Theeggis a magical ingredient. And so when the Ancient Romans has started the domestication of poultry, hence discovering the countless applications of eggs, came the birth of various egg preparations including a savoury dish, the "eel flan", with dessert custard version also in existence flavoured with honey and pepper. With Europe under their wing, their culture and traditions spread across the nation. The food being a significant part of it. Several versions of the original "flan" was translated into sweet and savoury dishes. Its ingredients ranging from, almonds and cinnamon to cheese and fish. It was enjoyed often during the Lent season as this is the period when meat is prohibited. The caramel element was added when the flan traditions reached France and to the rest of the hungry world.
Food history is as rich as it's going to get. I was always fascinated to where, how or why a dish was born. Getting to know a certain dish in an intimate level is as delicious as actually eating it. It gives the food soul, hence satisfies the consumer's soul as well.
Pâte Feuilletée, or most commonly known as Puff Pastry is thin layers of pastry dough and fat on top of each other, resulting in a light, crunchy, flaky, rich confection. It starts as the dough undergoes a process called lamination. The dough, or the détrempe envelopes a solid fat (usually butter) or beurrage, rolled and folded making layers and layers of dough and fat.
Creation of this pastry is still debated up to this day. Some say a version of the puff pastry goes way back in the 13 century found in Spanish Arabic books. Back then, it was called muwarraga, meaning "leafy" in Arabic. Others would call it foliatil, translating "leafy" in medieval Spanish. Fast forward a couple hundred of years to 1645, where Claudius Gele, a baker's apprentice and artist, whipped up a layered dough and butter concoction for his sick father who was prescribed a diet consisting of flour, water and butter. Despite Gele's mentor's warnings that the fat will weep out of the pastry, he still went on and baked it. To both their pleasant surprise, the heavens sang and a golden cloud of thin layers came out of the oven. With his great invention on hand, he went to Paris and worked at Rosabau Pâtisserie. He then moved on to Florence and continued to spread his pastry wings.
Pâte Feuilletée (puff pastry dough recipe)
200g plain flour
7g salt
100g cold water
50g melted butter
100g dry butter
(NOTE: Now finding dry butter at your local grocery store might be tricky. Generally US made butter is about 80% butterfat, 17% water and 3% protein. European butters have about 82-83% butterfat. Dry butter's fat content goes up to 86%! You can use the best quality butter you can find. Though the lamination process will be slightly difficult as your butter will melt faster.)
