LEFTOVERS

The last chicken I bought for the weekend was a bit heavy at 1.8kg. We never eat that much, the three of us. So half the carcass went into the fridge for future meals. What I did not see happen though when I planned lunch today, was that Victoria already made a couple of sandwich' with the white meat. Healthier she says. Good for her. I prefer the dark chunks of meat anyway. 

I bought some more Ile de Re Potatos (http://theceliachusband.blogspot.fr/2013/05/pomme-de-terre-primeur-de-ile-de-re.html) , roasted them up in plenty of butter and garlic, added all the leftover meats, some Cilantro, salt, pepper and that's it. 15 minutes from start to finish.  Le tasty lunch.

This may sound like a broken record, however I cannot say it often enough. Back in North America, we threw away too much food. Here, where you pay a pretty dollar for some choice meats, one learns quickly to pay more attention to waste.

Believe it or not, Victoria froze the Carcass (sans dark meat) and when she has three of them, she will make a huge pot of chicken stock. 

Besides not wasting money, it makes you feel good for valuing food more.

WHITE MEAT IS FOR GIRLIE MEN

PLENTY OF DARK MEAT FOR ME

EVERYTHING TASTES BETTER WITH BUTTER (AND GARLIC)

SOAKING UP THE BUTTER

ADD THE LEFTOVER MEAT

PLENTY FOR TWO PEOPLE

LE CHEESE

I think that's my first post about cheese. Might as well, since we are in France.  And if our host country is known for something aside of great designer fashion, it's cheese. Lots of it. I think any animal that produces consumable milk, some french artisan will make cheese with it. And that's a good thing.

It has been said that France has more cheese varieties than days in a year (Charles de Gaulle, The prez) and I believe it.

Since I am the only true cheese eater in our family, we don't have cheese trays or such big splashes, but once in a while I do buy a small piece of something that I want to try. 

And today I bought some blue cheese. Not a Roquefort or Bleu d'Avergne, the two most known fromages bleu in France, I bought a Bleu de Laqueuille. No worries, you are not the only one who has no idea where that is. I had to Google it as well. Here is the official description from a cheese blog: 

Bleu de Laqueuille is produced in the mountainous Auvergne region of France during the summer and autumn months from the milk of Salers cows. This robust blue, reminiscent of Bleu d'Auvergne, is a bit salty and full-bodied with a creamy blue paste. It pairs well with many robust reds and with most dessert wines.

Since it was barely lunch time, I did not pair it with any wine, just some cherry tomatos and Victoria's gluten free bread. Have you ever walked into an old, dusty room where you have difficulty breathing? That is my first impression of eating this fairly sharp blue cheese. Glorious. 

It sticks with you for a while, that's for sure. 

Strange really, that not many people in America like blue cheese, but they all order blue cheese dressing with their salads. And that's what happens when you bastardize a food group. The consumer gets dulled down to a vanilla everything attitude. No sharp edges please.  Those crumbles in your salad have not much similar with real, artisan cheese from France. 

There's lots of information, better than mine out there, here are a few sites:

http://chezlouloufrance.blogspot.fr/2007/08/la-fte-du-fromage_21.html

http://www.artisanalcheese.com/

YOU WILL FIND ONE YOU LIKE

BLEU LAQUUILLE

IT'S STRONG

BUT VERY GOOD

POMME DE TERRE PRIMEUR DE ILE DE RE

Another great thing about France is that regionality to a degree still trumps mass production. Don't get me wrong, I know there are industrial cheeses, meats and wines available at Carrefour nationwide, but in the small towns around this country you have an easier time to find something authentic regional.  Cheese and wine being a given, but there are lots of other items unique to their areas which carry an A.O.C. lable for being from one specific region And one of them being potatos from the Ile de Re. 

We went to that island last year, but not during the season when you see them being sold. A new Epicerie in town here had some this morning, so I finally bought a few. And now that we tried them, I am going back for more. Unbelievable that such a common product can have such a different flavor from any I had before. 
To be honest, I was not sure what to expect, saltiness from the climate and soil? They apparently use seaweed as fertilizer, maybe that? Not so. Not sure which variety I bought, but they had an incredibly sweet flavor to them. Hard to compare, but really really good. 
All I did was simmer them until soft to the core, cut them up and added some raw milk butter and salt. 
When a product is that good, no need to mask it with anything. 

Not sure how widely they are available, but if you see them at a store near you, buy some. They are worth the money. 

YOU PAY FOR QUALITY

SIMMER, DON'T BOIL THEM TO MUSH

HAD A SMALL CHUNK OF RAW BUTTER FROM AUSTRIA IN THE FREEZER

SPRINKLE SOME SALT, NOTHING ELSE