Southern Fried French

A French Christmas Gift for You

Seven years ago when I started this “blob”, as my mother calls it, I was only thinking of keeping a journal of my new life in France. Never did I envision all the wonderful friendships, conversations and meet-ups with readers along the way that would enrich my French life. Never did I imagine that so many loyal readers would plump up this blob with their advice, wisdom, recipes, and enthusiasm along the way.

I think of this as I write my Christmas post, how I would love to give a little Christmas gift to all of you. All I can offer is this: a life-changing recipe. Well, not quite that, but as recipes go, this one is pretty amazing. You can take it to a potluck, or as a hostess gift, or put it in your Christmas repertoire, or just whip it out for a week-night dinner. I can virtually guarantee rave reviews. But the really special thing about this recipe is…well, let’s start at the beginning of our story.

Our lovely French friends Henri and André live in Lyon but visit often, and Henri, besides being a Colorful Character, is an accomplished cook. (You may remember his antics and cooking abilities from prior posts, like this one.) A few months ago we went over to Nicole’s house for dinner and they were there. Henri met me at the door, bursting with enthusiasm, and bustled me into the kitchen before I even got a bisous on each cheek. “On fait les petits gâteaux minute," he said excitedly." Pour le blog!" (We're making 'quick' cookies, for the blog!).

"Trois ingredients!", said Henri triumphantly. He flashed a thumb and two fingers, in the French manner. "Trois!" Henri positioned me at the island, and began tearing open packages of sliced almonds. These he dumped into a bowl. He added a beaten egg and some sugar. Et voila! He spooned them out on a cookie sheet, and 12 minutes later we were sampling cookies.

These cookies are  downright addictive. AND you can whip them out in three minutes AND they are mostly almonds so they are healthy AND you can adjust the sugar to your liking. AND—they’re French! What more can you ask of a cookie? I’ve taken these to a couple of parties and I’ve now learned  to print out a few recipe cards to hand out, because everyone wants to make them.

So get on into that kitchen and start your holiday baking—your first batch of cookies will be well on their way before the first song on your Christmas playlist has ended. Better yet, drag a kid or a reluctant cook into the kitchen with you, and they’ll soon be preening over their success.

I wish all of you the very merriest of Christmases, or whatever wonderful holiday you are celebrating this season!

 

RECIPE: Henri’s Petits Gâteaux Minute

12 oz (400 gr) of sliced almonds
1/2 cup (100 gr) of sugar
1 beaten egg, large

Heat oven to 370 (180C). Dump everything in to a bowl. Mix until well combined. Drop by the tablespoonful onto a cookie sheet, maybe lined with parchment paper to keep it easy (I use a Silpat, a silicone liner). Bake 10 to 12 minutes until they just start to turn golden brown around the edges. Cool and eat. Makes 2 dozen-ish.

 

Dreaming of a White Christmas? It doesn't often snow in Burgundy, but one year we got lucky on Christmas day. This is me in our village, Christmas 2009, gearing up to make a snowman.

 

In the COMMENTS: Lots of chatting about that fabulous colombier last week! Vicky, Anthea, and Natalia all have their own pigeon stories. Peter, Harry Potter is a perfect description. Natalia, we have requests for your recipe for sweet potatos with maple syrup and marscapone, will you share? Michaela, I wouldn't mind making that "flat" pear and cranberry pie, either.

Favorite Reads: Two very different books this week. Edwin Morris is a physician and philosophy professor who has written a book called Discovering Meaning in Your Life. It's a serious overview of philosophy, thought provoking and intelligent. I'm planning on making it my standard gift to serious students and new grads. In a lighter mode: We've enjoyed watching the miniseries The Durrells in Corfu (PBS, on Amazon Prime), which we relate to because it's all about 'running away from home', for the sake of adventure, as we've done. Then I discovered the series was based on a popular trilogy. I've just finished the first book, My Family and Other Animals. You won't find a more beautiful descriptive writer, and it's a funny and endearing memoir which reads like a novel. Highly recommended.

 

Foods that Refuse to Jump the Pond

It’s a puzzle:  in this smaller and smaller world, some foods and food trends  easily leap over the pond, and some don’t.  Pourquoi?  

Since the holidays in France stay in full swing until Twelfth Night, we’ll talk about two Christmas foods we’ve mentioned recently that haven’t made the jump.  One is eggnog.  English in origin, it’s popular in the states but rarely found in France.  And in the US, at least in the South, you’ll have about as much trouble finding chestnuts (les châtaignes or les marrons), as you will eggnog here in France.  “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire”, where I come from, is just a line in a song.

Few French Christmas tables are without some sort of chestnuts at Christmas.  Roasted chestnuts are common street food in Europe in winter, the smoky aroma of the sweet toasted nuts wafting through the Christmas festivals.  Marrons glacées, candied chestnuts, are a French holiday staple. This flavor even shows up in ice cream, in the summer.

The early Romans planted chestnut trees across Europe as they mounted their campaigns. As a result, France and Italy are both big producers.  Early on, they were a food source in America too.  But the reason for their lack of popularity there may be simply this:  a terrible chestnut blight in the 1900’s wiped out most of the trees.  Most US chestnuts are now imported.

For the holiday table, chestnuts, which have a soft potato-esque texture when roasted, are sometimes made into a purée.  For our feast at the château this year, our Dutch friend Maria made a chestnut soup that was so good it inspired this week’s post.  Her secret: since chestnuts have a sweet flavor, Maria added onions, leeks, and white wine to give it a bit of tang.  It’s delicious and different, for the holidays and beyond!

 

RECIPE:  Maria’s Chestnut Soup

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large leek
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• olive oil, butter
• 1 16 oz. can (400 gr) chestnuts (drained if in liquid)
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 cups white wine
• juice of half a lemon, or to taste
• salt and pepper

Garnish:

• sour cream, creme fraiche or heavy cream
• chopped hebs:  parsley, chives, or scallions

Cut off root and most of the green part of leek, slice thinly, and immerse in water to wash. In a Dutch oven sauté onions, celery and leeks in a little olive oil and butter just until tender.  Add broth, wine, and salt and pepper to taste.  Add chesnuts, bring to boil and simmer for another 10 minutes.  Remove from heat and cool it down a bit if you have time.

Purée soup with an  Immersion Blender (what, you don’t have one of these yet?  They’re the BEST!). Add more broth or wine (or milk or water) as needed, if too thick. Stir in lemon juice, adjust seasonings. Re-heat when ready to serve and garnish with  cream and a sprinkling of fresh herbs.  This is not the most beautiful of soups on its own, so don't skip the garnish.

 

Favorite Reads:  We're off to the states this week, where my copy of Kristin Espinasse's new book Blossoming in Provence awaits.  If you haven't ordered it yet, time to grab one, plus some for your francophile friends.  And to Sue Wallace, je te remercie beaucoup for recommending the book To Burgundy and Back Again: A Tale of Wine, France, and Brotherhood last month.  Ron just finished it and I've started it, it's a fun book.

In the Comments:  Hey Linda, great minds...and Oh la, that Eggnog Royale, got to make it NOW!  Y'all, don't miss Linda's recipe. Meanwhile Pam has a new Kindle, Mariella has a new ipad, and Sarah had a BIG anniversary, felicitations!  Belinda, we miss you bunches (read her beautiful tribute to her stay last year at Château de Balleure here). As for finding the Revillon Chocolates stateside, Amazon.com now lists them, but they're 'not yet available'. Stay tuned. Plus, Martin has his own interesting quote to add. And MILLE MERCIS for all the beautiful holiday greetings, Bonne Année to all! 

Our Reader's Blogs:  Warning:  if you visit Paris Through my Lens, fellow southerner Virginia's blog, you'll want to hop on a plane toute de suite!  And here's a really intriguing blog:  Reader Nancy Hinchliff's  Business And Creative Womens Forum.  You'll find all kind of good things here about women's interests and issues, but especially some thought provoking books for your book club or your library.

5 Ways to Frenchify Your Holiday Feast

In a land where food and wine trump all, you can imagine that MUCH attention is given to the Christmas feast.  Time to pull out all the stops, including the cork on the very best champagne.  Having had the good fortune to have eaten many a Christmas meal at a French table, I thought y’all might want to share the experience.   Maybe some of these ideas will make their way to your own table this Christmas. (Photo, a medieval village church near Balleure, on a snowy Christmas eve).

1.  To kick off the feast,  there will of course be that most festive of drinks, Champagne.  We won’t add a touch  of cassis or other liqueurs today, as we usually do, because we’ll be breaking out the GOOD stuff.  We’re dining with friends at the château chez Nicole and Pierre, and their special occasion favorite is Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque.

2.  Let’s talk starters, called entrées in France.  On this day more than one starter might be featured, and there are three that are traditional.  Foie gras is one, but as an animal lover I’m not going to go there.  Up next, fresh oysters, raw or baked.  Since we South Carolinians are used to cooked ones at lowcountry oyster roasts in Charleston, Nicole spoils us with her famous baked, stuffed oysters, or huîtres farcies, a recipe she has graciously shared with us today.  The third one is smoked wild salmon, which will traditionally be served with lime wedges, crème fraïche, and blinis.  Yum.

3.  The main course will be a bird, either a capon, a duck, a turkey, or a goose.  And chestnuts, of course: on the side will be either a purée de marrons, or chestnuts cooked in the pan juices from the bird. This year Maria is making soupe de marrons instead. 

4.  Dessert:  bring on the bûches, Baby! I’ll be making the yule log this time, but of course les pâtisseries all have gorgeous ones in every flavor.  I highly recommend this seductive ‘music video' (from the Paris by Mouth site) called Bûche It, featuring all the bûches de Noël that the very fancy Paris pâtisseries are doing this year.  I’ll take that orange one with polka dots, please, or maybe the one with the gold leaf balls. (Amuse bûche: photo from our local pâtisserie. Will it be raspberry, Chocolate Pistachio, or Coffee?).

5.  I’ve never thought of living in Provence, but when I heard this I almost changed my mind:  they serve 13 desserts for Christmas eve dinner!  The number 13 relates to the 12 days of Christmas, plus Christmas eve.  They’re put out buffet style, and they are particular desserts by tradition, most of them symbolic.  They include nougat, dried fruit and nuts, candied fruit jellies, stuffed dates, fresh fruits, and a yule log or thin waffles.  Eating a sample of each brings good luck in the new year.  And that is my wish for you, a lucky new year and a Joyeux Noël too!

 

RECIPE:  Huîtres Farcies au Château

Plan on 4 oysters per person for a light starter (we greedy goats gobble up 6 or more) 

• Coarse salt for pan
• 2 dozen medium shucked oysters
• 12 ounces (300 grams)  white or cremini mushrooms
• ¼ cup crème fraïche, or sour cream
• ½ teaspoon sea salt 
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• One heaping tablespoon each of:
• Fresh chervil
• fresh parsley
• fresh basil
• fresh chives
• ½ cup fine bread crumbs, made in food processor from a French country loaf at least a day old

Shuck the oysters.  Remove the oysters, drain juice, and put them back in the half-shell.  Arrange them in a large shallow pan with a layer of salt in it (this is to stabilize the shells in the pan).  Pre-heat oven to 400F (200 C).

Remove stems from mushrooms, save for your soup pot.  Put the mushrooms in a food processor and pulse a few times just until they are finely minced.   Move them to a bowl and mix them with the crème fraïche or sour cream.   Stir in the herbs, sea salt and ground pepper.  Spoon mixture over oysters.  Mix a bit more salt and pepper into the bread crumbs and sprinkle over oysters.  Bake for about 15  minutes or until oysters are hot and bread crumbs are golden (start checking at 10 minutes).  Serve immediately, with champagne. 

 

Favorite Reads:  More gifts for Christmas,with France in mind.  Today, some lighter fare:  The film Bienvenue Chez les  Ch'tis  was a HUGE sensation in France when it came out a couple of years ago. It's cute and funny, and it absolutely nails the great French north-south character divide.  Watch it for fun and for French insights.  (You can now get it for zone 1 US DVD players, as well as the European zone 2). For humourous books, it's hard to beat the highly irreverant Brit Stephan Clarke, who lives with the French and loves to skewer them.  He has a whole Merde series; Try In the Merde for Love.  Now for some great ART GIFTS:  see below, Our Reader's Blogs.

In the Comments:  Merci for all the nice Christmas wishes.  Don't miss Julie's photo of Père Noël climbing in a window--you find these sneaky Santa's all over France.  Thanks Julie, I was wishing I had a picture of them.  Ido, happy to know you can track Santa on Google Earth!

Our Reader's ART Blogs: Among our readers, three of my favorite artists, with affordable art for gifts: Barbara Andolsek,  Barbara Redmond (of the  A Women's Paris blog), and Kristin Dam (Kristin's just moved to France, so stay tuned for French landscapes!).  Please take a minute to peruse their art, some of it Oh So French.