London in December
“Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
From now on, our troubles will be out of sight” – written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane (listen to the original Judy Garland version HERE)
The Chateau d’Amboise overlooking the Loire River.
“In France, we have a saying, ‘Joie de vivre,’ which actually doesn’t exist in the English language. It means looking at your life as something that is to be taken with great pleasure and enjoy it.” – Mireille Guiliano, author of French Women Don’t Get Fat
“What do you mean you cooked the turkey, Charlie? You put our national bird in the oven. We had our mouths all set for roast eagle with all the trimmings.
It’s kinda scrawny isn’t it?
Yeah well, I thought I would stuff some old bread in it and make it look a little fatter….” – excerpts from Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America Volume One: The Early Years, recorded by Capitol Records in 1961.
“I would take them all to my home and cook them a grand Perigord meal. We’d start with a soup made from a duck’s carcass. We’d then go on to an omelette au touffe with eggs from my own chickens and truffles from the hillside near our home. I would cook Aiguillette de canard, using a thin strip of meat just below the breast. I would cook it with mustard seeds and honey. I would add to that, pommes sarladaise, which are potatoes thinly sliced and cooked in duck fat, with garlic, parsley, and truffles. It would all be done in the Perigord style.
And the wines?
The white wine would be a Bergerac sec from Chateau Jaubertie. Then I would offer everyone a deeply robust 2005 Chateau de Tiregand. It’s made by a friend of mine in the village. Oh, and I’d also serve some foie gras. I would serve it with a glass of chilled sweet wine, Monbazillac from Chateau de Tirecul. It’s something akin to Sauternes. I would finish it off with some cheese, of course.” – from The Resistance Man by Martin Walker
“Cassoulet is the God of the Occitan cuisine. The Castelnaudary version is God the Father, the Carcassonne recipe is God the Son, and the Toulousain is the Holy Spirit.” – Prosper Montagné, Le Festin Occitan. 1929
“For dedicated gastronomes, northern Italy’s promise of Slow Food, long lunches, and bold red wines is too good to pass up.” – Travel & Leisure Magazine
“The simple act of opening a bottle of wine has brought more happiness to the human race than all the collective governments in the history of earth” – Jim Harrison
“The owner-chef at this restaurant follows his own path, playing with Piemontese traditions to create a mixture of classic favorites and dishes with a more creative twist. Beautifully presented cuisine which is full of flavour.” – MICHELIN guide inspectors
The Cathedral of San Lorenzo
“The trouble with eating Italian food is that five or six days later you’re hungry again.” – George Miller, Director
“I love eggs. When it’s the season of truffles, scrambled eggs with truffles, and I’m happy. I’m smiling like that.” – Chef Éric Ripert, Le Bernardin, New York.
