When in the south of France, the flavours of the coast are inescapable. Luscious fruits, fragrant herbs infuse all your senses. It’s no surprise then, that the French here take full advantage of their good fortune with a variety of treats aimed at preserving all that is fresh and luxurious
At Confiserie Florian, a place which once counted Matisse as a regular customer, the chefs entice customers with walls and cases filled to the brim with candied fruit, candied flowers, fruit preserves and chocolate. For me though, it was the fruit jellies (or pate de fruit) that had my heart. Think of these as gummies for grown ups. Fresh fruit purees, turned into “gummies” just bursting with intense fresh flavour like apricot, plum, black currant and raspberry made with all natural ingredients at the peak of ripeness. Surprisingly though, these are incredibly easy to make at home. Basically, if you can make jam, you can make your own pate de fruit. Just make sure you buy a good quality thermometer!
Pate de Fruit
special equipment: metal cake ring or frame smaller than your baking tray, silpat,
Ingredients
10g pectin
50g granulated sugar
500g fruit puree
500g granulated sugar
150g light corn syrup
5g citric acid
1. Mix the pectin and 50g granulated sugar together
2. Add the fruit puree to the pectin and sugar and pour into saucepan.
3. Bring the mixture to a boil
4. Stir in the remaining sugar and corn syrup.
5. Cook the mixture to 240F (115C) then remove it from heat
6. Mix the citric acid with a small amount of water and add it to the fruit mixture.
7. Place well oiled cake ring or frame on top of a silicone mat. Pour mixture into frame and let cool completely.
8. Cut pate de fruit into squares or other shapes and dredge in granulated sugar.
Note: For fruits naturally not high in pectin such as berries, and passionfruit, increase the amount of pectin to 15 grams.
Sweet Escapes 