, > 1 bouquet garni composed of 2 branches of celery, 2 or 3 bay leaves, thyme, parsley stalks, and rosemary, > 6 or 7 cloves, > 6 lemons,
> Grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz), > 5 cl brandy, > Salt, pepper, > Olive oil.
> An orange can be added to the carrots and celery.
> Remove as much of the pith as possible when peeling then chop it up very finely.
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 6 - 7 hours
Season: autumn-winter
Carefully wash the tripe and rub them with lemon. Soak them in cold lemon flavoured water to stop them drying out. Blanch them.
Heat some olive oil in a cooking pot, pour in the chopped onions, add the crushed garlic, the half-calf feet and brown. Deglaze with white wine, then add the skinless and deseeded tomatoes. Cook for 10 minutes.
Drain the tripe, add them to the preparation, with the cloves, and stock (or water). Cover the ingredients well and cook on a low heat for 6 to 7 hours. Lightly salt and add the bouquet garni (tied tightly to prevent it disintegrating).
After 5 hours, add the sliced carrots (1cm) and the celery branches cut into sticks. Add salt as required. Ensure that the ingredients don’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
Add the brandy 1 hour before the end of the cooking.
This dish goes very well with steamed potatoes. Add grated cheese.
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Stuffed Sardines à la Niçoise
Li Sardina à la nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 32 Mediterranean sardines (around l.6 kg),
> 1.5 kg chard, > 30 g garlic (2 cloves),
> 30 g flat leaved parsley, > 2 eggs, > 120 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (sbrinz cheese),
> 100 g breadcrumbs, > 150 ml olive oil, > Salt & pepper.
> When serving, a tomato purée with basil can be added to the dish or served separately as a side dish.
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Gut the sardines, remove the head and backbone. Remove the chard ribs only keeping the green leaves, wash, then slice the leaves finely with a sharp knife.
Heat a little olive oil in a saucepan. Add the chard, the peeled garlic cloves, the chopped parsley, a pinch of salt. Allow to cook until all the water has completely evaporated.
Mix the whole eggs (previously beaten) the chard, the grated cheese, and pepper to make the stuffing.
Place half the opened sardines in the bottom of a previously oiled and salted gratin dish. Garnish each sardine with stuffing. Cover the stuffing with another sardine, the flat side against the stuffing. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and a trickle of olive oil.
Put the sardines in a very hot oven 180/200° (thermostat 6/7) for 8 to 10 minutes where they can brown au gratin.
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Stockfish Estocaficada
Ingredients for 8 people
> 1.2 kg stockfish, > 160 g stockfish innards, > 2 kg well ripened tomatoes, > 1.2 kg new or not too starchy potatoes (e.g.“BF15”), > 600 g onions, > 1 kg green, yellow or red peppers, > 50 g garlic (5 cloves),
> 1 bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, laurel, savory, fennel,majoram),
> 200 g black Nice olives (unripened),
> 100 ml brandy, > 150 ml olive oil,
> Ground salt & pepper,
> A pinch of Cayenne pepper.
> A thinly sliced leek can also be added *
Preparation time: 30 minutes / Cooking time for the stock: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 3 hours Season: throughout the year, preferably winter
Eight days before the chosen preparation date, buy the stockfish, cut it into 3 to 4 cm pieces and soak it with the innards in a bowl, if possible with running water. On the day the fish is prepared, 6 hours before eating, separate the flesh from the bones and the skin, putting them to one side in a cooking pot. Crumble the fish flesh into a sieve and leave to drain. Boil (starting with cold water), the bones and skin in the cooking pot with two whole (unpeeled) onions, a clove of garlic, and a bay leaf, for 20 to 30 minutes. Strain and keep the stock. Heat 100 ml of olive oil in a frying pan, and brown the fish meat in it, whilst stirring with a spoon.
> A crushed anchovies (30 gl), garlic and basil purée, olive oil, can be served with the stockfish. >>
24
suite…Stockfish Estocaficada
Add the brandy, the rest of the onions and sliced leek* and finely chopped garlic, the bouquet garni and pour into a thick bottomed casserole dish. Deglaze bottom of the frying pan with the peeled, seeded and crushed tomatoes and add them to the casserole dish with the thinly sliced innards (5 mm wide pieces) and the peeled, previously oven-grilled, peppers cut into strips. Season (salt & pepper) and braise over a low heat for 3 hours.
Blanch the potatoes, cut them into quarters and add them to the stockfish 2 ½ hours after cooking begins with the olives. When serving provide your guests with small cruets of olive oil to sprinkle on their stockfish, if they wish.
Remark: moisten the stockfish regularly with the stock during cooking to prevent the fish from drying out. When the cooking is over, there should be quite a lot of stockfish sauce in order to permeate the potatoes.
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Niçois stuffed vegetables
Lu Farcit Nissart
The ingredients for the stuffing differ depending on the vegetables stuffed. However, the vegetables can all be prepared with stuffing made from the same recipe. Mix the stuffing with the flesh of all the vegetables, except tomatoes and peppers.
Onions
Ceba
Ingredients for 8 people
> 6 large white onions.
STUFFING
> 100 g thin streaky bacon,
> 50 g of grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> 1 egg,
> 40 g hard bread dipped in whole milk (150 ml),
> 5 leaves of basil (large leaves),
> 20 g garlic,
> Flat-leaved parsley,
> Olive oil,
> Bread crumbs,
> Coarse salt, fine salt & ground pepper.
> Leftover stew can be added to the stuffing.
> Serve a ‘saoussoun’ (fresh tomato sauce) separately on or around the stuffed vegetables.
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Season: summer
Peel the onions, cut them in two along the “equator”, blanche them in salted boiling water for 10 minutes. Strain them, Hollow out the centre, leaving the outer skins (two by two) which will be stuffed.
Put the finely chopped and lightly browned streaky bacon in a bowl, with the basil, the garlic, the parsley, and the rest of the onions, also chopped finely, the grated cheese, the soaked pressed bread, the egg, the salt and pepper.
Mix well before filling the onion shells with the stuffing. Place them in a gratin dish previously greased with olive oil, and add some breadcrumbs and a dash of olive oil to each stuffed onion. Cook in a hot oven at 180 ° (thermostat 6) for 30 minutes.
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suite…Niçois stuffed vegetables
Lu Farcit Nissart
Courgettes
Cougourdeta
Ingredients for 8 people
> 8 small round local courgettes.
STUFFING
> 100 g thin streaky bacon,
> 50 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> 1 egg,
> 80 g white onions (i.e. a big onion),
> 40 g bread soaked in whole milk (150 ml),
> 5 basil leaves (large leaves),
> 20 g garlic,
> Flat-parsley,
> Olive oil,
> Bread crumbs,
> Coarse & fine salt, ground pepper.
After cutting the ends off the courgettes, wash them and blanche them in salted boiling water for 15 minutes. Strain them, and slice them in two down the middle, gently remove the flesh with a small spoon, only leaving the skin of the half courgette.
Put the flesh of the courgettes and the chopped onion in a bowl (gently sweat the onion in olive oil until translucent), the streaky bacon, also browned in olive oil, the basil, the garlic, the fine chopped parsley, the grated cheese, the soaked pressed bread, the egg, the salt and pepper.
Mix all the ingredients well, before filling the half-courgettes with the stuffing. Place them in a gratin dish previously greased with olive oil, and add some breadcrumbs and a dash of olive oil to each stuffed courgette.
Cook in a hot oven at 180 ° (thermostat 6) for 30 minutes.
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suite…Niçois stuffed vegetables Lu Farcit Nissart
Aubergines
Merenjaina
Ingredients for 8 people
> 8 long Nice aubergines.
STUFFING
> 100 g thin streaky bacon,
> 50 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> 1 egg,
> 80 g white onions (i.e. a big onion),
> 40 g milk soaked in whole milk (150 ml),
> 5 basil leaves (large leaves),
> 20 g garlic,
> Flat parsley,
> Olive oil,
> Bread crumbs,
> Coarse & fine salt, ground pepper.
Remove the hard, spiky part from the aubergines, conserving the stalk. Wash them and blanche them in salty boiling water for 10 minutes. Strain them and cut them in two along their length, remove the flesh with a small spoon and reserve.
Put the flesh of the aubergines and the chopped onions (gently sweat the onion in olive oil until translucent), the streaky bacon, also browned in the olive oil, the basil, garlic, fine chopped parsley, the grated cheese, the soaked pressed bread, the egg in a bowl, and salt and pepper.
Mix all the ingredients well, before filling the half-aubergines with the stuffing. Place them in a gratin dish previously greased with olive oil, and add some breadcrumbs and a dash of olive oil to each stuffed aubergine.
Cook in a hot oven at 180 ° (thermostat 6) for 30 minutes.
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suite…Niçois stuffed vegetables
Lu Farcit Nissart
Tomatoes
Lu T oumati
Ingredients for 8 people
> 8 tomatoes.
STUFFING
> 60 g thin streaky bacon,
> 80 g beef (or meat leftovers),
> 80 g veal,
> 50 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> 1 egg,
> 150 g white onions (i.e. 2 big onions),
> 40 g milk soaked in whole milk (150 ml),
> 30 g round Camargue or Piémont rice,
> 5 basil leaves (with large leaves),
> 20 g garlic (i.e. 2 cloves of garlic),
> Flat parsley,
> Olive oil,
> Bread crumbs,
> Fine salt & ground pepper.
Remove the tomato stalks. Wash and cut them into two equal halves, scoop out the insides, sprinkle with salt, and allow the salt to soak in for ten minutes, then turn them upside down on a grill to drain the water. Put two tablespoonful’s of olive oil in a pan with the chopped onion, allow the onion to sweat gently until translucent, and add the tomato flesh, the thin streaky bacon, the beef and veal, the basil, the garlic, the finely chopped parsley, the rice and brown all the ingredients on a medium heat for 20 minutes. Allow to cool. Add the grated cheese, the egg, the soaked bread, salt and pepper to the stuffing and mix. Fill the tomatoes with the stuffing and place the tomatoes in a gratin dish previously greased with olive oil. Add some breadcrumbs and a dash of olive oil to each stuffed tomato. Cook in a hot oven at 180 ° (thermostat 6) for 30 minutes.
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suite…Niçois stuffed vegetables
Lu Farcit Nissart
Peppers
Lu Pebroun
Ingredients for 8 people
> 16 green salad peppers.
STUFFING
> 60 g thin streaky bacon,
> 80 g beef (or cooked meat leftovers),
> 80 g veal,
> 50 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> 1 egg,
> 80 g white onions (i.e. 1 big onion),
> 40 g bread soaked in whole milk (150 ml),
> 30 g round Camargue or Piémont rice,
> 5 basil leaves (with large leaves),
> 20 g garlic (i.e. 2 cloves of garlic),
> Flat parsley,
> Olive oil,
> Fine salt & ground pepper.
Wash and dry the peppers. Remove the peduncle and the seeds from the inside.
Put two tablespoonful’s of olive oil into a casserole dish, with the thin streaky bacon, the beef and veal, the basil, the garlic, the finely chopped parsley, and brown all the ingredients on a medium heat for 10 minutes. Allow to cool. Add the grated cheese, the egg, the soaked bread, the salt and pepper to the stuffing and mix. Fill the whole peppers with the forcemeat and place them in a gratin dish previously greased with olive oil. Add some breadcrumbs and a dash of olive oil to each stuffed pepper. Cook in a hot oven at 180 ° (thermostat 6) for 20 minutes.
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suite…Niçois stuffed vegetables
Lu Farcit Nissart
Courgette flowers
Li Flou de Cougourdeta
Ingredients for 8 people
> 16 courgette flowers (to stuff).
STUFFING
> 8 courgette flowers,
> 200 g long courgettes from Nice,
> 100 g white onions (i.e. two medium onions),
> 100 g thin streaky bacon,
> 1 egg,
> 40 g bread soaked in whole milk (150 ml),
> 50 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (parmesan or sbrinz),
> 5 basil leaves (with large leaves),
> 20 g garlic,
> Flat parsley,
> Olive oil,
> Fine salt & ground pepper.
> Ravioli stuffing can also be used.
> The stuffed courgette flowers can be placed on a base of thinly sliced courgettes.
> A “saoussoun’ (sauce of fresh tomatoes), or stew broth, and grated cheese can also be added.
Gently wash the courgette flowers, remove the pistil from inside the flowers. Wash the courgettes. Slice the courgettes and the onion and let them gently sweat in a frying pan until they are translucent. Reserve.
Place the chopped onions in a bowl with courgettes crushed with a fork, the 8 chopped courgette flowers, the chopped streaky bacon (previously browned), the basil, the garlic, the finely chopped pars ley, the grated cheese, the egg, the pressed soaked bread, the fine salt and pepper. Mix all ingredients. Fill each courgette flower with a little spoon. Once the flower is full, fold the end of the petals one by one to close the flower.
Place the courgette flowers top to tail in a gratin dish on a sheet of greaseproof paper, squeezing them up against each other, sprinkle them with a dash of olive oil, put them in the oven at 180° (thermostat 6) for 20 minutes.
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Ratatouille Niçoise
Ratatouia
Ingredients for 8 people
> 600 gred & yellow peppers,
> 1.2 kg long courgettes, > 1.2 kg aubergines, > 400 g white or brown onions, > 1.2 kg ripe tomatoes, > 30 g garlic, > 10 basil leaves, > 250 ml olive oil,
> 1 bouquet garni: thyme, bay leaf, flat leaved parley stalks, celery leaves, > Fine salt & ground pepper.
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Season: summer - autumn, July to October
Peel the cloves of garlic, and onions. Prepare the vegetables: cut the ends off the courgettes, aubergines, remove the seeds from the peppers, wash, cut them into 2 to 3 cm cubes. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and brown the vegetables successively and separately. Drain them in a strainer and pour them into a casserole dish. Blanche, skin and deseed the tomatoes, crush them and add them to the vegetables. Add the seasoning: salt, ground pepper, the bouquet garni and the crushed garlic cloves. Cover the preparation with greaseproof paper and the lid. Allow to cook gently for 40 to 45 minutes, preferably in an oven at 120/150° (thermostat 4/5). At the end of cooking add the chopped basil before serving.
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Tian of Courgettes or Pumpkin
Tian de Cougourdeta o de Cougourda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 1.6 kg courgettes or pumpkin, > 200 g white onions, > 50g of garlic, > 1 bouquet of parsley, > 2 0g basil, > 20 eggs,
> 80 g round whole Piémont or Camargue rice, > 80 g grated dry mountain cow’s cheese (sbrinz cheese),
> 50 ml (2 tablespoons) olive oil, > 30 g of breadcrumbs,
> Fine salt and ground pepper.
> 100 g of thin streaky bacon.
> It can be prepared without rice, a little rice (as indicated in this recipe), or for a more nourishing dish, with an extra 50 g of rice i.e. a total of 130 g of rice boiled in milk.
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 to 40 minutes
Season: courgettes in summer, and pumpkin in winter
Boil the rice in water or milk (250 ml) for 7 to 8 minutes to remove the starch. Wash the vegetables. Cut the courgettes or pumpkin into small cubes (they can be steamed in olive oil). Finely chop the onion and lightly brown it, chop the garlic, the parsley and the basil, slice the streaky bacon (if used). Grate the cheese. Mix all the ingredients with the eggs in a terrine dish. Pour them into an oiled dish 4 to 5 cm thick and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Cook in an oven at 150 ° (thermostat 5/6) for 30 to 40 minutes, and then brown au gratin.
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Chard Pie
Tourta de Blea
Ingredients for 8 people
> 500 g flour,
> 250 g butter,
> 200 g granulated sugar,
> 2 eggs,
> 1 pinch of salt,
> Water (if necessary)
FILLING
> 2 kg of thin-ribbed chard leaves (preferably white chard),
> 50 g grated dry cow’s mountain cheese (sbrinz cheese),
> 2 eggs,
> 300 g russet apples (around 2 apples),
> 30 g brown raisins & 30 g white raisins (soaked in rum 150ml),
> 100 g pine kernels,
> 50 ml brandy (1/2 glass),
> 150 g granulated or brown sugar,
> 30 ml olive oil (1 tablespoon),
> 30 ml aniseed (1 tablespoon),
> 1 pinch of pepper & 1 pinch of salt.
> Icing sugar*.
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Season: throughout the year
Making the pastry: pour some flour onto a work surface, make a hole, and add the eggs, the softened butter, the sugar and the salt. Mix the ingredients with your fingers to make an even dough (add a few drops of water if necessary) without working it too hard. Leave it to one side whilst preparing the filling. Preparing the filling: remove the ribs (for another use) only keeping the green chard leaves. Slice the leaves into strips, wash them several times in cold water, until the water is no longer coloured green (rinsing removes the bitterness from the chard). Strain the chiffonnade by pressing between the hands.
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suite…Chard Pie Tourta de blea
Mix the granulated sugar, the eggs, the grated cheese, the raisons after having soaked in rum, the pine kernels, the brandy, the olive oil, and aniseed. Cut the pastry dough into two equal halves. Roll one of the halves flat, between 3 to 4 mm thick, lay it on the bottom of a pie dish (previously oiled and floured) and prick the pastry dough with a fork. Spread the filling over the dough (2 cms thick) and sprinkle it with half the juice from the filling, cover the whole of the filling with the slices of apple. Cover with the second rolled-out half of the pastry dough and hem in the edges. Prick the surface of the pastry dough with a fork or make incisions with small scissors. Cook for 40 minutes in an oven at 180° (thermostat 6) (when the edges come unstuck from the pie dish, the pie is cooked). Remove the pie from the oven and sprinkle with granulated sugar). When the pie is cold, it can be sprinkled with icing sugar* as decoration, before serving.
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Ganses Niçoises
Li Gansa à la nissarda
Ingredients for 8 people
> 250 g flour,
> 50 g granulated sugar,
> 2 eggs, > 1 pinch of salt,
> Half a grated lemon peel,
> 40 ml milk,
> 80 g butter,
> 10 g baking powder (a teaspoon),
> Frying oil (peanut or sunfower),
> Caster sugar or icing sugar.
> 20 ml orange blossom water (i.e. a tablespoon)
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Resting time for the dough: 2 hours
Season: throughout the year, especially holidays, carnival time, etc…
Put the flour in a heap on a pastry board making a hole in the middle, and add the beaten eggs, soft butter, cut into cubes, the grated peel, the orange blossom water (optional) the baking powder, a pinch of salt and a little milk.
Mix and the knead the dough obtained for 5 minutes before letting it rest in paper film (or under a salad bowl) for at least two hours. Roll the dough out flat to a depth of 1.5 mm to 3 mm, remove the excess flour (using a baker’s duster), and cut into strips 2 cm wide and around 10 cm long using a pastry wheel, and then tie the strips into knots. Plunge the ganses into hot frying oil. Let them colour, remove and drain on kitchen towel. Serve after sprinkling with castor sugar or icing sugar.
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Apple-Raisin Fritters
Poum e asebic en Bigneta
Ingredients for 8 people
> 250 g flour, > 80 g butter, > 20 g sugar, > 250 g russet apples, > 150 g currants, > 6 to 7 eggs, > 400 ml water, > 50 ml rum, > 50 ml orange blossom water (i.e.2 or 3 tablespoons),
> Salt, > Frying oil (nut or sunfower).
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Peel the apples and slice them into 1 cm cubes. Wash the currants. Macerate the sliced apples and currants in the rum.
Put the butter cut into small pieces, a pinch of salt, the sugar and water into a saucepan. Bring to the boil, and immediately remove from the heat. Add the flour in one go with a spatula.
Put the saucepan back onto a low heat to dry the mixture, continually stirring the dough until it no longer sticks to the bottom and sides of the saucepan.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the beaten eggs, the orange blossom water, the strained apples and raisins mixing gently with the spatula.
Heat the frying oil; shape the fritters by taking the dough with a desert spoon and gently sliding the dough balls directly into the frying oil with a finger. Dip the spoon into a bowl of lukewarm water in between each shaped dough ball so the dough doesn’t stick to the spoon.
Allow the fritters to cook and turn golden, turning them from time to time with a skimming ladle. Place the fritters on absorbent paper to remove excess oil. Present them on a plate, sprinkled with granu lated sugar and serve hot.
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