![Gibassié de Lourmarin (1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Gibassi%C3%A9_de_Lourmarin_%281%29.jpg)
A gibassier (; , , formerly ''gibacier'') is a French pastry from
Provence
Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...
, a
galette
Galette (from the Norman word ''gale'', meaning "flat cake") is a term used in French cuisine to designate various types of flat round or freeform crusty cakes, or, in the case of a Breton galette (french: Galette bretonne ; br, Krampouezhenn g ...
made with fruited
olive oil
Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...
. It is generally spiced with
anise
Anise (; '), also called aniseed or rarely anix is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to Eurasia.
The flavor and aroma of its seeds have similarities with some other spices and herbs, such as star anise, fennel, licorice, and ta ...
,
candied orange peel, and
orange flower water
Orange flower
Orange flower water, or orange blossom water, is a clear aromatic by-product of the distillation of fresh bitter-orange blossoms for their essential oil.
Uses
This essential water has traditionally been used as an aromatizer i ...
, and dusted with
baker's sugar.
Pompe à l'huile
The gibassier is often confused with the pompe à l'huile (;
Occitan Occitan may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain.
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France.
* Occitan language
Occitan (; o ...
:
''poumpo à l'oli,'' ''pompa a l'òli,'' literally "oil pump"), but these are distinct dishes. The ''pompe à l'huile'' is more moist and is raised. It is part of the
thirteen desserts
The thirteen desserts ( Occitan: ''lei tretze dessèrts'') are the traditional dessert foods used in celebrating Christmas in the French region of Provence. The "big supper" (''le gros souper'') ends with a ritual 13 desserts, representing Jesus ...
of a
Provençal Christmas, which is the only time of year that it is produced whereas the gibassier is drier, pierced with holes, and is a pastry made year-round for everyday consumption.
[ La fabrication des saints: « Va pour treize ! »: La « tradition » des desserts de Noël en Provence](_blank)
terrain n°24 mars 1995 Both replace butter with olive oil as butter is not traditionally used in Provence whereas olive oil is readily found. Moreover, with olive oil, the pastries can be kept longer without drying than with butter.
According to the great dictionary of Occitan ''
Lou Tresor dóu Felibrige Lou may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Personal name
* Lou (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
* Lou (German singer)
* Lou (French singer)
* Lou (surname 娄), the 229th most common surname in China
* Lou (surname 楼), the 269th most co ...
,'' by
Frédéric Mistral
Joseph Étienne Frédéric Mistral (; oc, Josèp Estève Frederic Mistral, 8 September 1830 – 25 March 1914) was a French writer of Occitan literature and lexicographer of the Provençal form of the language. He received the 1904 Nobel P ...
, the pompe is a «
fouace,
galette
Galette (from the Norman word ''gale'', meaning "flat cake") is a term used in French cuisine to designate various types of flat round or freeform crusty cakes, or, in the case of a Breton galette (french: Galette bretonne ; br, Krampouezhenn g ...
, gâteau que l'on envoie en présent aux fêtes de Noël » (a ''fouace'', airy bread cognate to focaccia, ''galette'', sent as a present on Christmas time) while gibassié is a « gâteau à jour, une galette percée de trous, un
craquelin » (a cake, ''galette'' pierced with holes, a type of ''craquelin'').
Availability
![Gibassié](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Gibassi%C3%A9.jpg)
The gibassier is traditional and common in Provence but is rarely available in the
English-speaking world
Speakers of English are also known as Anglophones, and the countries where English is natively spoken by the majority of the population are termed the '' Anglosphere''. Over two billion people speak English , making English the largest languag ...
.
In the United States, it was popularized in 2002 by Michel Suas (founder of the San Francisco Baking Institute) and Pearl Bakery bread baker, Tim Healea, when he introduced it in the Coupe De Monde competition (World Cup of Bread Baking) held in Paris in which the U.S.A. won the silver medal for bread baking. It continues to be made commercially by Pearl Bakery owned by the Lester family in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
, and hence available at shops around town and local farmers' market. It is also available at Clear Flour Bakery in Brookline, MA.
In addition, Midwife & the Baker, in California's Bay Area produces their version seasonally, usually making it available sometime during the months of November, December, and January.
Etymology
The etymology is unclear – see ''
gibassier
A gibassier (; , , formerly ''gibacier'') is a French pastry from Provence, a galette made with fruited olive oil. It is generally spiced with anise, candied orange peel, and orange flower water, and dusted with baker's sugar.
Pompe à l'hu ...
.'' Some suggest that it is named after the mountain peak ''Le Gibas'' in the
Luberon
The Luberon ( or ; Provençal: ''Leberon'' or ''Leberoun'' ) is a massif in central Provence in Southern France, part of the French Prealps. It has a maximum elevation of and an area of about . It is composed of three mountain ranges (from w ...
mountains.
Alternatively, the old form ''
gibacier'' is also a flat bag, used to carry
game
A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...
(from the French word for game, ''
gibier,'' from Latin); these words may be homophones, or the origin, the pastry having a similar shape to the bag.
Variation
As a traditional dish, there is significant variation between preparations (compare
bouillabaisse
Bouillabaisse (; oc, bolhabaissa, bullabessa ) is a traditional Provençal fish stew originating in the port city of Marseille. The French and English form ''bouillabaisse'' comes from the Provençal Occitan word ''bolhabaissa'', a compound ...
). A more unusual variation is to prepare it as a hard
biscuit
A biscuit is a flour-based baked and shaped food product. In most countries biscuits are typically hard, flat, and unleavened. They are usually sweet and may be made with sugar, chocolate, icing, jam, ginger, or cinnamon. They can also be ...
(
cookie
A cookie is a baked or cooked snack or dessert that is typically small, flat and sweet. It usually contains flour, sugar, egg, and some type of oil, fat, or butter. It may include other ingredients such as raisins, oats, chocolate chips, n ...
), rather than as a cake, but with the same pierced shape. This is a specialty of
Lourmarin
Lourmarin (; oc, Lormarin) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Lourmarinois''.
Geography
Lourmarin is located in the French region of Provence, ...
.
[Gibassier de Lourmarin](_blank)
Chocolate & Zucchini, April 1, 2005
References
Bread Baby, December 10, 2008
*
Recipes
Ciril Hitz ''Baking Artisan Pastries & Breads Sweet and Savory Baking for Breakfast, Brunch, and Beyond,'' 2009,
*:See discussion at
Gibassier, SylviaH, April 24, 2010
* Michel Suas, ''Advanced Bread and Pastry,'' 2008, 1043 pp.,
*:See discussion a
Jesse, December 10, 2008
* Christian Etienne, ''Aimer la cuisine en Provence''
*:See discussion at
, 28 novembre 2006
18 déc. 2009
*
Gibassier (Pompe à Huile) at Coffee & Donuts, by Bernard M. Tostanowski III, September 28, 2009
External links
Gibassier recipesat Ptit Chef {{in lang, fr
February 6, 2006
Cuisine of Provence
French pastries