T is for Tomatoes

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar where I am working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some are regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts include recipes, but all are linked to French food and drink. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 20^th December and T is for Tomatoes.

Tomatoes are a very important part of our semi-self sufficient life in France; from the seed sowing in March, to looking after the tender seedlings in April, to planting out in May, to watering, weeding and side-shooting in June, to (hopefully) starting to harvest from July. That is when the fun in the kitchen begins. We try to grow at least three different varieties and usually have around fifty tomato plants each year. Some will be small and sweet cherry tomatoes, some are pretty and colourful varieties that are perfect for salads and some are grown for their size, quantity and flavour and are ideal for roasting, puréeing and freezing. This delicious red elixir is then used in pasta dishes, casseroles, soups and as pizza toppings throughout the year.

It is obvious that I love tomatoes, but I have a secret, I only eat home grown tomatoes. Out of season I never buy them as I just don’t like the taste, in fact as a child I didn’t think I liked them at all. It was only when someone gave us some tomato seedlings about 15 years ago that I realised they could taste nice and were worth eating. Now I couldn't imagine a summer without them.

Here are some links to my favourite tomato recipes: tomato ketchup, tomato chutney and tomato and chilli jam.

T is also for Terrine de porc and Tourteau, a cheesecake speciality of our local area.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letters U and V (well there are 26 letters and only 24 days). If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R and S.

S is for Seafood Platter

French food alphabet calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar where I am working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some are regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts include recipes, but all are linked to French food and drink. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 19^th December and S is for Seafood Platter.

A seafood platter is a dish of celebration for the French and is often served for the Christmas Eve or New Years Eve Reveillon meal. Until a week ago I was a seafood platter virgin. I had sampled some of its delights individually, but never had the courage (or budget) to order the full theatre of sitting in a restaurant with a dominating platter hovering above the table. This was something that needed addressing and at a pre-Christmas meal with French friends I was initiated. As you can see from the photo this was one loaded platter with oysters, prawns, langoustines, crab and sea snails. It was a lovely relaxing evening, everyone just dug in and munched away at their own pace, stopping every once in a while to show me how to remove the sea snails from their shells and attack the crab. It was a great fun evening with good food and lovely company.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter T for another tasty post. If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q and R.

R is for Ratatouille

French food alphabet advent calendar

With less than a week to go, I can’t believe how quickly advent is rushing by and I hope you are more organised for Christmas than I am! Here is the letter R for my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar series - a foodie’s countdown to Christmas Day sharing posts including French regional specialities, my personal favourite foods, and some new recipes. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 18^th December and R is for Ratatouille.

This is one of my favourite summer recipes when the potager is generously giving and the kitchen often groaning under the weight of produce.

Ingredients

2 onions, diced

4 sprigs of fresh thyme

4 tablespoons of olive oil

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 large peppers (red if possible), diced

2 large courgettes (zucchini) diced

1 medium aubergine, diced

2 tablespoons tomato purée

4 tomatoes, chopped

Soften the onions and thyme in the olive oil for 3-4 minutes, without letting them colour. Add the garlic, courgettes, peppers, aubergine, salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes longer. Stir in the tomatoes and tomato purée, cook over a medium heat for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are tender. This is delicious as the vegetable accompaniment to any meat dish, but if like me you make it in bulk it will freeze too. I then use it as a summer flavoured soup in the winter.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter S, a celebration platter. If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P and Q.

Q is for Quenelles

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to the latest post in my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar series - a foodie’s countdown to Christmas Day, sharing posts including French regional specialities, my personal favourite foods, and some new recipes. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 17^th December and Q is for Quenelles. 

Quenelles are similar to a dumpling and are made with flour, suet and creamed meat or fish. If my memory serves me correctly my first taste of quenelles was in Maçon in the 1980’s where I was staying with a French family on a school exchange. My French wasn’t very good back then, but I’m sure my French maman said they were frogs legs quenelles and served in a creamy sauce were very tasty. I have never tried to make my own, nor have I seen them on restaurant menus in this area as they are probably more common in Lyon and the eastern regions, but I could always treat myself to a tin.

Q is also for Quiche and you can find my French village quiche recipe here.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter R, a summertime favourite of mine. If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O and P.

P is for Pineau des Charentes

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to the latest post in my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar series - a foodie’s countdown to Christmas Day, sharing posts including French regional specialities, my personal favourite foods, and some new recipes. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 16^th December and P is for Pineau des Charentes.

Pineau des Charentes is the local aperitif from the Cognac region of Poitou-Charentes and is one of my favourites since discovering it ten years ago. It is made by combining unfermented grape juice, or must, with Cognac that is then aged in oak barrels for around 18 months to give a rich and flavoursome aperitif, that can be made with red or white grapes. Legend has it that it was an accidental discovery when some grapes were dropped into a barrel of Cognac, a lucky and tasty accident if you ask me.

I would recommend serving it cold as an aperitif and if possible on a sunny terrace with good company. I think toasted goat cheese, sliced saucisscon and olives are the perfect accompaniments. A Charentais melon, halved with the seeds removed and filled with Pineau makes a lovely starter on a hot summer day.

As a local regional speciality it is celebrated and a bottle is given to all teams who take part in the Tour du Poitou-Charentes when they sign-in. It certainly made me smile to see professional cyclists with a bottle of Pineau in their drinks bottle holders on their bikes.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter Q, another regional speciality. If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N and O.

O is for Onions and Olives

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to today’s post in my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar series - a foodie’s countdown to Christmas Day, sharing posts including French regional specialities, my personal favourite foods, and some new recipes. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 15^th December and O is for Onions and Olives.

There is nothing quite like the flavour of onions gently softened in butter and seasoned with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. I rarely cook a main meal that doesn’t contain onions and as much as I love my daily coffee and dark chocolate, I think if I had to choose between onions and chocolate, I would pick onions.

I have previously written about the pink onions from Roscoff and shared a French onion soup recipe here. So today I’m combining onions with olives in a delicious tart called a Pissaladière, one of my favourite recipes from Rick Stein's French Odyssey.

Ingredients

Pissaladière

Pizza base (see here for my recipe)

50ml olive oil

A knob of butter

1.5kg of onions, thinly sliced

A bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, bay leaves and rosemary)

Anchovy paste

6 to 8 anchovy fillets, halved

Black olives, enough to decorate

Salt and pepper

Using a frying pan with a lid, cook the onions (seasoned with the bouquet garni, salt and pepper) in the oil and butter for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover and continue cooking until all the moisture has evaporated, then discard the bouquet garni.

Roll the dough out to a rectangle and place it on an oiled baking tray 30 x 37.5cm. Spread with a thin layer of anchovy paste and then spread the onions evenly over the top leaving a small border around the edges. Criss-cross the top with the anchovy fillets and dot with the black olives. Leave to rise slightly for 15 mins and then bake in a pre-heated very hot oven for 15 to 20 mins. The crust will have browned and the onions will have caramelized to perfection. Serve warm and enjoy the heavenly combination of freshly baked bread and soft, sweet onions.

For more information on olive production in France see my review of An Olive Oil Tour of France by Alice Alech.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter P, our locally produced aperitif. If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M and N. 

N is for Nutella

French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar

Welcome to today’s post in my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar series - a foodie’s countdown to Christmas Day sharing posts including French regional specialities, my personal favourite foods, and some new recipes. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 14^th December and N is for Nutella.

Nutella is a delicious chocolate and hazelnut spread that is as common in most French kitchens as wine and is probably found in every French household with children. However, it is NOT something you will find in my kitchen anymore as I am a Nutellaholic, currently in remission. Even the time I spent at the supermarket taking the above picture was very difficult and I had to force myself to leave without putting a jar in the trolley. If I had, I know I wouldn’t have been able to resist and one taste wouldn’t have been enough, as you can see from this photo from 2006!

Nutellaholic caught in the act

I know there are many delicious recipes using Nutella, my French friends have told me, but you will have to look them up for yourselves. It would be far too much temptation for me, even to go looking.

Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter O, one of my favourite foods ever. If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L and M. 

M is for Moules

French food alphabet advent calendar

Here is the latest post in my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar series. A foodie’s countdown to Christmas Day with posts including French regional specialities, my personal favourite foods, and some new recipes. I hope you are enjoying your virtual tastings.

It’s the 13^th December and M is for Moules.

Moules or mussels are a regular Friday night meal for us during the summer and early autumn months. We always buy them fresh every Friday morning at the market in Melle, from the same lady whose family run an oyster and mussel business just north of La Rochelle. They are local, they are of a superior quality than the supermarkets and they are very fresh, harvested and off to market within hours. Now I know I’m biased, but Adrian cooks 'The Best' moules and here is his recipe;

500g moules (per person)

1 onion chopped finely

Olive oil and a knob of butter

1 clove of garlic crushed

Fresh thyme and parsley

250ml of rosé wine per kilo of moules

To prepare the moules shake the bag a few times (to encourage them to close up) then check through them individually. Discard any that refuse to close as they have died and pull off any beards (threads coming from opening). Rinse and set aside.

In a large stockpot soften the onion, garlic and a few sprigs of thyme in a little olive oil and the butter. Add the glass of wine and ensure it is boiling vigorously before putting in the moules and close the lid quickly. Give the pan a good shake every minute (keeping the lid on), this way the moules are steamed rather than boiled and within 7 minutes should have opened up and be ready – try not to over cook them. Add the chopped fresh parsley and serve. Do not eat those that haven't opened, but enjoy the others. We serve with chips for Ed and homemade walnut bread for us, plus the rest of the rosé wine. See here for the recipe.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K and L. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter N, a childhood favourite for French children.

L is for Lapin

French food alphabet advent calendar

We are now halfway through advent and I hope you are enjoying my selection of delicious food posts for my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar.

It’s the 12^th December and L is for Lapin.

Lapin or rabbit is far more common here in France than I remember it being in the UK and to be honest I think it makes a nice change from chicken. If you are a meat eater I can’t see there is difference between tucking into a lamb, a chicken or a rabbit as they all start out as cute baby animals. We keep birds and bunnies here and in terms of entertainment the ducks and chickens display far more personality than the rabbits have ever done, with the exception of Snowy the house bunny. She was a real character who sulked if we put her in the pen with the others rabbits and loved to spend her evenings hopping around the lounge.

If you’ve never tried rabbit, here is an easy recipe for my favourite slow cooked rabbit casserole.

Ingredients

One whole rabbit jointed

A small amount of plain flour

A knob of butter

Salt and pepper

A couple of bay leaves

One onion

Two carrots

Two cloves of garlic

500ml of Normandy cider

Toss the rabbit pieces in the flour, season with salt and pepper and then brown in a pan with the butter. Finely chop the onions, carrots and garlic and add to the slow cooker pot with the bay leaves. Place the browned rabbit on top of the vegetables and pour over the cider. Cook on low for about six hours and then serve with rice and your vegetables of choice.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J and K. Don’t forget to join me tomorrow for the letter M, one of my summer favourites.

K is for Kir

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 11^th December and K is for Kir.

Kir is an aperitif drink made by mixing white wine with a fruit liqueur, most usually crème de cassis (black current liqueur). A Kir Royalle is when Champagne or sparkling wine is used giving a sweet, bubbly glass full of fun and celebration. I am quite partial to a glass or two, especially when served with good company during the summer months, but be warned. At village gatherings a killer Kir is often served, this is a combination of (inexpensive) white sparkling wine with a rather large dose of some very sweet, very alcoholic peachy stuff. I have learned, from painful experience, that this is to be avoided at all costs if dignity is to be maintained. For me the sweet, fruity flavours combined with the bubbles make it a very drinkable tipple that oddly (as it contains wine and liqueur) doesn’t seem to be very alcoholic, until you try to walk home. Cheers! Santé!

ps I really had to trawl the archives to find a Kir photo to use today. In true #ThrowBackThursday style the one above is from my birthday in 2007.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I and J. Don’t forget to join me tomorrow for the letter L and a delicious winter slow cooker recipe.

J is for Jambon

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 10^th December and J is for Jambon.

Jambon, or ham, is so much more than just a sandwich filling here in France, although there is something very delicious about a jambon beurre baguette where the butter is spread so thickly you can almost feel it sticking to your arteries as you eat it.

There are many regions of France that produce their own variations of cured ham including Bayonne in the Basque region, the Auvergne, the Ardeche and the Savoie. The origins of these fine gastronomic delights came from the simple need to preserve meats from spoiling in the days before freezers and fridges. The pork is preserved using salt and then left to dry or cure in specially controlled conditions for anywhere between 7 and 18 months. The flavour of the meat will increase with age and sliced thinly it makes a delicious starter. As we live in a rural area you can buy the linen ham sacks at our local supermarkets, perfect for those patient enough to try home cured ham.

It seems that it is not only the French who are connoisseurs of fine ham. Many years ago our neighbour told me that she was so pleased that our shy cats had been popping in for some company she got her husband to drive her to the supermarket on a Sunday morning to buy some ham (from the deli counter no less) as a little treat for them. Poppy is still spotted outside their house at the weekends waiting for morsels of jambon blanc from Pierrette.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H and I. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter K, a sparkling aperatif.

I is for Infusions

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 9^th December and I is for Infusions.

Infusions are alternative drinks to tea and coffee that come in many fruit and herb flavoured combinations and I’m a big fan. My Mum has always favoured herb teas (as we used to call them) over traditional tea and Ade and I found they were very useful when we wanted to cut down on our caffeine intake. My day always begins with a lemon and ginger ‘tea’ and always finishes with a relaxing camomile drink at bedtime. During the day I sup at mint infusions and I especially like this box set or coffret that promises so much for my well being (bien-être). With preparations to improve my digestion, line and balance, stress levels, energy and even my elimination it is a shame that drinking a combination of these every day probably isn’t enough to give me a figure like the lady on the box. Never mind, at least I enjoy the flavours.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter J, a meaty delight.

H is for Huitres

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 8^th December and H is for Huitres.

Huitres or oysters are a popular dish in France, especially over the Christmas and New Year period when they are sold in vast numbers, as it seems a festive family meal isn’t complete without an oyster platter. They may not be to everyone's taste, but they are famed for their aphrodisiacal effects and they are also an excellent source of zinc, iron, calcium, selenium, Vitamin A, Vitamin B12 and are very low in calories. Our French neighbours, a happy and healthy couple who have been married for over fifty years are regular oyster eaters. Every Sunday they are out of the house much earlier than we are to drive to the local market to buy their fresh oysters, always from the same vendor. These, along with mussels when in season, are served raw with homemade parsley and shallot vinaigrette and some bread. This Sunday lunch ritual is more sacred to them than a full roast dinner has ever been to us and is probably a lot healthier too.

I just have one warning. Despite our neighbour showing Adrian what to do with the sharp oyster-opening knife, he did come very close to losing a finger when preparing the platter in the picture above so do take care.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E, F and G. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter I, this was a tricky one!

G is for Galette des Rois

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 7^th December and G is for Galette des Rois.

The French have a special cake to mark twelfth night called Galette des Rois that begin to appear in the supermarkets from the beginning of December and remain until February. It can be a ring shaped cake made of brioche, decorated with sugar and candied fruit jewels, or a puff pastry ‘pie’ with a frangipane or apple compot filling. Hidden in either type of cake is a small ‘feve’, a porcelain figure (often depicting nativity characters, although film and Disney characters are also common). Traditionally it falls to the youngest member of the family to decide who gets which slice of cake and the finder of the figure then wears the golden crown.

If you would like to have a go at making your own you can find my recipe here.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D, E and F. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter H, a seafood often eaten at New Year.

F is for Fromage

French food alphabet advent calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 6^th December and F is for Fromage.

Well what can I say about cheese except that I think I have yet to come across a cheese I don’t like, be it French or not. Offer me a mature Cantal, a creamy goat cheese, a ripe Camembert or a blue Roquefort and I won’t say no. Moving to France just gave me more access to more cheeses, although mature Cheddar will also always be on my list of favourites and as it can now be found in most of our local supermarkets, I think that just goes to prove its place in the world of cheese. What is your favourite cheese?

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C, D and E. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter G, a traditional festive treat.

E is for Escargots

French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar

Welcome to my French Food Alphabet Advent Calendar. Between now and Christmas Day I will be working my way through a selection of delicious food posts; some will be regional specialities, some are my personal favourite foods, some posts will include recipes, but all will be linked to French food and drink. I hope you enjoy your virtual tastings.

It’s the 5^th December and E is for Escargots.

Our neighbours, Pierrette and Dominique, are often to be seen collecting snails (escargots) from the hedgerows after a damp night and as I have expressed an interest in their catch they now bring over a little dish of ready to eat snails every once in a while. Snails may be a free, foraged food, but there is quite a bit of preparation involved. Here is how Pierrette prepares them:

Ingredients

Snails, alive, but not fresh from the garden as they must spend a month or two in a cage with no food or water before being ready to cook.

1 sliced grey shallot

Pork rillettes (similar to a rich pâté)

1 onion

a handful of cloves

Garlic, thyme, bay leaves

Salt and pepper

Butter

White wine

First sauté the grey shallot in butter until soft, then add some pork rillettes for flavour. Peel the onion, but leave whole and stud it with a handful of cloves, then add the garlic, thyme, two bay leaves and the snails. Season with salt and pepper and simmer in the white wine. This is not a recipe to try if you are in a rush as on day one you cook the snails for at least three hours and then leave to cool. This allows the snails to infuse all the flavours. Repeat this on day two and then on day three, reheat and eat. I can assure you that despite the effort, they are delicious.

If you have missed my previous advent posts you can catch up by clicking on the letters A, B, C and D. Don’t forget to pop back tomorrow for the letter F, something France has a great selection of.