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"The Cicada, having sung
All summer long,
Found herself wanting
When the north wind came."

These famous words from the French poet Jean de La Fontaine are echoed in Quebec at this time of year. I have said this before, but our season for fresh food is rather short. So to compensate for this, we must prepare adequately for the winter. There are many different ways to do so. You can make tomato sauce, ratatouille, pickles and canned fresh vegetables to eat during the winter.

But another interesting way to add flavour, colour and vitamin C to your soups, rice dishes and stews is to make homemade spices using different varieties of ground, dried peppers. Once they are dried, they can be stored for a long time.

We make homemade spices at Toqué! using paprika supreme from Oka and a local version of Espelette pepper from Saint-Rémi in the Eastern Townships. If you were to visit the restaurant at this time of year, you would see festoons of peppers hanging in front of the kitchen windows to dry out.

Espelette peppers have been cultivated in the eponymous French commune since the 16th century and classified as an AOC product, or appellation d'origine contrôlée, since 2000.

AOC is a certification granted to different French geographical regions for their wines, cheeses, butters and other specific agricultural products.

I am a true believer in the importance of AOC: It's a culinary tradition dating to the 15th century that respects the origin of products and makes them easily traceable. In another column, I will come back to the importance of a product's traceability.

Paprika, a spice typically used in Hungarian cooking, is made from grinding dried sweet red or green bell peppers. Both peppers are planted mid-May or early June. To grow, they need lots of sun, heat and humidity. Picking occurs mid-September when the peppers are ripe.

I suggest growing a couple of pepper plants in your backyard next year, harvesting them in September, then hanging them for one or two months, depending on their sizes.

Once they are completely dry, remove the stems and empty the inside of the peppers, then put them through a coffee grinder you use for spices. Finally, filter the powder through a sieve and store it in a hermetic container.

You now have great, healthy, homemade spices that will subtly enhance your dishes during the winter season. Naturally dried peppers are more nutritious than commercially dried ones, which are leached of vitamins in high heat.

So unlike the cicada, we will not be dancing at Toqué! this winter, but we will definitely be enjoying lots of fried peppers in our food.

Fried Espelette-Saint-Rémi Peppers

What you need

12 dried Espelette peppers

1 litre peanut oil

What you do

Start by removing the stems of the dried peppers. Slice the peppers in half and remove the seed and ribs. Set aside.

Heat oil to 390 F. When hot, drop peppers gently in oil. As soon as they get puffy, remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Pay close attention because it takes just seconds for the peppers to puff.

Serve with a side of smoked cream.

Smoked Cream

What you need

½ cup sour cream

½cup whipped cream

What you do

Place sour cream in a metal container on ice and place in smoker. After about five minutes, take it out and whisk until cool.

Fold in the whipped cream and season with salt and pepper.

Normand Laprise is co-owner and head chef of Toqué! in Montreal