I'm in Vancouver (suburb of actually) and we're so close to the border that it's nothing to just pop over to get some of the products we can't get here, or at least it was before the pandemic. just thinking of the Kerrygold butter at Costco (we can get kerrygold cheese but not their butter), the heirloom apples at the Bellingham Co-op, or being able to wander the aisles at Trader Joes (again not available in Canada) is enough to get me drooling.
We just returned from France, three days in Paris to go to the flea market. Then rental car to Burgundy. Amazing fruits, bread, charcuterie, etc, etc. Coming back to US fast food nation is so deceptive! Love all your comments. All I can say is true, true, true. Thanks 🥰
You just rekindled a great memory .... The Olonzac market! thank you and I'm happy to say I'm headed back that way in a few weeks. It will be interesting to experience it in a different season. Last time was late summer. Cheers and thanks!
Wish you were here! Santa Barbara has a wonderful Farmers Market and since July we’ve been picking up fresh corn on the cob each Sat mown & having it for lunch with heirloom tomatoes. Know the season will be over soon but enjoying it weekly.
If I may be nostalgic about what I miss from my home country (South Africa) and that I gorge on when I go back: incredibly abundant and cheap fruit both fresh and dried- paw paws, mangoes, avocados, guavas, lychees - especially the more tropical fruits grown in the eastern, tropical zones. Big tins of peri peri cashews from Mozambique, live crayfish sold on the side of the road for less than $1 each (okay we are going back to the Cape in the 60s). My first trip to the US in the early 80s was an eye-opener for the variety of similar things like breakfast cereals and the size of quantities, how everything was so sweet and double or triple sized.
My mom and I love to sit and talk about all the special food we've eaten on our travels that we can't get her in the US. I had to laugh about Mallomars as one of my favorite treats is from Mary Chocolatier in Brussels which is almost like a Mallomar. I've never had one in the US, but I adore the ones from Mary!
Dill: Are there many Persians in Paris? Its an oft used ingredient in Jewish Persian food (I don't know if non-Jewish Persians use it too). Chop a lot of into a bunch of other greens, like parsley, chives, cilantro, even spinach, but not basil, mix with eggs and it makes a Persian frittata like dish called Coocoo. Basil: I grow it in L.A. and sometimes nibble little new leaves when I water in the morning.
David, my friend from Grenoble visited me in the states about 15 years ago. I made some black bean soup with sun dried tomatoes (dried but not in oil.)She went absolutely crazy for them… we had to run out and buy bags of them for her to take back to France. She said she could not get them in Grenoble. That surprised me as I always assume being close to Italy, Grenoble would have some of it’s pantry staples. Are they available now in Paris?
Your article dropped at the perfect time. I'm coming to Paris in a week to visit my sister. Her supply requests include; 10lbs of Laird Hamilton's Superfood coffee creamer(he is adorable but...), See's California Crunch toffee, TCHO Mint Chocolate bars, Oculus VR headset, measuring cups, and two cookbooks. After reading the article I will add baking powder and baking soda to the list. I'm happy to bring a tub of rainbow sprinkles if you'd like : )
I live in Paris for 3 months in spring and three months in fall. At the start of each stay, I buy a little basil plant in the local fruit and veg market for about 3e and keep it in my window for fresh basil. I don’t make a big batch of pesto but use it for the whole 3 months for omelets; sauces, and basic seasoning.
David, one of my favorite salads is a bed of whatever lettuce you like topped with a few slices of good tomatoes. Add a splash of vinaigrette, add a spoonful of good mayonnaise and sprinkle with. Loped fresh dill. I have made this for twenty years and still love it.
Sushi rolls were always available in Hawaii in the 60’s when we moved there due to the large Japanese population. Definitely not as amazingly varied as they are now!
So sorry to hear how, well, provincial Paris is with regard to certain veg. I live (part time) in the south of France in Valbonne… which I admit is a kind of international village with a famous (or infamous) greengrocer —- both gorgeous, fabulous and ridiculously expensive. In any case, they certainly sell corn on the cob during the season. And the big Carrefours (supermarket) as well as some of the supermarkets in the villages around me (we don’t have one in Valbonne) now have “supermarket” sushi —. Freshly made at a visible food station. It’s a no brainier for the huge Carrefour in Antibes, which has an excellent fish department… lots of fresh whole fish and crustaceans for sale… If all this is not happening in Paris it is a shame — The south of France has always had it’s own cuisine— Provençal and heavily influenced by Italy and more recently, North Africa. Add to that the international residents in the area and you get a really exciting, open food community. As for mangoes: I buy them at the Portobello street market in London — Alfonse variety… most delish!
I'm in Vancouver (suburb of actually) and we're so close to the border that it's nothing to just pop over to get some of the products we can't get here, or at least it was before the pandemic. just thinking of the Kerrygold butter at Costco (we can get kerrygold cheese but not their butter), the heirloom apples at the Bellingham Co-op, or being able to wander the aisles at Trader Joes (again not available in Canada) is enough to get me drooling.
We just returned from France, three days in Paris to go to the flea market. Then rental car to Burgundy. Amazing fruits, bread, charcuterie, etc, etc. Coming back to US fast food nation is so deceptive! Love all your comments. All I can say is true, true, true. Thanks 🥰
You just rekindled a great memory .... The Olonzac market! thank you and I'm happy to say I'm headed back that way in a few weeks. It will be interesting to experience it in a different season. Last time was late summer. Cheers and thanks!
Wish you were here! Santa Barbara has a wonderful Farmers Market and since July we’ve been picking up fresh corn on the cob each Sat mown & having it for lunch with heirloom tomatoes. Know the season will be over soon but enjoying it weekly.
If I may be nostalgic about what I miss from my home country (South Africa) and that I gorge on when I go back: incredibly abundant and cheap fruit both fresh and dried- paw paws, mangoes, avocados, guavas, lychees - especially the more tropical fruits grown in the eastern, tropical zones. Big tins of peri peri cashews from Mozambique, live crayfish sold on the side of the road for less than $1 each (okay we are going back to the Cape in the 60s). My first trip to the US in the early 80s was an eye-opener for the variety of similar things like breakfast cereals and the size of quantities, how everything was so sweet and double or triple sized.
My mom and I love to sit and talk about all the special food we've eaten on our travels that we can't get her in the US. I had to laugh about Mallomars as one of my favorite treats is from Mary Chocolatier in Brussels which is almost like a Mallomar. I've never had one in the US, but I adore the ones from Mary!
Fun post and fun comments thread too.:)
Just sitting up here in Canada, resentful over 40 cent mangos & those tins of prune plum filling in the baking aisle photo...
Dill: Are there many Persians in Paris? Its an oft used ingredient in Jewish Persian food (I don't know if non-Jewish Persians use it too). Chop a lot of into a bunch of other greens, like parsley, chives, cilantro, even spinach, but not basil, mix with eggs and it makes a Persian frittata like dish called Coocoo. Basil: I grow it in L.A. and sometimes nibble little new leaves when I water in the morning.
David, my friend from Grenoble visited me in the states about 15 years ago. I made some black bean soup with sun dried tomatoes (dried but not in oil.)She went absolutely crazy for them… we had to run out and buy bags of them for her to take back to France. She said she could not get them in Grenoble. That surprised me as I always assume being close to Italy, Grenoble would have some of it’s pantry staples. Are they available now in Paris?
Your article dropped at the perfect time. I'm coming to Paris in a week to visit my sister. Her supply requests include; 10lbs of Laird Hamilton's Superfood coffee creamer(he is adorable but...), See's California Crunch toffee, TCHO Mint Chocolate bars, Oculus VR headset, measuring cups, and two cookbooks. After reading the article I will add baking powder and baking soda to the list. I'm happy to bring a tub of rainbow sprinkles if you'd like : )
I live in Paris for 3 months in spring and three months in fall. At the start of each stay, I buy a little basil plant in the local fruit and veg market for about 3e and keep it in my window for fresh basil. I don’t make a big batch of pesto but use it for the whole 3 months for omelets; sauces, and basic seasoning.
David, one of my favorite salads is a bed of whatever lettuce you like topped with a few slices of good tomatoes. Add a splash of vinaigrette, add a spoonful of good mayonnaise and sprinkle with. Loped fresh dill. I have made this for twenty years and still love it.
David…by adding a small handful of spinach leaves to your pesto or basil vinaigrette, your mixture will stay green. Try it!
Sushi rolls were always available in Hawaii in the 60’s when we moved there due to the large Japanese population. Definitely not as amazingly varied as they are now!
So sorry to hear how, well, provincial Paris is with regard to certain veg. I live (part time) in the south of France in Valbonne… which I admit is a kind of international village with a famous (or infamous) greengrocer —- both gorgeous, fabulous and ridiculously expensive. In any case, they certainly sell corn on the cob during the season. And the big Carrefours (supermarket) as well as some of the supermarkets in the villages around me (we don’t have one in Valbonne) now have “supermarket” sushi —. Freshly made at a visible food station. It’s a no brainier for the huge Carrefour in Antibes, which has an excellent fish department… lots of fresh whole fish and crustaceans for sale… If all this is not happening in Paris it is a shame — The south of France has always had it’s own cuisine— Provençal and heavily influenced by Italy and more recently, North Africa. Add to that the international residents in the area and you get a really exciting, open food community. As for mangoes: I buy them at the Portobello street market in London — Alfonse variety… most delish!