By Leigh O’Connor.
We all know French is the language of love…whether it is romance, wine or gourmet fare.
So, what would you serve your special someone on Bastille Day, July 14, as a celebration of your undying love?
‘Je t’aime’ is one of the most used French phrases and literally guarantees immediate attention from your other half, so do these three recipes ideal for a romantic rendezvous:
Why do the French eat snails? Because they don’t like fast food!
French people tend to have one of three relationships with snails – they don’t eat them, eat them occasionally or simply on special occasions such as Christmas dinner or New Year.
Snails are mollusks and in the same class of slugs – they have been eaten for millennia and were much loved by the Romans as an elite food. In fact, the French are not the biggest eaters of snails on the planet, that title belongs to Spain and Morocco along with Italy.
The classic way to serve escargot is with lashings of butter and garlic, don’t forget a nice-cold glass of French white wine on the side.
Invented by the poor fishermen of Marseille using leftover catch, bouillabaisse has surely become one of the most timeless French classic dishes of all time – from humble beginnings, this has evolved into a high-class tourist meal.
A bouillabaisse takes some time to cook, but it’s well worth the effort; once you enjoy the first spoonful of this delicious fish soup, you’ll be hooked, line and sinker - pair this main with a Sauvignon Blanc.
Like many great dishes, the French dessert tarte tatin is said to have been born out of culinary clumsiness.
Legend has the tarte’s origins in the kitchens of a railway hotel in the town of Lamotte-Beuvron in north-central France. Owned by the two Tatin sisters, this hotel was known at the turn of the 20th Century for its excellent apple tarts; trying to salvage apples cooking too long, Stéphanie covered the top of the pan with a sheet of pastry and voilà tarte tatin was born.
This recipe comes from everyone’s favourite television and celebrity Chef Justine Schofield, who with a passion for all things French thanks to her heritage, recommends pairing this dessert with the freshness of Champagne Lanson Black label.
For more French recipes to wow family and friends, click here.
