Jun 19

To the Bastides, Parte Deux

Bastide #5 was Cordes-Sur-Ciel. As with the other towns we visited, tourism is the main industry. The city was much more touristy than the other bastides. However, our accommodations here were probably the best of those outside Paris. We stayed at a delightful bed and breakfast called Le Secret du Chat. Alain and Marie are excellent hosts. Not only are they good cooks, they have a garden (the secret) that overlooks the valley. Our breakfast companions were a lively mix of French, Irish, Swiss, and Polish people. We also had a very pleasant home-cooked dinner with Alain and Marie. Unfortunately, we missed the Cordes Cookbook Festival, which was scheduled for the week after we left. (Zut alors!)

Our B&B in Cordes-sur-Ciel.

Our B&B in Cordes-sur-Ciel.

Our final town on this stretch of the trip was Albi. It doesn’t qualify as a bastide, although there are some nearby. It’s famous for two landmarks, the Cathedral of Sainte-Cecile (St. Cecilia) and the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum. Sainte-Cecile is the largest brick cathedral in the world. Parts of it are under renovation, but the parts that have been renovated are stunning. The ceilings are painted with the saints, and the altar table is a marble and mosaic masterpiece. Toulouse-Lautrec was from Albi, and the museum holds a large collection of his works, from his childhood doodles inside a French-Latin dictionary to paintings to the posters for which he’s best known. Another landmark for us was the Marché Couvert, an assortment of bakeries, butchers, and fish shops.

If you want to visit the bastides for yourself, you will need a car. Most of these villages don’t have rail service. (The tourist choo-choo trains don’t count.) You also need a bit of daring (and a strong undercarriage on your car) to negotiate some of the roads leading to the bastides. Make hotel reservations well in advance of your trip, as accommodations are limited. Most of the bastides can be done in a day, so you can set up in Beynac (for example) and visit Domme, Roque-Gageac, and other bastides on the Dordogne from there. Cordes and Albi are near each other, so you can set up in either town. St. Cirq-Lapopie is pretty isolated from the others, and we would argue that it deserves two days.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/19/to-the-bastides-parte-deux/

Jun 17

To The Bastides!

We visited several hilltop villages in southern France called bastides. The peasants could retreat behind their walls when under attack during the Hundred Years’ War. The walls have crumbled, but the towns have survived.

Accessing these towns is not easy for modern tourists, even though nobody’s pouring boiling oil on you from the ramparts. The roads up to them are narrow and don’t accommodate small cars well, let alone tour buses. Our map app sent us on wild routes through countryside and tiny villages. The destinations, fortunately, are well worth the hassles.

The first bastide we visited was Domme (pronounced dumb). This is an adorable town that overlooks the Dordogne. Our hotel, L’Esplanade, was near the church and town square. The specialties of the region are foie gras, truffles, strawberries, and walnuts. We had dinner at the hotel, which was superb. Julian had the foie gras, while I had shrimp. The walnut bread served on the side was wonderful, a pain de campagne (country bread) rather than a heavy non-yeasted loaf. We had breakfast at a little pâtisserie in town that served interesting jams with the croissants and breads–rhubarb and peach-walnut.

The Hotel Esplanade in Domme.

The Hotel Esplanade in Domme.

We stopped at two other bastides on the way to our next hotel in St Cirq-Lapopie. The towns of La Roque-Gageac and Beynac are right on the Dordogne, but the chateaus and ramparts are on cliffs above the river. The views were spectacular. Parts of Beynac are excavated into the cliffs, and those areas are currently being reinforced using more modern construction techniques.

Beynac.

Beynac.

St. Cirq-Lapopie is another clifftop town with stellar views and amazing medieval architecture. Its patron saint is the youngest person canonized in the early Christian era–at age three years, according to the church literature. To get to this town, the map app directed us over a one-lane bridge that barely accommodated our rental Peugeot. (Needless to say, the tour buses take an alternate route up the hill.) The town suddenly got very crowded about 10 am with French, German, and British tourists. There are only 18 hotel rooms and a few rental apartments in St. Cirq-Lapopie, so the bus tourists have to stay elsewhere. As a result, the town gets quiet around 6 pm. On our last night we had the terrace of a restaurant to ourselves and had a splendid meal. Julian found this the most interesting village to photograph.

St. Cirq-Lapopie

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/17/to-the-bastides/

Jun 17

Man at Work

This juxtaposition was too good to resist.

Julian, hard at work in Lyon,

Julian, hard at work in Lyon,

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/17/man-at-work/

Jun 15

Words from the Wiseacres

The trains in Europe are great. However, they don’t serve some of the smallest towns in France. To visit those, you’ll need to rent a car. We’ve rented cars to travel around Europe twice, and here is our collective wisdom:
Rent the smallest model that will fit you, your traveling companions, and your luggage. If necessary, downsize your luggage to fit a smaller car. Our Peugeot 308 just barely fit on a one-lane bridge, and we needed to worry about its size for parking spaces.
Most rental cars in Europe are manual transmission. You can find automatic transmission cars, but prepare to pay more to rent them.
Rent a diesel car. The mileage is better, and diesel or gasoil is cheaper than gasoline in Europe.
Download a map application for your cell phone that can work offline. This will be helpful in the hinterlands, and will reduce your need for excess data plan for your cell phone. Those megabytes add up fast.
Learn to think in metric. Distances are in kilometers instead of miles, and fuel is sold in liters rather than gallons. One kilometer (km) is 0.6 miles, so 10 km is about 6 miles. One gallon is 3.8 liters. So if you buy gas at 1.40 Euros per liter, that’s 5.32 Euros per gallon. A 50-liter tank of gas (just over 13 gallons) will set you back 70 Euros. Consider the cost of gas carefully when you think about renting a car.
Also consider the cost of tolls. France’s autoroutes are highly tolled. The drive from Montpellier to Lyon (about 300 km/180 miles) set us back over 20 Euros.
Although renting a car in Europe is not cheap, it will allow you more flexibility in your travel times and destinations. It also gets you away from the tourist traps and into the countryside.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/15/words-from-the-wiseacres/

Jun 13

More on Rest Stops: The Millau Viaduct

“Why a duck? Why a no chicken?” (Chico Marx, The Cocoanuts)
The Millau Viaduct is the highest bridge in the world, and the tallest structure of any kind in France. It opened for traffic in 2005. It’s an amazing bit of engineering and good-looking to boot.

The Millau Viaduct, courtesy of Julian.

The Millau Viaduct, courtesy of Julian.

We had lunch at the rest stop/visitors’ center just north of the viaduct on our way to Lyon. The restaurant had an interesting wrap-type option called Capucins, based on the headdresses Capucin monks wore. A thick pancake batter is scooped into a mold and is baked in the shape of a cone. The cone is then filled with meat or other fillings. I got a Roquefort Capucin with lettuce, walnuts, and pear chutney. Julian got a roast beef one. We augmented the Capucins with gazpacho. Julian said in the southern US Capucins would be named after other conical headdresses: Ku Klux Kones.

Just a typical lunch on the road.

Just a typical lunch on the road in southern France.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/13/more-on-rest-stops-the-millau-viaduct/

Jun 13

Feeding Between the Lines, part two

We’re attending a birthday party tonight for our friend who is intolerant of onions, garlic, and the like. As you may know from my original post of this title, our friends have a plethora of allergies, intolerances, and aversions. My philosophy is to make something that the maximum amount of people can eat. So I made a beet salad with a simple vinaigrette: olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, black pepper, and a little dried oregano. I’ll put a little fresh oregano on top of the salad before we go tonight. We’re also making our famous mint sauce for the barbecued lamb that our host is making. Fresh mint, red wine vinegar, and a little sugar; it doesn’t get any easier.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/13/feeding-between-the-lines-part-two/

Jun 12

Copper River Salmon Gemisch

The arrival of Copper River Salmon is one of those big deal events for some in Seattle. The flesh of this salmon is higher in fat than fish from other origins, particularly farm-raised. The fish have to lay on extra fat to survive the long trip to their hatching place to spawn. More fat equals more flavor. In mid-May the first fish get flown on a special Alaska Airlines flight. (Too bad they’re dead already and can’t consume peanuts on the way down.) The price is exorbitant at first, but eventually it falls to affordable. QFC, a local chain, had it on sale this week for $9.99 per pound. I picked up a slab on the way home from work for dinner.

Our usual recipe is to plank the salmon with garlic, onion, brown sugar, orange rind, and basil. Unfortunately, I forgot to pick up an orange along with the fish. Plan B was to plank it and serve it with a mustard vinaigrette over salad. This is an adaptation of a recipe I found in a book called Savory Flavors with Wood (Nature’s Cuisine, 2004). The text of the book was written by an acquaintance of mine, Judith Dern. The “secret ingredient” in the vinaigrette was suggested by our French professor. It adds just a wee bit of umami action to the dressing.

Salmon with Mustard Vinaigrette

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tbsp. white wine vinegar

1 tbsp. Dijon mustard

Secret ingredient: a few drops Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce (I used Red Boat)

1 lb. salmon filet

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil

3 cups kale

cucumber and red bell pepper

Oil a cedar or alder plank big enough to hold the piece of fish. Preheat grill. Whisk the oil, vinegar, mustard, fish sauce, salt, and pepper together until smooth. Place the fish on the plank and drizzle with some of the vinaigrette. Roast fish on plank on medium-high (400°) until fish just starts to flake when tested with fork. While the salmon’s on the grill, tear the kale into bite-size pieces and divide between two salad plates. Add cucumber, red bell pepper, or other vegetables as desired. Serve salmon atop the kale salad. Drizzle some of the remaining vinaigrette over the salad. Serves 2-3.

We had some leftovers that Julian turned into salmon salad the next day. He chopped in some red bell pepper, moistened it with a little extra vinaigrette, and threw in some capers. It wasn’t the tidiest lunch, but it certainly was tasty.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/12/copper-river-salmon-gemisch/

Jun 11

Glutenous Maximus

It’s hard to think of a culture more gluten-centered than the French. Baguettes are a daily tradition, as are pastries, croissants, cakes, biscuits (cookies in the US), and tarts. Then you have flour-thickened sauces such as bêchamel and velouté. So it was a bit of a surprise to find a selection of gluten-free fad diet books in a bookstore in Albi. Most of them were translations of American books such as Wheat Belly. From my observations, the fad hasn’t caught on amongst most French people.

About the time I first wrote this post, Julian got an email from our friend whose older daughter has celiac disease. They will be visiting friends in Paris later in the summer, and they’re obviously anxious about gluten-free dining. Yogurt and fruit are probably the best bet for breakfast. Gluten-free options do exist, but it may take more hunting.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/11/glutenous-maximus/

Jun 11

Double-Take Time

Sometimes you drive past an establishment and you have to think twice about what they’re selling…

I just can't make this stuff up.

I just can’t make this stuff up.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/11/double-take-time/

Jun 05

Quenching One’s Thirst

The weather in Amsterdam and Paris was moderate, with highs in the 60’s. So it was a bit of a shock when the temperature upon our arrival in St. Cirq-Lapopie was 86° (30°C). The climate in southern France, even in the high country, is dictated by the warm Mediterranean rather than the icy Atlantic. We spent a lot of time in the afternoons attempting to keep hydrated.
My philosophy of fluids to quench thirst is simple: Water is best, followed by something with a bitter edge. For example, beer is better than wine to deal with thirst. Grapefruit juice does a better job than other juices. Iced tea that is unsweetened and unflavored is better than sweet tea or soda. Gin and tonics were tailor-made to deal with thirst in the tropics.
As persnickety as the French are about their food and wine, you’d think they’d be the same way about soft drinks. You would be dead wrong. We ordered “limonade” in Albi. Instead of lemon juice squeezed into water with a little sugar, we got something more like Sprite.

Artisan, schmartisan. Just squeeze me a lime, already!

Artisan, schmartisan. Just squeeze me a lime, already!

In numerous places we asked whether the iced tea was sweetened or flavored. The answer was universal: sweetened peach-flavored tea, usually from Nestlé. Julian got some, and it was dreadful. Iced tea should be black, unsweetened, and unadulterated with any tutti-frutti flavors. Anything else and you may as well be drinking soda.
If you really want to slack your thirst, stick to water or slightly bitter beverages. Not only will you feel better, you may save some calories if the choice is between water and soda.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/05/quenching-ones-thirst/

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