The Good Life France Magazine




The Good Life France Magazine brings you the best of France - inspirational and exclusive features, fabulous photos, mouth-watering recipes, tips, guides, ideas and much more...


Published by the award winning team at The Good Life France

Views
1 year ago

Winter 2022

  • Text
  • Giveaways
  • Recipes
  • Christmas
  • France
  • Vineyards
  • Villages
  • Medieval
  • Provence
Discover France’s magical winter wonderland destinations - from the French Alps to the French Riviera. Read about the biggest bûche de Noël, Christmas log cake, in the world and see Paris when it snows. Head to the sweet village of Flavigny in Burgundy where the film Chocolat was filmed and to Rouen, the Ardèche region and Côtes du Rhône. Go gaga for gorgeous Gascony and feel festive at the colourful Christmas market of Metz, Lorraine.Toulouse, feel good films, recipes, guides and giveaways…

Hazelnut Praline or

Hazelnut Praline or Praliné Noisette INGREDIENTS 300g/10.5oz raw hazelnuts 37.5ml/2.5 tablespoons water 200g/7oz raw/golden caster sugar METHOD Preheat oven to 160˚C/325˚F. Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes Portions: 25 x 1 Tablespoon portions A quick and easy very delicious praline recipe by Kit Smyth. Often used in patisserie recipes, it’s also great for making praline shards for decadent desserts or cake decorations. Use carefully, as it is strongly flavoured, and will add a generously nutty flavour to any dessert. Line a baking tray/sheet with parchment, place the nuts on the tray and pop in the oven for around 10 minutes, mixing them up halfway through. When the time is up, and the hazelnuts are fragrant, place them into a clean tea towel, and rub vigorously to remove as much of the skin as possible. The more peeling you can do, the smoother the paste will be at the end. In a non-stick saucepan, add the water and sugar and bring to a simmer to dissolve the sugar. Keep the liquidised sugar on the heat, increasing it slightly until the sugar begins to boil. Keep cooking the sugar until it turns a deep golden colour, approx. 9-10 minutes. Prepare a sheet of parchment paper on the same tray as before, and lightly oil the paper. Once golden, turn off the heat to the sugar, and add the peeled nuts, stirring to coat the nuts in the golden and syrupy sugar. Pour onto the oiled parchment paper, and leave to cool and set over several hours, or place into the fridge to speed up the process to about 10 minutes. When set, you can break it up into chunks. To make a praline paste, place into a food processor. Blitz on low at first to break up the chunks further and scrape down the sides if necessary. Then switch to high to form a powder, a paste will form as the time goes on. The paste should form after about 2 minutes. Pour the praline paste into a mason jar, or similar, or use right away as required. This praline paste will keep for up to 1 month in a pantry. Prep Time: 30 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 40 minutes Portions: 6 Chestnut Puree or Purée de marrons Deliciously creamy chestnut puree is a firm favourite in France. It features in lots of desert recipes from rice pudding to cakes and ice cream and even spread on toast. And it’s perfect with eclairs (see page 114). Kit Smyth’s recipe is easy to make and utterly scrumptious. INGREDIENTS 455gr/1lb chestnuts, pre-prepared. Or 795g/1.75lbs raw whole chestnuts, and skin them by your preferred method. 200g/7oz sugar 250ml/1 cup water 5ml/1 tsp vanilla essence METHOD Place all the ingredients, except vanilla, into a medium saucepan, place over mediumhigh heat, and bring to the boil. Simmer for 25-30 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated and the chestnuts are tender. Add the vanilla before straining the nuts from the liquid, keeping it for later, and allow the chestnuts to cool a little. Place the semi-cooled chestnuts into a food processor, and blend first on low, then increase to higher speeds, until smooth. Whilst processing, slowly pour the reserved chestnut and vanilla liquid into the paste, stopping once the desired consistency is achieved. Pour into an airtight container, like a mason jar, and leave to cool fully before storing in the fridge. Will keep for up to 10 days in the fridge, or 6 months in the freezer. 112 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 113