Month: April 2010

My husband Bob  (also known as Bicycle Bob),  is more comfortable on the seat of a bicycle than at a kitchen counter. Nonetheless on our recent trip to Paris I talked him into joining me for a lunchtime cooking course. 

He was fearful of slicing shallots as the chef teacher instructed (he left that task to me), but he did a masterful job of separating the meat of a duck breast from its skin, then cutting the flesh it into small, evenly sized chunks.  I was relieved – and proud of his culinary precision. At home, he leaves all the cooking to me.

We were at L’atelier des chefs, a cooking school with a broad palette of offerings, from the 30-minute lunch course to two-hour sessions. We chose the former and joined five others to whip up  “Farfalle au canard, citron et câpres,” (Farfalle with duck, lemon and capers).  Cost of course and meal: €15.

After everyone donned an apron, instructor-chef François Pelletier got right down to business, explaining and directing procedures in rapid-fire French. I speak French, but at times he lost me.  No problem.  Just watch. 

First, he showed how to skin the duck. Then, how to properly slice and dice a shallot, explaining that the same procedure should be followed for an onion.  Hold the vegetable with the fingers bent back to avoid cutting yourself.  Don’t press down too hard or the juices of the shallot/onion will escape.  You need the juice for flavor.  His slicing technique was fast and smooth, a delight to watch, and the slices all equally sized and perfect. Several of our classmates, who no doubt had been to these classes before, were almost as proficient.  I was a failure — slow and clumsy. Some of my slices were fat, others skinny, but I did not worry.  Who would know the difference in the final dish?

When we were ready to move on to cooking the pasta and sautéing the duck, Pelletier offered this advice:  For cooking pasta, add 2 teaspoons of coarse salt per liter of water, and don’t add oil to the cooking water.  For al dente pasta, check the pasta for the correct consistency by breaking a piece.  It will be al dente when there is still a tiny bit of white left in the middle.  Not to worry as the pasta will continue to cook after it is removed from the heat and water.

As to sautéing the duck, or any meat, let the pan heat up before adding the meat. Resist turning it until it begins to brown.  If you try to turn or move it too soon, it will stick to the pan.  When it begins to color it means it has reached the same temp as the pan and will turn easily.

Salt and pepper: Add a bit of salt in the beginning of cooking as it aids the cooking process.  Add more as desired at the end of cooking. Add pepper at the last minute – or at the table.  If you add it too soon it loses its taste.  

While some students finished the cooking process, others showed their creative skills by decorating the plates with swirls of crème de balsamique, a product that is very trendy these days, Pelletier said. 

The lesson was efficient, fast – and impressive.  We all gathered in an adjoining room to savor the tasty creation and chat.  Several of the group, who work nearby, were regulars.  Jack Bussy, a burly type who fit the stereotype image of a chef,  has been coming two to three times a week since 2007

“I love to cook and eat,” he said.  “It’s calm here.  I know everyone. Restaurants are noisy and you don’t know what you’re eating.  The people are not always nice.  Restaurants are more expensive.”

It was the second time for Natalie Ceillier. “It’s good, economical and very enjoyable.  You meet nice people here,” she said.

Add another €7 to the basic price of €15 and you can have a glass of wine, dessert and coffee, in addition to the main dish.

Two French brothers, Nicolas and Francois Bergerault, started L’atelier des Chefs in 2004 “to get people back in the kitchen.”  The lunchtime courses have been a huge success, but for those with more time, there is a range of lengthier courses from a one-hour “party sushis” course (€36) to a two-hour “products of spring” course (€72).

There are now 12 ateliers around the world, including one in London, five Paris locations, five other French locations and Dubai.  Thirty more are planned to open by the end of 2011.

Each location has a shop with an excellent range of kitchen gadgets and paraphernalia, as well as gourmet products.  I purchased a bottle of tomato vinegar which is exquisite. Bob went for concassée de poivrons grillés (grilled red pepper puree).

BB excelled in the Paris kitchen.  But, unfortunately now that we’re home, he remains more enamored of his bicycle than frying pans and casseroles.

More information on the web site www.atelierdeschefs.fr  where you will find a complete list of courses and dates, as well as recipes and videos.  You can sign up online. The English language version is only for the programs in London. 

  

 

The trees were still bare.  There were more clouds than sunshine. It rained some.  This was March – not April – in Paris, but it was still wonderful, glorious to be in my favorite city.  

Thanks to a special offer, we rode in style (first class) on France’s high speed train, the TGV, to the city of light, just a three-hour journey from Avignon. As in the past, we stayed at a delightful bed and breakfast in St. Germain, a convenient, lively and beautiful district of the city. 

We visited museums and markets.  We prepared our own lunch at a cooking school. We ate some good – and some not so good – restaurant meals.  We enjoyed a musical at Folies Bergère. We lingered at outdoor cafes.  We rode the Metro.  And, we walked – and walked, and walked.

Our first full day was devoted to museums, six different ones, which is way too many for one day. We concentrated on museums we had never visited on previous trips, beginning with the Grand Palais where we had hoped to view a Turner exhibit.  Alas, the line to see the special collection was long, too long for us.  We skipped Turner and took in the museum’s permanent collections which involved no wait.  The nearby Petit Palais was next.  The special exhibit there was a collection of 307 haute couture “costumes” by Yves Saint Laurent.   There was also a line, but thanks to my press card, I was able to walk right in. The card would have worked for me with Turner, but not for Bob. As fashion is not big on his favorites list, I felt we could separate and he could take in the museum’s permanent collection (lots of 19^th century French painting) while I admired years of Yves Saint Laurent.  Superb.

We headed down the Champs Élysées for a visit to the Orangerie to view the enormous canvases of Monet’s Water Lilies.  We liked the other art on display, lots of Impressionist works, better than Monet’s flowers.  Then over to Place Madeleine for another special exhibit, Edvard Munch at the Pinacothèque de Paris. No line here and the exhibit, entitled “Edvard Munch or the Anti-Scream” gives ample proof that Munch deserves recognition for much more than his famous painting, “The Scream.”

After a late lunch break, we took the Metro to the Marais to visit two more museums, the Musée Carnavalet and the Musée Cognacq-Jay.  By then, we were museumed out.  My fault.  I act as tour guide on our trips, and I overdid it big time.  The Carnavalet, also known as the Museum of the History of Paris, is housed in two connecting mansions from the mid 16^th century with objects on display charting the history of the city. We loved the gardens where we took a welcome rest.  The Cognacq-Jay houses the private collection of objets d’art owned by Ernest Cognacq, but we were too wiped out to appreciate them.

Fortunately we saved the Quay Branly museum for another day.  It’s a new jewel, opening in 2006, on the Paris museum scene. A New York Times writer called the controversial building, a jumble of mismatched structures, “defiant, mysterious and wildly eccentric.”   The gardens, an inviting arrangement of reeds and pools and grasses, are exquisite.  No less so are the interior collections, objects and artifacts from Africa, Oceania, Asia and the Americas all bathed in inky light. 

Yet another day we visited the small Musée Jean Moulin which focuses on the German occupation of Paris in WWII, the Resistance led by Jean Moulin, and the liberation of the city. It has an excellent film, and was Bob’s favorite in the museum category.

Markets were also on the tour guide’s “to-do” list.  We visited the huge, bustling Belleville market where shoppers crowd body-to-body in the narrow aisle between the rows of stalls. The merchants, mainly North African, shout out the prices and merits of their products, mainly fruits and vegetables, but some clothing and other items.  It’s chaotic, noisy, but fun.  Far more civilized and tiny in comparison is the Rue Mouffetard market, noted as the “most photogenic” in the city.  The gourmet shops that line this street are as enticing as the market produce. Windows beckon with homemade pastas, cheese, wines, olives and more.

We made two shopping stops.  Bob was bowled over by the basement of Bazar de l’Hotel de Ville (BHV) department store.  It’s hardware heaven – an enormous space filled with anything any handyman ever wanted. We zeroed in on the sign section. “Vicious Pig,”  “Nice dog, mean owner,” “Lunatic Rabbit,” … take your pick, but all in French of course.  We purchased a few in a more serious vein for our guest apartment. Our other shopping venue was the Grande Epicerie de Paris, the sumptuous food hall at Le Bon Marche department store.  Gourmet delicacies from around the world fill the shelves. My kind of store.

Our evening entertainment was usually a restaurant meal, but we did take in a musical, Zorro, at the Folies Bergère. We bought half-price tickets offered on the day of the performance at the kiosk at 15 Place de la Madeleine. The energetic and lusty musical features Flamenco dance, gypsy songs, sword fights, and dramatic scenes with Zorro to the rescue, swinging from a rope.  Good entertainment.

In the meal category, we were often disappointed.  Restaurant meals in Paris are pricier than those in Provence. The dollar is stronger these days, but still not in great shape, so we try to find economical eateries.  The best meal was our splurge at Le Train Bleu in the Gare de Lyon.  The Belle Époque setting is superb: spacious ornate rooms laden with gilded décor, gigantic ceiling paintings and sculptures. You feel special, and my meal, the TGV special, was indeed that. Foie gras as an entrée followed by perfectly cooked leg of lamb (rosy) with potatoes au gratin, topped off by coffee with a selection of different mini-sized desserts.

The most fun dining was the lunch we prepared ourselves under the direction of a cooking school chef at L’atelier des Chefs.  More on that in my next blog post.

See more photos of Paris by clicking on the Photo Album in the center column.

For more about Paris see friend Herb Livesey's blog: www.akeyinthedoor.com