Exploring The Navette, Lavender and Orange Flower Water: A Taste of Provence

 Some people like to paint pictures, or do gardening, or build a boat in the basement. Other people get a tremendous pleasure out of the kitchen, because cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing, or wood carving, or music. ~Julia Child

     The day had arrived John and I were actually in Provence. How many times had I imagined what it would be like to walk in the footsteps of Van Gogh and Cezanne? Today it was happening it was me touring the coliseum in Arles, smelling the lavender and people watching at the local café. We wandered the maze of age old streets lined with shops where seas of napkins and tablecloths bright with the blues, reds and yellows of Provence seemed to wave a greeting and bid me to come in. Was everything more vibrant more charming and more delicious in the South of France or was I just excited beyond belief to actually be experiencing Arles, Aix en Provence and Cassis for the first time? The answer is probably a little bit of both. 

     It wasn’t long before our love of cooking and food in general led us to the rich and abundant delicacies available in the area. I was impressed by the French sensibility about food. They shop daily for fresh seasonal offerings at a myriad of local farmers markets that set up on a rotating schedule all over the region. Each shopper knows on what day and in what town each market takes place. The vendors pay close attention to the quality of their products and the look of their stalls. Never have I seen more appealing displays of epicurean delights than I have in France.

      While exploring Arles I met a woman running a small patisserie who, amused and entertained by my wide eyed enthusiasm for her baked goods, introduced me to a traditional local cookie-biscuit called the Navette. I found the delicious lavender navettes to be much like Provence itself, beautiful, with a colorful history and carrying a hint of the signature lavender scent. They were a bit harder than a cookie with a slightly chewy quality. They were not what I had expected but I enjoyed the flavor. She explained to me what I was tasting and why it was significant to the culture of Provence.

  

     Legend has it that Saint Marie arrived in a row boat on the shores of France near Marseille without a sail or an oar. The boat shaped cookie is said to have been developed in the late seventeenth century to commemorate that arrival and is closely tied to local Catholic tradition, so much so that the navette was blessed by the local Archbishop and to this day carries with it a sense of reverence and tradition. Interestingly enough the word navette  translates to the word shuttle and I can see how the biscuit resembles a weaver’s shuttle. I don't know if there is any history behind that reference but I'd love to find out someday.

     Our next stop turned out to land on market day in the magical port village of Cassis. I scurried through the small cobblestone streets toward the cheeses, breads, olives and charcuterie that I knew lay just blocks away. Nothing it seemed could stop me unless of course it was the cookie shop I passed along the way. I stopped short my eyes fixed on rows and rows of neatly stacked cookies and I was drawn into the large welcoming entry, the order and elegance of the cookie displays and the intoxicating smell.  I did get to the market that morning after a brief pause to sample the local navettes.   

      I decided then and there that I would bake these special biscuit style cookies when I returned home. Today is the day I experiment with a small batch of lavender navettes. I bake and cook all the time but this is a new type of recipe for me and I wonder if my home version will even slightly measure up to those I enjoyed in France. Maybe my enjoyment was wrapped up in the entire experience. Maybe my technique and recipe will improve with practice. Maybe sharing this recipe will encourage others to step out of their own culinary comfort zone. Maybe sharing this special moment in my life through food is what matters most. ...Maybe I’ll add orange zest and a few drops of orange flower water to some butter to serve with the navettes. hmmmm maybe.  

Navettes

 3 cups AP flour (plus a bit more)

1/8 tsp salt 

1 tsp baking powder (powder not soda)

3 Tbs softened butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 TBS orange Flower Water

¼ cup water

1½ TBS culinary lavender

(don’t overdo the lavender it can taste soapy if overused)

The Dough

Add the lavender and salt to the flour and set aside

Cream the softened butter with the sugar in a mixer

 (I used the kitchen aid)

Add the eggs

Add the orange flour water and water 

Slowly add the flour lavender salt mixture

(Low enough speed so the flour doesn’t fly everywhere)

Raise speed to med till all ingredients are incorporated

The mixed dough will look sticky but be fairly easy to scoop out with a bench scrape.

If needed add bit flour a bit at a time till it gets dryer and you can handle it. 

Divide the dough into 12 equal balls add flour if you need it

(Just enough to keep it from sticking to you hands)

Shape each ball into navette shape (oval with pinched ends)

Indent the top (deeply) lengthwise

you can make them smaller and have more navettes if you wish

    

 Baking The Navettes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Brush tops of navettes with an egg wash

Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until a light golden brown

Cool on cookie sheet.

 

Tip of the day: I was delighted to use orange flower water for the first time. I highly recommend adding a bit of this fragrant water to add a special twist to favorite recipes. I can’t wait to try it in my French toast batter, in my crepes and my cookie recipes. No matter how much time you spend in the kitchen there is always more to learn and more experimenting to do.

I’ll keep practicing with the navettes and I’m willing to travel back to Provence for a lesson anytime