David Lebovitz's Blog, page 17

Roast Chicken with Caramelized Shallots

I used to be one of those that was surprised when people said, “I don’t have time to cook.” To me, cooking and shopping for ingredients, which take the better parts of my days, has always been a pleasure for me rather than a burden. However, now I get it. Making dinner after a long day at work can be a challenge. In France, people don’t get home from work until 7 or 7:30pm, and not everyone wants to put on a kitchen apron when they get home and get moving on dinner.

Even during the lockdown, when we found ourselves having more time around the house, I was busier than ever. It was a challenge tracking down ingredients, and cooking all the time led to lots of dishes. I was also doing my best not to let anything go to waste, which meant that instead of tossing radish leaves, I made radish leaf soup. A bag of lemons that started looking past their prime became jars of lemon curd. And a compunction to update older blog posts (and photos) as I revisited them during the lockdown, from French Chocolate Mousse Cake and Carrot Salad to Cosmopolitans, it’s no wonder after the lockdown ended, I felt like I needed a vacation!

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Lucien Gaudin Cocktail

Note: I’ll be making this cocktail today at 6pm CET (Noon ET, 9am PT) on my IG Live Apéro Hour on Instagram. To watch, head to my profile on my IG profile page at that time, and when the circle around my profile pic says “Live” – click on it to tune in. More info, as well as how to watch it in replay in my IGTV channel archives, is here.

The clever cocktail, seemingly another riff on the Negroni (like The Tunnel), is named after French fencing champion Lucien Gaudin, who won gold and silver medals in the Olympics during the 1920s. Other than that, I’ve never found any other information about it; who came up with it or why the cocktail is associated with a French fencer.

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Bee’s Knees Cocktail

While doing research for Drinking French, I was on the prowl to find a substitute for Amer Picon, the classic apéritif from France that’s not available in the U.S. While I found some alternatives that were available in America (which I listed in the book) my very favorite was Sepia Amer, made by Audemus Spirits in France. (h/t to Josh of Paris Wine Company for the intro.)

As someone who ran out of organic crunchy peanut butter recently, and can’t watch Schitt’s Creek, I share your pain at not being about to get something you want where you live. But if you come to France, or live in a country that does carry their spirits, such as France, the United Kingdom, Australia, and others, I recommend you pick up a bottle or two.

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Basics For Setting Up a Home Bar

You don’t need much, or any, fancy equipment or tools to make any of the cocktails in my book Drinking French, or any other drinks and cocktails. Below I’ve also listed what can easily fill in if you don’t have a proper cocktail shaker or mixing glass, using items you probably already have at home, although I’ll admit that having a few “tools of the trade” makes mixing and shaking up drinks easier, and more fun. So I’ve compiled a basic list of bar and cocktail tools that I own, in case you are interested in stocking your own home bar.

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Tomato and Chickpea Shakshuka

I usually keep a few canned things on hand. Sardines, tuna, and tomatoes, are constants you’ll find in my cupboards. I also have oddities that I’m not sure what I’ll use them for, but keep them around anyways, like smoked sugar, butterscotch chips, coffee-flavored salt, Vietnamese coconut syrup, and a kit someone gave me for making queso blanco which does, indeed, work.

I’ve discovered the joy and deliciousness of fresh dried chickpeas, which sounds like an oxymoron. But most dried chickpeas are old and not as delicious as when you buy dried chickpeas from a local source, which are fresher and better-tasting. However canned chickpeas will certainly do in a pinch, or if you’re in a hurry, and I have a few tins in my larder for “just in case” moments, like this one, when I wanted to make a hearty version of Shakshuka.

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Mint Zhoug

During the lockdown, I found myself with all sorts of things that needed to get used up sooner than I expected. I would buy too many lemons, thinking I’d need them. Then realize I had too many and make lemon curd. The grocery shopping delivery service that I use inexplicably had jalapeño peppers on their website (and a few times, padrón peppers!) and I couldn’t not buy those, since those are very rare around here. And because I’ve been doing Instagram Live apéro hour videos, I was concerned about running out of fresh mint, so bought them by the bundles (plural), until one day I realized I had way too much.

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Kir Normand

Almost everyone knows what a Kir Royal is; a flute of crème de cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) and Champagne or sparkling wine.

But in Normandy and Brittany, the drink takes a decidedly regional turn, and becomes a Kir Normandy if made with Calvados (apple brandy), or Kir Breton, if made with Breton apple brandy, known as Lambig.

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Swampwater

Note: Join me today on my IG Apéro Hour at 6pm CET, Noon ET, and 9am PT while I mix up this Swampwater cocktail. To watch, go to my Instagram profile at that time and click on my profile picture when there is a red circle around it, which means I am live. You can also watch it in replay on my IGTV channel. More information about how to tune in and watch live, as well as in replay, here.

Some of the most fun I had writing Drinking French was looking at vintage ads for French spirits and apéritifs. I went down a lot of rabbit holes as one led me to another, then another, and then another. On particularly creative ad was for Suze, which showed a gentian root (the primary ingredient in the apéritif) playing the bottle opener like a guitar. Whatever mind came up with that one was brilliant.

When I had Tim Master on my IG Live, talking about Chartreuse, one drink he mentioned making was the Swampwater. I was a little young when some of the following ads came out, but I vaguely remember the name, Swampwater.

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The White Lady cocktail

Note: Join me and Romain today on my IG Apéro Hour at 6pm CET, Noon ET, and 9am PT while I mix up this White Lady cocktail and Romain prepares an appetizer to go with it. To watch, go to my Instagram profile at that time and click on my profile picture when there is a red circle around it, which means we are live. You can also watch us in replay on my IGTV channel. More information about how to tune in, and watch live, as well as in replay, here.

It’s no secret that Romain has fallen in love with the Rosemary Gimlet. He’s featured in Drinking French sipping the drink. But I’ve been trying to shake things up, so to speak, and get him to branch out to similar cocktails. And the White Lady is a good one, especially if rosemary isn’t available. But it’s an equally bracing gin and citrus cocktail, that’s easy to make, and drink.

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France Comes Out of Lockdown

[image error]Today Paris, and all of France, comes out of lockdown. The government has relaxed restrictions and you’ll no longer need an attestation (self-written consent form) to leave your home or apartment. The country has been divided into two zones, red and green, determining where the virus is spreading most rapidly. You can view the map here. (Paris is départment 75.) Restrictions vary by zone, but here are some general guidelines, which are subject to change:

-Gatherings of up to 10 people will now be allowed.

-Schools are reopening, starting with elementary schools with reduced amounts of students (15) in each class, with a promise that classrooms will be regularly disinfected. A gradual increase in proposed to open junior and senior high schools, as the month progresses.

-Trains and public transit will gradually increase in service. Some métro stations will remain closed, however, and the RATP will operate at 75% of capacity. They are relying on a “civic duty and responsibility pact” with passengers to adhere to the rules. Seats will be blocked off in an effort to keep riders at a distance from each other. (Update: The métro in Paris this morning was standing-room-only.) Workers in Paris will need to supply documentation from their employers in order to use public transportation to get to and from work.

[Note: Social distancing guidelines in France are to keep 1 meter (3 feet) apart from others. In the U.S., those guidelines are 2 meters (6 feet.)]

-Masks will be distributed to Navigo (transit pass) subscribers at certain métro stations. They will be required on public transit as well as in ride-shares like Uber and Kaptain. Pharmacies will receive a certain amount of reusable masks that can be handed out for free from May 11 to June 8 if you sign up at the Paris.fr website. Hand sanitizer will also be provided at public transit stations. The price of hand gel is regulated in France, but because masks vary by quality, design, and materials, there is no fixed price on them yet. French President Emmanuel Macron has been wearing a mask in public to encourage people to wear them as an act of civic duty and patriotic pride.

-Small museums will be allowed to open but larger museums, like the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay, will remain closed.

-Restaurants, cafés, and hotels will remain closed until at least June 2nd, when measures will be reviewed. However many restaurants and food-related businesses have started offering meals to-go. Most are putting that information on either their websites, Facebook, and Instagram accounts.

-Some shops will start opening today, at the owner’s discretion. Owners may limit the number of people in their shops at the same time and require purchases to be made by credit card. Food stores, supermarkets, and bakeries remain open. Outdoor markets are scheduled to reopen providing they take precautions regarding following proper hygiene procedures and social distancing recommendations. The city of Paris has launched a website where you can get items delivered to your home from some of the outdoor market vendors. The website is here.

-Depending on the region, and whether you are zone red or green, some parks (and perhaps beaches) may be open.

-The Health Minister announced that France now has the ability to test 700,000 people per week and said they will begin doing so. Testing will be overseen by the public health department.

-The borders of Europe still are closed to international travel and France is under a state of “Health Emergency” until July 24th. There’s been no indication or notice given when that will be lifted but the government is planning to release a reopening of tourism plan by the end of May. For updated information about tourism, I advise you to check with the embassy of your country for guidance if you have current or future travel plans.

Visit the official French government website with information on the coronavirus here.

France24 also has French news in English, French, Spanish, and Arabic. RFI is another multilingual news source in France.