This text is part of the special book Plaisirs
What do Charles Aznavour, Fréhel, Michel Legrand, Barbara, Gilbert Bécaud, Jacques Brel, Maurice Chevalier and Cora Vaucaire have in common? They all sang lilac, the fragrant promise of the summer to come! What if we put it in our mouths, literally?
When the sumptuous mauve, white and fuchsia pompoms finally brighten up the towns and countryside, which never stop dusting off the traces of winter, all the senses are awakened, including those of chefs Pierre-Olivier Ferry and Fisun Ercan. The first is located in Bas-du-Fleuve and the second, in Saint-Blaise-sur-Richelieu. The lilac gratifies them with its heady fragrance and its dazzling flowering every few weeks, but they hope for it with the same impatience!
Encapsulate Spring
Pierre-Olivier Ferry, from the culinary workshop of the same name, worked for many years in the kitchens of the Jardins de Métis. All he had to do was reach out of the kitchen window to help himself to this particularly fragrant ingredient at the source! “The lilac is flirtatious, it has something very springlike about it, which calls for the garden season… There are few flowers from which we will extract such an intoxicating fragrance”, he gets carried away.
But beware, to capture its quintessence, the flowers will have to be treated with delicacy.
“They do not tolerate heat very well, the taste will completely change if you heat them, so I will work them cold. The easiest and most delicious way to taste it is to undo the little flowers one by one and nibble on the base, softer than the petals, where all the honeydew is. All the taste is there, a natural candy! »
However, this approach is very limited in time. Fortunately, the chef has several tricks that can prolong the pleasure for a few months.
Ice cream, English, pastry or whipped cream, gelato or sorbet: Pierre-Olivier Ferry has prepared lilac in 1001 forms! But simplicity ultimately tastes better and he prefers it in lilac lemonade, or “lilanade”.
lilac heart
When we spoke to her, the chef of the Bika farm and kitchen, Fisun Ercan, had just opened her new canteen in Saint-Blaise-sur-Richelieu and was preparing, a few days later, to welcome customers around its famous country table. Despite the whirlwind, she found time to ogle the nearby lilacs, so as not to miss any of their dazzling blooms. “I’m counting the days”, laughs the one who loves to cook with thyrses, the scientific name of the generous flower clusters. She makes, among other things, delicious shortbread and an ice cream where you can clearly see the flowers that lose none of their brilliance. “I infuse the flowers for at least a day in the cream that I will use to make the ice cream. It’s fine, delicious and pretty! »
In the case of shortbread, the baking takes place at a relatively low temperature, which allows the integrity and color of the flowers to be preserved, for a charming look.
The beautiful weather of the lilac
Pierre-Olivier Ferry is delighted to have reconciled several elders with this flower long associated with… funerals. “We didn’t bury the winter, we did that in the spring and often there were a lot of bouquets of lilacs during the ceremonies,” he recalls.
Today, very fortunately, the flower is much more a marvelous auspice of summer than a memento of the mourning heaped up during the off-season.
“Lilac is the messenger aroma of spring, a comforting pleasure, an ultimate beauty on the table, in the mouth, for the sense of smell”, launches Fisun Ercan, like a felt declaration of love.
This content was produced by the Special Publications team of the Duty, relating to marketing. The drafting of Duty did not take part.