Vegetable Simple Reviewed by Ruth Paget

Vegetable Simple Reviewed by Ruth Paget 

Michelin star chef Eric Ripert writes in his introduction to Vegetable Simple that vegetables have become more important to him for three main reasons: 

-he eats more vegetables as he has aged 

-he serves vegetable buffet dinners to his friends for entertaining on weekends 

-he opened a wine bar with a vegetable-centered menu next to his Michelin-starred restaurant 

All of these reasons prompted me to carefully read the easy if you have great vegetables recipes to put together a French buffet dinner: 

Most of the following dishes can be made ahead of time and served cold or room temperature with the exception of the baked mushrooms, which can be placed in the oven as guests arrive: 

-sweet pea soup – made with frozen peas that are boiled in water and blended till smooth with crème fraîche and mint added just before serving. Ripert serves this soup hot, but in the summer I would chill it in the blender and pour it in champagne flutes to set the tone for the vegetable lunch. 

-endive blue cheese salad – the leaves of bitter endive are set out spoke fashion for this dish with a blue cheese-cream dressing place in the center of the leaves in the middle of the spoke 

-grated carrot salad – so simple, so good for your eyes with the Vitamin A in the carrots that is good for the eyes.  So easy to dress with salt, pepper, lemon juice, and olive oil. 

-cold basil past salad – a “sauce” of grated fresh basil, garlic, grated Parmesan, olive oil, and pepper fragrantly coat linguine pasta that is preferably made from semolina flour from durum wheat for its protein content 

-baked cremini mushrooms made with the butter used for snails – butter, parsley, and garlic 

-tomato “croquet sel” – fresh tomato halves sprinkled with sea salt and pepper and drizzled with olive oil 

-melon balls “au porto” – If you do not have a melon baller, cut cantaloupe into fourths and scoop out the seeds. Place about 2 tablespoons of Portuguese porto in the cavity of the melon. Eat with a spoon to scoop up all the porto. 

This French vegetable buffet is very doable at home with a little planning and well-suited for American potluck lunches where everyone brings a dish to share. 

I like these recipes, because I live in an agricultural community that grows all organic produce (Salinas, California and its surrounding region of Monterey County). 

I also love Vegetable Simple by Eric Ripert for its recipes from many cultures that young people might enjoy making on their days off for international flair on a budget. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France 

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Croque Monsieur Grilled Sandwich at Café de la Presse in San Francisco, California by Ruth Paget

Croque Monsieur Grilled Sandwich at Café de la Presse in San Francisco, California by Ruth Paget 

On a weekend trip to San Francisco, my husband Laurent, daughter Florence Paget, and I went to Café de la Presse in San Francisco, California for Parisian bistro lunch. 

Laurent and Florence ordered a classic French lunch combination of French onion soup with cheese melted and browned on top of the soup followed by steak frites (steak with fries). 

I was going to order another bistro classic combination of French onion soup with a croque monsieur, a grilled ham and cheese sandwich with salad on the side. 

Instead of soup, I ate a daily special of warm goat cheese salad before my main dish. The salad came with a large ball of fresh chèvre goat cheese on top that been warmed and sat on top of baby greens with a vinaigrette. 

I mashed down the ball of chèvre and liked to think the cheese had arrived from an artisanal creamery in Sonoma County along with freshly picked greens in the wee hours of the morning. 

For my main dish, I ate a grilled croquet monsieur sandwich made with béchamel sauce, a cooked creamy sauce made with flour, butter, and milk, that is spread on two thick slices of bread. Then, you add sliced ham and gruyère cheese, place the slices together, sprinkle Parmesan and gruyère on top of the top bread slice, and run the sandwich under the broiler until the cheese is toasted and bubbly. 

This salty, delicious treat came with more baby greens on the side. I loved the crunchy melted cheese on the sandwich that was lightened up with bites of the baby greens. 

For bigger appetites, you can add an over-easy egg on top of the sandwich, which would make it a croquet madame. This is a classic bistro dish as well. 

There are two garages close to Café de la Presse. One is across the street on the corner of Grant Avenue and Bush Street. The other garage is about three blocks up the street on Powell Street. 

Whether you come for a weekend trip or for a day, Café de la Presse offers French fare comparable to what you would eat in Paris, France at the gates of Chinatown, which is ideal for strolling and shopping after an espresso. Our family takes I-280 to Highway 101, which comes out near Tully Road south of Gilroy Outlet Malls on 101 back to Salinas, California. 

There is always something good to eat at Café de la Presse in San Francisco, California, which is easier to get to than you would think. 

Bon appétit! 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Seafood Simple Reviewed by Ruth Paget

Seafood Simple Reviewed by Ruth Paget 

Seafood Simple by Eric Ripert is an all-inclusive reference for all things fish. Ripert begins Seafood Simple with several pages of explanation and photos about how to skin, debone, and fillet different fish body types. 

After the preparation technique chapter, Ripert provides recipes organized by cooking method as follows:

-raw, cured, and marinated 

-steamed 

-poached 

-fried 

-baked 

-sautéed 

-broiled 

-grilled 

-preserved 

Some of the recipes I consider outstanding include: 

-oysters mignonette – raw oysters on the half shell with a red wine and shallot served on the side for dipping 

-halibut en papillote – baked white fish with tomatoes, onions, white wine, and basil that is wrapped in foil  

-moules marinères – steamed mussels with shallots and white wine

-halibut mushroom casserole 

-linguine vongole – steamed clams with linguine pasta 

-salmon and tomato à la Gilbert – poached salmon in tomato and cream sauce 

All of these dishes remind me of the food I ate in Parisian bistros when I lived there and are items that I can make in my home now. 

Readers who might enjoy Seafood Simple by Eric Ripert include: 

-France lovers 

-young professionals like accountants and lawyers 

-musicians 

-artists 

-marketing workers 

-caterers 

-dieters 

If you like fish, Seafood Simple by Eric Ripert should be in your kitchen library

(Note: In Salinas, California, you can buy fresh seafood at Star Market and Safeway. Close to Salinas, you can fresh seafood at Phil’s Fish Market in Moss Landing.) 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Majorelle: The Lorraine France Touring Game Created by Ruth Paget

Majorelle: The Lorraine France Touring Game Created by Ruth Paget

I named this touring game after one of France’s major decorative arts craftsman Auguste Majorelle (1825 – 1879), a native of Lunéville, France. 

Lorraine is a rewarding region to visit for travelers interested in history, art, fine dining, and sips of mirabelle, yellow plum liqueur. The main cities are Metz, Nancy, and Lunéville. The medieval monastery at Gorze is the home of Gregorian chants and sister monasteries in Germany. Verdun is the site of one of the most important battles of World War I. 

A two-week tour of the region would provide ample time to visit these places and indulge in some gala meals and shopping. (I have linked my blogs about these places into an itinerary. Click on the links to see the blogs.) 

*Metz is a 3,000 year old city. Each district has a different history. The city is set up well for walking tours and has many cafés where you can take a break with a beverage. 

Walking Tours: 

Day 1: Exploring Franco-German Metz 

Franco-German Metz

Day 2: Cathedral District and Downtown 

Downtown Metz

Day 3: May Day Metz 

May Day Metz

Day 4: Urban Ecology

Urban Ecology

 *Metz Meals: 

Day 5: Gala Pork Dinner: 

Gala Pork Dinner

Day 6: Gala Seafood Dinner 

Gala Seafood Dinner

*Nancy is a city of majestic public art and decorative arts. 

Day 7: Rococo Public Art 

Rococo Art in Nancy

Day 8: Art Nouveau Museum

Art Nouveau in Nancy

 *Lunéville is home to a château inspired by Versailles and a current concert venue 

Day 9: Lunéville Château Visit

Luneville Chateau

*Gorze Monastery still uses ancient Roman sewers. You can spot a few Roman aqueducts on the way there. This is the site where Gregorian chants were invented. 

Day 10: Gorze Monastery Visit 

Gorze Monastery

*Verdun is a major World War I battlefield site with a museum 

Day 11: Verdun Museum Visit 

I hope this Lorraine touring game will encourage you to think about traveling to Lorraine, France to experience its art and culture, indulge in some delicious food, and learn some history about France’s relations with Germany and Poland. 

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By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

The Complete Book of Cheese Reviewed by Ruth Paget

The Complete Book of Cheese Reviewed by Ruth Paget 

The Complete Book of Cheese: History, Techniques, Recipes, Tips by Anne-Laure Pham and Mathieu Plantive provides readers with all the information they need to obtain the best value for their money when buying elite cheese products, especially French cheese. 

The Complete Book of Cheese contains information such as:

-cheese production processes from selection of milk to aging 

-French cheese classification system 

-cheese buying tips 

-pairing suggestions for beverages and food 

-cheese board composition ideas depending on event 

-cheese recipes for appetizers, savory dishes, and sweet desserts 

The French cheese classification system helps with purchasing decisions and is broken down as follows: 

-fresh cheese 

-blooming-rind cheese 

-washed-rind cheese 

-uncooked pressed cheese 

-cooked pressed cheese 

-blue cheese 

-goat cheese 

-processed cheese 

-stretched curd cheese 

-whey cheese 

Among the cheese recipes, there are recipes for fondue and raclette. These two dishes are quickly eaten and require lengthy preparation time. If you want to make these dishes from scratch, the recipes are well written but require patience. 

The recipes I prefer are veal cordon bleu (pan-fried veal with ham and melted cheese), tartiflette (made with potatoes, bacon, onions, and cheese), and a dessert crisp made with Beaufort cheese, pears, and ginger. People interested in the following careers might find 

The Complete Book of Cheese useful:  

-sommelier 

-server 

-bartender 

-elite grocery store worker 

-chef 

-caterer 

-health inspector 

General readers might enjoy the great introduction to the world of cheese in The Complete Book of Cheese by Anne-Laure Pham and Mathieu Plantive. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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78th Cannes Film Festival starts today reposted by Ruth Paget

Click on the link below for information about films being shown at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and news releases:

Cannes Film Festival Media Page

Make a Salade Nicoise to eat while reading each day’s updates!

Salade Nicoise ideas:

Salade Nicoise Recipe Ideas

A goat cheese and dandelion greens salad would also go well with red carpet viewing;

Goat Cheese and Dandelion Greens Recipe Idea's

Salmon Salade Nicoise Ideas

Salmon Salade Nicoise Ideas

Happy Film Watching!

Reposted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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French Mustard Chicken Video by Florence Paget posted by Ruth Paget

Florence Paget made her first food video featuring French mustard chicken (poulet a la moutarde).  

This is a delicious recipe.  The hardest part of making it is browning the chicken.

Posted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

Visiting Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina by Ruth Paget

Visiting Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina by Ruth Paget 

The first time I visited Asheville, North Carolina was with my mom. She was driving me home from my childhood vacationland – Murrells Inlet, South Carolina (outside Myrtle Beach) – where I had stayed with my sister. 

Mom drove her black Thunderbird, which I thought looked like a movie-star Mercedes, back to Detroit (Michigan) up and around the Appalachian Mountains. The ride is thrilling since a lot of the freeway sits on stilts around the mountains with treetops below. 

We listened to country music on the radio. The only other choice at the time was gospel. We stopped to visit “an American castle” when Biltmore Estate surged into view. 

Biltmore looks like a French Loire Valley château notably the fairy tale Ussé château but on a grander scale like Chambord château further down the Loire River. I was so happy they had room on the guided tour for us despite not reserving ahead of time. 

I think I was in the fourth grade at the time and vaguely remember that the guide said the Vanderbilts made their fortune in transportation (railroads and shipping) in the 19th century. I was impressed that the Biltmore Estate had 100 bedrooms each with their own bathroom. 

I asked if each room had a telephone when I saw what looked like a manual dial phone by the door of each room. “Some rooms have telephones, but that is an intercom. If a family member or guest needs something, they call the butler on that intercom. The butler decides if what someone requests is a job for him or the head of housekeeping,” the guide explained. Modern hotels still function like this when you make calls to guest services to request something. 

My next question was, “Do you have a hotel here?” 

My mother intervened at this point, “We have to go home, so I can work Monday.” 

I was disappointed, but understood. The tour guide mentioned at the end of the tour that the Vanderbilts had a university nearby, if we wanted to visit that, too. 

Back in the black Thuderbird on the way to Detroit, my mom drove around Vanderbilt University to check out the campus. I thought the campus was pretty, but even as a child I liked cities. (Detroit was fun.) 

I thought about Biltmore a lot in high school. I had two pairs of favorite jeans by Gloria Vanderbilt with swans on the label next to her name that I wore to be cooler than the Calvin Klein wearers. We had anorexia wars to see who could be thinner in their straight leg jeans. 

On some more recent visits to Asheville, my husband Laurent and I toured the University of North Carolina – Asheville campus and bought a 501 German Verbs book at the university bookstore to do some verb conjugating as a souvenir of living in Stuttgart, Germany. 

The Biltmore Estate now has become a tourism magnet for Asheville, North Carolina offering an outdoor concert series, garden tours, exhibits for families like the current one on Tutankhamun, biking trails, wine tastings, and a hotel with a spa no doubt. 

I like it that this American castle can be maintained by offering services to the public that allow everyone a chance to be a prince or princess for the day. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Salade Niçoise with the Works at La Parisienne Restaurant in Aiken, South Carolina by Ruth Paget

Salade Niçoise with the Works at La Parisienne Restaurant in Aiken, South Carolina by Ruth Paget 

After a morning of touring the Savannah River Site Museum where my husband Laurent and I learned about the physics and chemistry used in running a nuclear power plant, we set out for the La Parisienne Restaurant and Bakery located just off Chesterfield Street in downtown Aiken, South Carolina. 

The day was warm already in the 70s in January in Aiken. I ordered one of my favorite French lunches – a salade Niçoise, which comes with the works at La Parisienne. 

When Laurent and I lived in Stuttgart (Germany0, I made salade Niçoise every week to help fight colds. My easy version of the salad has tuna on top of a mound of baby greens. I place rinsed, canned green beans around the sides of the lettuce along with a few anchovies. 

On the bottom of the salad mound, I alternate boiled egg halves, tomato quarters, and large Greek Kalamata olives. We used Paul Newman vinaigrette most of the time in Germany. 

My salade Niçoise is good for everday, but La Parisienne’s version is really tops with all the garden fresh ingredients they use. La Parisienne places a generous helping of dandelion greens in the bottom of a large salad bowl as the foundation of their salade Niçoise. 

On top of the dandelions greens, they place the following ingredients:  

-flaked tuna -boiled potato halves 

-sliced small peppers of various colors 

-sliced red onions 

-sliced boiled eggs 

-small Niçoise black olives 

-sliced tomatoes 

-sliced radishes 

-thin green beans 

The small and thin vegetables are supposed to offer concentrated and distinct flavors, which is true of the layered flavors in the salade Niçoise at La Parisienne. It tasted great on a warm and humid day. 

The vinaigrette especially made the salad taste good. It was made with white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and sunflower oil. That flavor combination always reminds me of eating in the countryside in France. 

The salade Niçoise at La Parisienne Restaurant and Bakery in Aiken, South Carolina filled me up, but dessert lovers might like a piece of the lattice crusted pies that remind me of linzertortes from Linz, Austria. 

Travelers will be well rewarded with a stop for lunch or dinner at La Parisienne in Aiken, South Carolina. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Goat Cheese and Dandelion Greens at the La Parisienne Restaurant in Aiken, South Carolina by Ruth Paget

Goat Cheese and Dandelion Greens at La Parisienne Restaurant in Aiken, South Carolina by Ruth Paget 

The La Parisienne Restaurant and Bakery in Aiken, South Carolina is about 30 minutes away from Augusta, Georgia and offers visitors a relaxed atmosphere for lunch in small town America among its many touring options. 

Aiken is home to a campus of the University of South Carolina, the Savannah River Site nuclear facility, and an active polo club. Its English heritage is visible in its orange brick architecture and tree-lined boulevards downtown that promote businesses that elite Englishmen prefer like French restaurants and Belgian chocolate shops. 

One of Aiken’s busy restaurants is La Parisienne Restaurant and Bakery located just off Chesterfield Street downtown. The restaurant has its own parking lot. You order at the counter, take an arrondisement (Parisian district) marker to your table, and wait for your waiter to bring freshly made food to you. 

On our first visit to La Parisienne, I ordered the goat cheese salad served on a bed of dandelion greens. A thick slice of oven-baked toast sat in the center of the salad with a large ball of goat cheese to spread out over the dandelion greens and cherry tomato halves in the salad. The vinaigrette was made with a perky raspberry vinegar and olive oil. I could have eaten two of those delicious salads. 

My husband Laurent ordered me a lemon crêpe instead that was filled with powdered sugar and freshly pressed lemon juice. That dessert was perky as well and filled me up. Both of these items were perfect for the hot and sultry weather in our restaurant located by the Savannah River. 

La Parisienne has a wooden guillotine in the parking lot to remind diners that not all of French history is rosy. 

Laurent and I walked through the convenient gate behind the restaurant to the Belgian chocolate shop next door – La Bonboniere. The handmade chocolate comes in a variety of flavors. I like the lemon cream filled chocolates with the head of an Egyptian women imprinted on them. 

I also like the chocolate ganache filled white chocolates that have “Aiken” printed on them in chocolate. The cutest chocolates are the ones shaped like horse hooves for the polo lovers in town. 

Tourists interested in a nice lunch in a nice place will love the La Parisienne Restaurant and Bakery in Aiken, South Carolina. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe Created by Ruth Paget 

Serves 4 

Ingredients: 

-1 pound bag of cleaned lettuce 

-6 medium Campari tomatoes 

-1/2 red onion 

-black, pitted Kalamata olives (optional)

-4 chicken breasts (about 1 pound all together)

-3 tablespoons olive oil 

-oil and vinegar dressing or lemon juice and oil dressing 

Steps: 

1-Rinse 1 pound lettuce in cold water and drain it to perk it up and chill it. Mound lettuce in a large serving bowl. 

2-Rinse tomatoes. Cut them into sixths. Place tomato slices in a separate bowl. 

3-Peel red onion and slice it thinly. Place onion slices in a separate bowl. 

4-Place black olives in a separate bowl.  

5-Cook chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side. Cut to verify it is thoroughly cooked. The flesh should be white not pink when it is cooked. Cut the chicken into cubes and place in a separate bowl. 

6-Place on all bowls on table with serving utensils, so diners can personalize their salad.

If possible, sprinkle fresh chopped chives or parsley on the salad.

(Note: You can substitute tuna, canned black beans, sesame seeds, or cheese cubes for the chicken or offer all of them for an eclectic dinner party.) 

(Note: Table wine can easily be turned into vinegar to use in vinegar and oil dressing - 3 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard for 2 to 3 people.  Maille or Pommery Dijon mustards are both good.  Sunflower oil can be used for a true Burgundy vinaigrette.)

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Salade Niçoise with Salmon at Chez Philippe in Los Gatos, California by Ruth Paget

Salade Niçoise with Salmon at Chez Philippe in Los Gatos, California by Ruth Paget 

Rainy and foggy weather in Los Gatos, California located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains whets the appetite for three-course lunches at Chez Philippe. 

On a recent visit for my husband Laurent’s birthday with our daughter Florence Paget, we all started our meal with escargots, snails baked with butter, parsley, and breadcrumbs. The sauce was excellent for dipping baguette slices in. 

For our main dishes, Laurent ate mussels steamed with white wine and crème fraîche with chopped parsley added at the end with fries on the side while Florence ate steak with fries. Both were reliably great and delicious just like in UNESCO world heritage bistros in Paris. 

It was not my birthday, but I think I got the best main dish – the salade Niçoise with seared wild salmon. Every French chef who lives near Alaska or the Alaska Current in the Pacific would probably choose to use “local” salmon in their American renditions of this classic French dish. 

At Chez Philippe, this spectacular salad comes with:  

-6 seasoned and seared chunks of wild salmon 

-slender French green beans cut into one-inch segments 

-slices of white onion soaked previously in water so they taste sweet 

-meaty anchovies 

-sliced boiled eggs with canary yellow yolks 

-tomato slices

-black olive slices 

-sweet red pepper slices

-boiled potato wedges

 -fresh baby greens 

This wonderful combination was tossed with a vinaigrette made with the addition of Dijon mustard.   (Champagne would probably go well with this dish or a Bloody Mary cocktail.)

Laurent ate a birthday mousse while Florence and I shared a crème caramel. 

We all had fun and ate very well at Chez Philippe in Los Gatos, California for Laurent’s birthday. 

For French food in a relaxed atmosphere, Chez Philippe is the place for lunch Los Gatos. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Fish Po'Boy Sandwiches at Bag O'Crab in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget

Fish Po’Boy Sandwiches at Bag O’Crab in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget 

A Louisiana option for fish on Fridays in Salinas, California is a deep-fried fish po’boy sandwich from Bag O’Crab. 

A spicy, deep-fried fish filet comes dressed with shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, sliced pickles, and mayonnaise on half a French baguette loaf in a po'boy sandwich.  

This pretty unbeatable sandwich for flavor tastes great with equally tasty Cajun fries with spicy and salty seasoning. When it is hot outside, and you have lost a lot of salt in perspiration from working, the Cajun fries are a great replenisher of energy and make you relax. 

Bag O’Crab also has po’boy sandwiches made with deep-fried spicy shrimp that I often order, too, for a change. 

Either sandwich adds variety and a little exoticism to one’s diet. 

Bag O’Crab’s big seller is boiler bags with shrimp, spicy Louisiana sausage, potatoes, and corn on the cobb with garlic-butter sauce that are a nice treat for Saturday nights with cold beer. 

All these fun dining options are located off West Davis in the Westridge Shopping Mall in Salinas, California. Bag O’Crab has all major delivery apps for customer convenience.

Bon appétit! 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Prime Pork Chop Dinner at Pub's Prime Rib in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget

Prime Pork Chop Dinner at Pub’s Prime Rib in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget 

One of the best times of year to order a pork chop meal at a locals’ favorite restaurant like Pub’s Prime Rib in Salinas, California is October when the weather turns from very hot to very cool. 

This is the time when areas with strong animal husbandry traditions separate the spare, weaker hogs and cattle for slaughter from the animals that will be kept for breeding over winter. What this means for the consumer is the abundance of pork products in fall like brats, sausage, bacon, and pork chops. One classic example of how this seasonal abundance was used in Germany is the Munich Oktoberfest, which was started to celebrate a wedding with many guests. 

Pork chops made from freshly killed hogs are very tender and some say more flavorful than pork that is preserved in various forms to last throughout the winter. What is true for hogs is traditionally true for cattle as well. 

With that backstory told to my family, my husband Laurent, our daughter Florence Paget, and I set out for a delicious meal at Pub’s Prime Rib downtown. Pub’s was established in the 1940s, and I like to think that John Steinbeck ate there. 

Our favorite family writer, Florence Paget, and her dad began their meals with French onion soup that was full of savory onions with gruyère cheese melted over the top of the bowl and down the sides just like you see in French cookbooks. It was a golden delicious stew. 

I started my meal with a wedge salad made with cold and crunchy iceberg lettuce with lightly salted blue cheese dressing, chopped fried bacon, and chopped, succulent tomatoes from the blistering hot summer even in Monterey County. I like this salad, because it is a nice contrast in texture, taste, and cooking method – raw. Good appetizers are supposed to contrast in this way with a main dish. 

For our main dishes, Florence had the prime rib with baked potatoes and vegetables. Laurent had lobster ravioli. Both of these dishes came with a large dinner salad beforehand. Laurent ordered seafood in a month with an “r” in it, which the French say are good months for seafood due to colder water. Florence was getting prime rib from freshly killed October cattle. 

I ordered the pork chop dinner, which I considered a German hauptgeriichte, or main dish from elite cuisine: 

 -a one-inch thick, large pork chop that came with caramelized apples, roasted baby potatoes, and sautéed spinach in a rosemary-mustard red wine sauce. 

The pork chop was easy to cut and the lovely side dishes filled me up, so I did not order dessert, but the crème brulée and New York Cheesecake both looked tempting. 

Pub’s Prime Rib in Salinas, California is a cozy place for dinner with a full bar in front and a good choice of meat and seafood dinners. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Georgia Mountain Trout Amandine at Atlanta Fish Market by Ruth Paget

Georgia Mountain Trout Amandine at the Atlanta Fish Market by Ruth Paget 

You can enjoy fish from all the US including lobster just 15 minutes away from joint base Clay-Dobbins Air Force Base at the Atlanta Fish Market in the ritzy Buckhead neighborhood. 

My husband Laurent and I started our meal with raw oysters from Maine. Cold water supposedly creates the plumpest and most delicious oysters, which is why we chose the Maine oysters. 

The oysters arrive with seafood sauce and crushed garlic on top and a sauce mignonette on the side. Sauce mignonette is made with red wine vinegar and minced shallots. “Ette” is a suffix meaning “little” and “mignone” is a French word for “cute.” All together mignonette means “little cutie sauce.” I tried some with my oysters and thought it was great for dipping. 

For my main dish, I ordered Georgia Mountain Trout Amandine for $29. “Amandine” means the fish comes with sliced almonds that have been sautéed in butter. The almonds are spread across the top of the fish. The fish itself came with brown butter made with emulsified herbs and seasonings. 

The trout was served with thin green beans and whipped mashed potatoes and butter. Both vegetables soaked up the excess brown butter and greatly enhanced the fish. 

The local catch trout amandine and Maine raw oysters at the Atlanta Fish Market were delicious, rather French, and a great deal for Georgia’s Buckhead neighborhood. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Cajun Vegetables at Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen by Ruth Paget

Cajun Vegetables at Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen by Ruth Paget 

Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen is most famous for its deep-fried chicken sandwich combination meals, but I sometimes like going to Popeye’s for a spicy Cajun vegetable meal. 

Louisiana vegetable sides often feature an addition of spicy andouille sausage, whose ancestor is a mild andouille sausage from France. Andouille sausage from Louisiana is made with pork butt, garlic, salt, black pepper, and spicy cayenne pepper according to the Taste of Artisan website. 

This type of andouille sausage is added to a sauté of onions, green bell pepper, celery, tomato paste, garlic, cooked red beans, chicken stock and hot sauce to make a stew according to the Damn Delicious website. Once the stew is cooked, these beans are served alongside cooked white rice. 

Red beans and rice is a Cajun comfort food from the Louisiana countryside. I like to order it with a chilled coleslaw, a chopped salad made with cabbage, carrots, and onions with a cream dressing. 

Popeye’s also offers Cajun fries with cayenne-heavy Cajun seasoning and mashed potatoes with spicy Cajun gravy. 

Monterey County does not have a Popeye’s as of August 2024, but there are two locations within the Congressional district: 

-Watsonville Auto Mall outside Santa Cruz 

-Gilroy Cross Mall by Barnes and Noble outside San Jose 

I like exotic fast food at a reasonable price, and Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen is just perfect for this. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Calamari Steak and Sand Dabs at Woody's at the Monterey-Salinas (California) Airport by Ruth Paget

Calamari Steak and Sand Dabs Combo at Woody’s at the Monterey-Salinas Airport (CA) by Ruth Paget 

Woody’s Restaurant and Bar at the Monterey-Salinas Airport in California is one of my go-to restaurants for delicious and unpretentious food in Monterey, California. 

In August 2024, my family went to Woody’s and sat outside on top of the airport roof and watched planes come and go as Laurent ate the homemade pasta of the day, Florence Paget ate prime rib, and I ate calamari (squid) steak and sand dabs with thick cut fries doused in black truffle oil. 

Black truffle oil has a powerful aroma, which coupled with warm olive oil make heads turn to see who has ordered the French Mediterranean Diet dish. The grand arrival of my combo dinner merited lingering over each delectable fry. 

Sand dabs are the West Coast equivalent of Atlantic sole. The sand dabs are lightly browned in garlicky butter with a dusting of freshly cut Italian parsley. They come with a yogurt sauce and a tartar sauce for dipping. 

Both of these savory sauces taste good with the calamari steak as well. I read in Claudia Roden’s Mediterranean Cookery cookbook that Greek cooks slap squid against a wall for almost an hour to tenderize it. I do not know what Woody’s does to tenderize its calamari steak, but the result is tender and oozy with garlicky olive oil. 

The calamari steak and sand dabs combo with extra black truffle oil fries is a signature dish for Monterey and Salinas, because restaurants can easily obtain these high quality ingredients. 

This combo at Woody’s at the Monterey-Salinas (California) Airport will surely please seafood and fish lovers. 

By Ruth Paget, Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Apple Duck Confit at Chez Philippe in Los Gatos, California by Ruth Paget

Apple Duck Confit at Chez Philippe in Los Gatos, California by Ruth Paget 

My family is not going to the Summer Olympics in Paris (2024), but wanted to honor this event and went out for a swanky French dinner at Chez Philippe in Los Gatos, California high up in the Santa Cruz Mountains by San Jose. 

We began our meal with escargots (snails) that swam in delicious melted butter with pungent, freshly crushed garlic from nearby Gilroy and freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley. Snails are purged with white flour to clean their digestive tract, which makes them spongy, popcorn-like balls that easily soak up garlic-butter sauce. I like to soak up the leftover sauce with pieces of bread. 

As my main dish, I ate apple duck confit. Duck has a lot of fat and sautéing it in this fat makes it juicy with melted fat. Bordeaux wine is said to go well with confit. I did not order a glass of it, because the confit came with an applesauce to cut the rich flavor of the duck confit. This is a good dish for a designated driver. 

The apple duck confit also came with potato slices that had been fried in duck fat, making them dense and able to soak up sea salt. Crisp, steamed French green beans rounded out the meal for a refreshing finish. 

In place of dessert, I shared a cheese platter with my husband Laurent. We both love cheese and liked the well-aged cheese chosen for this platter: 

-roquefort from Averyron, France 

-pont l’évêque from Normandy 

-Brie de Meaux from outside Paris 

Eating at Chez Philippe is pleasant, and the restaurant sometimes has live jazz playing at dinnertime. (Check the website for jazz evenings.) 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Seared Ahi Salade Niçoise at Woody's in Monterey, California by Ruth Paget

Seared Ahi Salad Niçoise at Woody’s in Monterey, California by Ruth Paget 

My husband Laurent and daughter Florence took me to my favorite bar and restaurant in Monterey, California for Mother’s Day – Woody’s at the Monterey Regional Airport. 

I have a childlike love for sitting on the outside terrace on the airport’s rooftop and watching planes take off and land. My favorite planes belong to Alaska Air, which have a large image of an Inuit man in a fur-lined parka hood on the tail wings of their planes. (Alaska Air runs commuter planes up and down the Pacific Coast from all-points Alaska to San Diego, California. They are well-liked for roomy seats and leg room.) 

I like many of the items on Woody’s menu. On Mother’s Day, I chose Japanese-influenced Mediterranean dishes for my meal starting with deep-fried calamari, whose breading appeared to be made with crunchy, Japanese panko breadcrumbs. I love the calamari at Woody’s dunked in cocktail sauce made with grated horseradish. The punchy horseradish reminds me of Japanese wasabi. For my main dish, 

I chose the seared ahi tuna salade Niçoise. Ahi tuna was made famous as a Japanese sushi choice. Ahi tuna tastes good with the light sear Woody’s gives it that cooks it yet lets the fish retain its flavor. The seared ahi salade Niçoise comes with sliced hard-boiled eggs, quartered tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, steam green beans, fingerling potatoes, chives, and Dijon shallot vinaigrette. 

The spring lettuce leaves were well chilled and tender. Salads like this make me happy to live in America’s Salad Bowl in Salinas, California. 

To make my fusion Japanese-Mediterranean lunch complete, I received a new Sushi Go! Game and A History of Cookbooks: From Kitchen to Page Over Seven Centuries by Henry Notaker (Part of the California Studies in Food and Culture Series) on Amazon Kindle. 

Woody’s is a welcome sight after coast-to-coast airplane rides and for nice lunches. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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French Countryside Cooking Review by Ruth Paget

French Countryside Cooking Review by Ruth Paget 

Michelin-star chef Daniel Galmiche writes about the mountain food of his native Haute-Saône region in the French Jura Mountains in his cookbook French Countryside Cooking. 

What stands out in this cookbook are delicious dishes made from root vegetables and offal, variety meat like kidneys and thymus glands. Not all of these items have been Michelin menu items in the past, but the following items in French Countryside Cooking may soon be changing this situation: 

-chicory and radish salad with vinaigrette dressing 

-swede (rutabaga) boulangère made with onions, cloves, and thyme 

-rabbit terrine with onion marmalade 

-lamb sweetbread and wild mushroom vol-au-vent (pastry encased lamb thymus glands with wild mushrooms) 

-heirloom beetroot tagliatelle 

-Jerusalem artichoke velouté with truffle oil and chive cream 

Root vegetables and variety meat are not terribly expensive which is an incentive to try making the dishes in French Countryside Cooking by Daniel Galmiche at home for adventurous cooks. 

By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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