French Cooking

Over the winter Mari decided to dive into the French culture and take a cooking class.  Each week the class focused on a different region and their different foods.

Week 1
tarte tatin
cheese fondue

Week 2: Brittany & Normandy
onion gratin
seared scallops with beurre blanc
fiery crêpes suzette à la Julie Child
It was crazy lighting the orange infused crêpes on fire!  The onion gratin was incredible!

Week 3: Northern France, Belgium
steak frites
glazed asparagus with a bearnaise sauce
tarte tatin
This was probably the third best steak I have had by sheer luck.   It was fun to make our own fries.  The bearnaise sauce was very temperamental but delicious on the steak.  Tarte tatin is the French version of an apple pie.  It is very easy because you take a puff pastry and put it over apples that you have cooked in butter and sugar for a while.

Week 4: Burgundy

This week was pretty technical I'd say.  The boeuf bourguignon we started a couple days in advance, but was well worth the trip to the liquor store to get Pinot Noir.  I was severely disappointed that they didn't card me though.  We made pomme purée with a ricer & homemade escargot!  It was much better than the escargot at La Caille.  We made it in shell and in mushroom caps which was my favorite.  I HIGHLY recommend Harmon's baguettes.  For dessert we made pears poached in red wine with marscapone cream filling.  Sadly I burnt the syrup that was supposed to go on top, which I think would have made the pears taste a lot better.

Week 5: Provence
Heading south was definitely my jam!  Roasted chicken with a lot of garlic served with olive tapenade, ratatouille, and tarte au citron!


Week 6: Southwest France, Aquitaine
Chateaubriand, Chateau potatoes, Apple, Pecan, & Blue Cheese Salad and crème brûlée.
The crème brûlée was out of this world and much easier to cook than expected!