Lavender Design + Cuisine

Thursday, April 6, 2023

Sweet & Savory Gateau Salé Recipe

Sweet & Savory Gateau Salé

Vintage Baking Pan

Gateau Salé Inspiration: I found the gorgeous 1950s Wear-Ever fluted pan on my post at a yard sale and knew it was destined for something special: a sweet-and-savory Gateau Salé! This French savory cake from the sun-drenched region of Provence is usually a simple loaf, but adding figs to the classic recipe creates an amazing sweet-savory balance that's perfect for apéros or alongside soups and salads. It's rustic, delicious, and so easy to make.

So let’s get started with the recipe!

Ingredients:

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup spelt flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. dried herbes de Provence
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 cup plain oat milk
1/2 cup chopped walnut and a few walnut halves to put on gateau batter
1/2 cup chopped pitted Picholine or any other green olives and a few whole olives to put on gateau batter
5 dried figs thinly sliced to put on gateau batter
2 thyme sprigs and a few marjoram leaves

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F.

2. Thoroughly grease a 10 or 12-inch deep pie pan with a generous amount of olive oil—this keeps it from sticking and adds delicious flavor.

3. Using a food processor, blend the rolled oats until they reach a fine, flour-like consistency.

4. In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients until thoroughly combined.

5. Pour the oat milk and olive oil into your dry mixture, stirring just until combined.

6. Pour the batter into your prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spoon. Artfully arrange the halved walnuts, sliced figs, whole olives, thyme sprigs, and marjoram leaves on top to create a beautiful, rustic pattern.

7. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a perry kife inserted in the center comes out clean.

8. Let the gateau salé cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes to help it set.

9. Gently run a paring knife around the edges to loosen the cake. Place a cutting board over the pan, invert it, and carefully lift the pan off. Turn it right-side up, slice, and enjoy this perfectly sweet-and-savory masterpiece.

This beautiful and delicious Gateau Salé is the perfect culinary gift for friends and family! Wrap it in rustic parchment paper with a custom label for a homemade touch.

Enjoy & Happy Baking!

Ellie Lavender
Space Curator & Avant Garde Chef
Lavender Design + Cuisine
Let's connect: Instagram | Facebook

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Monday, January 9, 2023

The kitchen Pantry Wonderful Benefits!

Open Space in the kitchen turned

into a Pantry

Coat Closet turned into a Pantry

Floating Shelves for Herbs & Spices

Having a pantry can help to store small kitchen appliances such as food processor & mixer, non-perishable foods and wines (it can be a mini wine cellar) while keeping kitchen countertops clear for food preps. It also inspires cooking and just being in the kitchen much more fun!

Plus, a well-organized pantry is essential for any good home chef. Learning to store, prepare and use the products we keep in our pantry can lead to better meals, healthier lifestyle and helps create less food waste.

So, ideally, we all should have a pantry, but what to do if we don’t have one?

Well, you can create a pantry with shelves using any suitable open space in your kitchen and even a coat closet, if there is one near by your kitchen.

See the pantry examples above, which do not require constructions and are easily doable as fun DIY projects.

Additionally, you can install some floating shelves for your herbs and spices to make them readily available when cooking and baking!

So many cost effective little things we all can do to make our kitchen not only a place of joy for cooking and entertainments, but also a kitchen, which is clutter-free, organized and inviting!

Happy Cooking & Baking!

Ellie Lavender
Space Curator & Avant Garde Chef
Lavender Design + Cuisine

Let's connect: Instagram | Facebook

Monday, January 2, 2023

Salade Composée: Crisp Apple & Shaved Fennel

Crisp Apple & Shaved Fennel Salad

Salads are the perfect combination of nutritious, delicious, and effortless. This vibrant blend of baby romaine, shaved fennel, crisp apple, radish, and blackberries—drizzled with a white balsamic vinaigrette and finished with fresh cracked pepper and sea salt—is truly elevated eating. While a quick chop-and-toss is efficient, taking the time to arrange a beautiful "salad art" plate makes the experience much more enjoyable.

So let's get started with the recipe!

Ingredients: 2 baby romaine lettuce, one small apple, one fennel bulb, few radishes, few blackberries, 2 tbsp. olive oil, 3 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar, a pinch of sea salt & freshly ground pepper.

Instructions: Cut the core from the romaine to separate the leaves, then wash and dry them thoroughly in a salad spinner. Prepare the produce by removing the tough outer layers of the fennel, then thinly slice it and the apple using a mandoline or sharp knife. Finally, thinly slice the radishes with a knife. Next arrange them on a large platter, drizzle olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, a bit of freshly ground pepper, a sprinkle of sea salt and enjoy!

Chef Ellie Lavender
Plant-Based Mediterranean Personal Chef
Culinary & Wine Pairing Instructor
Lavender Design + Cuisine

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