Saturday, April 11, 2020

Weekend Cooking: Bread as religion


We were supposed to be in France this weekend, not in Champagne, but in Normandy. I was hoping to find some amazing boulangerie or patisserie on our travels but alas we can't even go and find a patisserie here, let alone there.

When I read The Vineyards of Champagne earlier this year there were a few scenes that made me want to be in France,  eating bread, right now. This was one of them

The next day Rosalyn helped Emma into the front passenger's seat and climbed in the back with Emma's crutches.

At the butcher a few towns over, Emma and Blondine argued over which basket to buy and which pate was : the pate de campagne or the truffled  mousse. At the fruit stand, Emma  and Blondine argued over whether to buy apples  or pears, clementines or Valencia oranges, or dried fruits like plums, apricots, and dates.

And that was nothing compared to the long, drawn-out discussion at the counter of the boulangerie. Blondine insisted on bread that was pas trop cuit, not too cooked, which engendered yet another heated discussion with Emma, who was staunchly of the opinion that a well-browned baguette was best. Soon the baker emerged from the rear of the store to weigh in on the proper degree of doneness of a perfect baguette, and several other customers waiting their turn to order chimed in.

Rosalyn stayed out of it, relishing the opportunity to examine the baked goods on display. The boulangerie wasn't a patisserie - a shop that specialized in pastries and desserts - but nonetheless sold delectable looking choux, or cream puffs, as well as eclairs, madeleines, macarons, meringues  and tartes aux fruits, which were miniature open-faced fruit and custard tarts..How in the world did the French stay so skinny?

The boulangerie smelled like heaven, and Rosalyn hoped the scent would linger on her clothing the way the cigarette smoke had after the Epiphany party.

The disputants in the Great Baguette Debate at last called a truce - neither side had convinced the other, though all agreed the proprietor of the boulangerie had the best bread in all of Champagne - and  to appease Emma, Blondine bought several baguettes in varying  degrees of doneness, as well as an assortment of other breads to bring home with them.

Back in the car and once again en route to visit Madame Bolze, Blondine ripped off the heel of a baguette and handed it to Rosalyn.

"It's called le quignon, the bit you eat on the way home," she explained.

"There's a name for that?" asked Rosalyn, and took a bite  of the delicious fresh baguette.

"You don't even want to know how many words the French have to describe all types of bread, bread creation, and bread consumption," said Emma, letting her head fall back on the headrest and breathing out a weary sigh. "I'm telling you, it's a religion."
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22 comments:

  1. To eat fresh baguettes, croissants etc is the only reason I would visit France for :)

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    Replies
    1. Shelleyrae, that is definitely a good reason to go. I love the history and beautiful buildings and countryside as well.

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  2. So sad that you missed your trip to France. Their breads are amazing

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    Replies
    1. I am disappointed but there will be another opportunity Judee.

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  3. I absolutely love a French based romantic type story so will be looking this one up. Really sorry though that you've missed out on holiday in Normandy.

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    Replies
    1. This one is dual timeline historical fiction Cath.

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    2. Brilliant, I have bought it for my Kindle. :-)

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  4. It's really sad that you are missing your planned trip. I'm missing one this week too, would have been in Colorado watching special bird behavior. So many people are missing so much! I still feel lucky though as many have far bigger problems with the economy and the health crises going on.

    be well... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. I am disappointed Mae, but like you I am grateful to have my health, my husband, my work. There will be other opportunities for France (and for special bird behaviour watching in Colorado!)

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  5. I’m an armchair traveler these days, thanks for posting that excerpt from the book. I’d like to read that one. Yum to baguettes and champagne anytime!

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  6. I'm sorry you had to miss your trip. At least we can travel through books. I am tagging this one for my TBR pile.

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    1. We can definitely go lots of fun places without leaving home through the pages of a book Deb.

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  7. I enjoyed this one too. Cheers

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  8. Yes, that passage made me hungry for bread and pastries, too! I hope you'll get a chance to go to France at a future date, and not too far off!

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    1. There will be other opportunities Laurie. Just a question of when.

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    2. We're hoping to travel to Ireland for a planned anniversary trip in August. Trip is still on...for now!

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  9. I'm sorry you didn't get to take your trip :( I've had this book on my radar for a bit.

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  10. I was sorting books yesterday and saw I have a copy of this. I need to bump it up on my list. So sorry about your Europe trip, but glad you could visit France through a book.

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