Flour & Fig

Chef Marjorie Perotti-Brewster

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Recipes with a Rich History

You’ve arrived at the site of a labor of love, growing over several years from the discovery of a baker’s journal from the 1930’s. Explore the history behind these unique new delicacies and nearly-forgotten treats, as well as recipes and tips to recreate them in your own kitchen.

Recipes

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Asian CuisineBasicsBreads & Yeast DoughsCakes & TartsCookies & BarsHolidayPasta & RicePastriesSaladsSavorySoups & StewsSweet Fillings & FrostingsVegetables
Broccoli Rabe SautéBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterBroccoli Rabe or Rapini as it is sometimes called is in the broccoli family. The flowerets are smaller than conventional broccoli and the taste tends to be sharper and just a bit bitter. The stems as well as the leaves are all a tender edible part of this vegetable. It's popular throughout Mediterranean countries and served as a very tasty side dish, as part of a hearty soup, or if you add a bit more olive oil and some spicy Italian sausage as a great sauce for a classic pasta dish.
Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe and SausageBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterOrecchiette shaped pasta (Little Ears) is typical of Apulia in the Southern region of Italy. Many of the traditional recipes include bitter type greens, like this recipe with Broccoli Rabe, but Arugula works well too. The greens are often combined with red pepper flakes, spicy sausage or Anchovy fillets. The thin little shells cradle all the flavors added to any sauce. DeCecco is my favorite brand followed closely by Montebello, and both are generally available in better stores.
Braised Fennel – Finocchio BrasatoBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterBraised fennel, and fennel in general is a vegetable that I use on a regular basis. It's great raw in green salads, tossed with olive oil and slices of oranges, part of seafood stews, or braised as it is in this recipe. This super simple, super fast recipe is good served with just about any grilled chicken, pork or fish dish. In addition, fennel, well very low in calories is a good source of vitamin C, Magnesium and Potassium.
Escarole Sautè with Bacon & PinenutsBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterEscarole is a slightly bitter leafy green vegetable. It's part of the chicory family along with endive, frisée and radicchio. Growing up in an Italian family, leafy green vegetables, especially those of the slightly bitter category were often part of our meal. Escarole can be eaten raw as a salad or, as in this recipe, sautéed with added flavorful enhancements. In Italy one would probably use Pancetta, and it could certainly be used in this recipe. However, I like the slightly smokey taste and the crispy texture that bacon adds. The toasted pine nuts add a nice crunch and a drizzle of a very good extra virgin olive oil at the end is an important finish.
Warm Spinach SaladBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterSpinach is such a versatile, healthy, year-round vegetable. It can be steamed, sautéed, put in soups, soufflés, pastas or eaten raw in salads or on sandwiches. This version has it tossed with a warm balsamic dressing that has not only the olive oil, but the added flavor of bacon drippings. The spinach is just slightly wilted, the parsnips and bacon are crunchy, the mushrooms are earthy, the onions add bit of sweetness and the toasted pine nuts are buttery. I think a good rich balsamic (and I really love the Olivier VSOP brand from Napa) adds just the right tartness to the dressing. There is so much going on with this salad that with a slice of a good crusty bread it can easily be the main course.
Cara Cara Oranges with Rosewater MeringueBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterThis is an easy, light dessert that takes advantage of our Winter/Spring citrus season. I love the juicy citrus flavors of the Cara Cara combined with the crunch and floral flavor of the Rose Water meringues and all topped with the slightly tart cream topping. If you make the meringues a day or several days before, you can put this together in just a few minutes. As the seasons progress, you can use other fruits, and other flavors in the meringues. Try berries with cocoa meringues and chocolate shavings on top of the whipped cream, or peaches with almond extract meringues topped with whipped cream and crumbled candied almonds. The preparation time shown for this recipe includes the two hours to bake the meringues.
Meringue Cookies and ShellsBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterMeringue cookies or shells are so easy to make, can be used in a variety of ways, and keep for weeks when stored in an air tight container. This recipe calls for vanilla extract, but any flavor may be used. I love adding Nielsen & Massey Rosewater Extract, or their Orange Blossom Extract. You may also add a bit of instant Espresso powder of finely chopped chocolate. Get as creative as you like, just remember to add the extracts towards the last part of the preparation. Adding any extracts too early in the process can keep the egg white from forming nice stiff peaks. When forming the cookies or the shells, it's easiest to use a pastry bag fitted with either a plain or star tip. If you feel you need a bit extra help in forming somewhat exact sizes, try drawing circles of ovals of the desired size on the underside of your parchment paper and use that as a template when piping the meringue.
Hot Cross BunsBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterHot Cross Buns are traditionally eaten on Good Friday, but actually most bakeries in the United States make them starting on Ash Wednesday and bake their last batch for Easter Sunday. There are several versions of this Easter treat, some have no fruit, others have raisin, and some, like these from my Father's recipes have raisins, orange peel and citron. The cross on the top is generally made from a slurry of mixing flour and water, which I don't think is great tasting, so my father always made the cross on top using his custard recipe, which I have included. Hot Cross buns have a history that goes back centuries. We tend to think of them as an Easter pastry, but have origins that go much further back to pre-christian times. A very early version of of the buns were baked to celebrate Eostre, a Germanic Goddess of Fertility. The symbolism for the Christian version has the cross on the top as a symbol of the crucification, the spices used to signify the spices used in embalming and the orange peel reflecting the bitterness of his time on the cross.
Galette des Rois – Puff Pastry with Almond Cream CenterBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterGalette des Rios or "Kings Cake" is a classic French pastry that was traditionally shared at Epiphany on January 6th to celebrate the arrival of the Three Wise Men in Bethlehem. However, you will find that this delightful creation combining buttery, crispy, flakey puff pastry with a creamy rich almond filling is served year round. If you choose to make your own puff pastry, it takes a bit more time and skill, but with store bought puff pastry it's quite simple. This is a fantastic after dinner dessert, good after lunch, wonderful with coffee for breakfast, or actually at any time. It's best when it's still a bit warm from the oven. However, if there is any left for the following day, I suggest warming it bit in the oven to re-crisp the pastry. Prep time and difficulty level was based on using pre-made puff pastry.
Chicken Thighs with Ricotta & HerbsBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterChicken thighs are one of my favorite pieces of the chicken. They are moist, tender, versatile and can retain all of their excellent qualities whether they are roasted, broiled, braised or stewed. This recipe is easy to make, just takes a bit of time to stuff and tie the pieces, and this part of the prep can be done a day ahead. You can either practice your deboning skills or have the butcher remove the bone for you. For a slightly different flavor for the sauce, try substituting Marsala or Madeira wine for the white wine.
Mille-Feuille with CremeBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterMille-Fleuille is such an old world classic pastry. When I was studying cooking in France I had at least one puff pastry based sweet every day. I developed a love for the buttery crispiness of puff pastry and to this day, making my own pastry dough is still a favorite pastime. However, if you are not so-inclined, there are several store bought brands that will work equally well. I think that the main ingredient in making superb puff pastry, or any layered (often referred to as "laminated")dough like croissants, or Danish pastry is the butter. Salted butter and even some lesser unsalted brands contain a percentage of water and water in the butter is the enemy of a good layered dough. So, if you would like to make your own, invest in a good quality European Unsalted. If you would like more information on butter, click on my link to Tips and Techniques on Butter. /https://flourfig.com/tips-and-techniques/butter-salted-or-sweet/ NOTE: The time and difficulty level I've listed for this recipe is based on buying the puff pastry.
Dad’s Super Rich Chocolate Fudge CakeBy Marjorie Perotti-BrewsterMy Dad's rich chocolate fudge cake is legendary in our family. Was often the cake of choice for birthdays, or any celebration. I found two versions in his journal, and after several test runs, I find this to be the closest to what I remember. I tested the cake using several cocoa powders and found I really liked Guittard's Dutched Cocoa Rouge the best. It has a wonderful color and intense depth of flavor. The fudge frosting was more of a challenge, as the ones in his journal involved many steps, and many places where disasters could take place. Fortunately, my sister had his easier version, and that is what I have used for this recipe. I did take a bit of creative license with the espresso flavored chevron pattern on the top. The cake is intensely chocolate, and I found that the tiny bit of deep coffee flavor blended nicely and rounded out the overall flavor.
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