Sweets of Brittany

TABLE TALK

THERE’S something about being at the end of the road, far from the madding crowd, where few venture to journey. The calm, the serenity, the peace.

Some years back I lived in just such a place on the west coast of Canada and loved it. In fact, come to think of it, where I live now isn’t all that different. It’s not the end of the earth, but I reckon you just might be able to see it on a clear day.

I dream of that splendid isolation. So it may not surprise that in the far north-west corner of France lies the idea of my next great adventure — Brittany.

Sparsely occupied, culturally unique and utterly captivating, its dense pine forests and sweeping heaths break on to soft sand beaches and luminous water.

Or at least that’s what I’ve seen in pictures. One day … one day.

But Brittany is more than its Gallic charm, it’s also home to some enchanting cuisine that is utterly unlike the foods of Paris, Champagnempagne or Provence.

It’s a seafood-centred diet, which makes sense on a peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic.c. But most compelling are the butter-er-rich desserts, cakes and pastries foror which Brittany is renowned.

One of the simplest to masterter is the classic Gateau Breton, bestt described as the progeny of shortbread and tea cake. The outer shell is crisp and fine, aromaticc with the sweet caramel notes of qualityality bake butter, while the inner partsarts are dense and sticky, seeming almost a little under-baked. Yetet this is entirely by design.

Topped with some heavy cream and a smattering of seasonal fruit, it’s the perfect way to entertain throughout the years, and best of all even novice bakers can perfect the recipe.

But for me the essential element is that magical place I can travel to with each and every bite. A sweet escape on the tip of my tongue.

GATEAU BRETON

MAKES: 4

Ingredients Ingre

100g uunsalted butter

100g ccaster sugar

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon 1 tsp natural na vanilla extract ½ tsp ground g cinnamon

2 egg yolks y

100g sself-raising flour

2 tbsp sour cream

150g ddouble cream

1 cup seasonal s fruit, quartered

Method Meth

Preheat Prehe oven to 180C. Combine the butter, butt sugar, zest, vanilla and cinnamon cin in the bowl of an electric e mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on medium speed for 3 minutes, until light. Beat in the eggs.

Fold in the flour and sour cream, c then pipe into four buttered 10cm tartlet rings. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until golden g and just set. Allow to coolc completely. Top with doubled cream and fruit.