A charming, handmade broom, tucked into a tree trunk in Zagreb.
Photo du Jour - Pletzels in Paris
I'm addicted to onions.
And for an onion addict, a toasted Parisian pletzel slathered with a generous amount of salt butter is pretty near perfection.
Je Suis Française
I still can't believe it.
I returned home from a shopping trip to Narbonne yesterday and the moment I walked in the house, husband held up an envelope and started singing la Marseillaise.
He must be mistaken, I thought. It's too early. The sous-préfecture said last May that it would take 1 more year to process my citizenship application and I had heard from several readers that they had to wait 2 years, 3 years, even 6 years.
I tentatively opened the envelope.
Madame,
J'ai le plaisir de vous faire savoir que vous êtes Française depuis le 30/11/2009.
Tears welled up in my eyes. I know that sounds silly, but it has been such a drawn out, paperwork-filled, frustrating journey to get here, I just can't quite believe it.
I am officially a French citizen.
The celebration has begun. Vive la France!
The Journey:
The First Few Steps Toward French Citizenship
Stumbled Already!
Picking Myself Up and Brushing Myself Off
Marseille - One More Step on the Path to French Citizenship
Life as a Stranger
French Citizenship Update
French Citizenship - One Step Closer
The Boys in Blue
French Citizenship - Chapter One Too Many to Count
I returned home from a shopping trip to Narbonne yesterday and the moment I walked in the house, husband held up an envelope and started singing la Marseillaise.
He must be mistaken, I thought. It's too early. The sous-préfecture said last May that it would take 1 more year to process my citizenship application and I had heard from several readers that they had to wait 2 years, 3 years, even 6 years.
I tentatively opened the envelope.
Madame,
J'ai le plaisir de vous faire savoir que vous êtes Française depuis le 30/11/2009.
Tears welled up in my eyes. I know that sounds silly, but it has been such a drawn out, paperwork-filled, frustrating journey to get here, I just can't quite believe it.
I am officially a French citizen.
The celebration has begun. Vive la France!
The Journey:
The First Few Steps Toward French Citizenship
Stumbled Already!
Picking Myself Up and Brushing Myself Off
Marseille - One More Step on the Path to French Citizenship
Life as a Stranger
French Citizenship Update
French Citizenship - One Step Closer
The Boys in Blue
French Citizenship - Chapter One Too Many to Count
La Fête du Fromage - Five Fabulous French Fromages
Choosing just five French cheeses out of the multitude that I've tasted over the last couple of years was an interesting task. Especially since so many of my favorites aren't available outside of France. But I thought that if I narrowed down the choice to just five superb French cheeses that are all available in the States, maybe it would inspire some of you to put together a cheese platter to serve family and friends during the holidays.
One of the best things about a cheese platter is there's no cooking involved. At this time of year, you've got to love that! After you've purchased a varied selection, it just takes a bit of arranging on plates or platters and adorning with some fruit, possibly some nuts, and sliced French bread or crackers.
I think a cheese platter is the perfect thing to take the edge off if you're throwing une petite fête that will carry on until the wee hours. After the nibbles have been reduced to crumbs, put out a cheese platter and your guests will be revived and ready to keep the party going!
1) Bleu d'Auvergne
Buttery and smoky tasting. A delicious bleu!
2) Comté
No wonder this one is a favorite here in France. Its distinctive nutty and caramelized flavor is so satisfying.
3) Brie de Nangis
Smooth and buttery and an absolutely delectable member of the brie family.
4) Pouligny Saint-Pierre
This little pyramide is sublime!
5) Brin d'Amour or Fleur de Maquis
Seductive and soft on the inside. Spicy and herby on the outside.
These cheeses are all available online through my Amazon Store, Murray's Cheese, fromages.com and artisanalcheese.com
Bonnes Fêtes!
One of the best things about a cheese platter is there's no cooking involved. At this time of year, you've got to love that! After you've purchased a varied selection, it just takes a bit of arranging on plates or platters and adorning with some fruit, possibly some nuts, and sliced French bread or crackers.
I think a cheese platter is the perfect thing to take the edge off if you're throwing une petite fête that will carry on until the wee hours. After the nibbles have been reduced to crumbs, put out a cheese platter and your guests will be revived and ready to keep the party going!
1) Bleu d'Auvergne
Buttery and smoky tasting. A delicious bleu!
2) Comté
No wonder this one is a favorite here in France. Its distinctive nutty and caramelized flavor is so satisfying.
3) Brie de Nangis
Smooth and buttery and an absolutely delectable member of the brie family.
4) Pouligny Saint-Pierre
This little pyramide is sublime!
5) Brin d'Amour or Fleur de Maquis
Seductive and soft on the inside. Spicy and herby on the outside.
These cheeses are all available online through my Amazon Store, Murray's Cheese, fromages.com and artisanalcheese.com
Bonnes Fêtes!
Photo du Jour - Wine in a Can?
Forget your Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew or Fresca.
Who needs Coors, Fosters or Heinekin.
Now there's WINE IN A CAN!
Yes, good ol' vin de pays d'oc red or rosé. In a can. Only 85 euro cents each.
Asparagus
May is the month for asparagus in France. I love them. I have wondered why I left for Uruguay in May ! Since my return May 29, I have indulged in asparagus several times.
It was the recipe of the month of May in a A World in a PAN , where you can find several Asparagus recipes.
Nevertheless, during the Paris May classes and the classes in June so far, we have cooked asparagus pretty often. Asparagus with parmiggiano and hazlenut oil (pictured above), feuillete of asparagus, asparagus veloute, asparagus quiche ... Every participant seems to love them but few seem to know how they grow.
Asparagus grow best in a sandy soil. In France there are several production areas, the Saumur area, the Landes (near Bordeaux), Sologne (south of Chambord, a hunting area) ... In Germany, they are grown in Baviera. They are also abundant in the Netherlands and Belgium. The Spansih grow mostly green asparagus, less tender, thinner, and with a stronger taste. I saw wild asparagus in Sicily last year. They are very thin and the taste is stronger than the white ones.
White asparagus are around 8 inches (20 cm) long, the shoot grows vertically from under the soil but when they come out the white fades, hence the fact that they need to be harvasted right away, when they are young.
In France, asparagus are harvasted immediatly after their "nose" comes out with a special shovel that has a circle at the end, allowing to dig and pull without damaging the asparagus. According to French food regulations, they ought to be stored maximum four hours after harvested in a humid place at no more than 7 C.
Bon appetit!
La Fête du Fromage - le Cameau
The sweet, yeasty aroma of this week's exceptional cheese seduced me immediately!
Le Cameau is a raw milk Camembert that has been left to mature in an alcoholic apple and Calvados mélange from Normandy called Pommeau, then covered in crushed walnuts before being wrapped up and left to tempt the unsuspecting consumer with it's alluring look and fragrance.
It's creator, Carole Brihier, has created a société with her husband to continue the work of her Artisan Fromager Affineur father, André Faccetti.
La Société Fromages Service in Campigneulles-les-Grandes, in the Pas-de-Calais département, offers an array of unpasteurized Camembert and Brie cheeses that have been aged in either Cognac, Cointreau, Hard Cider, Pommeau, Calvados or Kirsch.
at room temperature - oozing all over the plate
the wet, sticky underside
The flavor was sweet, yeasty and fruity, with noticeable hints of apple from the Pommeau. It had a nice tang and tickled your tongue. The texture was smooth and supple and I thought the walnuts added a nice character.
I took some notes while I was tasting le Cameau for the first time and when I read them over, there was one word in capital letters; TANTALIZING.
That pretty much sums it up.
I couldn't recommend le Cameau more highly!
Hard cider would pair well with this cheese, but we drank a glass of local white, which worked just fine.
Le Cameau is a raw milk Camembert that has been left to mature in an alcoholic apple and Calvados mélange from Normandy called Pommeau, then covered in crushed walnuts before being wrapped up and left to tempt the unsuspecting consumer with it's alluring look and fragrance.
It's creator, Carole Brihier, has created a société with her husband to continue the work of her Artisan Fromager Affineur father, André Faccetti.
La Société Fromages Service in Campigneulles-les-Grandes, in the Pas-de-Calais département, offers an array of unpasteurized Camembert and Brie cheeses that have been aged in either Cognac, Cointreau, Hard Cider, Pommeau, Calvados or Kirsch.
at room temperature - oozing all over the platethe wet, sticky undersideThe flavor was sweet, yeasty and fruity, with noticeable hints of apple from the Pommeau. It had a nice tang and tickled your tongue. The texture was smooth and supple and I thought the walnuts added a nice character.
I took some notes while I was tasting le Cameau for the first time and when I read them over, there was one word in capital letters; TANTALIZING.
That pretty much sums it up.
I couldn't recommend le Cameau more highly!
Hard cider would pair well with this cheese, but we drank a glass of local white, which worked just fine.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)