A Day With Apricots And A Few Days Off

I woke up Friday morning feeling lighter.

“Did you know I am finished photographing all the recipes from the book?” I asked C. Yes, I was. I am. And it feels wonderful. I am sure as time passes and I revisit the same recipes and images over and over again, there will be many changes I will want to make, but for not, this is it.

I still have quite a bit of writing to do, but as of this week, I am a month away from turning in my manuscript. I can’t even tell you how exciting that is for me.

When I woke up Friday, I decided my weekend would start early. C. and Jon had made plans on their own, so I was going to have Miren all to myself. We were going to have alone time, which doesn’t happen often.

We took a walk to the park early, before the scourging sun made an appearance. Unfortunately, that didn’t last very long. The heat forced us back inside.

I prepared a light pea soup (a variation of this one) that we ate with Idiazabal and radish tartines.

“Miren, jaten!” I let her know. It was time to come to the table for lunch. She runs and climbs on her chair ready to eat.

In the afternoon, as she napped, I made a batch of shortbreads, coconut rice pudding, and this gluten and dairy free apricot and pistachio clafoutis.

I took time to photograph and organize all my images while I listened to music (obsessing over this as of late). It was nice and quiet, just what I needed.

“Ama!” I heard coming from upstairs. Miren was up. She was ready for my clafoutis.

This week, the kids and I are flying to Vermont to see my friend Nadia and her new farm. There will be fresh air, beautiful scenery, and lots of blueberry picking. I cannot wait.

I will be back soon.

Enjoy.

Gluten and Dairy Free Apricot and Pistachio Clafoutis

Makes a 10-inch deep dish

1/4 cup (40 g) shelled and unsalted pistachios
3 tablespoons (25 g) cornstarch
3 eggs
1/2 cup (100 g) natural cane sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
1 1/4 cup unsweetened full-fat coconut milk
1 tablespoon melted ghee or coconut oil
6 apricots, halved and pit removed

Preheat oven to 400F (200C). Grind the pistachios and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch together in the food processor to a fine powder.

Whisk together the eggs, sugar, and vanilla seeds. Whisk in the pistachio powder and rest of cornstarch until smooth. Add coconut milk and melted ghee.

Grease your dish. Arrange the apricot halves around the dish and pour custard over.

Bake for 30 minutes or until center is set.