Pithiviers with duck confit and mushrooms

On one of my early visits to France years ago, we stayed in a divine little Chambre d’Hôte, L ’Impasse du Temple, now called a Maison de Maître. It was located down a difficult to find narrow laneway, pre-GPS days, in a pretty, tiny town called Léran, in the Midi Pyrenées, near Mirepoix, a beautiful [...]

By |2023-08-19T16:49:05+10:00August 19th, 2023|Braising, Culinary Travel, Duck confit, Duck confit, Food, France, French food, French food, French Regional Cooking, On the Ridge at Kureelpa, Pithiviers - duck|Comments Off on Pithiviers with duck confit and mushrooms

Madeleines de Lorraine

My preparation for the French cooking classes morning tea often includes making Madeleines, the plump, little cakes, the French love to eat. Madeleines are moulded in the fluted scallop shape of the pilgrim’s shell, adding a lot to their appeal. Here is my mise en place, with ingredients weighed and measured;  next is the baking [...]

By |2022-10-18T18:28:37+11:00October 18th, 2022|Cakes, Cooking classes, French Cooking Classes, French food, French Odyssey cooking class, Madeleines, Recipes|Comments Off on Madeleines de Lorraine

Bûche de Noël – French Yule Log ‘Christmas cake’ – the tradition

At Christmas time, in our French Odyssey – Journey through France and the French Bistro Classics Desserts cooking classes we make this beautiful and delicious Bûche de Noël - French Yule Log 'Christmas cake'.  During the last class, I was asked about the French traditions behind this cake and so after a little research and [...]

By |2021-12-07T13:21:46+11:00December 7th, 2021|Christmas Fruit Cake, Christmas Fruit Cakr, Festive Food, Festive Food, French Cooking Classes, French food, French food, French Odyssey cooking class|Comments Off on Bûche de Noël – French Yule Log ‘Christmas cake’ – the tradition

Pain d’épices – Burgundian Honey Spiced Bread

Pain d’épices is a Burgundian classic; it is a lovely unusual ‘bread’ or ‘cake’ made with rye flour, spices and honey, without yeast, using baking powder and bicarbonate soda instead. It tastes something like gingerbread, although ginger is not one of the spices I use. In France, it is sold in loaves, sometimes, in [...]

Mussels – Cleaning, Preparation and Cooking

Some mussels you buy are cultivated in protected areas of the sea bed, or grown on poles, fixed in clean saltwater. Others, because of their habitat, are often sandy and need to be scrubbed; mussels also ingest sand and grit as they feed. Buy good quality, local mussels and they are well cleaned and very [...]

By |2021-07-20T16:06:13+10:00July 20th, 2021|Brittany, Cook Real Food, French Cooking Classes, French food, French Regional Cooking, Moules mariniere, mussels, Mussels - Moules mariniere, Recipes, Seafood, Seafood|Comments Off on Mussels – Cleaning, Preparation and Cooking

Chicken Cacciatore – hunter’s wife’s braised chicken

Whether you are cooking the Italian Chicken Cacciatore or the French Chicken Chasseur, it is the same slowly braised sauce and luscious tender chicken with the vegetables that make this a great nutri-dense, LCHF dish. Regional variations of Chicken Cacciatore or hunter’s wife’s chicken are made throughout Italy, and while most are cooked with [...]

By |2021-06-09T16:43:11+10:00June 9th, 2021|Basil pesto, Chicken, Chicken Cacciatore, Chicken Chasseur, Cook Real Food, French food, Healthy Family Meals, Italian Food, Italian Food, Low Carb, Mushroom, Recipes, Slow cooked winter dishes|Comments Off on Chicken Cacciatore – hunter’s wife’s braised chicken

Roast pork with Agen prunes

Prunes and apples always team well with pork, so if you prefer, substitute apples for the prunes.  For the pork, you can select various cuts, female pork neck, pork scotch, a boned, rolled pork shoulder, or even a pork leg. These cuts are delicious as they are fatty and succulent; the fat runs through the [...]

By |2020-09-20T10:51:05+10:00September 18th, 2020|Cook Real Food, Cooking classes, Food, French food, French Odyssey cooking class, Pork, Pork, Prunes Agen, Prunes Agen, Recipes, Sauces|Comments Off on Roast pork with Agen prunes

Bresse and the Chicken market at Louhans.

Cooking all these chicken dishes and stock as I have been in this  Covid-19 winter 2020, reminded me of some happier times and our visit to Bresse, the home of the famous Bresse chicken, la volaille de Bresse, and the Monday market day in the market town of Louhans in Burgundy. The summer of 2017 [...]

Hollandaise Sauce

Hollandaise sauce is a classic emulsion* sauce, made with egg yolks and butter, seasoned with lemon juice, salt and a little white pepper to become a thick, yellow, creamy sauce.  It is the traditional partner to asparagus, artichokes, and eggs Benedict.  It is perfectly matched with poached fish and vegetables. I love it drizzled over [...]

By |2021-09-14T17:27:54+10:00September 2nd, 2020|Asparagus, Condiments, Cook Real Food, French food, Hollandaise Sauce, Hollandaise Sauce, Hollandaise Sauce, Hollandaise Sauce, Recipes, Sauces|Comments Off on Hollandaise Sauce

The Bresse Chickens – why they are so special, their story and AOC and AOP

Way back in 1957, Bresse chickens were the first food and the first chickens to be awarded the AOC, Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée and more recently, they received the AOP, Appellation d'Origine Protégée, accreditation. This AOP label is the European Union version of France's AOC, Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée.  It basically means the products with these labels [...]

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