I discovered that little plant on the fruit market I usually go. They call it here « agretti » or « barba di frate« . Totally unknown for me I looked at wikipedia: « This plant is said to be halophyt », which means that it likes salt. « It is found only in the Mediterranean basin, in particular in Italia and Spain where it is typical of the diet ».

The only thing the farmer told me about was that I should try to cook it in the pan with a little bit of olive oil just time the « agretti » get a little fluffy. That’s what I did but cooking it with some lemon « confit » (home made, I give you the recipe just below) and its olive oil. It was surprisingly good, still crunchy and with a soda taste (actually its Latin name is Salsola soda and it was also used for the making of bicarbonate of soda!).

So now, « les citrons confits » the lemon confit, I really like it and for some years I was searching for a good recipe to do them on my own, with of course beautiful bio lemon, good olive oil and the occasion to do them. And I did it not so long ago, it just needed about one good month for the lemon to get « confit ». You will see them from time to time in my recipes, I love to use it for example in the « tajine«   and I am thinking about using it in sweet recipes too…

Barba di frate with lemon confit

• 4 untreated lemons (or as much as you want)
• Salt
• couple of garlic cloves
• Olive oil

Wash and brush the lemons. Slice them (1 cm width) and progressively put the slices in a colander in the sink. Add salt at the same time in good quantity in order to cover them. Kindly patient until the day after. Wash the lemon slices under water and put them tight in a pot. Add the cloves and cover with oil. Close well the pot and put it in dark for at least a month before using the lemon.

Barba di frate aux citrons confits

• 4 citrons bios (non traités)
• Sel
• quelques gousses d’ail
• huile d’olive

Laver et brosser les citrons. Les couper en rondelles d’un demi centimètre d’épaisseur environ. Les placer au fur et à mesure dans une passoire en les salant abondamment. Patienter une bonne nuit. Le lendemain, rincer à grande eau les citrons. Les mettre en pot assez serrés avec une ou quelques gousses d’ail épluchées. Bien serrer les tranches de citron. Verser de l’huile d’olive jusqu’au rebord des conserves. Fermer et mettre à l’abri de la lumière pendant un mois avant de déguster.

Spring is now showing up here…finally! Winter was so rainy! I was told they never, from man’s memory, had so much rain here during a winter. It was just incredible and as you might have seen on news, in December Rome was underwater, the Tevere never been so high!

Now summer is coming progressively and within the next two weeks the terrace will be set up and we will enjoy fresh warm air while eating, and even barbecue at the house of the seaside during holidays. I particularly love to be over there in Pescia, closed to Tuscany. The house is just behind sand dune and so 2 minutes walking from the sea. At night we all appreciate to meet around the bbq, and eat the « bruschette« , these slices of bread toasted and scrubbed with garlic before pouring olive oil (the Tuscan one is just so delicious with her fruity taste). I am telling you all that because recently I did some « poivrons marinés » and the centurion and I both agree they would be so great on the bruschette.

English table:

• 5-6 red, orange and/or yellow sweet peppers
• 2 cloves of garlic crushed
• 1 small stick of celery sliced thinly 
• some leaves of parsley snipped
• 2 table spoon of apple vinegar
• 5 table spoon of olive oil

2 days before, warm up the oven to  180°C.  Put the peppers cleaned and entire on a plate intheoven until their skin start turning to black. Let then the peppers cool cown before peeling them. Remove the seeds and the stalk.  Put the peppers in a colander in the sink until the day after.

Sliced the peppers and put them in a tupperware or a jar. Add the garlic, celery, parsley, vinegar and oil. Mix and keep in the fridge until the day after. Eat them freshly out from the fridge, alone or on bread or even chopped breast chicken.

A la table française:

• 5-6 poivrons rouges, jaunes et/ou oranges
• 2 gousses d’ail écrasées
• 1 petite branche de céleri émincée
• quelques feuilles de persil ciselées
• 2 c. à soupe de vinaigre de pomme
• 5 c. à soupe d’huile d’olive

2 jours avant, préchauffer le four à 180°C. Déposer sur une plaque allant au four et chemisée de papier cuisson les poivrons entiers et lavés. Les laisser cuire jusqu’à ce que la peau noircissent. Les retirer du four et les laisser refroidir. Retirer la peau (elle doit partir trsè facilement), enlever les pépins et la tige. Mettre les poivrons dans une passoire dans l’évier jusqu’au lendemain.

Couper alors les poivrons en lanières. Les mettre dans tupperware ou un bocal avec l’ail, le céleri, le persil, le vinaigre et l’huile. Mettre au frigo jusqu’au lendemain.