Bluefish Redux, Peach Clafouti

Dear Julia,

Bluefish, Tomatoes, Corn on the Cob

On the grill tonight - locally caught bluefish (scales on, that side down, garden marjoram on top), local tomatoes resting over olive oil, garden basil and garlic flowers, south fork corn (cooked in the oven.) Lovely North Fork chardonnay to pair. As we grilled on the deck in the pinky sunset we added your butter/pastis on the fish 5 minutes before serving (always turn the fish!). Tomatoes from a South Fork farm - good, very tasty with the oil, but what about that corn? Looked old -- the outer leaves were pulled off -- was it a day or two old? Besides being all yellow, not my favorite, it might have been a bit overcooked. It was not luscious, but dry. I threw mine into the compost.


Julia's Peach Clafouti

A wonderful peach season has resulted in our refrigerating peaches (which I can't stand) for either breakfast juicing or baking. Clafouti! A farm dish of fresh fruit baked in a pancake batter. On a foodie blog I found an adaptation of Julia's clafouti with peaches. It was very Julia--marinate the sliced peaches in cognac, strain the peaches into a blender and add milk/cream to a specific volume. Why does she specify cognac and not just brandy?

Darling Husband reminds me that as per French law, Cognac is made from specific grapes, but more importantly aged at least two years in French oak barrels, like Limosin. I can see where the oak would be lovely with peaches. And he notes the origins of "brandy" is brandywine derived from the Dutch "brandewijn" -- burnt wine. Wine is distilled -- boiled and the steam goes through a coil to condense, i.e. making high alcohol brandy from wine. (The opposite of reducing a stock -- they want to collect the "spirits" in the steam, not reduce the wine.) Finally put that distill into a Limosin oak barrel-- for that special character. Oh those taste-loving French.

So I used the rum stored above the 'fridge. -- that's all we had. We shall see. Tomorrow's breakfast.

Cost: bluefish $2.50, corn and tomatoes $4, peaches - leftover from a previous Wickham's fruit farm purchase $3. Total 9.50.

Slow Julia