Long Peppers and Lemon Macarons
These small peppers are a part of a new lemon pepper macaron at Maude’s
So what is a long pepper? With medium to mild heat and an almost floral notes, the pepper is a rare treat. Long pepper is native to Java, and relatively uncommon in European cooking, although this wasn’t always the case.
The fruit of the pepper consists of many minuscule fruits (see above) that radiate out from a central core inside catkins. The fruits contain the alkaloid piperine, which contributes to the pungency of the long pepper.
Macarons
The always dapper and cheerful, Zach
The roast farm chicken at Maude’s
- Dining upstairs
While once upon a time quite popular, long pepper was rather ruthlessly replaced by black peppercorns. According to our friends at Wikipedia, “Round, or black pepper, began to compete with long pepper in Europe from the twelfth century and had displaced it by the fourteenth.” It was further upstaged by chili peppers in the New World, which were easier to grow. It remains relatively obscure even today, despite once being hailed by the ancient Romans as the ultimate peppery spice.
Despite its disappearance from the mainstream, you can find the long pepper in Maude’s kitchen where it’s being used to give a little kick to a lemon long pepper macaron that’s just the right mixture of tart, heat and sweet.
A view into the kitchen
Reflection
Bibb lettuce salad
The grill
Ribeye
Downstairs dining room in early evening light
Raw tower
Lyonnaise salad
Dining by candle light
Smashes at the bar
Selection of desserts
Chicken liver mousse
