Desserts and Liqueurs

In France, festive desserts tend to come from the pâtissier, and Burgundy is no exception. The domain of home cooks is puddings, often studded with fruit, and dishes like fritters and pancakes which are so much better cooked at the last moment.

Nowhere are home recipes more valued than in the stillroom where jams, jellies, fruits in liqueur and the liqueurs themselves, are the sign of an accomplished country housewife; I am put to shame by the glowing ranks of jars which seem to be assembled by everyone around me. Now at least I have learned to make clear red currant jelly and to brew a passable glass of cassis, and while doing so I’ve given more than a fleeting thought to the generations who have done so before me.