aixcentric

The recipe was in ‘South Wind Through the Kitchen’ – an anthology of articles and recipes by Elizabeth David (1913-1992). Originally found in ‘French Country Cooking’ the recipe originated in the Cevennes, that beautiful and still wild rural part of France to the north of Montpellier. 

Despite her reputation as a major influence on the cuisine of post war England and as the starting point for many of the present generation of English chefs and a few American ones, for many people, she has ‘slipped off the radar’. This is unfortunate because her writing brings the joy of both French and Italian food to vibrant life.

When she began writing rationing was still in effect in England, and many ingredients in her recipes weren’t readily available. She seldom pointed towards substitutions telling her readers to wait until they could find what was needed, or to try something else. 

Her books are especially wonderful today, because they paint a picture of a France that, in these days of chain restaurants and television chefs, barely exists. The little restaurants frequented by locals and passing lorry drivers that served two or three dishes at lunch, the family run hotel where it was possible to find a delicious meal at a good price made completely from local ingredients are mostly gone. It is unlikely that places like the café attached to the petrol station in Rémoulins as described in ‘French Provincial Cooking’ still can be found. 

My discovery of Ms David and her writing began when I lived in England in the 1970’s. I bought a Le Creuset pot and for an extra 39 pence, a little spiral bound book entitled Cooking With Le Creuset written by her. This started me on a culinary education which continues today. One of the first dishes I cooked in that pot was pipérade – a Basque dish with eggs, onions, tomatoes, and green peppers. I still make it, though unfortunately my original Le Creuset in the signature ‘flame’ colour, is long gone. 

So, let’s cook!

At the beginning of this I mentioned Champignons Cévenols which is a great dish to serve at lunch with crusty bread and some cheese or to serve as a side dish at dinner. It could also work as a starter.  

You need about 500g of mushrooms. Wipe them and take the stems out. Gently heat some olive oil in a heavy saucepan and add the mushroom caps. Do not let them fry but cook them slowly. While they are cooking cut up the stems (You did save the stems, right?) and finely chop two or three cloves of garlic, along with some fresh parsley or thyme or oregano. The original recipe calls for parsley but variations are good. When the mushroom caps are cooked, use a slotted spoon and put them in a dish. Add some more oil to the pan and sauté the stems. Remove them from the pan, add a bit more oil if needed and then fry some fresh white breadcrumbs to a nice golden colour. Sprinkle the herb and garlic mixture over the cooked mushrooms and then pour over the breadcrumbs and oil. You can serve this warm or cold. The choice is yours. 

Now, pipérade, which despite its name, is not particularly spicy. This is a substantial dish which I don’t do often enough. You can make this vegetarian by using olive oil, though duck, goose, or pork fat is often used. 

Ms David recommends peeling the tomatoes, but I seldom do, because it’s fiddly and tomato skin doesn’t bother me in a dish. And in another departure (and because this comes from the Basque region) to add a bit of heat I like to put in piment d’Espelette or ezpeletako biperra in Basque. 

For two people – Two or three medium green bell peppers, cored and sliced into one inch diamonds or triangles. A finely sliced medium yellow onion, four chopped ripe tomatoes and two large eggs (three if you’re really hungry) beaten until the whites and yolks are completely combined and seasoned with salt and pepper. If you can’t find ripe tomatoes, this is a dish where a small tin of good San Marzano or Roma tomatoes is acceptable. 

In a heavy bottomed pan heat the fat, then add the onions and cover. Don’t let them fry. After about 10 minutes they should be soft, almost melted. Add the green pepper, stir and cover. Cook them gently as they must have a bit of crispness in the final dish. Then add the chopped tomatoes, stir and turn up the heat, cooking them until they start to almost dry out. 

Turn the heat to low and stir in the beaten eggs. Cook about 4 minutes, stirring once or twice so that they are incorporated into the vegetable mixture but somewhat soft. Season with salt and fresh ground black pepper or a good sprinkle of piment d’Espelette and serve on heated plates with slices of good bread. To quote Ms David – ‘To make a more substantial meal: serve with the pipérade slices of French bread fried in olive oil or whichever fat you have used for the dish, and/or grilled or baked gammon or bacon rashers (in the Basque country there would thick slices of fried Bayonne ham).’ 

One nice thing about this dish is that you can make the vegetable mixture a day or two in advance and gently heat it and then put in the eggs. 

Tomato season is just around the corner which means it will soon be time to make one of my favorite Elizabeth David dishes: Fettucine alla marinara. 

You have to have really good ripe tomatoes for this. Not the plastic supermarket varieties, but bright red, juicy, tomato-y tasting tomatoes. Get 6 or 7, core them and chop coarsely into about 6 pieces each. Thinly slice 3 or 4 cloves of garlic and cook that in hot, but not smoking, olive oil for about thirty seconds. Do not let the garlic brown.

Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes. You want the tomatoes to release their juice and combine with the olive oil. Then add some fresh basil leaves torn into several pieces(don’t chop the basil!). Season the sauce with fresh ground pepper and salt and pour over the cooked, drained fettucine. Grate Parmesan over the sauced pasta or let your guests add it to their taste. 

This dish is from the 1963 Penguin Handbook edition (price 5 shillings) of ‘Italian Food’ first published in 1954. I found a copy in a used bookshop in Philadelphia in the late 1980’s, and fell in love with the dish. I wrote a fan letter to Ms David, telling her how much I liked the book and the tomato sauce recipe. I sent it to Penguin, and probably nine months later I received a handwritten note from her:

August 25th 1990

Dear Mr. Gish

Thank you so much for your lovely letter. How good of you to take the trouble to write.

That simple tomato sauce which you like is one of my own favourites. As soon as ripe tomatoes become available here I start making it. No need to bother with any other version – 

Yes, I am very aware of American resistance to my writing. My books get terrific notices in the American press but nobody buys them. I don’t worry too much. I have many American friends and often go to stay in San Francisco. I love it there.

Best wishes, Elizabeth David

24 Halsey Street – London SW3

Elizabeth David