Bonjour French Market Friends,
Team ZA has made us proud at the Paralympics in Paris this week with 30 year old Mpumelelo Mhlongo winning a Gold medal for S. Africa in the T44 men’s 100m sprint at the Stade de France on Sunday evening. Born in Chatsworth KZN he studied Chemical Engineering at UCT and is currently studying for PhD. He won Sportsperson of the Year 5 times. Mpumelelo is the Clubfoot Champion Ambassador for Steps Clubfoot Care.
In France, the weather is starting to change with the approach of Autumn. The long summer holidays are over and the school year starts in Europe. In France, and wherever there are the French Ecoles (schools) overseas, this period is called “La Rentree,” the Return. Many families who live in the major cities have holiday cottages in the countryside, where they escape to in summer time. At La Rentree all the holiday houses are packed up, the summer games are packed away, farewell is said to friends in the villages and the families head back into the large cities for the start of the Academic year. Due to the mass of traffic congestion this causes on the major highways, the school year is staggered slightly by region, to try and alleviate the traffic jams. It is a time to avoid travelling if you do not have children attending school.
Here in Cape Town we have a thriving French Community with two school campuses. This Saturday morning La Rentree is celebrated at the Ecole Francaise du Cap in Kings Road, Seapoint, with representation from various French organisations and associated business operating in Cape Town. This gives all the new parents and families a chance to meet the local organisations affiliated to France. There will be market stalls with food and drinks available for anyone interested in attending. The French Market will be present promoting our French food and wines. We will also be handing out information on behalf of the Alliance Francaise du Cap, for people interested in learning French language. If you would like to find out more and meet people in the French community then come along. The event runs until 3pm when most people in CPT will be heading Greenpoint to watch the exciting return match between the Bokke and the All 
Blacks.
This week we have plenty of cheese in stock from all the great cheese making regions in France; handcrafted cheeses from Normandie and Brie, Alpine cheeses from the Jura, the Auvergne, the Franche Comte and the Vosges. There is every type of texture and taste available. We have some Tete de Moine from across the border in Switzerland. This unique cheese is named after a monk’s head due to its shape. A special tool is used to cut the floret shaped slices of cheese, which make a most attractive display on a cheese board.
In our seafo
od range we have new stock of Italian Cru caviar from sturgeon raised in the fresh mountain lakes. The Cru Imperial caviar has a robust flavour with an amber to golden brown colour. The roe is medium to large sized from the Sturgeon Acipenser Baerii. We have the Cru Asetra caviar which has a subtle flavour with a hazelnut aftertaste and sweet notes, bright brown colour. The roe are medium to large size from the Acipenser Gueldenstaedtii. In addition, we have the beautifully pink coloured wild salmon roe from the North Pacific and the smaller black lumpfish roe. We have tins of the Ortiz white tuna and white and brown anchovies. Remember that we can supply fresh oysters, either closed or shucked subject to at least 24 hours for a preorder during the week
.
We have a new stock of Saucisson sec style salami made locally for us. There is the plain Saucisson sec and there is the one flavoured with a hint of truffle. For nibbles we have the small Dutch cheese balls and wafer balls filled with soft cheese, truffle flavoured chips and Iberico ham flavoured chips from Spain. These are ideal to serve at cocktail parties. Alongside the pork scratchings and handmade cheese straws. In our fresh produce range the purple artichokes are selling fast, as soon as we put them out, they fly off the counter. We have fres
h stock of shallots, turmeric and ginger, fruit, and seasonal vegetables.
We received a couple of bottles of the unique Purple Gin from Massenez, one of the great distillers in France. This gin has a slight pink colour in it, due to macerated Griottines (little cherries) there is even a whole cherry, captured inside the bottle. We also received stock of fruit liqueurs Crème de Cassis (blackcurrant), crème de Griottes (little cherries) and crème de fraises des bois (woodland strawberries).
I decided to share another recipe for violet artichokes stuffed with bacon, shallots, garlic and herbs
to enjoy while they are in season, this is a really easy dish that can be left to cook gently while you entertain your friends. With thanks to Mapie, Vicomtesse Toulouse Lautrec for her wonderful Good French Cooking book which I treasure. I suggest pairing with the Cotes du Rhone blanc available in our shop or online at www.frenchmarket.co.za.
I hope that you have a great weekend, enjoy the rugby match if you are in town at the stadium, or watch it online with a French cheese platter and a glass or two of French wine.
Regards
Suzanne and The French Market Team