French apple tart with cherry and kiwi
February 2011 turns out to be is quite a festive time of year. At the outset of the month, numerous Americans and Canadians alike observed Groundhog Day (which coincided with Candlemas)—the day when North America’s beloved legendary marmots took the spotlight and prognosticated if spring would be on its way in the Northern hemisphere. Then, more significantly, the Lunar New Year of 4079 arrived on February 3rd, and millions of East and Southeast Asians worldwide ushered in the Year of the Golden Rabbit; many expect the Year of the Hare, traditionally associated with domestic affairs, artistic pursuits, peaceful resolutions, and world diplomacy, to be tamer than the preceding turbulent Year of the White Tiger. And, of course, countless people around the globe commemorated love in its various forms on Saint Valentine’s Day.
In the shadow of these important, traditional occasions and cultural, auspicious celebrations, which are interwoven colourfully into the month of purification and renewal, several other observances have recently gained interest and intrigue. Most notably, February has officially been designated as the Great American Pie Month to recognize the American pie heritage and to honour America’s longstanding love affair with the modern circular pastry, whose roots and evolution can be traced back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient Roman Empire, and Europe—a picturesque synthesis of multicultural influences stemming from centuries of innovation, experimentation, adaptation, and reinterpretation. As an homage to the timeless treat, an all-time favourite not only to Americans but also to a vast multitude of people all over the world, my foodie friend and I found the time to retreat to the kitchen to create from scratch not just one but two pie-prejudiced concoctions.
Sweet potato pie with roasted hazelnuts and maple syrup
Among the various types of custard pies, the pumpkin pie has earned its enduring popularity and iconic place in the heart of American food culture. It has always been one of most anticipated dessert dishes of the American holiday season. However, equally time-honoured is its quintessentially southern counterpart of African-American tradition, the sweet potato pie. Immensely admired in the southern part of the United States, the orange-toned custard delight combines graciously an Old World recipe with a New World food and marries blissfully sweet and savoury flavours. In our unpretentious rendition, the latter dessert staple was given an indulgent twist. Here, nestled in a simple, moist graham cracker crust seasoned with cinnamon and enhanced with toasted pecans and fresh ginger, a light, creamy sweet potato custard was deepened with dark rum. Flavourfully richer and silkily smoother than its pumpkin pie cousin, the tuberous vegetable filling, with its earthy sweetness, provided an expressive counterpoint to the spicy, nutty pastry case. February has also been named National Sweet Potato Month, and we found it appropriately fitting to mark the concurrent four-week-long occasions with this hearty Southern specialty.
Tarte aux pommes
As we continued to embrace lovingly the sweet comfort food world, we developed a nostalgic craving for one of the most popular and most adored desserts in North America: the apple pie. So in order to assuage our insatiable hankering, we again returned to the kitchen, rolled up our sleeves, and baked another sweet dish. This time, we took our pomaceous inspiration from the classic French apple tart, tarte aux pommes, a more refined and elaborate variation of the old-fashioned all-American apple pie. Instead of the usual flaky pastry crust encountered in many fruit pie recipes, our version of the pomme d’Api tart featured a pâte sucrée, a sweet, crumbly shortcrust pastry that is typically reserved for classic French dessert tarts. Shortbread-cookie-like in flavour and texture, the thin, scallop-edged pastry shell, which was rich and buttery yet light and crisp, was freshly baked to a golden brown and filled with a delectable double dose of Granny Smith apples: a thick blanket of melting apple compote gently inflected with pronounced lemon and cinnamon notes was topped with a glorious layer of lightly caramelized apple slices which were tenderly caressed with dark rum. Coated with a glistening apricot glaze aromatized with red rum, the blossoming rosette of fanned, dark-edged apple half moons provided a captivating, artful presentation. And happily, the elegant open-faced tart was as delightful to the palate as to the eye. With a beautiful balance of tartness and sweetness, the dreamy delicacy displayed a symphony of different flavours and textures which blended gracefully together. Paired harmoniously with a generous scoop of luxurious green tea ice cream heightened with pure vanilla and honey essence, the toothsome tart à la mode was scrumptious and soul-soothing. Not only was the seductive sweet pastry rapturously delicious, but it was also sinfully irresistible as we could not restrain ourselves from succumbing to the temptation of consuming additional consecutive slices of the luscious forbidden fruit dish.
February may be the shortest month in the year, but it does not fall short of reasons to celebrate food and with food. In one of his renowned aphorisms, the great French lawyer and gastronome Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin summarized succinctly our love relationship with food: “Le plaisir de la table est de tous les âges, de toutes les conditions, de tous les pays et de tous les jours ; il peut s’associer à tous les autres plaisirs, et reste le dernier pour nous consoler de leur perte.” From simple comfort food to extravagant gourmet dishes imbued with symbolic meaning, we revel in the pleasures of the table as we continue to explore, savour, and appreciate the world on our plates. Food, an integral part of culture in every corner of the world, is one of the sweet, simple things in life, and that alone is something worth celebrating.
