Bonjour French Market Friends,
This week is the start of the global MyFrenchFilmFestival Best of the Shorts Season2 with a selection of short films from evolving French film directors. The theme “Stranger than Fiction” explores the many ways of storytelling. There are 3 films in this season, and they are free to watch from now until 7 August on MyFrenchStories YouTube channel or TV5Monde+.
Our winter weather has really settled in here at the tip of Africa, with no autumn to make the change easier, we went straight into chilly wet weather. At least we did not get snow in Cape Town yet, which is currently being experienced by my client in Hanover this week, when we delivered their order. They sent me an image of their snow, and noted that it can freeze up to -15C degrees there, it reminds me of the North Pole.
The change in our weather definitely affects peoples’ appetites and food experiences. We immediately see an uptake on warm 
cheese dishes such as Raclette, which the French families love melting and serving with soft boiled potatoes, cornichons, thin sliced meats such as salami and fresh baguettes. FYI, Teflon make metal dishes to melt raclette. Our Reblochon style cheese is wonderful served sliced on top of potatoes and cream and baked in the oven – the dish is called Tartiflette. Another favourite is our mature Emmental grated over vegetable dishes and grilled quickly until it browns and melts.
Another popular cheese is the Tomme with black truffle. This mountain cheese has a medium firm texture with flecks of black truffles. You can eat this cheese on its own or you could make an interesting dish with cauliflower and a truffle cheese sauce.
On sp
ecial this week is our Roquefort, because we have a large stock and I need to move it. This is one of the challenges of importing special raw milk cheeses. We have to order a minimum quantity to get the extra certification required to import into S Africa. In this case it was 80kgs of roquefort. We have sold quite a lot, but we still have plenty in stock, so I have decided to do a special of 30% discount for the next couple of weeks. Taste it melted with mushrooms over a dark bread and chopped walnuts.
We have also received new stock of the delicious Spanish Torres truffle chips – these are some of my favourite snacks. They come in 40gr size which is perfect for 1 or 2 people and 125gr for sharing with good friends.
With this chilly weather I cannot think of a better way to spend a cold Sunday morning than staying at home with some of our delicious French butter croissants and Pain au chocolat for breakfast. They come in deep frozen from France and we sell them in the shop. They are so easy to make, you just take them from the freezer and bake them in the air fryer or oven.
As an accompaniment, we have received a small stock of Frank Coopers fine cut Oxford marmalade which pairs beautifully with the croissants. This marmalade is inspired by the original Sarah Jane Coopers 1874 recipe, made using the full flavour of Seville oranges.
On a chilly day I enjoy a simple vegetable broth which warms me and fills me up. One of my favourites is made with Puy 
Lentils. These green lentils are grown in the Valley of Puy. They are small and dark green. Their skin is thin because the climate is unique in this valley. Surrounded by ancient volcanoes, the prevailing wind drops rain clouds on the slopes of the mountains therefore the valley gets little rainfall. The volcanic soil gives the lentils a unique minerally taste. Puy Lentils do not have to be soaked in advance due to their thin skins. They are very good for you and make a healthy broth. This week’s recipe is really easy to make and can be made the day before so all you have to do is to heat it up. Serve topped with a layer of toasted Emmental, some chunks of a crisp baguette and a glass of Pavillon St Pierre, a blend of Shiraz and Grenache from the Cote de Rhone.
I hope you have an enjoyable weekend in front of a bright fire, eating lots of delicious French food.
Regards
Suzanne and The French Market Team