Category Archives: Recipes

Languedoc Food and Wines

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It would be impossible to describe in any significant detail, the unique culinary treasures of the Languedoc region in a single blog post. Nutmeg has decided to take you on a little driving tour to share a few Languedoc food and wine highlights.

Classic Lunch

The Étang de Thau is a natural seawater lagoon. The lake is about 20 km long and relatively narrow at 8 km wide, it separated by a sand bar from the Mediterranean Sea. The Étang de Thau joins the Canal du Rhone at Sète and the Canal du Midi at Agde. The lagoon is a valuable water body for the production of shellfish in France, including oysters and mussels. The oysters and mussels grow in farms, in the waters of the Étang, once harvested; they are marketed as Bouzigues Oysters. The mistake that Ginger and Nutmeg made was to go to the village of Bouzigues on a Sunday at lunch time, with no reservation. There was not a parking space to be had, and the restaurants were full. The group had to return to Meze to find a roadside restaurant, the shellfish was delicious and the white wine a perfect match.

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Languedoc Discovery in France and a Zucchini Tart

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The plan was to spend some time touring with Nutmeg’s parents in early October. The original thought was to explore parts of Hungary and Poland. Then the reality of fitting four people, one dog and luggage into a car settled the holiday plans. Nutmeg made a decision on behalf of the group that a two hour drive was the limit, and booked a guest villa at Domaine du Cayrat located just a few kilometres from Pezenas in the Languedoc Roussillon region.

Jacques welcomed the group, he had stocked the fridge with some chilled wine and provisions for breakfast. It did not stop there, the next morning he arrived with fresh bread and apricot jam “fait à la maison”. Perfect!

Now the hard part, getting four people to agree what to explore in an area that is currently 27,376 (sq) km – Impossible! The region has something for every taste, age and interest. There are sandy beaches, port towns, vineyards galore, medieval villages and modern cities. Given the breadth of the region, Nutmeg has divided their visit into three separate posts: a bit of history, the food and wine, and the not to be missed see sights.

Regional Flag

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Get Dressed for a Diner en Blanc

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Nutmeg believes that the celebration of Halloween is perfect timing for this post.

Trust the French to come up with an annual event that is sophisticated, classy, a bit rebellious and a whole lot of fun. Diner en Blanc started in 1988, when a group of 100 friends got together for a reunion in the Bois de Boulogne. The story is that François Pasquier instructed everyone to wear white in order to recognize each other. This was a brilliant idea, given those were the days before fancy cell phones, text messaging, Facebook and Twitter.

Beautiful Tables

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Easy Snack Solution for Biking in Low Gear

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One would think that when biking in France you would never need to worry about food. That is true to some degree, unless you get caught between hours.

Breakfast in France is straightforward; coffee, baguette and sometimes les viennoiserie (croissants and pain au chocolate). Be aware that as the morning wears on, you are more likely to eat stale baguette, than the fancy pastries. This meal is not one that will keep the energy stores high for a long bike ride.

Lunch starts around 12:30 and runs until 2pm. However, typically the traditional (“non-tourist”) restaurants actually do not want to serve much beyond 1:30pm. Then again, do you seriously want to eat a multi-course meal before that next big hill on your bike?  In theory, you could always stop at a boulangerie for a quick bite. Technically, yes but Ginger and Nutmeg have been caught numerous times in small villages where the bakery is closed at 12:30pm, until well into late afternoon.

Boulangerie

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Un Common Figs

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Almost indescribable, the scent of a fig tree full of almost ripe fruit is a fragrance that is both sweet and earthy. Nutmeg had never had the opportunity to enjoy the remarkable smell of the fig tree, before she spent the summer in Provence. The scent is distinctive, almost arresting in the open air, however, in a closed space can be overwhelming.

The fig tree is often referred to as the Common Fig. It grows both cultivated and wild in most countries that are close to the Mediterranean and in many parts of Asia. Some tree varieties will bear fruit up to four times a year.

Figs

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Glorious Italian Gelato

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Is it possible more flavour and less fat? Yes!

Gelato

Italian cuisine is known for its’ simplicity and high-quality ingredients. Gelato is one such example. The Italians have been perfecting this frozen desert since the days of the Medici family of Florence. In 1565, a Florentine chef, Bernardo Buontalenti, served his frozen concoction to Catherine de’Medici. Since that time, the popularity of the dessert and the wide variety of flavours has exploded. Today, gelato can be found all over Italy and many places around the globe.

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Crespeou Provencal Picnic Fare

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Ginger and Nutmeg have had lots of visitors in Provence this year. Nutmeg likes to think that her blog posts planted the “seed” that enticed them all to book their plane tickets. In reality, her friends are well travelled and do not need her help to convince them that Provence is exceptional in the summer.

Lavender

G&N love all the foreign visitors, it is a marvellous chance to show off the region, discover some new towns and introduce new friends to old ones. One such occasion happened last week at a cooking class with Nutmeg’s talented friends Ghyslaine and Jacques. You can read last year’s post here.

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Recipes from Provence Aidan Larson Conjugating Irregular Verbs

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Don’t let your mother tell you that the Internet is a scary place! Nutmeg has met so many interesting people via Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest that she has decided to start a Guest Blog Thursdays, so they can share their stories. Volia:

Aidan Larson is an American mom of three navigating her way through life in France and writing about it on her blog: Conjugating Irregular Verbs. She writes from her dining room table in the south of France in between motherhood, French lessons and perfecting her oeuf en croute. If you want to read more from Aidan she can be found on her blog site Conjugating Irregular Verbs (letters from my dining table in the south of France).

Melon Soup with Basil

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Far Breton From Brittany

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Delphine the owner of Crêpes, Cidre et Companie, in Aix en Provence, is a lovely blend of Spanish roots and a childhood spent in northern France. Her Bretonaise heritage is recreated daily in the tiny kitchen at 23, rue de la Cépède in Aix. Her crêpes and galettes (savoury crêpes) are made with love, and she does not skimp on ingredients – lots of butter, whole milk and eggs. You can read more about her crêpes here.

Eggs

Delphine serves some other traditional treats from her hearth. There are usually (if not sold out) delicious, buttery cookies and sometimes if you are very lucky a slice of her traditional Far Breton. This dessert from Brittany is a tasty delight somewhere between a flan and a pudding. A Far Breton is similar to a Clafoutis or a Fiadone from Corsica. The key ingredient, much like for perfect crêpe batter is flour.

Far is the word for flour in Brittany. With origins as a savoury dish made with buckwheat flour, Far Breton was traditionally served with roasts in the 18th century. As tastes changed and refined products became readily available the recipe evolved into the sweet dessert that is enjoyed today.

Pictured below is the final product.

Far Breton

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Far Breton From Brittany
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 8-10
 
The recipe is very simple. It is best to eat Far Breton slightly warm, the day it is made, as it can get a bit dense when it cools. The flan can be made with pitted prunes or apples. Delphine makes hers with prunes, so that is the one that Nutmeg attempted.
Note: (in France sucre vanillé is sold in packages, you can make your own with a vanilla bean and white sugar or use one teaspoon of vanilla extract – not too much as you do not want the batter to change colour)
Ingredients
  • 1 Cup White Flour
  • ⅔ Cup White Sugar
  • 1 Package (roughly 1 tablespoon) Vanilla Sugar (Sucre Vanillé) or Extract - see note 4 Large Eggs
  • 4 Cups Milk (2%)
  • ½ Cup Pitted Prunes
  • 2 oz Dark Rum
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F)
  2. In a small bowl soak the prunes in the rum
  3. In a mixing bowl combine the flour and sugar together
  4. Add the eggs one at a time and whisk each one well
  5. Add the vanilla sugar (or extract) and the milk; make sure to blend together well
  6. Finally, add the prunes and the rum
  7. Pour the batter into a buttered pan
  8. Bake for approximately 55-60 minutes; check the progress a couple times during the cooking the centre should not jiggle too much
  9. The flan will rise and then fall after you remove from the oven