Hello French Market friends,
This week in France the Cannes Film Festival opened in all its glamour. This is one of the most famous and globally followed 
events on the Mediterranean coast of France. This beautiful seaside town is filled with movie stars and film producers from around the world. They come to trade with each other, to share their work with the global media and cast their votes on the latest crop of films. Catching plenty of attention this week is the film Jeanne du Barry, the story of the famous mistress of King Louis XV. Star Johnny Depp received a standing ovation when he entered the press conference to discuss his role. It will be interesting to see how the jury votes on the selected films up for awards this year.
Following on from the recent achievement of winning the Golden Globe RTW sailing challenge, South Africa is again in the sporting world news with South African champion female cyclist (who
competed recently in our Cape Town Cycle Tour) Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio winning the Spanish Durango-Durango road race. This race covers several hilly ascents in the Basque region in the north west of Spain, and Ashleigh demonstrated her strength over the 113km route. (Image courtesy of RAFA GÓMEZ (SPRINT CYCLING AGENCY)
Our famous cheese from the northern Basque region is Ossau-Iraty AOC. The name derives from the forest region of Iraty and the next door valley of Ossau, in the foothills pf the Pyrenees mountains. 
This cheese has been made for centuries in this region, with the earliest records of the cheese being sold in the markets at Toulouse. Wheels of the cheese were used by farmers as barter to pay for their taxes. The milk comes from sheep raised in the Ossau-Iraty hills. The cheese was awarded AOC status, confirming its uniqueness and protecting the name from copycats. The cheese is made into a wheel weighing about 2,5kg. It has a dry crust and dense medium firm texture. The flavour is gentle and is similar to the well-known Spanish cheese Manchego.
In our fresh produce range this week we have lots of naartjies
, our local name for tangerines and similar to satsumas and mandarins. It is the nartjie season and our naartjies come from the farms around Franschhoek. They are a great fruit for little children, as their size is small and they are easy to peel. They are a good to eat as they are high in vitamin C.
With the onset of winter chilly weather and the temperature going below 10C degrees today, here at the tip of Africa, it is time for a 
lovely hot cheese recipe. One of my favourites and really easy dishes, is baked Camembert. The easiest way is to bak
e the whole cheese in a ramekin, until it is completely gooey inside. Eat it with chunks of baguette dipped in the melted cheese. I like to add some slivers of garlic and herbs to the cheese. See the recipe below, it is quick and easy. I suggest pairing with a chenin from the Loire Valley and recommend our favourite Vouvray by Marc Bredief.
Wishing you a relaxed weekend full of great meals shared with friends and family.
Regards