Marché Artisanale Nocturne et Fête des Belges in Sablet

As I told you in an earlier post, there were no festivities planned to celebrate Bastille Day in our village this year so we took off for the Tarn to see the elderly aunts and uncles and some of the cousins who were spending the holiday at the family farm near Lacaune.

On the way there, we stopped to take pictures of sunflowers in a field we came upon, a picture which won me a prestigious award from Keith at Taste of Garlic blog for The Photo of The Prettiest Girlies Standing in a Field of Sunflowers. I have to admit that wife Shirley and niece Leslie looked very cute in the picture.

After the next weekend which was the Journée du Livre, the annual book fair held in Sablet the third weekend of July every year, flyer's started appearing on parked cars in the village announcing a Marché Artisanale Nocturne - night craft market on the next Thursday night.

That Thursday night, July 21, was also the Fête Nationale des Belges - Belgium National Day which commemorates the day the first king of Belgium took his oath of office in 1831. For some reason I still don't know, our friend Bruno who owns Café des Sports in Sablet didn't do anything special for Bastille Day but he was having a special mussels and fries feast and had hired a band to celebrate the Belgium National Day.

The pictures which follow will give you a small taste of the Marché Artisanale Nocturne et Fête des Belges in Sablet. Early in the afternoon, long tables and chairs were set up near Café des Sports for the diners who would be coming to eat Bruno's mussels and fries.

There were arts and crafts of all kinds on display at booths on the street and square near Café des Sports.

An artist painted while he waited for villagers and tourists to come by and check out his paintings. Guess what, we liked them a lot and we bought three of them. Can you guess which ones?

More crafts on display for sale for use in the home.

There were hand made clothes for sale.

Villagers and tourists wander around the square checking out the items on display.

There was handcrafted food items for sale.

The art and crafts fair was scheduled for 17 00 hours to 22 00 hours. The crowds were somewhat sparse early on but got busier as the evening wore on.

There were soaps and other skin products.

There was a display of items made for the home and garden from slate. We bought a number of stakes that were pre-painted with the name of herbs for our terrace in Sablet. We forgot to buy one for the thyme growing on the terrace so I was happy to see the seller the next morning at the weekly Friday market and got one then.

Still more crafts for sale.

Provencal tablecloths and other items made from Provencal fabrics.

Hand made picture frames.

Meanwhile, the band was warming up for the Fête des Belges mussels and fries feast.

The early arrivals grabbed the best seats.

By the time the sun was set, all the seats at the tables were full of hungry people, eager to eat Bruno's mussels and fries.

A fun evening in Sablet, one of the many festivals we got to experience during our visit to Sablet. I think everyone had a great time. I was happy we got some pretty things for our house from Provence.

Bonne journée mes amis et à très bientôt.

Yummy Baked Macaroni with Cheese

As frequent readers of Our House in Provence blog know, I am co-owner of Bistro Des Copains, a small French bistro in Occidental, California located about 60 miles north of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. One of the items on the menu since the day we opened a little over 5 years ago is a yummy baked macaroni with cheese.

The Bistro's baked macaroni and cheese is a favorite of guests, for young diners who enjoy the dish as a main course as well as for adult diners who order the dish as a side to share with table mates to accompany their main course.

At the end of the night, when I am in a mood for something simple and delish, I often order the baked macaroni with cheese with a side of veggies usually haricots verts amandine. The latter dish lets me say I ate something healthful.

Wife Shirley is a registered nurse and works in a local acute care hospital. On Sundays, the nurses who work from 3 PM to 11:30 PM often bring in dishes to share for a pot luck meal. Shirley asked me this morning if I would be willing to make a big dish of baked macaroni with cheese for her to take for pot luck.

I would guess for most people in the US, when you say macaroni and cheese, they immediately think of the macaroni and cheese dish which comes in a blue box from Kraft, a favorite childhood dish for many. Preparing a delicious homemade version of baked macaroni with cheese is easy so I decided to share my recipe along with pictures of the various steps.

Ingredients

1 16-oz box of elbow macaroni
5 cups whole milk (you can substitute 2 % low fat milk), brought to light boil,then reduce to simmer.
2 ounces butter
1/2 cup flour
3 cups grated Gruyère cheese
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated white pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

My version of baked macaroni with cheese is not exactly the same as the Bistro's but it is equally delicious. Start by gathering all of the ingredients together for your "mise en place" a French term which literally means "putting in place" everything you will need to make the baked macaroni with cheese.

A close up of my mise en place for the baked macaroni with cheese with a large green heirloom tomato, vase of basil and Roma tomatoes I got this morning at the market.

Start by melting the butter in a sauce pan.

When the butter is melted and bubbles subside,

add the flour and begin to whisk, a flat whisk works best for stirring food in the corners of the pan, until a pale smooth roux is formed. I take the pan off the heat while I whisk the flour into the melted butter.

Either before you melt your butter or while you are making the roux, you should bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil and cook the elbow macaroni until it is done to taste. Drain well! Sprinkle with a little olive oil (2 tablespoons will do) and stir to keep the macaroni from sticking together while you finish your béchamel sauce.

Pour one ladle full of warm milk into your roux and stir till smooth then add the next ladle of milk and stir. Keep repeating this process until all of the milk is incorporated into the roux; continue whisking until the sauce thickens and bubbles gently.

Add all the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, 2 cups of grated Gruyère cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg and stir until the cheese is completely incorporated into the béchamel sauce.

Pour the béchamel sauce with the grated cheese over the macaroni.

Mix thoroughly.

Butter a 10 x 14 inch baking dish.

Pour the macaroni mixture into the buttered dish.

Place the baking dish into an oven preheated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Bake the macaroni for 12 minutes and remove from the oven; cover the surface of the macaroni with the remaining 1 cup of grated Gruyère cheese. Return to oven.

Bake the macaroni until golden brown on the surface, approximately 12 minutes.

Over the years, chefs at the Bistro have tried different combination of cheeses and topped the macaroni with bread crumbs or small croutons to give the macaroni more crunch. However, I like this way the best.

I have seen versions of baked macaroni with cheese in other restaurants with bacon, others with mustard, and of course different cheese combinations but I have not found a version that I like better.

What variations do you like with your baked macaroni with cheese? Let me know. I have shown you exactly how to make my version so I know this will turn out great for you. I hope you enjoy.

Bon appétit mes amis et à bientôt.

Côteaux et Fourchettes Restaurant, Cairanne

The restaurants we try for the first time are usually on a list of good restaurants in a publication I respect, highly regarded by the Michelin inspectors, have received high marks in Zagat or more recently on Yelp or the restaurant was recommended by friends. Like most foodies, I hesitate to try restaurants I don't know anything about.

I don't remember how we heard about Côteaux et Fourchettes restaurant but one Monday evening we decided to try it out. Côteaux et Fourchettes restaurant is located just a few kms - miles west of Sablet at Croisement de la Courançonne near Cairanne.

This restaurant and wine cellar was opened in September 2010 by Cyril Glémot, former chef at L’Oustalet restaurant in Gigondas. Côteaux et Fourchettes restaurant is set along the road with vineyards all around with views of the Dentelles de Montmirail.

Wife Shirley and niece Leslie doing their best Vanna White (of Jeopardy fame) impressions in front of Côteaux et Fourchettes restaurant.

The restaurant dining room is simply decorated and opens out onto an outdoor dining area where tables are set under a large trellis and among the trees and shrubs.

After being seated under the shady trellis, we were brought a mise en bouche plate consisting of goat cheese on a tooth pick with tomato confit, some black olives and little savory pastry balls to munch on while we perused the menu options.

We selected a bottle of the 2009 Domaine la Soumade Côtes du Rhône Villages Rasteau to accompany our meal, a wonderful wine we drank in several restaurants during our time in Provence.

After we placed our order, we were brought an amuse bouche of chilled tomato soup with sheep cheese topped with a sprig of chervil.

The view towards the Dentelles de Montmirail from our seats.

A nice touch is the selection of different house baked rolls.

Shirley started with a plate of arugula simply dressed with vinaigrette.

I started with duck foie gras with a delicious fig jam. I rarely have foie gras in the US and in fact in 2012, it will be illegal to produce or sell foie gras in California compliments of the animal rights people who got the law pushed through the California legislature.

Leslie chose the marinated trout stuffed with arugula and tiny dices of carrots, celery and radish for her starter.

Our main courses included a delicious plate of roast squab - pigeon over red cabbage with carrots,

perfectly cooked magret de canard - duck breast over polenta cake and Chinese cabbage,

and pan roasted cod served over pistou for Shirley who does not eat meat.

Leslie ordered the cheese plate consisting of 2 goat cheeses, 2 sheep cheeses and 2 made from cows milk, one from Switzerland.

Desserts were a tasty slice of chocolate apricot cream cake

and a tarte fine of apple and fig with vanilla ice cream.

Chef Glémot is doing very refined cooking using seasonal ingredients. I think prices are reasonable given the high quality of the food and cooking. Our menu Côteaux with cheese was 35 Euros and without the cheese plate was 29 Euros.

If you are in the area, we definitely recommend that you try Côteaux et Fourchettes restaurant. We will return often I am sure.

Côteaux et Fourchettes
Croisement de la Courançonne
84290 Cairanne
Tel: 04 90 66 35 99
info@coteauxetfourchettes.com

Bon appétit mes amis et à bientôt.

Journée du Livre in Sablet

Wife Shirley and I have repeatedly said that our visit to Sablet in July was our favorite time in the village so far. The weather for the most part was perfect and we saw and experienced a lot of new things, many of which you will read about in future posts.

One of the highlights of our time in Provence was the Journée du Livre in Sablet, the book fair held in the village the third weekend of July every year. On July 16 and 17, 120 writers and poets along with hundreds of readers and curiosity seekers descended upon Sablet for the 24th edition of the Journée du Livre.

Earlier in the week, we would find a notice on our windshield every time we got in our car saying that it was forbidden to park in the main part of the village because of the book fair as of Thursday midnight. On Friday, crews started assembling the various tents for the book fair.

Following are scenes from the Journée du Livre in Sablet. Anyone you recognize?

The book fair hours were from 16 h to 20 h (4 to 8 PM) on Saturday and from 10 h to 13 h (10 AM to 1 PM) and 15 h to 18 h (3 to 6 PM) on Sunday.

Unfortunately, early in the day, it was gray and raining but by the time the book fair began, the rain had stopped so we could stroll around without getting wet.

There were tents set up throughout the main part of the village.

One of the main tents with many writers. Authors were signing books for their readers.

Author's works included literature, travel, regional histories, cooking and wine, children's books, poetry and fiction.

Authors read excerpts and talked about their writings at readings that were scheduled in the various gardens throughout Sablet.

Another group of writers.

You can't have a festival in Provence without wine. The vignerons - wine makers of Sablet put together a special blend of wine to celebrate the book fair.

Another big tent.

As the day passed, more and more people arrived for the book fair.

Of course, you know there has to be a few dogs at a festival in France.

Sylvie Reboul is a wine writer and oenologue who was chosen as the Marraine - godmother of the special wine for the book fair and in consultation with the Sablet wine makers chose the special cuvée - blend for the book fair. I bought one of her books about the wines of the Rhone valley which she happily signed for me.

Cousins Christine and Jean-Marc who came over to eat lunch with us and then stayed to enjoy the Journée du Livre.

Readers buy books and get them autographed by their favorite authors in one of the main tents.

Our friend Bruno was a doing a booming business at the Café des Sports.

More of the crowds at the Journée du Livre.

Tents were set up for authors in front of the boulangerie.

A crowd gathers for the awards ceremony near the fountain a few steps from our house.

The prize winning poet reads one of his poems for the crowd at the award ceremony.

By the end of the weekend, I was feeling quite French as I found a way to park in places that I would never have considered if I was in the United States. Of course, in the US, me and many others would have been towed away by the roving tow trucks. Vive la France.

Bonne journée mes amis et à très bientôt.