Flamiche au Maroilles - World Bread Day

 

 la ricetta in italiano qui

It's World Bread Day again!

Since 2006 every year Zorra has been collecting hundreds of recipes from bloggers all around the world baked for this special day (that also clebrates the World Food Day). To have an idea of this great tribute just have a look at the faboulous  last years World Bread Day roundups, you will be very surprised of such a glory for this fragrant and comforting food. 

So don't hesitate a second to be part of it, you have time till midnight to post your own bread along :-). 

 

I choose a French greedy recipe this year I love so much. I learned to make it by Isabelle, the lady who helps me with the housekeeping, she is French and exactly from the region the cheese comes from. 

Very easy and simple recipes, no electric kitchentools required, but a gorgeous taste to enjoy as an aperitif with a fresh glass of wine (or beer :-)!

 

You can have a sweet version too, just substitute cheese with ripe fresh or better syruped fruit and a sprinkle of sugar, ideal for an afternoon tea with friends :-).

Maroilles is often reported to have first been made in 962 by a monk in the Abbey of Maroilles. The cheese rapidly became famous throughout the region and was a favourite of several French kings including Philip II, Louis IX, Charles VI and Francis I.
Maroilles is a cow's-milk cheese made in the regions of Picardy and Nord-Pas-de-Calais in northern France. It derives its name from the village of Maroilles in the region in which it is still manufactured. The cheese is sold in individual rectangular blocks with a moist orange-red washed rind and a strong smell. In its mass-produced form it is around 13 cm square and 6 cm in height, weighing around 700 g. The curd is shaped and salted before being removed from its mould and placed in a ventilated drying area for around ten days during which time a gentle light coating of bacteria develops. The cheese is then brushed and washed and cellared for at least five weeks, though periods of up to four months are not uncommon. During this time it is turned and brushed at regular intervals to remove the natural white mould to allow its red bacteria to change the rind from yellow to red.The finished cheese is a minimum of 45% fat, and is made in both pasteurized and unpasteurized forms. AOC status was granted in 1976 with AOP status following in 1996 (from wikipedia).

 

For 2 cakes:

250 g all purpose flour
100 ml lukewarm milk
2 eggs
50 g butter, melted but cooled
12 g fresh yeast
half a teaspoon of sugar or honey or barley malt
a pinch of salt
400 g  Maroilles cheese
butter and flour for the molds
2 disposable aluminum molds, diameter 24/26 cm. *

*  with double dose I filled 2 molds of 26 cm., 2 molds of 22 cm. and 3 little tarts of 10 cm.

 

- In a large bowl beat eggs with a fork, add the salt.
- Dissolve yeast in the milk and sugar (or honey) and add to beaten eggs.
- Add butter, whisk, then add flour, stirring vigorously with the fork to have a homogeneous mixture, very soft (you can not work with hands).
- Grease and flour the molds and distribute the mixture in a thin layer, helping with a fork. Let rise in a warm place for an hour.
- Cut cheese into thin slices and place on the leavened pastry. Bake at 180° for about 15/20 minute, until golden. Serve warm.
- You can freeze (once cooled), then  thaw  warm up in the oven for a few minutes.

This recipe is also my entry to this week Susan's YeastSpotting.