Comments on: Bean Cuisine I: Country French Flageolet Stew

Comment on Bean Cuisine I: Country French Flageolet Stew by: Barbara Fisher

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 15:59:59 +0000

Leaving a sponge on the counter overnight would not work in our house, Elizabeth. We have cats, several of whom love to eat bread. Like seriously love it.

The little raiders would be in the sponge, and there would be none left by morning, no doubt.

Comment on Bean Cuisine I: Country French Flageolet Stew by: ejm

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 15:59:59 +0000

Yes, I really love the creamy texture of the larger beans like Great Northerns. Tonight we’re having chili con carne that I made with navy, pinto, kidney and black beans….

That would be terrific to see the cardamom bread recipe, Barbara! I look forward to it. In the summer time, I leave sponges in the fridge too. But in winter (and even now) I just leave them on the counter overnight.

This is reminding me that it’s high time I made a French-style boule. It uses TWO preferments - a poolish (rather spongelike but a little gloppier) and a much stiffer bigalike piece of dough. the resulting bread is really great - based on a recipe for Acme’s Rustic Baguettes in Artisan Baking Across America by Maggie Glezer.

-Elizabeth

Comment on Bean Cuisine I: Country French Flageolet Stew by: Barbara Fisher

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 15:59:59 +0000

Zak tells me that it is a sponge, and he always starts it the night before and leaves it in the fridge. At some point next week, I will give the recipe for it; he based it on a recipe from Rose's Bread Bible, but he has fiddled with it and he has a technique that he follows, so it is a bit different than the way she does it.

Great northern or navy beans would be great in the dish, too, Elizabeth. I just like to cook with flageolets because they have an ultra creamy texture and when you cook them without a lot of strongly colored things, they sometimes will keep the pale greenish tint, and I find that to be interesting.

Kate--I have a soft spot for country stews--of all kinds, though I do tend to use a French technique pretty often, because it was beaten into my head in culinary school. And, because I grew up watching Julia on the television.

And, because I really love leeks...almost as much as I love my ramps.

Glad to get those saliva glands up and running for you.

Steph, I am glad to know that you and Mike are enjoying my blog. I do try to both inform and entertain; back when I was a journalism major in college, my Reporting 201 professor used to read my weekly beat reports to his wife over Sunday brunch, because they thought they were so funny. They were funny because I had a boring beat to cover (The Community College--a hotbed of action) and so I never had much to report that I did trying to cover it during the week. Except that I was desperate to cover something, because I had to have 20 published clips by the end of the semester. So, I was really trying to think of something to write about, and my beat report, instead of being a dull log of the exciting stories I covered was a journal of my manic attempts of cover events that were dull beyond all comprehension--too dull to print, really, and so they were exciting.

When I teach, I have found that humor sets people at ease, keeps them loose and relaxed and able to learn. Besides, people who are laughing and having a good time will remember what I teach better than people I put to sleep, you know?

Speaking of sleep--I might should maybe go and have some of that. I am beginning to blither.

Comment on Bean Cuisine I: Country French Flageolet Stew by: stef

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 15:59:59 +0000

Barbara, your posts never cease to inspire Mike and I love reading your informational and entertaining posts!

The beans look so scrummy!

Comment on Bean Cuisine I: Country French Flageolet Stew by: Kate

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 15:59:59 +0000

I love the simple stews of the French…they tend to be so savory, moreso than the stews I grew up with.

B, my mouth is watering.