Come Eat With Me

When you think of France what do you think of? Perhaps it's sunshine, the rustic buildings, the language or even the food. Maybe it's a mixture of these or something else entirely. For us I think the food is a dominant factor and one we love to embrace especially as Grandpere is a very good chef. 

Foraging

While the more adventurous amongst us may be keen to go foraging and find mushrooms to add to the pot. We spotted the snail above while out at Château Harcourt and when our French relations saw this photo they told us we should have taken him home to lunch on! Obviously not all snails and mushrooms are edible so you do have to be careful. Frogs legs and snails aren't as popular with the French as some people would have us believe. Hubby did snack on some frogs legs while we were at a Chinese restaurant abroad but he didn't realise what he had tucked into at first.

Of course there are lots of yummy fruits to be picked during the summer months heading into the autumnal ones. Apples, plums, blackberries and raspberries are all ready and awaiting being picked if the animals and insects haven't got to them first of course.

Markets

The markets are another fantastic place to find local fresh produce. In the past we have been known to take a chicken home to cook with its head newly detached and a baguette. While the meal tasted delicious I can truly understand after that experience why some may be put off eating chicken for life. The market near our family happens once a week on a Saturday.

Supermarket

Of course if you don't fancy eating out, foraging or attending the local market there's always the supermarket. Unlike the shops you find over here these are only open at certain times there's no 24 hour shopping in France. Set up around spending time with the family you have to think about when you are going. We were a little disappointed by the quality of the fruit and veg this time and the grapes were extortionate in price. We love our fresh milk too unlike the rest of our family who seemed happy to have what could be described as uht milk so we spent quite a bit of time stopping by for a new carton of milk. My eldest was also surprised to see crab up close. She's only ever seen crabs in an aquarium before so this was new for her and she was completely absorbed. Sadly on our last visit there were none in the tank so we told her they'd gone on holiday.

Have you ever found yourself shielding your child from the truth so as not to upset them? Have you got experience of eating something unique abroad? As always I'd love to hear from you so do leave a message below