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La Belle Cuisine
"The qualities of an exceptional cook are akin to those
of a
successful
tightrope walker: an abiding passion for the task,
courage to go out
on a limb
and an impeccable sense of balance.”
~ Bryan Miller
Crème Fraîche
 
Paris Sweets:
Great Desserts from the
City's Best Pastry Shops
by Dorie Greenspan, 2002,
Broadway Books/Random House
"Crème
fraîche is the kind of cream you could happily eat off a spoon. It
is sour
cream’s French cousin, but it is richer than sour cream, its texture
smoother, more velvety, and more like custard. When you buy crème
fraîche at
an outdoor market or from a neighborhood cheese shop in Paris,
it is spooned
from a crock into a small container and, in the process, falls languidly off
the ladle. In terms of taste, crème fraîche is tangy the way
sour cream is
tangy, but its tang is more subtle, more refined. And, unlike sour cream,
crème fraîche can be whipped into soft peaks and cooked without risk of
curdling. It is one of milk’s minor miracles and is treated
as such in
Paris, where it is used often in a cake or tart recipe, piped into
a rosette
to top a mousse, spooned into a quenelle to finish a savory soup
or a
portion of sweet gateau, dolloped on top of a sundae, and, yes, eaten
off a
spoon in the privacy of one’s own kitchen when no one is looking.
The French take their crème fraîche seriously and Parisians will have a
favorite merchant at the market from whom they’ll buy their week’s supply,
or they’ll look for crème d’Isigny, the one crème fraîche to be awarded the
AOC, or Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée, status. (This crème fraîche is
made
from the same cream as AOC butter from Isigny.) While any recipe that calls
for crème fraîche can be made with regular heavy cream (crème fleurette, in
France), the results are superior – at least in the sensuousness department
– when the crème is thick, slightly acidic
crème fraîche.
I remember the first time I made
Gerard
Mulot’s Cherry Clafoutis in Paris. Before the filling of crème fraîche, eggs
with yolks the color of tangerines, and the pulp of deeply fragrant vanilla
beans was poured into the crust to bake, I was ready to pour it into a glass
and drink it like a shake. I recall turning to my husband and saying, 'With
ingredients this good, you really don’t have to do much to make something
spectacular.'
Unfortunately, crème fraîche is not easily found in the United States and
what is available is often very expensive.
However, crème fraîche can be
made simply
and reasonably at home.
To make 1 cup of crème fraîche,
pour 1
cup heavy cream into a clean jar, add 1 tablespoon buttermilk or yogurt,
cover the jar tightly, and shake it for about a minute. Then just
leave the
jar on the counter for 12 to 24 hours, or until the crème fraîche thickens
slightly. How quickly it thickens will depend on the temperature
of the room
– the warmer the room, the quicker the thickening action.
When it has
thickened, chill the crème fraîche in the refrigerator for a day before you
use it. Crème fraîche can be kept covered in the refrigerator
for about 2
weeks and (or but, depending on your taste) will get tangier
and tangier day
after day."
For a taste of La Belle Cuisine's
food philosophy, please see:
The Basics
Cooking with Soul:
A Memoir with Recipes
More Basics:
Clarified Butter
Egg Safety Information
Mirepoix
Roasted Garlic
The Pantry
Index - Essentials
Daily Recipe Index
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