St. Aubin de Cadelech, France

American a la mode

Bergerac, France

"New shit has come to light, man" - The Dude

I'm a native Californian who grew up in Dallas but spent the last 6 years living in Venice Beach.

Currently living in Bergerac, France, learning the French language and the French culture.

It's, uh, a little different here.

Le Tao du Dude - see all 89

Zurich 1 week ago

Haven't felt like posting a lot lately, but some pics of the house coming soon. In the meantime, I went to Zurich in February and never got around to posting them, so here is a few...

My life in France Mar 18

Quiche part 3 Feb 26

So, this here is the final product, after being in the oven about 15-20 minutes-

The part you miss in the photos is how creamy and soft it is when its just out of the oven. Almost like a pudding, but warm and cheesy and pork-y and just effin delicious-

Have that with some salad (something different that I forget the name of), and you are in for a tasty meal-

One of the best parts tho, is that there is always some left and we never, EVER, put that in the fridge or even cover it. Just stick it back in the oven after its cooled down, and when you get up in the morning its there waiting for you. No microwave, no nothing, just chow down, and its equally delicious.

Seriously, eff the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and Voltaire, this is the greatest contribution by the french in human history.

Quiche part 2 Feb 19

To pick up where we left off, once the lardon is in the feuillette you need to add the creme fraiche/egg combo, but not before adding some cheese-

Pictured is an emmemental rapé (shredded), but you can use all kinds of cheese, and for instance the last time we made this we had some mozarella in there. A little salt and pepper for seasoning as well as a noix de muscade, which I guess is muscade (I think I have seen that in a store, certainly never bought it) but here its an actual nut (hence the noix) in the spice jar and they include a little finger grater. I think little things like this are why the french can eat such ridiculously rich foods; besides all the walking, a typical Francaise in the country doesn't have electric everything (dryers are rare), so a little bit of actual work goes into just about everything. Novel idea, eh?

Hey, if it means you can eat what amounts to a pig fat, creme, egg and cheese dish, with heavy emphasis on the creme, once a week and not keel over before you are 50, I am all for a little extra work.

So, once that is all mixed up you dump it into the pan as well-

And once you crimp the crust, its ready for the oven-

Now, I think pretty much everyone has made their own oil and vinegar salad dressing, or at least I have and if I have you gotta assume a lot of people have. Whats weird is that Hélène never buys salad dressing. Ever. Of any kind. Nor do her friends. Instead they make it. And when she first said that, I thought 'boy, I bet oil and vinegar gets old'. But as it turns out, they make what is essentially a vinaigrrette, and apparently there are lots of little changes you can make to make lots of different salad dressings.

Its actually super simple, just start with some Dijon mustard, then add oil and vinegar and spices to suit. Pretty basic, but with different vinegars and spices and juices, you can come up with whatever you like-

So, I am off to Zurich tomorrow for some 'real' work related stuff, so it will probably be Monday or Tuesday before you get to see the final product.

Its worth the wait...

Quiche Feb 13

So really, where did that whole 'real men don't eat quiche' thing come from? Was there some other reason that Americans were pissed off at the French in the early eighties, sort of like the Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast thing more recently?

And really, is there one single phrase that clearly defines how unbelievably retarded most Americans are more than 'Freedom Fries'? French fries aren't even French, they're Belgian!

Anyway, I took these pictures a while back but since we just had quiche the other night, I figured now was a good time to post them. And the reason is, you know how when you have an omelette or scrambled eggs and cheese or something like that, and you always accompany that with some sort of bread? What struck me the other night as I was devouring the fresh from the oven quiche with its still gooey, almost liquid center, is that quiche is the absolutely most perfect combination of bread and eggs.

Not only are the eggs loaded with creme and cheese, but the bread part is light and fluffy, and as well supports the eggs (like pizza) so you don't even need utensils. I had eaten quiche back in the states, mostly those little microwavable things but also in restaurants, and I can guarantee you that neither are a good representation of quiche compared to when you make it yourself.

So, you're basic ingredients for a quiche lorraine are-

A pate feuilletee (the pastry), jambon lardon (the ham), creme fraiche (sort of like cream, but thicker) and eggs and cheese. Unfortunately, I am not sure how much of this you can get in the states. A friend of mine who is from Montreal said that you can get creme fraiche at Trader Joes, although I wonder if it might be similar to 'Heavy Whipping Creme'. It certainly seems thicker tho, so I don't think it is. Its a shame too, because creme fraiche makes EVERYTHING better.

The pate feuilletee thing is pretty cool too because they have a few different kinds at the stores here, like a pastry or a pie, and including ones for pizzas (which, after making my own, I also realized is the far better way to go than take-out).

The lardon is probably closest to bacon, but its definitely different (saltier, if you can imagine that) and never cooked to the crispiness you sometimes get with bacon. As I am writing that, I realize that I just found something I miss from the states. Mmmmmmm, bacon.

So, to start you prepare the lardon, essentially just by browning it on the stovetop-