The French National Dish

Coming on the heels of my Arc de Triomphe post, it is only appropriate that today, Bastille Day, the recipe should be the quintessential French dish, Cassoulet. One could certainly argue there are any number of really good french dishes to promote, but research more or less shows that Cassoulet is the French National Dish. There are a number of recipes out there for Cassoulet, below is but one from Epicurious and here's a link to a "Cassoulet experience" from from one of the food blogs that I read with some frequency, the Amateur Gourmet.

I will note here that possibly one of my favorite French food is escargot. If they are on the menu, chances are I will order them, as I told my blogging friend, Mary when she posted about "eating slugs." Thinking about my trip to France (mentioned in yesterday's post) reminded me of when I would head out to a small local eatery where I was staying for possibly the best frites I have ever had along with a cold GLASS bottle of Coke. I long for those days. If you are having a party, here's a posting from someone else, that might give you pause.

Cassoulet
For cassoulet

• 1 1/2 lb dried white beans such as Great Northern or cannellini (3 2/3 cups), picked over and rinsed
• 2 sprigs fresh parsley
• 1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
• 2 whole cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 5 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 1/2 lb boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
• 4 qt water
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 carrot, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic plus 2 cloves, halved
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 confit duck legs
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 lb saucisson à l'ail or other fully cooked garlic pork sausage (not cured or dried), casing removed
  

For garlic-crumb topping

• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (from a baguette)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  

Special equipment: cheesecloth; kitchen string; a 17- by 11-inch heavy roasting pan or 7-qt shallow flameproof casserole dish

Make cassoulet:
Cover beans with cold water by 2 inches in a bowl and soak at room temperature at least 8 and up to 24 hours, or quick-soak (see cooks' note, below). Drain well in a colander.

Make a bouquet garni by wrapping parsley, bay leaf, cloves, peppercorns, and 2 sprigs thyme in cheesecloth and tying with kitchen string, then put in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot along with pork shoulder and water (4 quarts). Simmer, uncovered, skimming froth occasionally, 1 1/4 hours.

Add beans, onions, carrot, and chopped garlic and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beans are just tender, about 45 minutes.

While beans simmer, put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners and heat 1 tablespoon oil in roasting pan over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown duck legs, turning occasionally to brown skin and meat all over, about 10 minutes. Transfer duck legs with tongs to a platter as browned.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from roasting pan, then reduce heat to moderately low and cook halved garlic cloves, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Drain bean and pork mixture in a colander set over a large bowl (discard bouquet garni). Stir salt and pepper into broth in bowl and reserve.

Spread bean and pork mixture in roasting pan (with garlic halves), then nestle duck legs, skin sides up, in mixture. Add remaining 3 sprigs thyme and 6 cups reserved broth (liquid should come up around base of duck legs; reserve remaining broth, covered and chilled, for reheating if making dish ahead, or for another use). Bake, uncovered, 30 minutes.

While cassoulet bakes, heat remaining tablespoon oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. If necessary, halve sausage crosswise to fit in skillet, then brown, turning occasionally, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and cool slightly. When sausage is cool enough to handle, halve pieces lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

Nestle sausage into cassoulet and bake, uncovered, 30 minutes more. Let stand 10 minutes. Gently stir beans, mashing some with back of spoon, to thicken broth before serving.

Prepare garlic-crumb topping while cassoulet finishes baking:
Cook garlic in oil in cleaned 10-inch skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add bread crumbs, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, until crumbs are crisp and golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in parsley.

Serve cassoulet with crumb topping.

Cooks' notes:

• To quick-soak beans, cover dried beans with cold water by 2 inches in a 4- to 5-quart pot. Bring to a boil and cook, uncovered, over moderate heat 2 minutes. Remove from heat and soak beans, uncovered, 1 hour.
• Cassoulet can be made 3 days ahead and cooled completely, uncovered, then chilled, covered. Reheat, covered, in a preheated 350°F oven 30 minutes. If beans have soaked up the liquid, add some of reserved broth before reheating.

The Arc de Triomphe Gets a Makeover

Sacre Bleu! Some time ago, I spotted this story about one of the many monuments to grace the City of Light, Paris. The Arc de Triomphe was started on the orders of Napoleon, who declared to his troops, "I will bring you back to France. You will pass through arches of triumph on your way to your homes!" This was in 1805, after Napoleon's victory at Austerlitz. Construction began the following year. However, after that, things began to go downhill for Napoleon and he, of course, was removed from power and sent finally to the island of St. Helena, where he died in 1821. (One of the greatest palindromes around - Napoleon's alleged words upon arriving for his first exile on the island of Elba, "Able was I ere I saw Elba.") The arch was not completed until 1836 and has served as a backdrop for Paris scenes ever since. The arch now serves as a memorial to the unknown soldiers of France. In 1840, the remains of Napoleon were returned to Paris and passed under the arch on their way to their final resting place at Les Invalides. The arch has served as the backdrop for two state funerals, Victor Hugo in 1885 and Marshal Ferdinand Foch in 1929.

When the arch was finished, it contained a small museum that never saw very much traffic (well there's traffic - on the circle that surrounds the arch. Almost all travel guides will inform you to not attempt to cross the traffic circle, there's a tunnel underneath the roadway) and was poorly maintained. As the story explained, finally that has changed. The museum has undergone an extensive renovation, installing a new multimedia exhibition in the arch.

The arch will be prominently featured tomorrow when France will celebrate Bastille Day, marking the day when the monarchy of Louis XVI was toppled and the prison at the Bastille was stormed.

I am of French heritage. My father was born there and did not come to this country until he was seven years old. My grandfather was returned there after his death. He had served in the French army in World War I. My siblings and I were all given the opportunity to travel to France when we were teenagers to spend time with our French extended family. My trip to France took place 25 years ago. I can't believe it has been that long. Excuse me while I go and drag out the pictures I took and reminisce. Vive la France!

Cannons to the Left, Cannons to the Right

Today is the 153rd Anniversary of the Battle of Balaclava, which took place in the Crimean War.

What? You don't remember the Battle of Balaclava? Perhaps you remember the commemoration of one particular brigade's efforts during that battle, immortalized by Alfred Lord Tennyson (pictured at right) in the poem, "The Charge of the Light Brigade."

This poem was written to memorialize a suicidal charge by light cavalry over open terrain by British forces in the Battle of Balaclava (Ukraine) in the Crimean War (1854-56). 247 men of the 637 in the charge were killed or wounded. Britain entered the war, which was fought by Russia against Turkey, Britain and France, because Russia sought to control the Dardanelles. Russian control of the Dardanelles threatened British sea routes.

Many in the west best know of this war today because of Florence Nightingale, who trained and led nurses aiding the wounded during the war in a manner innovative for those times. The War was also noteworthy as an early example of the work of modern war correspondents.
[Some of the information above is from a website where I found the poem.]

1.
Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
"Charge for the guns!" he said:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

2.
"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismay'd?
Not tho' the soldier knew
Someone had blunder'd:
Their's not to make reply,
Their's not to reason why,
Their's but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

3.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.

4.
Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turn'd in air,
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonder'd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro' the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel'd from the sabre stroke
Shatter'd and sunder'd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

5.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro' the jaws of Death
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

6.
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made,
Honor the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred.

"We've Come to See the Tapestries"

(Bonus points for the person who can identify the above line - despite it being about the wrong country).

News from Europe this week . . . Liechtenstein has been violated . . .

The army of "neutral" Switzerland invaded the tiny neighboring country of Liechtenstein . . . by accident. A Swiss company of nearly 200 pushed about two kilometers into its neighbour before realizing the mistake and heading back. On Wednesday night, February 28, during a routine training exercise for infantrymen in the Alpine forests close to an unmarked section of the border, the company commander led his men in the wrong direction in bad weather but gave the immediate order to return when realizing the error.

Liechtenstein had no time to react, only finding out when the Swiss told them. A spokesman for the Liechtenstein authorities said: "It's not like they invaded with attack helicopters." Well thank goodness.

This incident passed more easily than the last time these two nations "fought." In 1985, Switzerland had to pay Liechtenstein compensation when rockets fired by its army went astray and set a forest ablaze. The countries became embroiled in a lengthy dispute when the protected forest was set on fire.

Bon Anniversaire to the Pompidou Center

Spotted in the Washington Post on February 1, 2007:
“The Pipe Dream Realized: Paris’s Pompidou Center Turns 30”

I’ll over look the second “s” in the headline for the moment to comment on the controversies surrounding the Pompidou Center in Paris when it was completed and what is rocking the French art world these days.

In 1977, when a new building opened in Paris, it attracted a great deal of controversy at the time for its avant garde design. In the city of light, a new museum decorated with brightly colored pipes rose in the “new Paris.” Here we are now, thirty years later, and the Georges Pompidou Center is celebrating its 30th anniversary. It has become one of Paris’ most recognizable monuments. It holds the largest collection of modern and contemporary art in all of Europe. It is France’s second most visited museum, after the Louvre.

The current controversy, now that Parisians have gotten past the building design, are plans to expand the Pompidou Center to Metz, a city in the northern part of France, and a center in Shanghai, China. These plans, along with plans for a “mini-Louvre” in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, has galvanized the French art world, with protests saying that politicians are “hijacking art for strategic and economic ends.”

As for the Center itself, it was conceived by French President Georges Pompidou (1969-1974), who envisioned a center that would become a magnet for the arts in Paris. The Center that bears his name also holds a library and a center for music research. And, despite the wailing of the French people when it was completed, was so popular that it had to be extensively renovated from 1997 to 1999. It had been designed to handle approximately 5,000 visitors a day and instead saw more than 25,000 a day. In the past 30 years, more than 150 million people have come through the doors.