Flamiche aux poireaux

Flamiche aux poireaux

Last week I bought a bunch of leeks with a recipe in mind… (I guess) but after a few days I didn’t know what to make of them. But I have to, because they would spoil otherwise.

So I picked up my French cooking book (which I don’t use very often) and looked in the index for poireaux… et Voilà! A wonderful recipe for which I just needed to buy some crème fraiche, the rest I had at home.

Afterwards I goggled it and discovered that this variété is called Flamiche Picarde and it is traditional from the regions of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardie. There’s another variety called flamiche dinantaise, from the city of the Copères (Dinant) which is made with a base of low-fat cheese (boulette de Romedenne), butter and eggs. I bet that one is delicious too and now I have that recipe, but need to find this cheese first…

Anyway, the flamiche was very, very good. A delicate mix of flavors and a wonderful texture. This is one recipe worth keeping in mind for a picnic or a Brunch. Simply wonderful!

The recipe called for a homemade shortcrust pastry, but I also had a bag of puff pastry that needed to be used, so I didn’t took the time (which I don’t have) to make my own. But I’m guessing that many of you either don’t have the time or already know how to make the pastry yourselves, so I won’t give you any recipe for it.

Ingredients for the garnish

• 10 medium leeks
• 100 g butter
• 200 ml milk
• 30 g flour
• A big pinch of grated nutmeg
• 100 ml crème fraîche
• 75 g gruyère grated
• 2 eggs
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Peel the leeks and discard all the green leaves. Cut lengthwise and rinse with water. Drain and cut into pieces.

Melt 50 g of butter in a saucepan. Add the leek, salt and pepper, cover and let it cook for 20 minutes at low heat, but don’t let it brown.

Drain the cooking juices of the leek into a bowl and mix with the milk. Reserve the leeks. Melt 30 g of butter in a saucepan, add the flour, stir 1 to 2 minutes until just golden, and then pour the cooking juices with the milk, while stirring.

Bring to a boil; add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix well, add the leek and the crème fraîche, and then let it simmer for 5 minutes stirring frequently. Remove from heat and let it cool.

Preheat the oven to 220 ºC (430 ºF). Grease a springform pie pan with 10 g of butter. Cover it with the pastry, prick with a fork some holes at the base and bake for 10 minutes. To avoid the dough to rise, if using puff pastry, place some beans inside.

Take the dish out of the oven, rise the temperature to the maximum.

Add to the garnish, half the grated cheese and the beaten eggs, pour into the pie crust and lay on top the rest of the cheese and the 10 g of butter cut into small squares.

Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown, unmold and serve at once, because according to a book about Walloon gastronomy:

“C’est le client qui attend la flamiche, car la flamiche n’attend pas le client”.

“It is the customer who awaits the flamiche, because flamiche does not wait for the customer.”

Bon appétit!

Note: This is a translation from a recipe written in French, so please forgive me for being especially clumsy with my English today…

Translated and adapted from the book Les bonnes recettes de nos grands-mères

About these ads

Tagged: Baked, Copères, Dinant, flamiche, Flamiche aux poireaux, food, french cuisine, leek, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Picarde, Picardie., puff pastry, recipes, shortcrust pastry, vegetarian