PURPLE GARLIC

I’m pretty sure I got my first taste of garlic when my grandmother made her famous pommes de terre sarladaises: she sautéed scalloped potatoes with duck fat in her cast-iron Dutch oven, crusted by decades of faithful service. Toward the end of the cooking time, she’d throw in a generous quantity of slivered garlic and a handful of chopped parsley. If we were lucky, golden chanterelles were combined with the potatoes. The whole kitchen smelled of garlic.

Bunches of garlic are hung to dry under la halle in Cadours

She also served a soupe au pain every night where thick slices of country bread soaked in a flavorful garlicky broth. More often than not, it also included vegetables from the garden: cabbage, carrots, dried fava beans… It was a far cry from the elegant potages served in Paris restaurants! When vegetables were not available, farmers would simply make a tourin blanchi, a garlic soup bound with an egg. It truly earned the nickname of soupe du pauvre. It’s simple, rustic, and unexpectedly smooth.

The stalks of this purple garlic are soft enough to be braided

Just a few weeks ago, Rick and I drove to Cadours, a small village of Haute-Garonne, during their annual Fête de l’Ail Violet. It was the perfect opportunity to get acquainted with their AOP purple garlic, witness how it is peeled and braided, and sample some tasty garlic soup.

A peacock entirely made of garlic was awarded First Prize this year.

Another surprise: a contest featuring stunning models completely made of garlic –cloves, skins, stalks– and displayed under the imposing 19th-century brick halle. Not as old as la halle de Grenade but a nice piece of architecture nonetheless.

I can’t even imagine how many hours were spent to recreate the Cadours church in garlic

I confess that I was not familiar with this purple garlic from Cadours: it only earned its Appellation d’Origine Protégée in 2017. But it prompted me to do some research on French varieties of garlic beyond the generic “white” variety.

Quite a trophy!

Three varieties of garlic have been awarded some distinctive protections.

Ail Rose de Lautrec IGP is the most famous one. This high-quality pink garlic is grown in the Tarn near Albi and obtained its Indication Géographique Protégée in 1996. It has a subtle and slightly sweet taste. It is said to keep for a full year.

Ail Violet de Cadours AOP exhibits a notable purple color on the skins. The heads are fairly large. The aroma and flavor assertive. In hot preparations, some sweetness balances its strength. It’s marketed as early as July, before any other French garlic.

Ail Fumé d’Arleux IGP is a pink garlic cultivated in the Hauts de France (the old Nord-Pas de Calais region.) It’s braided then smoked. The process gives the heads a copper color and confers a woody note to the garlic.

A little bit of Franglais…

If you love garlic, you’d probably enjoy going through a blind tasting to compare white, pink and purple garlics: make several frottes where a clove of garlic is rubbed against a piece of toasted country bread. It often served as my grandfather’s lunch when he was a child. The taste differences mostly reveal themselves when the various garlics are used raw. Simmered in a soup, they loose any harshness and become exquisitely smooth.

Tourin blanchi: yummy, rustic garlic soup

TOURIN BLANCHI
Garlic soup
Serves 6

2 Tbsp duck fat
2 heads of garlic, peeled and slivered
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
2 Tbsp flour
6 cups water
Salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
6 slices of country-style bread, stale or toasted

Melt the duck fat in a thick-bottom pot and lightly sauté the garlic and onion; do not allow the vegetables to color. Sprinkle the flour, mix well and add the water. Bring to a boil, add salt and pepper to taste, lower the heat, and simmer for about 30 minutes. Separate egg whites and egg yolks into two bowls. Beat the yolks with a fork, add the vinegar, and one Tbsp of soup. Take the pot off the stove, add the egg yolk mixture to the soup, and whisk briskly. Add the whites, mix and whisk thoroughly. Place a slice of bread in each bowl and pour the hot soup over the bread.

Vocabulary

La soupe au pain: bread soup. The broth and vegetables (whole or in chunks) are poured over a slice of bread. In rural areas, la soupe au pain was often meant to be a complete meal.
Le potage: a smoother, more refined soup. The components are cooked down or pureed to produce a creamier texture.
La soupe du pauvre: soup of the poor
La fête: festival
L’ail (f): garlic
Violet: purple
La halle: covered market square
Frotter: to rub

LA DEUCHE

Modesto –the California city where I lived before moving back to France three months ago– is the epitome of car culture in the USA. Native son George Lucas immortalized Friday night cruising in his 1973 movie American Graffiti. If you recall, a famous French car is featured in the film: a young Richard Dreyfuss steps out of an old Citroën 2 CV.

A patriotic specimen. Check out the roll-back roof.

I doubt I’m the only one who had a love affair with this iconic car. It was Dad’s first car when my parents ditched their Vespa and bought their Deux Chevaux about the time I was born. Truth be told: this car left an indelible imprint on three generations of French people.

Clearly, the perfect choice for a wedding: note the tulle flower at the top of the antenna.

The concept and design originated in 1938 but production in earnest only started ten years later; the car would be produced until 1990. In order to appeal to the masses (and sell more tires since Michelin had just bought Citroën…) engineers were charged to develop a Toute Petite Voiture that would sit four passengers, reach a top speed of 60 km/h (about 37 miles per hour) and burn only 3 liters of gas to cover 100 km (equivalent to 78 miles per gallon.) The cahier des charges for the suspension specified that a basket of eggs transported through a plowed field would not turn into a messy omelet. We must salute marketing genius when we see it: the car has always been extremely popular in rural areas.

I saw this one at a vide-grenier; not for sale, though.

Indeed, you will not see many 2 CV on the streets of Paris nowadays: since 2016, vehicles manufactured before 1997 have been deemed very polluants and City Hall has banned their use within the city limits unless they are registered as voitures de collection or are used for sightseeing tours, a very popular activity in the capital. But in my (current) neck of the woods, I still encounter 2 CV on a daily basis. On a bright February day ten years ago, I even saw a truffle-hunting pig stepping out of the back of a 2 CV camionnette!

There is a spiffy Charleston model in the light grey/dark grey combination that’s often parked across from the lycée. Other color combinations for the Charleston included the classic black/Delage red (it looks maroon) and a rare yellow/black model.

The car is immediately recognizable because the overall design was barely modified through its four decades of production: same rounded shape, flip-up windows, and roll-back roof. One noticeable change: the original butterfly doors were eventually replaced with a less “suicidal” set up… And the engine eventually reached a whopping 602 ccs versus 375 ccs on the very first model. A little more than 5 million units were produced worldwide. The 2 CV is so well loved that car clubs were founded in its honor: of course, they organize car shows and help owners find parts.

Over the years, I’ve noticed a one-of-a-kind 2 CV often parked at Carrefour or Intermarché. The car is mostly dark green but has gone through several paint “upgrades:” on a photo I took in 2014, the front fender on the passenger side was cream instead of black.

Many old 2 CV end up being “personalized.” Sometimes the farmer just wants to replace a rusted fender on its utilitarian vehicle. Sometimes an aficionado yearns to make his car unique through customized paint jobs or accessories.

A bright green 2 CV sits on my neighbor’s property, less than 300 feet from my office. It would need a lot of TLC to hit the asphalt!

A well-traveled 2 CV. I wonder whether it actually visited all the countries featured on its flags.

Customized hood ornament. Perfect!

Michel Robillart, a professional woodworker, made the news last year with his wooden 2 CV. Photo credit: Guillaume Souvant/AFP.

If you’re truly a fan, like Michel Robillard, you spend 6 years of your life building a 2 CV out of various fruit woods. And it runs!

Old 2 CV never die!

Some fun links to explore:

The Citroën Official Website features lots of photos and even sounds of the beloved 2 CV

This INA short film shows how the 2 CV is the perfect vehicle to take on a picnic

If you are a Netflix subscriber, check out this episode (C4:E4) of Comedians in Cars having Coffee where Jerry Seinfeld and Gad Elmaleh drive a vintage 2 CV in the streets of New York.

Vocabulary

La Deuche (or Deudeuche): nickname for the 2 CV
Deux Chevaux: lit. Two Horses; what the initials 2 CV stand for, in reference to the (fiscal) two horsepower engine
Toute Petite Voiture: Very Little Car
Le cahier des charges: lit. notebook of responsibilities; specifications
Polluant: polluting
Voiture de collection: collector’s car, vintage car
Camionnette: van; in this case, the back seat of the 2 CV was removed to increase cargo capacity.
Le lycée: high school  

A PLUM LIFE

Since my return to the farm I’ve been feeling very domestic. It is a retour aux sources to the place that’s been part of me, since my very first visit: I was two months old. Throughout their retirement, my grandparents raised ducks, chicken, and rabbits. They also grew vegetables to feed animals (maïs, betteraves, topinambours) and humans (pommes de terre, haricots verts, asperges, petits pois, fèves.) There was also a small potager planted with leeks, carrots, tomatoes, and a variety of lettuces. Fruit trees dotted the fields. Growing your own produce and eating in season was a double-edged sword. First, you got all excited when harvesting the first green beans; two weeks later, you tried to invent new dishes to use the above-mentioned vegetables; three weeks into the season, you were insanely tired of équeuter the beans and canning the seemingly endless crop.

My quetsche tree is ready for its close up.

The farm is no longer in an active state but some of the fruit trees remain. We arrived too late for cherries and apricots but August blessed us with an abundance of plums, more than enough to share with family, birds, and wasps. By all accounts, this year was a bumper crop for fruits à noyaux.

Although I frequently purchased local produce from Farmers’ markets while living in California, nothing beats the taste and texture of a perfectly ripe fruit, just picked from the tree and eaten on the spot. But when strong winds knocked down a large branch of my quetsche tree, we found ourselves with an abundance of riches. Not being equipped for canning at the moment, I resorted to making compotes, clafoutis, and tarts. If I find myself in a similar predicament next year, I might just have a local bouilleur de cru distill my excess fruit and turn it into eau de vie.

Sweet golden mirabelles

The most exciting thing for me was to feast on varieties of plums that I rarely –or never– encountered in the US. The Mirabelle plum is virtually unknown there: in fact, I can’t really find a translation for it. Some call it a “cherry plum” because it is the size of a fat cherry; one of my suppliers used to label it “fancy plum”, which was more confusing than helpful. Those who have seen and tasted a mirabelle always recognize its (often flecked) dark yellow skin, yellow flesh, and sweet flavor. It’s a specialty of the Lorraine area where 80% of the production is grown.

Reines-Claudes stay green even when ripe.

My personal favorite is the Reine Claude (greengage), named after the wife of King François 1er. Round and firm, its skin is green even when the plum is ripe; its flesh is green as well. It retains a touch of acidity which balances its sweetness. I think they make fabulous tarts: they soften but do not lose too much juice.

Luscious quetsches; could make a good brandy, perhaps…

Very prevalent in our area is the Quetsche (damson) and its cousin the Prune d’Ente (the one they dry to make those wonderful French prunes in Agen.) The oval purple fruit brightly contrasts from the thick green leaves of the tree. Its light red flesh is a bit juicier than the Reine Claude.

Two weeks ago, I found myself in the middle of the perfect plum storm: I actually had baskets of all three varieties at the same time! Not wanting to play favorite, I felt under obligation to celebrate them all in one dish.

THREE PLUM TART
Tarte aux trois prunes
Serves 6 to 8

One sheet of pastry (home-made or store-bought)
2 lbs plums, three assorted varieties
4 tablespoons almond meal
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 375º F. Drop the pastry into a 12” tart mold. Wash, half and pit the plums. Spread the almond meal evenly on the surface of the dough. Arrange the plums in crust; sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake for 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Vocabulary
Le retour aux sources: lit. return to the origins, homecoming
Le maïs: corn
La betterave: beet
Le topinambour: Jerusalem artichoke
La pomme de terre: potato
Le haricot vert: green bean
L’asperge (f): asparagus
Le petit pois: green pea
La fève: fava bean
Le potager: the vegetable garden
Equeuter: to trim the ends of the beans
Le fruit à noyau: stone fruit
La quetsche: damson plum
Le bouilleur de cru: private distiller
L’eau de vie (f): brandy

TRAVELS WITH LILY

I confess that I felt some anxiety about flying with our dog as we were relocating to France. Lily was never much of a traveler: for starter, she would routinely get car sick after a twenty-minute ride. Our ace in the hole was that she was used to sleeping in her crate and had no issue with being confined overnight. Her small size gave us the option of flying her in the cabin with us but I was still concerned about her spending some twelve hours enclosed in her carrier. All pets have different personalities but I thought I would share our experience about Lily’s Excellent Adventure and about her new life in France: other humans might glean some insight to make their four-legged companion’s travel less stressful.

Are we there yet? My uncles Rick and Jim gave us a ride to the airport in their motorhome. Loved it!

1/ First things first: not all airlines accept pets in cabin (or in cargo, for that matter) so check airline websites for their pet travel policies. Those that do allow pets in cabins limit the number of animals on a given flight. Except for service or emotional support animals, your pet will be confined in his carrier for the duration for the flight, and the carrier must fit under the seat in front of you (that pretty much nixes flying Business Class outfitted with a lie-flat seat.) And yes, the carrier counts toward your luggage allowance. Find out the maximum dimensions of the allowable carrier and train your pet to spend time in it. In our case, we switched Lily from her “spacious” hard crate to the much smaller soft carrier four months before departure, hiding treats inside to motivate her to explore her new digs and feel more at home.

Oooh! Lots of new scents at the farm!

2/ Book your flight several months ahead with an airline rep. Websites will not tell you whether the “animal quota” for a given flight has been reached. I wanted to use United Airlines miles for our flight. I checked online for award availability around our desired departure date; then I called their reservation center to inquire about having a pet in cabin on my preferred itinerary and confirmed that we could bring Lily with us; I booked our flights and asked the rep to add Lily to my reservation ($125 extra.) I printed my ticket receipt and made sure the “pet in cabin” was listed on it.

A mole hill! First, dispatch the dirt; then, sink the nose into the hole.

3/ Several health documents need to be filled and verified before your pet can fly with you and the requirement vary with origin and destination. Stacie, a Facebook friend who regularly flies to France with her compagnon à quatre pattes, shared many helpful pointers. Do not assume that your veterinarian is well-versed on that topic: do your own research on the government pages of the country you will be visiting. Regulations and forms are complex. I strongly encourage you to visit the Pet Travel Store and to order the appropriate forms from them: they will be tailored to your destination and pet species.

I just know there is a mouse hiding between these logs.

4/ Make sure that your vet is accredited by the USDA: our regular vet was on maternity leave and her substitute was not USDA accredited: we had to make an appointment at another veterinary clinic. Your pet must be implanted with an ISO 15-digit non-encrypted microchip. EU authorities will not be able to read other styles of microchips: you’ll either need to have the “correct” microchip inserted by your vet or rent/purchase your own microchip reader. A microchip certificate must be filled by the vet. Your pet must be vaccinated for rabies at least 21 days prior to entry and the vet must fill out the EU Veterinary Certificate from France (7 pages) not more than 12 days prior to your travel date. IN BLUE INK (I don’t know why but I’ve learned to never question bureaucracy…) Then, the certificate must be taken (or mailed) to your USDA/APHIS/US Area Office, along with a check for $38, for certification; use Express Mail both ways as you will need the certification to fly out. You also must complete a Declaration of Non-Commercial Movement. Additionally, most airlines require a Veterinary Certificate for Domestic and International Airline Travel where you vet states that your pet is healthy enough to travel, is free of parasites, shows no evidence of diseases communicable to humans, and has a valid vaccination against rabies.

I’ll just watch my territory from the front door. And work on my tan.

5/ All these forms constitute the “Pet Passport” and must be presented when you check in for your flight. It’s a good idea to have a set of copies with you as some airlines will want to retain the information and check-in counters do not usually have a copy machine nearby. The originals stay with you for entry into France.

My new cousins are cool. Aunt Françoise also keeps two cats and one hen. I’m not too fond of them; I like to chase them but that big chicken is a bit scary.

To make sure that Lily met all requirements, I booked our flights four months in advance, ordered the forms from PetpassportStore.com, contacted my vet to make sure the microchip was the 15-digit style, scheduled an appointment 10 days prior to our departure (we spent two solid hours at the vet’s office: they’re just not familiar with the forms and requirements) and sent Rick to the USDA office in Sacramento the same day. Just to be on the safe side, I asked our vet to prescribe some Cerenia, an anti-nausea drug, that we gave her before the car and plane travels. We also had a mild sedative on hand in case she got too agitated in the plane but we didn’t use it.

Where is this delicious French food I keep hearing about?

To make the trip easier on our little girl, we decided to break the journey in three chunks so she wouldn’t be confined for the equivalent of a day and a half: I booked a pet-friendly hotel at SFO airport where we spent the night before the flight and I also reserved a pet-friendly hotel near Orleans for the day of our arrival. Besides, I just couldn’t imagine driving all the way down to Gourdon right after landing at CDG…

After a nice Sunday lunch, I got to nap in the hammock with Cousin Brice.

Documents were thoroughly reviewed by the airline rep when we checked in but les douaniers didn’t bat an eye when we arrived in Paris. We were pleasantly surprised by Lily’s demeanor throughout the trip in spite of a flight delay of three and half hour: she made friends with several passengers at the gate who turned out to be seated in the row in front of us. Kudos to the crew on our United Airlines flight: they encouraged us to get her out of her carrier and to hold her on our laps for takeoff and landing. They also offered to give her some water. Well, I didn’t want to tempt fate and watched her water intake like a hawk but Lily is blessed to have a bladder of steel! The long car ride went smoothly as well. I was a proud mama.

Mom says I still need to work on my table manners.

This whole experience transformed our dog into an enthusiastic traveler: she even hops into the car with Rick when he’s taking garbage to the dump. She has adjusted to her new life very quickly. Most people think of dachshunds as lap dogs but they were actually bred to hunt badgers and Lily would make her ancestors very proud: she actively patrols her territory and sniffs out taupes, hérissons et lézards. She even caught une souris ! She’s great with the neighbors’ dogs, not so much with their cats. I think she was really meant to lead an active country life. She is active, happy, and enthusiastic. We’ll just need to enroll her in “finishing school” so she can become one of those well-behaved French dogs who patiently seat under a café table while her humans enjoy a beer en terrace…

 
Vocabulary
Un compagnon à quatre pattes: four-legged companion
Le douanier: customs officer
La taupe: mole
Le hérisson: hedgehog
La souris: mouse
En terrace: outdoors

IMPORTANT. The informations supplied above applied to our specific situation: flying from the US to France with one dog in July 2018. Requirements can vary depending on several factors such as pet species, number of animals traveling, country of origin, destination, stopovers, etc.