Tour de France

It's the perfect time to talk about the Tour de France.
Did you know that in 1903, Geo Lefevre, a journalist from "l'Auto Magazine" conceived a 2,828km cycle race around France? He would never have imagined it might grow into the world's greatest annual sporting event!
Things have changed since 1903 and the race is now about 3,600km.

Click here to have all the informations about The Tour 2011.

At La Cuisine, to celebrate The Tour de France, we are featuring a special meal this week related to the Stages 19 and 20 "Modane-Alpe d'Huez- Grenoble", you may enjoy the "Racliflette": potatoes, bacon and onions topped with melted cheese, a special All You Can Eat for $19.

EASTER

Did you know that In France, Easter goodies are brought, not by basket-toting bunnies, but by winged chuch bells?
On Maundy Thursday, the bells leave their steeples and head for Rome. On Easter Sunday, they fly back to France, dropping chocolate eggs and other treats in gardens and on balconies as they make their way home. 

Happy Easter everyone!

Very Clever!

We received a funny email last week from one of our clients. We wanted to share it with you:

"A thief in Paris planned to steal some paintings from the Louvre.

After careful planning, he got past security, stole the paintings, and made it safely to his van.
However, he was captured only two blocks away when his van ran out of gas.
When asked how he could mastermind such a crime and then make such an obvious error, he replied , "Monsieur that is the reason I stole the paintings".





"I had no Monet




















To buy Degas

To make the Van Gogh."










See if you have De Gaulle to send this on to someone else

I sent it to you because I figured I had nothing Toulouse.

who wants some Crêpes?

February 2nd, this is our Chandeleur, and this is your Groundhog Day.

The French dedicate that day each year to make crêpes (pronounces "krep"). But there is a special way to make your own crepes, it can be an intimidating enterprise unless you have a french-born parent who taught you the special wrist-snapping technique for flipping. Crêpes require practice and effort but they are accessible.
One of the simplest ways to enjoy a crepe is spread with lightly salted butter, rolled up like a cigarette, and doused with sugar. For sweet fillings, we use jam, whipped cream and/or rich chocolate sauce. Crêpes can be more elaborate for a lunch or dinner party. Our grandmother's used to add a dash of beer in their batter to make it lighter.

If you already have enjoyed a trip to France, you might have seen some Crepes stands, the same way you have hot dogs stands in the US. They are very popular.

There is a tradition when celebrating la Chandeleur: how to predict the future!
1/- Find a French franc or another lucky coin
2/- Cook a crêpe on one side
3/- Hold the coin in your weakest hand, when the crêpe is ready to be turned
4/- Attempt single-handedly to flip the crêpe
5/- Enjoy good luck for the rest of the year if the crêpe lands perfectly in the pan. Suffer bad luck if the crêpe does not land well (or try again!).

At la Cuisine, we will be pleased to serve you different kind of Crêpes this Wednesday Feb 2nd for lunch and dinner. We hope to see you there.

Have a good crêpes day!

BONNE ANNEE!

Happy New Year everyone! May you have a year full of great wines, great food and great recipes!

Do you have any new resolutions for 2011? We don't like the "resolution revolution" each year but, for once, we have some advices you may keep as you want and as long as you can...

- Shop as locally as you can: eat local, grass-fed meat, support a local farmer.
- reading cookbooks is great, but cooking is better! Try at least to cook a new recipe each week, something you've never had before.
- When you cook, double recipies, freeze the food you don't eat and pull it out the next time you're not up for cooking. It will keep you from falling into the fast-food routine.
- Treat yourself, with moderation  ;) even if you are on diet, eat something you do love and savor it. Good mood guaranteed!
- Drink more water, and for your kids it's better to keep the milk for breakfast or snack only.
By the way, there is a great website where you can track the milk you're drinking: http://whereismymilkfrom.com/
-Regularly clean your fridge/freezer out and use plastic boxes. Organize your pantry, it helps to clear the mind, and you might find some stuff that you forgot you had.
- Have a romantic dinner in our French Restaurant once a month ;)

In fact, eat well, be well!

A December in Paris

A new episode in our serie "Paris", we have some new photos to share thanks to Emilie, a friend of us who has a great eye for catching the beauty of this City.
Enjoy your trip!

Paris in 3D

You can now see some monuments in 3D with Google Earth. Enjoy your visit!