A gluten-free cookbook is not one I would buy. Claire is an American in London, the owner of Violet bakery and cafe in Hackney.
Book photography by Kristin Perers.
We recently had the chance to chat while she was visiting the US, and came away with her top 10 tips for developing a more experimental style of baking, a deeper appreciation for foraging, and recipes that range widely on the “healthy” scale–all of which put flavor first.
Who knew fig leaves are edible (or that they’d taste any good)? Take care to note whom the plants belong to, then knock on the door and ask nicely.
Claire usually finds this to be a win-win situation: “We have a pear tree behind us at the bakery, and we come by and pick the pears and give some to the owner. Usually people find it helpful to have someone to harvest,” she says.
Claire forages for wild blackberries in the Hackney Marshes in London for her wild blackberry crumble tart.
Claire cites fig leaves and angelica as members of this foragers-only flavor club–ingredients you can’t buy as produce, and which “have that kind of old-fashioned flavor that people have forgotten about.”
When using alternative grains, says Claire, “you’re playing with the flavors of the grains themselves.” The same goes for sugar and dairy alternatives, also used throughout the book.
Claire encourages home bakers to use any summer fruit in her summer spelt almond cake.
Salt makes food taste less bitter she says a concept she used in her coconut milk icing If you taste coconut milk you kind of get a hint of coconut but then you...
...add salt and rum and you re suddenly aware of its coconut flavor It is a sweet icing she says but it shows how much alcohol and salt can aid in sugar transformation
Claire distinguishes between two palates for sweet: caramel/toffee sweet, and fruit/pastry sweet. Understand sugar for what it is. Sugar is firmly in the crosshairs of the health police, perhaps second only to gluten.
Rather than thinking of sugar as the great downfall of baked goods, understand that “sugar is a wonderful way to heighten flavor.” Says Claire, “I am never trying to make something sweet–in fact I much prefer cakes that are less sweet–but I am trying to bring out the flavors inherent in the cakes.”
Another food you probably didn’t know you could eat: peach leaves. She uses the leaves in her peach and peach leaf jam.
“It’s kind of wonderful right now, with the changing of the seasons,” says Claire, “you have pumpkins, quince, the apples are crisp and perfect.” Seasonal produce matches seasonal moods, she notes, as do their colors. Prunes are not (just) for old people.
Apricot and pineapple sage jam makes use of an herb that’s easy to grow.
But of course, she says, “I also have to advise caution a little bit”–overzealous substitutions may not turn out.
The Violet Bakery Cookbook is $16.83 on Amazon.