... after the end of our strict confinement. We can now travel within a 100 km radius. Eyrignac et ses jardins are located a mere 17 miles from our house. For the first time in 35 years, they were closed because of the lockdown but they just reopened last week. It's such a beautiful, serene place and the gardens are "magnifiques". Perfect weather and it was a real pleasure to explore the property with so few visitors.
Vocabulary
Magnifique: magnificent
During my short stay in Paris last week, I popped into the Luxembourg gardens for a couple of hours. I always seem to return to that location as it conjures up so many great memories of my student days. It’s arguably the favorite park of Parisians and visitors. It’s easy to understand why: a stately 17th-century palace, the spectacular Medicis fountain, serene gardens in the French and English styles, a large pond usually dotted with remote-controlled toy sailboats, and plenty of green metal chairs that invite long reading sessions in the sun or in the shade. Marionnettes, donkey rides, and pétanque courts are a bonus.
The Luxembourg palace is where the French Senate sits
The metal fences that surround the gardens and the palace are often used to display photographic exhibits; the gardens regularly serve as the setting for art installations. For me, the gardens themselves are always the show, no matter the season. On that warm and sunny September day, they were glorious. One often hears a picture is worth a thousand words: I’ll let my photos do the talking.
Mosaïc-like patterns
Medicis fountain
No boats today
Garden chairs: until 1974, you had to pay to sit…
Explosion of colors
Saint-Sulpice towers in the background
Quiet time
Parting shot. Fabulous dahlias.
I hope you enjoyed the stroll. Make sure to include the Luxembourg gardens every time you visit Paris!
We had a ritual: on our way home to Paris every August, we would stop in Angoulême and spend a day at Mom’s parrain. Milou was an avid and precise gardener. His potager was stunningly reminiscent of Le Potager du Roy in Versailles: purposeful and artistic. Just like a general commandeering his troops, he seemed able to order his blue-green leeks to form straight rows and his fuzzy carrot tops to reach the exact same height. Even his radishes were methodically thinned out so that gorgeous red half moons peeked out from the dark soil in an orderly fashion. Galvanized watering cans stood at attention at the end of the rows, ready to be commissioned to water the colorful vegetables each morning and evening.
While thoroughly impressed by the love, work, and attention he devoted to his garden, my sister and I were mostly attracted to the far side of his yard, all the way back. It was a jungle, a far cry from the manicured rows and alleys that led to it. But it was a jungle of berries. Tall sturdy canes covered with bright green leaves rose randomly, almost menacingly, but the thick bushes revealed the plumpest, sweetest framboises on earth. Françoise and I would just pluck them off the vines and pop them in our mouth, not caring whether we stained our hands, our cheeks, or our clothes. Pigging out on the gorgeous red gems had to be the best way to spend an August afternoon.
Raspberry charlotte
Charlotte aux framboises
½ cup milk
3 egg yolks
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
24 oz raspberries
¾ cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp raspberry syrup
2 tbsp raspberry liqueur
24 boudoirs, ladyfingers, or biscuits roses
In a heavy saucepan, bring the milk to a simmer. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks and the sugar until white and foamy. Add one-third of the hot milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the egg/milk mixture back into the saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the cream thickens. Do not allow to boil. When the cream coats the back of the spoon (like a crème anglaise), remove from the heat. Sprinkle the gelatin and stir 5 minutes. In a blender, puree 8 oz of raspberries and strain to leave the seeds behind. Mix this raspberry coulis with the cream. Reserve in the refrigerator. Whip the heavy cream until stiff, then gently incorporate into the raspberry cream with a rubber spatula. Line an 8" charlotte mold with 2 or 3 layers of plastic wrap (they should overlap the edges of the mold). Mix the raspberry syrup, ½ cup of water and 2 tbsp of raspberry liqueur in a deep plate. Quickly dip one ladyfinger on both sides and set vertically on the side of the mold; repeat until the whole perimeter is lined with cookies. Cover the bottom of the mold in the same fashion. Ladle one layer of raspberry cream and sprinkle with whole raspberries; repeat; finish with one last layer of cream. Top with another layer of dunked cookies. Layer a sheet of plastic wrap on top of the cake and cover with a plate: the flat bottom should be of the same diameter as the mold. Set a weight on top of the plate and keep in the fridge for 6 hours. When ready to serve, remove the top layer of plastic wrap, invert the charlotte onto a platter. Garnish the top of the cake with remaining raspberries.
Raspberry syrup and biscuits roses can be purchased from Frenchselections.com
Vocabulary
Le parrain: godfather
Le potager: vegetable garden
La framboise: raspberry
