Ispahan jam makes it all taste so good
Greek yogurt topped with Ispahan Jam and smothered in fruit
Cindy's recent ode to her Christine Ferber jam reminded me that I had promised to tell you about the Ispahan jam I bought on my last trip to Paris in July. If you had read about the first time I tried the famous Ispahan dessert, you would know that I was more than a bit disappointed. Despite that, something about the combination of rose, raspberry and lychee fruit stuck with me. So not long after that I decided to try Pierre Hermé's version.
And oh. It was good.
Since then I get a little excited when faced with any dish containing rosewater. (Moro's rosewater and cardamom ice cream is the stuff of my dreams).
A close friend of mine and I agree on most things when it comes to food, but my love for rosewater is the one thing where our palates seem to differ. In fact, just the mere mention of it and she breaks out into some rather amusing facial contortions. I'm starting to think it's like cilantro, you either love it or you hate it. And have you ever noticed that those who don't like cilantro seem really passionate about hating it? Is there no one who is just kind of on the fence about it?
So anyway, in July when I was in Paris I decided to buy a jar of Christine Ferber's (made for Hermé) ispahan jam to take back home with me. People, I could kick myself for never having tried it before. The jam has a rich, vibrant colour, and its 3 main flavours meld perfectly, none of them overpowering the other. You rosewater haters are probably scrunching up your noses right now, but you are just going to have to pipe down for a minute.
It has a somewhat runny (as far as jam goes) consistency which makes it perfect for adding to yogurt which is how I've been indulging in it lately. And now that it's berry season I can't resist smothering the whole thing with strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and yes, even bananas.
You might think I was a bit heavy handed with the fruit but it just tastes so darn good. Thank goodness Paris is only a short train ride away because I'm getting awfully close to the bottom of that jar.
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You can get this jam at the Pierre Hermé shops in Paris.
Labels: fruit, london, Paris bakeries, specialty food products, sweet stuff
posted by Michèle at 2:22 PM
8 Comments:
OMG! that looks delicious. I wonder if they sell this in Tokyo...will have to look the next time I'm there. Until then, I'll just drool over your photos.
Wow.. what a combination of flavours. I like cilantro so I'm really hoping I'll like rose water. I LOVE lychee anything and of course raspberries! I'll have to put this on my list of things to get whenever I make it to France.
Is it really only available in Paris? You've made me really curious. I like rosewater, but only in small amounts otherwise it's to overwhelming.
And cilantro is a hot topic in my kitchen too. I like it and my boyfriend thinks it tastes like soap.
Kat, I hope you can find it--if you're a fan of those flavours Im sure you'll love it. And even if you aren't, this might just convert you ;)
Michelle, I will forewarn you that some people can be heavy handed with the rosewater so if you don't like it at first, don't write it off entirely. Im sure you would love this jam.
Maaike, I really don't know if it's available elsewhere! Unfortunately Christine Ferber doesn't have a website. But I have not seen this particular jam in any of the grocery stores in Paris that carry her jams.. Oh and my fiance hates cilantro too. What is it with our men?
I love your obsessions and this post!
Here's the deal though....I am a wealth of contradictions. I love PH's Ispahan, and CF's jam of the same name. (Yeah, I bought it once too!) and that ice cream at Moro. So my face contortion response to Rose Water needs further investigation. I think in small doses I must like it. It is just when it starts to taste like soap.... :{
oh, and for the record: love love LOVE cilantro.
go figure
I will have to try it. To date, I have yet to be sold on rosewater.
Alisa, yes you are a wealth of contradictions but I can forgive your hesitation about rosewater since you do like cilantro. But we'll work on you with the rosewater thing, Im sure I can make you come around.. More trips to Moro perhaps?
Kevin, well I admit I wasn't a fan either until the Ispahan converted me and I'm glad it did because it opens up a whole new world of recipes to me. I just think it's so darn dreamy, I can't resist it.
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