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Friday, May 6, 2011

FFwD Tourteau de Chevre




I made this Tourteau de Chevre Thursday night, after Zumba. After making the tart dough Wednesday night, but not the complete cake, I was pretty much cramming the recipe in for this week's FFwD.

I was also cramming in a phone call to my Grandma, to wish her a happy 89th birthday. So while Grandma and I chatted, I prepped my ingredients, and did everything I could that didn't involve my handmixer. Normally calls with Grandma last about 10 minutes, but she was feeling talkative tonight. We rambled from one topic to another in conversation. Then she mentioned casually that she'd recently attended the 90th birthday for her milkman, and that he had picked up their milk for them all the years. The conversation caught in my brain. "Grandma, how many years did you have cows?" I asked. "Oh, well, from the time we got married until 1978, so a long time." Wow. "That was normal back then, right? For people to farm lots of different things?" "Oh yeah, everyone had cows then. Not like now. Now most people don't have cows." My grandparents had retired from cows, pigs, and plants by the time I was born, leaving only a few chickens. It is so hard for me to think about that nowadays, because my point of reference is that people have a dairy farm, or a chicken farm, but not everything all together on a small scale the way it used to be. And I said to my grandma "Things sure have changed, huh?" My original intention with the comment was that now milk comes from dairy farms with hundreds of cows, and nothing but cows. But the minute the words left my mouth, I realized they took on a larger meaning, about how farming hasn't just changed, but life has changed across generations. My mother moved from the farm to the suburbs, with its manicured lawns and perfectly spaced plots of land. I moved from the suburbs to the city, with its quirky and independent thinkers. There are a decent number of families in my area who do some urban cultivating: honey, chickens, gardens that take up the whole yard. But no matter how many chickens my neighbors have, my life will never circle back to the life my grandma lived. I doubt my grandma ever imagined the life her daughter would lead in the suburbs, just as my mom sometimes struggles to understand the life I've chosen. But no matter how far we've come, how different our lives are, we have lots of love for each other.

So a few days early, I'll say Happy Mother's Day to all the moms and grandmas out there. I'll be celebrating with mine on Sunday. And to my grandma, happy birthday. On your birthday, a few hours after our phone call, I toasted you in my kitchen, with my Tourteau de Chevre. It tasted like what would happen if cheesecake and angel food cake had a baby. And the main ingredient was honey chevre (from Trader Joes!), a product from bees and goats, two things you never had to care for on your farm.



Please check out the other bloggers on FFwD, and again Happy Mother's Day!

13 comments:

  1. 89 years! Congrats to your grandmother! And how awesome does your cake look with those whole berries!

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  2. Absolutely loved your post! Your Tourteau looks wonderful! Love that you served it with blackberries! Wishing your grandma a very happy birthday!!

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  3. Ah - happy birthday to Grandma! My dad grew up on that type of a farm and I can remember spending lots of time up there as a girl with the cows, chickens and the oddball pig. I miss those days (well, I don't miss being that old, but I do miss the farm)

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  4. Indeed how things have changed. Thanks for sharing your family's story and how our lifestyles evolve from one generation to another.

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  5. I like the idea of milkmen. That's cute that your grandma went to her milkman's 90th birthday.

    My grandmom grew up on a farm too. I only learned this recently when my dad mentioned it in passing, but I should ask her about what the farm was like.

    I was struggling with how to describe the torteau de chevre, but cheesecake meets angel food cake sounds perfect.

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  6. Very sweet sentiments and a happy mother's day to you too!
    Beautiful cake, I really like this recipe. Ps. My father is also 89!

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  7. Happy Mother's Day and Happy Birthday to your grandma! What a lovely cake...the berries are the perfect garnish :)

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  8. Happy Birthday to your grandma. I love your post this week, your reflections on a life gone by and sharing memories with your grandma. Your cake looks delicious.

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  9. What a wonderful post - I truly enjoyed reading it. And happy birthday to your grandma- a milestone for sure. You really had me thinking about the farms, although I grew up in the burbs. When I was young we thought of farms as you described - with all sorts of animals and plants. Hadn't really thought about the fact that you just don't see that anymore. Of course now I get my stuff at Trader Joe's like you :) Great tourteau and great description (marriage of cheesecake and angel food cake). Lovely !

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  10. Happy 89th Birthday to your grandma! your tourteau looks scrumptious, love the berries :)

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  11. I really enjoyed your post. It is amazing how farming has changed. Although when it comes to urban living, my mom's been jones'n for a downtown condo forever! If only my Dad would see the light. hee. Well at least my sister and I provide an urban respite!

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  12. What a great post! Thanks for sharing that. Now I want some big juicy berries for when I make this again. And I will!

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