Professor Butter Beard and Monet’s “The Moreno Garden at Bordighera”
“If I were a bird, I would fly about the Earth seeking the successive autumn.” – George Eliot
What is it about the autumn light? There is an aged pride and wisdom within its golden radiance. Just yesterday, as Nellie was navigating our late afternoon hike, she stopped and stared, bewitched by a brilliant red maple leaf dancing in the wind. She looked back with a wide grin before jumping straight up and gobbling the leaf mid ballet. She then triumphantly galloped to roll among the other fallen leaves, absorbing their sun-fed warmth and final declaration of beauty and joy. I laughed out loud thinking, as a baker would, that she looked like she was twirling on a plum cobbler crust of brown sugar and cinnamon.
This time of year, I often imagine how the autumn light would play within the rich landscape of the Italian Riviera. More specifically, within the Moreno Garden at Bordighera as painted by the master Oscar-Claude Monet.
In 1884, Claude Monet traveled to Bordighera, a coastal town on the Italian Riviera, close to the border between Italy and France, for a working visit of three weeks that turned into nearly three months. In a letter to his friend the sculptor Auguste Rodin, Monet described his initial efforts to translate into paint the brilliant Mediterranean light, writing that he was “fencing, wrestling, with the sun.”
“The palm trees are driving me crazy; the motifs are extremely difficult to capture.” He continued: “I am working very, very hard, because I haven’t yet grasped the colors of this country. I sometimes feel terrified by the colors that I am forced to see.”
And then he discovered the gardens. Francesco Moreno, the French consul in Bordighera, was a wealthy merchant of olive oil. He and his father Vincenzo built the manor house that bore their name and filled their gardens with all the exotic varieties (over 100,000 plants) that they were able to import. The gardens, in addition to native plants such as lemons, mandarins, oranges and olive trees, were enriched with ginkgo biloba, agave, aloe, palm and yucca. The “Italia Geografica Illustrata” published in 1881, stated “the Moreno gardens are not only the most beautiful and most delightful location of the Mediterranean, but also one of the most beautiful and famous gardens of Europe.”
Monet asked his friend Durand-Ruel to intercede for him, to get him permission to visit the private Moreno gardens. He wrote: "Here lives a certain Mr. Moreno, who owns a wonderful property, but one cannot visit it without a recommendation. I would be very obliged if you could get me a permission to visit.” Monet was granted permission and immediately embarked on an artist’s journey painting a group of sumptuous garden landscapes which now belong to numerous private collections and museums.
The Mediterranean light and the coastal atmosphere found their way into Monet’s soul. He was finally able to capture the warmth of the golds, the greens, the blues and the reds – all the colors of my autumnal dreams. He wrote, “Now that I feel the landscape better, I dare to put in all the shades of gold and blue; it’s enchanting, delicious, and I hope you will like it.”
I imagine a late breakfast in the garden with Monet. He looks up from his canvas, rather annoyed at being interrupted, until the picnic basket is opened and the aromas that escape compliment the warm golds, deep greens, and vibrant reds he has captured with his oil paints. The main course is a warm quiche filled with roasted fennel and red onion dancing among bits of crisp fried bacon, tangy goat cheese and fresh eggs and cream from the neighboring farm. I pop open the Prosecco and offer the artist a glass. He looks at me and then over my shoulder offering one of his most important words of wisdom: “Light is the most important person in the picture, my friend.”
Roasted Fennel Quiche with Bacon, Rosemary and Goat Cheese
One nine-inch quiche (using a tart pan with a removable bottom)
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 Tbsp nut flour (I use almond)
½ tsp fine sea salt
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cold, cut into ½” cubes
1 large egg
1 Tbsp cold water
2 large fennel bulbs
½ medium red onion
3 Tbsp olive oil
6 slices thick-cut bacon
2 Tbsp fresh rosemary, coarsely chopped
½ cup crumbled goat cheese
1 cup heavy cream
2 large eggs and 1 additional yolk
2 dashes of your favorite hot sauce
Fine sea salt and freshly-ground pepper
1) In a food processor, pulse together the two flours, salt and sugar. Add the cubed butter and pulse to the consistency of coarse cornmeal. Add the egg and cold water and pulse until the dough comes together. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill one hour.
2) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice the fennel bulbs in half, remove the core and slice lengthwise into ¼” thick strips. Slice the ½ red onion also into ¼” thick strips. Toss the fennel and onion with 2 Tbsp olive oil, season with salt and pepper, then distribute them on the baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes until they are starting to caramelize. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
3) Line a second baking sheet with parchment paper and place a tart pan (with a removable bottom) in the middle. Roll the dough to 1/8” thickness and then form into the tart pan letting the excess drape over the edge of the pan. Press in a sheet of aluminum foil to hold the shell in its shape while baking. Bake the shell for twenty minutes. Remove the foil and let bake for an additional 5-8 minutes until the bottom begins to brown. Remove from the oven and trim the edges level to the top of the tart pan. Let the shell cool to room temperature on the baking sheet.
4) Warm a skillet over medium heat and add 1 Tbsp olive oil. Cut the bacon into ½” pieces and add to the skillet. Cook, stirring often until the bacon has rendered its fat and is beginning to crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked bacon and add to the roasted fennel/onions. Reserve the bacon fat for another use.
5) Chop 2 Tbsp of fresh rosemary. Put the fennel/onions and bacon in a medium bowl. Toss together with the rosemary and season with salt and pepper.
6) In a large glass measuring cup, gently whisk together the heavy cream and eggs. Add two dashes of your favorite hot sauce and then season with salt and pepper.
7) Spoon the fennel filling into the baked tart shell. Crumble the goat cheese over the filling. Pour the custard over the filling to the top of the tart pan. Bake in the 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes until the custard is set and just beginning to brown around the edges. Cool to room temperature before slicing to serve.
