Here we have a culinary and national identity conundrum. Let’s start by saying that oxtail soup is a hearty winter dish using relatively cheap ingredients. Personally, I always associate oxtail soup with England, so my French version replaced the porto with a Banyuls and added some root vegetables that do not enter in the originalRead More
Creamy roasted garlic soup
This soup is delicious in itself but it is also a very good remedy against hangovers. Perhaps it is an idea to have some ready that you can simply warm up the morning after the evening in the festive season… There are several versions of garlic soup, especially from the southwest of France where theyRead More
Beef and vegetable soup
A hearty soup is a great dish for Autumn. This is a variation on a recipe for a clear beef soup with kale, principally because there was no kale available on the market. After making the broth, I was supposed to dispose of the beef. Instead, I used it for another preparation.
Pumpkin soup with chestnuts
In France, there is no Halloween apart from among expatriates. Perhaps the Celts in Brittany celebrated the evening of Oct 31 as the start of the year but in the rest of France the catholic church has decreed Nov. 1 as All Saints’ day (Toussaint) and even the non-religious enjoy a day off, this yearRead More
Lobster bisque, a creamy soup without cream
The last of my three recipes with one lobster. Okay, I had a relatively large lobster but this also works with smaller ones. After you have eaten, or presented, a lobster, you are left with a lot of broken shells as well as the soft parts in the head that not many people like toRead More
Garlic soup
Few things are as simple to make and pleasant to eat as garlic soup, provided you like garlic. In French cuisine there are many recipes for this soup family that includes the tourin blanchi from the Bordeaux area which is served to newlyweds to re-invigorate them. In the south of France, people add ingredients likeRead More
Ramen en Laye (noodle soup with chicken)
I am very happy to be living in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, but there are of course fewer restaurants than in Paris and the choice of styles is limited. While there are a several sushi-like motorbike delivery services, you cannot get a nice noodle soup like in Tokyo or in the area around the rue Saint Anne inRead More
Chestnut cream soup
Chestnuts are usually harvested in Autumn and can be stored for quite some time to be used as filling or side-dish during the winter festivities. They contain no cholesterol or gluten and are low in calories compared to other nuts, which means that they do not add fats to an already heavy dish like aRead More
Beef ‘soto’ soup
Soto is an Indonesian soup and can be made with various ingredients. Here I used rib of beef, because it was on offer, and a soto spicy mix from the Dutch Koningsvogel brand. You can also make your own soto mix. Rib of beef is rather fat and it is advisable to let the beef broth coolRead More
Pot au feu
The ‘cauldron on the fire’ is a French winter dish with a very long history. The name evokes a large cauldron with water hanging above a wood fire in which meat and winter vegetables are slowly cooked The methods of cooking have changed but in modern France too, this hearty dish remains popular in autumnRead More