Bonjour French Market Friends,
This w
eek the turkey population in the USA was severely depleted as Americans celebrated Thanksgiving, followed by massive Black Friday sales as stores cleared out stock prior to the start of Christmas season. Back in France after the G20 meetings in JNB, President Macron announced a voluntary military training for young people aged 18 to 20 amidst concerns over the increasing threat on the Eastern border of Europe. Whilst none will go on active duty the idea is that they would be able to act as reservists after their training. (Image courtesy ABACA/Shutterstock) The President will be receiving President Zelinsky on Monday to review the current Peace proposals.
Next week in France is the celebration of St Nicholas on 6th December. Named after Bishop Nicholas of Myra who died on the 6th of December 343 AD, he is viewed as a patron saint of children. Visually portrayed as an old, bearded man, dressed in a red cloak and carrying a bag of gifts, he is the precursor of Father Christmas. In France children are given sweets and gifts on this day. In celebration of St Nicholas Day, the French school in Seapoint is holding a Christmas Market. There will be plenty of stands and The French Market will be present with some tasty cheese. Contact me if you want more details.
It seems the whole year has raced away as we prepared for this Peak Season and suddenly December is here. Many grown up
children working overseas are flying home to be with their parents over Christmas. We are seeing lots of international visitors who have escaped the chilly northern winter and are basking in our sunny weather. Many are regular returning visitors, and we welcome them back. We are well prepared with a large stock of beautiful French and Swiss cheese arriving next week. This includes real 15 months aged Le Gruyere which we have battled to get due to the increasing strictness of import regulations for unpasteurised cheese. We have to get an additional certification done to check for certain bacteria. To do this we have to agree to take several whole wheels, in the case of Le Gruyere that is 80kgs. The same applies to Emmental, Morbier and Comte. Luckily, we have chilled storag
e facilities at the port and hopefully everyone will order lots of cheese platters for their celebratory meals. Do message me or WhatsApp me if you wish to order some cheese.
Additionally, if you would like some real gourmet treats such as fresh truffles, we can book this for you, but we need a few days notice as they fly in from Italy. The price can vary depending on if it snows in the truffle regions and harvests are
reduced. We are still in the Black Autumn truffle season. The black winter season will start in December then the spring white truffle follows and continues into January.
We can also supply you with caviar from Sevruga, Oscietra right up to the Beluga. These need pre booking as we keep a very small stock in the shop. We should receive smoked salmon and blinis just before Christmas. Do message me if you would like more details.
For the Festive Season celebrations, we have a range of Champagne from small houses to famous houses such as Louis Roederer. We have the Laurent Perrier La Cuvee which comes in a gift box with a pair of champag
ne flutes, this makes a great gift.
For easy canapes you can use our readymade “Bouchée a la reine” (mini sized vols aux vents cases with a savoury filling) to make an easy, bite sized treat to accompany cocktails. In the 1700s the chef of French Queen Marie Leszczynska created these bite sized treats for the queen to enjoy and called them “Bouchee a la Reine” (the queen’s mouthful). The larger size vols aux vents (fly in the wind) can be used to make a main course. Whilst you can make any filling, here is one with ham, cheese and mushroom in a bechamel sauce.
I wish you a relaxing weekend, enjoy the rugby today and eat some great French cheese.
Regards
Suzanne and The French Market Team