Winter Comfort

I bid a final farewell to citrus season in the form of this simple Lemon Poppy Seed French Yogurt Loaf, drenched in a honey lemon syrup. It tastes deliciously moist, fluffy and zesty. And like any other French yogurt cake, it is a foolproof and ridiculously simple recipe to make.   If you’ve been following this blog for a bit, you know of my love for French yogurt cakes. Last winter, I had shared a recipe for a classic Orange Yogurt Cake (still to this day, one of the most …

Quintessentially French, Coq au Vin (literally “rooster in wine”) is a mastodon of our cooking repertoire. Made from a whole chicken cut in 8 pieces, with bacon, mushrooms and carrots, it is traditionally cooked using red wine resulting in a purple-ish sauce. But its “Blanc” version, using dry white wine, is lighter, with brighter flavors and is just a little bit more elegant, if you ask me. 

Turnips are one of those classic root vegetables that tends to leave you wondering what to do with them… In France, turnips are often used in Winter soups, but their fleshy white texture also makes them well suited for layered gratins like the one. This dish is creamy and comforting, with only a fraction of the carbs of a potato gratin. Get ready to love turnips!

Putting a Breton twist on Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies! Today’s recipe revisits the American classic recipe of Chocolate Chip cookies, with the use of buckwheat flour and sea salt – two staple ingredients from my home region Brittany. Buckwheat flour gives earthy and nutty flavors to these chewy cookies, boosted with sea salt that is used both inside the dough and sprinkled over top. If you think chocolate chip cookies couldn’t get any better – just wait, and try! 

Who doesn’t love a creamy, melty and comforting mac n’ cheese? But have you ever had a French-Style Mac n’ Cheese before? If not, you’re in for a treat!  The foundation of this creamy casserole is a velvety white Béchamel sauce spiked with nutmeg to which we add a hefty amount of crème fraiche for richness and tang, and then Gruyère cheese for sweet, nutty flavors and great cheesy strings. This is a luscious and comforting recipe that’s a staple of French Mountain cooking. 

Unfussy, sugary and fried. French Bakery Beignets are nothing like what you’d expect from French pastries, yet they are quintessentially French. These plump buttery pillows rolled in sugar and filled with jams are found on most bakery stalls in France and are kids’ favorites at the time of the “goûter” ( mid-afternoon snack). They are also very popular during street fairs and carnivals across the country. And like most French, I often cave in to the temptation of grabbing one whenever I hit a street festival in France.

I used to love Granola when I was younger, but I stopped eating it when I finally read the ingredients listed on most packages. Store-bought granola often has a large amount of refined sugar in it, and I decided I didn’t want to start the day off with a big breakfast bowl of sugar-filled granola.

Outside of France, for some reason, Pots de Crème are the underdog of French custards. They don’t receive nearly as much love as crème brulées do – but if you go to France, it’s a whole different story. The French love their dairy products: yogurts of all kinds and what we call the “crèmes desserts”. If you ever visit a French supermarket, you will assuredly stumble on our entire refrigerated aisle(s) devoted to yogurts, fromages blancs, flans, mousses, faisselles and all kinds of custards and heavenly pots de crèmes. When …

Wine-braised chicken has to be one of the most beloved comfort foods in France – with probably as many variations as grandmothers in the country. The concept of browning meat in a bit of oil, and then cooking it in liquid (ie. wine) always makes for incredible flavors, and meat that is fork-tender. And if you ask me, I find braised meat slightly more sophisticated than stews, yet just as comforting. In this favorite braised recipe of mine, onions and loads of garlic are caramelized in butter, and plump chicken …

A tender, buttery, rum-flavored crumb nestled with big chunks of apples makes the Classic French Apple Cake a delicious staple. Right before baking, the cake gets dusted with sugar to create a signature crackly top that makes it even more unique, all while letting the apples shine beautifully. It is a simple and timeless cake recipe, just sweet enough and with a delightful more-apple-than-crumb-ratio. A must for your French baking repertoire.