A rainy November day at the Barbotan Les Thermes market. This was the last fall day for selling spices until the spring because there was too much moisture in the air.
pain d’epice
1/4 pound organic butter (1 stick)
1+1/2 cups organic brown sugar
2 organic eggs
1+3/4 cups organic unbleached white flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1+1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup yogurt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream the butter and sugar, then add the eggs mixing well by hand or using a mixer.
Add the flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
Pour into a greased 8x8x2 inch square baking pan. Bake until cake tester comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool in the pan.
The French country house always has intimate outdoor spaces that are lovely to look at even in the winter. This simple vignette of two weathered chairs and a table under a persimmon kaki tree is an invitation to reflect on the harmony between the inside and outside, the home and the garden, the man made and natural world, connecting the past to the present.
