Bonjour Dear French Market Friends,
Christmas week is upon us, I plan all year for this one week, when all our clients descend on our shop, for unique treats to share over the Festive season, with their families and friends. It is only as I come to the final days that I know if everything has arrived on time. Trying to cram everything into such a tiny shop is a challenge, with Panettone almost hanging from the ceiling and the fridges packed full of gourmet pleasures.
I look forward to seeing you at the shop in the next few days, remember we are open every day except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and the 1st of January. As it will be very busy, I recommend that you come as early as possible. You can always send me a message with your order, and we will prepare it for you to pick up. You can WhatsApp me on 083 300 6725 or drop me an email.
This year I have managed to get all our stocks in time, including some fresh black Autumn truffles from Italy that arrived today. They are coal black, and their aroma is beautifully earthy and intense. The average size is about 15gr. Price is R47 per gramme.
Another special treat is caviar from Italy, I have a small stock of Beluga caviar in 15g tins. Beluga is the largest of the Sturgeon fish, their roe is large and has great depth of flavour. The Beluga also comes in 50g tins which are available on a pre-order basis, they can be in CPT overnight, during the week. I have a small stock of Asetra (Osetra) 30g tins. This caviar is more golden hued than the Beluga, the roe is slightly smaller with a slight nutty flavour and creamy texture. I have a stock of the Baerii caviar farmed high in the mountains in Madagascar. I have received some beautiful pink salmon roe (Keta) from the Northern pacific. The large pink roe are so attractive decorating dishes.
In our cheese range amongst all our wonderful special cheeses such as Brie with Truffles, Mont D Or, triple cream Delice, and all the usual mob, we have a new baby, this is a Brebis Brie, a Brie style cheese made with Brebis (Ewe’s) milk. Delicate in flavour and much lighter in fat content, this cheese will appeal to all who want to try something less rich and soft in flavour or who are not able to eat cow’s milk cheese. Do ask us for a taste.
We also received 5 kgs of fresh porcinis from the SAPI pine forests near Kokstad, these have large brown hats and light bright stalks. They have a fresh aroma and are easy to cook, just slice and fry in some butter with a little garlic and parsley.
We received some parsnips for the Christmas meal, whilst not as glamourous as fresh truffles and porcinis, these are an essential part of many English Christmas dinners.
Champagne on hand for these special celebration days is a must, we have a wide variety available from small champagne houses up to the top range from Louis Roederer. They are all on display in the shop.
For this week’s recipe I have shared my grandmother’s Christmas pudding recipe, which brings back memories as a little girl of helping to stir the Christmas pudding, standing on a stool in the kitchen, as I was too short to reach the table. All the family had to make a wish as they stirred, I guess my mother thought that was a good way to motivate us into helping.
See recipe below. Take care when you flambe the pudding, don’t use too much brandy!
I wish you a peaceful and enjoyable Christmas with memorable meals shared with your families and friends,
Regards
Suzanne and The French Market Team