Collectages

Cooking on a spit was the theme of Pierre’s 65th birthday. After the cake on the spit (see previous blog here),  voilà the lamb on the spit a.k.a méchoui! According to the Robert historique de la langue Française the origin of the word méchoui is: “Borrowed (1912) from the Arabic maghrebien mešwi “roasted, grilled; lamb roasted [...]

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BONA ANANDA   GLÉCKLECHT NEIT JOER   BONNE ANNEE HAPPY NEW YEAR  새해복 많이 받으세요 Switching year is always exciting and this is how we  FIRE UP 2011! Poem Pierre Joris—Video N.P. Thank you for reading the blog and the most read pots of the years are: Charles Bernstein Poetic Birthday Buffet Ninkasi: “The Lady who fills [...]

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In the county of Luchon (where I was born and raised) we are really serious about Pétéram. Pétéram is an ancient local dish made from a combination of tripe (intestine & pluck), lamb  & veal feet, ham, carrots & onions. During my last visit  home I had to have my fix of Pétéram; so one [...]

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Luchon’s Mayor Louis Ferré & Jean Peyrafitte On Saturday November 13th, 2010 the soccer stadium in my hometown of Luchon (French Pyrenees) was named the Stade Jean Peyrafitte. Jean Peyrafitte is my father and today he is a dashing 88 years old. His political career lasted for a span of 24 years.  Among many mandates [...]

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It is humbling and powerful to walk through the entry arch of the Gargas Cave. For thousands upon thousands of years humans have entered the cave through this very opening. The Cave of Gargas is situated in the central Pyrenees, 40 minutes away from my hometown. Though mostly famous for its panels of stenciled hands [...]

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Since Pierre‘s commute to Albany is a little brutal this semester, I try to alleviate it by packing him lunch. I always loved packing food to take away, and when I worked in Manhattan I packed my lunch everyday. I also have very vivid memories from the time when I was  a child and we [...]

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Yes! Scream for my Mint Ice Cream, and there’s not even cream in it.! Not because I am concerned about cutting the calories down, no, but simply because for years I thought this was the way ice cream was always made. When I grew up at the family Hotel Poste & Golf in Luchon, I [...]

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The previous post showed  how to clean  squids while saving their precious ink to make the wonderful recipe Calamares in su Tinta,  Calamars à l’Encre or Squid in their own Ink. But first let me share some sweet family history about this dish. When we first moved to this country in 1987, my son Joseph [...]

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Today is Pierre’s Birthday and one of his presents is my rendition of a favorite French  oldie, “Le Temps des Cerises”. You can find more info about the song on Pierre’s blog but  voilà  for you P.J: Joyeux Anniversaire and many happy cherries! Click the link below to listen to the song & now off [...]

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André Daguin, chef/owner of the Hôtel de France in Auch (Gers) until 1997, tells how he gave a new life to the tasty magret de canard — and made it famous in the process: “The magret was served only as “confit” in soups, cassoulets and everyone would find it dry. The only way to avoid [...]

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