Photo du Jour

Love this old stone sink! Pin It

Photo du Jour - Minervois Wine Tasting

The range of wine available at Domaine Des Murettes in La Livinière. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Un Petit Café

Taken after lunch.

If only un petit café in France were as good as a shot of espresso in Italy. Pin It

La Fête du Fromage - Galette du Larzac

There is nothing like a good fromage de brebis. Especially a rustic, unpasteurized ewe's milk cheese that comes straight from the farm.

Like this one, Galette du Larzac.


The high pastures of the Aveyron département are home to the Lacaune sheep, a hearty breed that wander the Larzac plateau, grazing on the rich summer grasses and wild herb covered (thyme, rosemary, savory) scrub land. In the middle of the vast, wild landscape sits the co-operative farm that produces this delicious cheese.

Galette du Larzac has a mild, earthy, barnyard aroma. The first of many flavors that struck me when I bit into a piece was a light, citrus-like tanginess. Not at all what I was expecting! That instantly mellowed and rich mushroom and butter flavors took over. Its lovely texture is soft and chewy, and it melts in your mouth.
Another great discovery from a vendor at our local Olonzac market.

Red wine such as a Terrasses du Larzac (under the Coteaux du Languedoc AOC) or Marcillac would match the earthiness of Galette du Larzac. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Attention to Detail

Another decorative door knocker.

These little details always capture my attention when I'm out wandering through the local villages with my camera. Delightful! Pin It

La Fête du Fromage...

...look for it tomorrow.

The day has gotten away from me and we're expected at a friend's for apéros and dinner in a little while.

Tomorrow I'll introduce you to a fantastic cheese from the Causse du Larzac.
Until then... Pin It

Photo du Jour - Calm After the Storm

After the howling winds and dark, rainy skies on Saturday we awoke to this on Sunday.
Blue, blue skies. No wind. A gorgeous day. Pin It

Three Years Already?

Something happened over the dark, stormy, blackout weekend.
Chez Loulou turned three.

Three years. Already? My how they have flown!

I would like to raise a glass of my favorite Minervois red (too chilly for rosé in January!) and toast all of you who read and support this blog. I love writing it and appreciate the wonderful comments I get from all over the world. It has allowed me to meet some really cool people, both in person and on the web.

The best part - being part of a fantastic, creative community of chefs, writers, expats, photographers, foodies and overall passionate, kind people.

Merci et santé! Pin It

Photo du Jour - Moules Frites

Multiple Choice Question:

What do you do when you're on day two of no electricity and the air outside is warmer than it is inside your cold, dark house, and the sun is shining, the skies are bright blue and there is no wind?

A. Sit in your cold, dark house and eat yet another meal of cold ham, cheese and salad?

B. Sit in your cold, dark house, cover yourselves up with blankets and read after eating a lunch of cold ham, cheese and salad?

C. Leave your cold, dark house, drive to the beach and sit outside in the warm sun while you enjoy some moules frites and white wine?


Answer: C

(this was a tough one, I know) Pin It

Out of Touch

Sitting at a friends house, having a glass of wine and enjoying the comforts of modern life. Like electricity. And the Internet.

We've been without power since 9:30 AM Saturday due to rather impressive storms down here in the south of France. No word about when it will come back on again but we're hoping things will get back to normal by Monday.

Until then... Pin It

Photo du Jour

I was being watched while out taking photographs the other day. Pin It

The Need to Knead

Olive Oil Focaccia with Chopped Green Onions, Arugula and Feta


Seems like forever since I've dug my hands into some soft, squishy dough, stretched and kneaded it into a glossy, springy ball and made some homemade bread.

For a long time I was making my own bread almost every day. Or at least every other day. I had the luxury of time and love the meditative rhythm of this domestic activity.
Then things got so busy over the holidays that I simply got out of the habit.

This morning, once again, I was overcome with the need to knead.

It is impossible to get a good photo of yourself kneading with one hand.


This Olive oil dough is the perfect blank canvas. Some delicious combinations I've experimented with:

• extra bits of cheese (something we always have lying around) and tomatoes
• a mélange of raw onions and minced garlic
• a simple mix of fresh herbs such as rosemary or thyme, and a heavy drizzling of olive oil
• caramelized onions
  
• a gutsy mix of bacon and arugula
• roasted red peppers and ricotta
• coarse sea salt, red pepper flakes and olive oil

Today I made up an interesting mix out of a few things I had sitting in the fridge; a half a bag of arugula, a couple green onions and some feta. I chopped up the onions and arugula and mixed them in a bowl with some olive oil, salt and spicy red pepper flakes. Those were scattered on the dough and then dotted with crumbled feta cheese.

It was excellent!


Simple Olive Oil Dough

• 1 1/3 cup (325 mls) lukewarm water
• 1 packet yeast
• 1/3 cup (75 mls) extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 to 4 cups (450-600 grams) all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons fine sea salt

Whisk together the water and yeast in a large bowl until yeast is dissolved. Whisk in olive oil. Add one cup of the flour and whisk until combined.
Switch to a wooden spoon and stir in the salt and slowly incorporate enough flour to make a soft dough.
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead, using as little extra flour as possible, for about 5 minutes. The dough should look satiny and feel moist but shouldn't stick to clean hands.
Place the dough in a large, clean bowl, cover with a tea towel and let it rise at room temperature until it has doubled in size, at least 1 hour. Two hours is better.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Punch down the dough and stretch onto a cornmeal sprinkled or olive oil drizzled baking sheet.
Add toppings of your choice and let it rest while the oven warms up.
Bake until golden about 30-35 minutes.

. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Bells

Bells perched on the top of an 11th century church in the Minervois. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Weathered Doors

Old, weathered doors in the center of Aigne, a 1000 year old circulade known as the "escargot" - a village where the little streets spiral out from a central square. Pin It

La Fête du Fromage - Le Pavin d'Auvergne

Le Pavin d'Auvergne's bright, tangerine colored exterior literally glowed amongst the neighboring pale, white and beige cheeses at the Fromagerie.
It was impossible to resist.

This is another spectacular, washed rind, unpasteurized cow's milk cheese produced in the Auvergne, home to some of France's most famous fromages: Cantal, Bleu d'Auvergne, Gaperon, Saint-Nectaire and Fourme d'Ambert are a few examples.


It is named after lac Pavin, a lake that was formed about 6000 years ago in the crater of an extinct volcano in the Puy-de-Dôme département. The lake is known for being the deepest in the Auvergne and is considered to be one of the most beautiful lakes in the region.

Le Pavin d'Auvergne is a strong cheese. Its intoxicating flavor is rich with the taste of mushrooms and walnuts. The texture is dense and chewy, and very smooth and supple. It has a memorable, pleasant mouthfeel.
This one comes highly recommended!

Red wines from Bordeaux such as Côtes-de-Blaye or Côtes-de-Bourg pair well with le Pavin. Pin It

A Very Good Day

Today is a very good day.

First of all, and most importantly, President Barack Obama is being sworn in as America's 44th President. It is a new beginning. A New Day.
And I couldn't be happier!

Secondly, I found out that Chez Loulou has been nominated for an award as the Best Food Blog - Rural in the Well Fed Network's annual Food Blog Awards.
And I couldn't be more honored!

This is the first time that Chez Loulou has been nominated for an award. To the wonderful, thoughtful readers who took the time to nominate me - my most sincere thanks.

There is plenty of time to vote. And I would love it if you would please vote for me!
So, if you have a moment and are so inclined - vote here. But don't stop there; have a look at the dozens of well-written, informative, beautiful, funny and all-around amazing blogs to vote for in 13 other categories.
The polls close Saturday, January 24th at 8 pm EST. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Ladies Who Lunch

This little lady was enjoying lunch out with her companion yesterday. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Red Beans and Rice

Red Beans and Rice economizes on both "hands-on" time and ingredients.
It slow cooks on the stove for several hours, requiring only a quick stir now and then, and makes fantastic use of all the yummy little bits of meat stuck to a leftover ham bone. The rest of the ingredients are inexpensive and the final dish is delicious, stick-to-your-ribs comfort food!


Red Beans and Rice
serves 6-8

1 cup dried red beans
1 or 2 meaty ham bones OR 4 ounces thick cut bacon, cut into little cubes
4 cups water
1 onion, diced
1 green pepper, chopped
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons Creole Seasoning
1 teaspoon Tabasco or Crystal Hot Sauce
1-2 pounds smoked sausage, cut into ¼ slices and browned (optional)

1 cup chopped green onion
4 cups cooked white rice

Put the dried beans in a bowl, cover with plenty of cold water and soak overnight. If you forget this step, generously cover the beans with boiling water and let sit for 2 hours. Drain and rinse.
In a heavy pot, combine the beans, water, ham bones or bacon, onions, garlic, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves.
Bring to a boil then lower the heat, cover and let simmer for 1½-2 hours.
Remove the ham bones, if using, and when they are cool enough to handle, shred the meat from the bones.
Add the shredded meat, the green pepper, hot sauce and the optional smoked sausage and simmer for another hour.
Stir in the green onions, remove the bay leaves and serve over steamed rice. Pin It

Photo du Jour

Pre-packaged, ultra-processed Chicken Burgers.
I can't believe people would actually eat these things. And I can't believe that they are sold in France! Pin It

The Snarky Guy

Last week I stumbled across a snide, snarky post written by some grouchy English guy who lives in the eastern Languedoc. About me! And with a link to Chez Loulou.
I've never seen this blog before so I don't know anything about the author. But it does appear that he was born with a major chip on his shoulder.

His words are just so mean.

"It's a blog from a woman that is obsessed with cheese. Yes, bloody cheese. She takes a picture of some bloody cheese or turnips and somehow thinks that it makes an interesting post. Get a load of the second one down. It's fog for christsake. And, just in case you are tempted to copy any of it she has a bloody copyright notice on the site. As if, lady!! As if!
If you stop laughing for a second and refocus you'll see that she has applied for French citizenship. If the police find her blog they'll take one look at it and fire her arse out of the country. There are already enough nutters in France without adding anymore."

Ouch

How can anyone living in this beautiful place be such a miserable, cantankerous human being?

Maybe he forgot to take his happy pills that morning or something? Pin It

Photo du Jour - Saint-Nectaire

Saint-Nectaire fermier. Taken at the market in Olonzac. Pin It

Photo du Jour

Shutters on an wine producer's old barn. These remind me of Italy. Pin It

La Fête du Fromage International Cheese Tasting Event - January Round-Up

This was another great month for La Fête du Fromage! Thanks to everyone who participated.


Not one, but two cheeses and a recipe for Date Chutney were included in Shira's generous entry for La Fête du Fromage on her blog, Petit Pois. A recent trip to Neals Yard Dairy yielded a duo of traditional British cheeses, Stilton and Lincolnshire Poacher. They both look delicious!

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A rich, triple cream Norwegian style cheese won the heart of Rachel from The Crispy Cook. I can see why! Bergenost is a creamy, artisan cheese produced in Corfu, New York by Yancey's Fancy Cheese. Aren't these vintage cheese plates cute?!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Danielle of Savor Culture tasted Gouda for La Fête du Fromage, but not just any Gouda - Double-Cream Gouda! What exactly does having double the cream do for Gouda? Danielle says, "it imparts a luxurious, supple texture that melts beautifully and pairs well with a variety of assertive flavors Because the cheese is aged for only six months, its flavor is mellow, with only a hint of tanginess." I'm sold.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nathalie of Spaced Out Ramblings tasted Tomino, a cow's milk cheese from the Piemonte area of northern Italy. She describes it as a very mild cheese that is meant to be eaten warm. Different variations include Tomino wrapped in bacon, Tomino sprinkled with fresh rosemary (like this one) and Tomino stuffed with Gorgonzola cheese and sprinkled with chopped walnuts. Warmed up, oozing cheese - sounds good to me!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now this is a cheese I've never heard of; Apple Cinnamon Monterey Jack. Judith at A Shortcut to Mushrooms describes the apple and cinnamon flavors as very mild and not sweet, like she thought it would be. She enjoyed it on some toasted wheat crackers with a green salad, and melted on a tortilla as a snack. Thanks for sharing this one with us Judith.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Camille of Croque Camille tasted Bleu d'Auvergne, one of her favorite French blue cheeses, for la Fête. "Simultaneously creamy and crumbly, its texture is equally suited to smearing on bread or sprinkling on salad." I'm with you Camille, this is also one of my favorite French blues.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pouligny Saint-Pierre is my entry for January. We tasted this luscious, creamy goat's cheese back in April and my husband immediately declared it his favorite cheese of all time. (I loved it, but have yet to choose one all time favorite - I could probably narrow it down to five.) It bears the nickname "la pyramide" or "la Tour Eiffel" due to its truncated, pyramid shape.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

La Fête du Fromage will be on vacation in February so please join in the cheese tasting festivities again in March.

Tell us why you chose this particular cheese. Tell us how it tasted. Tell us about its texture and aroma. Did you eat it on its own? Or with something? Did you drink anything special with your cheese? Would you recommend it or not? Is there something unusual or interesting about it?

The 15th of every month will be the official day for La Fête du Fromage. Please have your entries to me by the end of the 13th.

• Photos are wonderful, but not necessary
• Entries must contain the words La Fête du Fromage and contain a link to Chez Loulou
• Posts should be written specifically for La Fête du Fromage and not entered in any other food blog event
• Please send the link to your post to louloufrance (at) gmail (dot) com with the words Fête du Fromage in the subject line

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Photo du Jour

Blue shutters in the Charente. Pin It

Trying Something Different - Savory Carrot and Topinambour Clafoutis

A love affair has blossomed. Between me and a humble tuber.

The topinambour.

After many winters of eying them at the market, I finally broke down and bought a half a kilo of these knobby, funny looking vegetables. Their strange appearance, like a bloated, rosy pink ginger root, has always intrigued me, but they have a bad reputation that made me keep my distance.

Our French friends all detest topinambours, also known as sunchokes or Jersualem artichokes. As they tell it, during WWII many of their parents or grandparents were forced to subsist on them when food was scarce, leaving a negative association of poverty and suffering, which they have since passed on to the subsequent generations.
Other friends admitted to being plagued by flatulence after eating topinambours. Charming.


Curiosity won in the end.

And I am so glad that it did. Topinambours have a wonderful, distinctive flavor that reminded me of sweet, nutty artichoke hearts, which I absolutely love.


So, these alien things sat in my kitchen for a few days until I finally decided what to do with them. Soups, salads and sautés were popular answers to searches for "Jerusalem artichoke recipes" or "recettes topinambours."
Then I saw Clafoutis de Carottes et Topinambours on a French blog, Dans la Cuisine d'Audinette, and was intrigued.


Intrigued enough to fiddle with the recipe a bit and voilà, my adapted version.

Savory Carrot and Topinambour Clafoutis
serves 6-8

• 3 large carrots
• 5 big topinambours
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
  

Peel the carrots and the topinambours and cut into rounds about ¼-inch thick.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the vegetables until tender when pierced with a knife, about 12-14 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, heavy cream, milk and thyme leaves together in a bowl.
Butter a medium sized gratin dish and scatter the carrots and topinambours over the bottom.
Pour the egg and cream mixture over the vegetables and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese and some salt over the top. Grind some black pepper over.
Bake in the center of the oven until the egg mixture is set and the top is golden, about 30 minutes.

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Photo du Jour - A Peaceful Place to Sit

On the grounds of the Château de Perdiguier. Pin It

La Fête du Fromage - Brebis de Cocagne

Hold a morsel of this runny fromage de brebis up to your nose and breathe in the warm fragrance of earth and wild mushrooms. Place it on your tongue and savor its alluring, buttery flavor.

Brebis de Cocagne oozes charisma.
It also oozes all over the plate as soon as you cut into it.

Runny, gooey, delicious cheese. Perfect for spreading on bread.

There in no way that Brebis de Cocagne could be mistaken for anything other than sheep's milk cheese - it has that typical round, tangy, brebis character. Though the soft fragrance and texture masks a surprisingly gutsy, rich flavor.
I am smitten.

The region around Albi, in the Tarn is home to the producer of this unpasteurized fromage artisanal. A glass of dry white wine such as a dry Jurançon would be a nice match with Brebis de Cocagne.


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Photo du Jour

Poor Domino. Here he was last night, sleeping peacefully, not a care in the world.
The little guy had no idea what was in store for him at the veterinarian's office today.


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Photo du Jour - Navets

Two varieties of little turnips - navets ronds et le Nantais. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Morning Fog

Fog rolling into the village at dawn. Pin It

The Boys in Blue

We were told that the Gendarmes would be stopping by the house at some point to interview me as part of the French Citizenship process.

Sure enough, Wednesday afternoon a blue Gendarmes-mobile pulled up in front of the house, with two boys in blue asking if this was the home of yours truly. We are amazed at how quickly this is all happening. My application was just accepted at the end of November so we thought we would have at least 5-6 months before they would show up.
Is it my imagination, or is France becoming more efficient?

I calmly said to my husband, "the Gendarmes are here," as I looked around the house, thanking my lucky stars that I had dusted, vacuumed and organized all the crap lying around the living room only a couple of days before. And trying to remain calm. We had know idea what kind of information they would ask for.

There was no need to worry.

The questions were very basic. They wanted to see my carte de séjour and asked the following:

When did you arrive in France?
How long have you lived in the house?
Why do you want to become a French citizen?
Have you integrated into the community?
What kind of work do you do?
How do you afford to live in France?
Have you ever been involved in politics?
Have you ever been convicted of a crime?

That was it!
He told us he was happy with our answers and that his report would be sent to the next level.

I was literally skipping with joy when they left. This year just might see me becoming a French citizen! Pin It

Photo du Jour - The Cheese Guy

He happily gave samples and arranged the cheese so I could take a photo.
We ended up buying a small sliver of rather strong, salty, delicious fromage de brebis that had been matured for 18 months.
It was also covered with a powdery layer of cheese mites.
Bon Appetit! Pin It

Photo du Jour - Dormant Vine

A walk through the snowy vineyards yesterday.
The vines have been pruned and are sleeping. Wrapped up tight against the cold. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Roast Chicken and Potatoes

I buy one of these succulent, juicy roast chickens and a container of potatoes (they cook slowly in the dripping chicken fat - to die for!) at the market on Tuesdays. Pin It

Photo du Jour

Rusting away. Pin It

La Fête du Fromage - Kalidaan

Certain cheeses just belong on the breakfast table.

I don't mean cheese mixed in with eggs or made into quiche. Nor do I mean cheese melted over potatoes or baked into a breakfast strata.*

Just a wedge of fresh, tangy cheese.
Hopefully with a nice hunk of baguette and some fresh fruit or jam. Cheese like this one: Kalidaan.

Kalidaan is a soft, flavorful fromage de chèvre that is produced on a small farm (approximately 300 goats) in the Poitou-Charentes region.

There is no "goatiness" to this goat's cheese and the texture is wonderful and creamy with a mere hint of chalkiness. It has a well balanced, grassy, light flavor that was delicious with some cherry jam and bread for petit déjeuner.

As it was fairly early in the morning, I had a big café au lait with my wedge of Kalidaan.
A glass of crisp white wine from the Loire would also be good. A bit later in the day, of course.



*my mom used to make a mean strata for brunch on the weekends. Mentioning it brings back yummy childhood breakfast memories...


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Photo du Jour - Nuts!

The bountiful choice of nuts available at the market this morning. Pin It

A Cassoulet Question

I was looking at some stats from my account this morning and noticed that someone stumbled across my Flickr page while searching for a recipe for Vegetarian Cassoulet.

Vegetarian Cassoulet?

Ok, so I have to ask the question: how can such a thing exist?

Isn't the very essence, the very soul of Cassoulet the beans and the meat, be it duck, goose, pork or lamb, cooked slowly together in a cassole until thick, rich and bubbly?
Beans can also be cooked slowly, with vegetables, until thick, rich and bubbly (a dish I love, by the way). That is called Bean Stew. Not Cassoulet. And not vegetarian Cassoulet.

Yes, you can argue that it is a question of semantics. But I believe that the tradition of dishes like Cassoulet should be respected.

No Meat = No Cassoulet


I'm just saying.


confit de canard, pancetta, sausages, couenne (pork rind) for the Cassoulet


confit de canard


two variations - one to cook over the fire and one to go into the oven


links:
The Cassoulet recipe from Camp Cassoulet at Kate Hill's home in Gascony.
A Toulouse Style Cassoulet recipe from Paula Wolfert. Pin It

Photo du Jour

Just because the window has been closed up doesn't mean it shouldn't have a flowerbox. Pin It

Photo du Jour - Pralines

A super sweet gift of Pralines arrived the other day from a dear friend in New Orleans.
One a day. They are so sweet, that's all you need.

Thankfully there are enough to last us for months! Pin It

Photo du Jour - Puffy Cheese Straws

I whipped up a batch of these flaky, cheesy nibbles yesterday. They were delicious!

Puffy Cheese Straws

• 12 ounces/350 grams puff pastry, either pre-made or homemade
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
  
• 1/2 cup finely grated Emmental
  
• flour for rolling pastry

Heat oven to 450F/220C.
On a lightly floured work surface, roll out puff pastry into a big square, about 1/8 inch thick.
Scatter evenly with the grated Parmesan, then fold in half and roll out again until it is 1/8 inch thick.
Cut into ½ inch strips, lay on a baking sheet, and then twist each strip 3-4 times.
Scatter over the Emmental and bake for 12 minutes, or until golden.
Cool on baking sheet.
These can be kept in an airtight container for up to 2 days. They are fragile, so handle carefully.
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