Calvados Fennel and Green Apple Confiture

The "simpler is often better" concept is easy to intellectually grasp and mentally accept, but, in my case, has proven a challenge to apply in real life. After showing up somewhat empty-handed and red-faced at our first Beet 'n Squash YOU! roundup last month, I fell yet again into the ever-so-alluring trap of over-exertion of effort and over-enthusiasm to impress. With the deadline for Battle Fennel approaching, the pressure was mounting, and more and more innocent bulbs of fennel perished on a daily basis at my murderous hand.

I came to my senses, eventually. In the manner of Scheherazade to the Shahryar, a beautiful, voluptuous fennel bulb, the last one left in the refrigerator crisper, spent, not quite 1,001 afternoons, but just one convincing me to treat him justly and in a non-vegicidal way based on what he had to offer. I had no choice but to drop my dagger and rethink my nefarious way. The bold, assertive, yet non-aggressive fennel is an ingredient that can stand on its own, but it also is a great team player; the vegetable gets along quite nicely with pretty much every spice, herb, and meat.

Hmm ... Let's see ...


Fennel has a clean, mildly licorice-like flavor (and scent). With high water content, it has firm, crunchy, juicy texture when it's raw. Yet, when braised, it becomes soft and sweet while retaining a great deal of textural integrity; it doesn't turn to mush.In other words, fennel is very confit-able.

I then proceeded with an experiment whose result I was certain would turn out well. I quartered, cored, and finely chopped that 1-lb bulb of fennel and put it in a heavy-bottomed sauté pan along with one large Granny Smith apple (peeled, cored, and finely chopped) and 1 1/2 cups of sugar. Over medium heat, the mixture stewed on a slow simmer for 30 minutes. Use the widest, most shallow pan you can find in the house. Large boiling surface area allows for faster evaporation which leads to faster reduction/thickening.

After that, 1/4 cup of Calvados (Tequila would be fine too), zest and juice of one lemon, and one tablespoon of fennel seeds went in. The mixture continued to gently simmer until it became 2 cups of thick confit, about 10 minutes.

Calvados fennel-green apple confiture is to be stored and served in the same manner as you would any homemade fruit preserve. I love cutting a piece of homemade liver mousse complete with gelée of parsley and fennel fronds, smear that on a bite-sized chunk of freshly-baked crusty bread, and top it all off with some of this vibrant-flavored confit for one perfect, perfect bite. This confiture is also breathtakingly delicious with aged sheep's milk cheeses, such as Manchego and Zamorano -- a discovery that, though has made my bank account very sad, has brought such joy to my taste buds.

(Note added 12/4/09 - This confit makes a fantastic upside-down cake. Just spread 1 cup of this confit on the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan and pour on top of it one recipe of your favorite butter cake that is designed for a 9-inch round pan. Bake at 350 degrees F until the cake passes the toothpick test. Let it cool completely before turning the pan upside down on to a serving plate.)