WIAW: En Francais

 

Good morning young lovers! I’m ba..ba..back for my first What I Ate Wednesday post in what feels like forever.

 

And it’s not just any old WIAW post either. I have been waiting to share my bites through France pretty much as soon as I got there because I’m that kind of food freak fanatic..in France.

 

 

So break out your passport and unbuckle that belt, cuz we’re eating Francais style today y’all!

 

Breakfast:

 

Breakfast was always light and consisted of either a croissant or a hunk of a baguette with butter and homemade jam.

 

 

And depending on where I was I either got a legit bowl of coffee, or a cup of espresso from the “George Clooney” machine.

 

For some reason all the French went out and bought an espresso machine since it was told that it was what George Clooney had. They were pretty disappointed when I told them I had no idea what they were talking about.

 

 

Lunch:

Lunches were a bit more substantial usually started with an aperitif or a before meal drink. My favorite was either the Kir Royale, which was champagne mixed with creme de cassis liquor, or a simple Kir with white wine and strawberry syrup. A close second was a beer called a panache which was half beer and half citrus soda. It was like the lightest beer ever made to man.

 

 

I ate lots and lots of fish in all varieties for a lot of my meals. Either mussels with pasta, baked salmon with creme fraiche, or of course the escargot.

 

 

Which okay I guess aren’t exactly seafood, but they tasted a heck of a lot like a clam or mussel so I pretty much thought of it like that. And drenched in butter and parsley I couldn’t get enough!

 

 

Other lunches included a real French fondu, Raclette which is a cheese melted in individual pans and served over fried potatoes, or one of the most interesting experiences of cracking an egg I picked about an hour ago over hot fried potatoes. I guess you can’t get any fresher than that and I survived to tell the tale!

 

Dinner:

Depending on how big lunch was, dinner was usually seafood or a vegetable dish such as garden zucchini in a cream sauce, served with a cucumber salad, tomato salad, and/or green salad.

I had to include my dinner on the plane though. Just because it was my first meal on a plane.

 

I barely nibbled on the pasta since it tasted like canned mashed potatoes, had the two bits of lettuce “salad”, the cheese, and the roll only so I could finally try Kerrygold butter. The perks of flying an Irish airline. Verdict: That buttah is bettah! Now I know what butter ACTUALLY tastes like.

 

Oh, and let’s not forget the stars of the show. You know your in France when…

 

 

You have an ENTIRE aisle dedicated to cheese. And this was just one side. Let’s just say they don’t mess around when it comes to fromage. My favs were Camembert, Chevre, and a really runny cheese called Cancoillotte, which I guess is a pretty acquired taste. Must be my French blood. Not to mention that an entire giant wheel of Brie cost about 5 euro. If I bought that here, I might have to refinance a home first.

 

 

 

 

…And the wines are separated by region, not type. There was about 5 other aisles to go with this one in every super marche. Not to mention you can pick up a handle of whiskey or a pack of tequila flavored beer to go with your gallons of cheese and back to school clothes. Yeah, I said TEQUILA FLAVORED BEER. And they wondered why we didn’t have this in the states.

 

 

 

Dessert:

Oh, dessert. I think I had dessert after lunch and dinner most days of the week. But I was on vacation so YOLO! (is that too old yet?) Call me crazy, but the desserts there didn’t taste as sweet as here in the states. I don’t think their sugar (or flour) is the same stuff we’re using, so I didn’t feel as guilty eating it. At least that’s what I told myself after a slice of pie the size of my face.

 

 

 

Like this apple tart for example. Done the American way with applesauce. I guess misconceptions flow both ways. Either way I still downed a near quarter of it without a problem.

 

Another of the popular tarts made in France is with a fruit called a Mirabelle.

 

 

They only grow in the Lorraine region of France so they are quite the hot commodity. While at our cousin’s farmhouse I saw them growing EVERYWHERE since people had a lot of farm land. It tasted similar to a plum. I also enjoyed an apricot and a rhubarb tart in my travels. Fruit and pastry play well together.

 

 

 

I was also spoiled with homemade beignets. After having some in New Orleans, I have to say they were a bit different in France. Much smaller, less sweet, and a bit more dense. For once I have to go with the ‘Merica version on this one. I could eat those Nawlins beignets every single day.

 

I made sure to get my fruit in many forms for dessert. This one just happened to be filled with rum and custard. How was I supposed to know?!

 

And then there was that time when I broke 9 years of not eating meat…

 

 

I said I might go back to eating pig if they are all were filled with cake and coffee cream. I couldn’t bring myself to eat his face though. Plus marzapan is just a little too much for me to eat an entire pig’s worth of.

 

And there was coffee. ALWAYS coffee. I wonder why I was able to drink it at 9 at night and fall asleep like a baby….

 

 

 

And now I’m sitting here trying to recreate my many meals with wine, cheese, and Blue Diamond almonds and nut thins. I have found my new almond addiction in the form of Rosemary & Black Pepper flavor.

 

 

You know it’s bad when you go to the grocery store during rush hour just to sooth your Camembert withdrawls…

 

 

So there you have it friends! A peek into what I stuffed my face with for the past 3 weeks in France. Now head on over to Jenn’s blog and check out every other food fanatic’s eats!

 

 

Bon Journee!

If you went to France, what would look forward to trying the most?

Wine or cheese?

**Disclaimer: I received two jars of Blue Diamond almonds as free of charge. All thoughts, opinions, and french food are my own.**