Main Courses

You may not know what a tian is, but if you’ve seen the movie Ratatouille, you’ll be familiar with a version of this presentation of vegetables sliced thinly, cooked and served in an elegant stack. The dish you see in the movie was created by Chef Thomas Keller (of The French Laundry, among other restaurants), […]

Calvados, the apple brandy eau de vie produced in Calvados, Normandy is not just great as an aperitif, digestif and in cocktails – but also for cooking! Ingredients for 4 people 4 chicken breasts 4 apples to cook 4 small turnips (Golden balls are good) (optional) 1 quince (if you can’t get hold of one […]

Mont Saint-Michel is a French icon. An island of medieval buildings topped by a gravity-defying abbey, it’s one of the most popular tourist destinations in France. It’s also legendary for a restaurant called Mère Poulard where they’ve been cooking omelettes over an open fire to the same recipe since 1887. They’re memorable, moreish and mouth-wateringly […]

If you can, buy them in the morning and leave them in cold water for the day to give them a final wash. You should discard any that are broken, and any open ones should close when you tap them, if they don’t chuck them away – they’re dead. Then cut or pull off any […]

This lovely and simple French recipe for scallops, Saint-Jacques, is refreshing and scrumptious. Ingredients for 6 people: 18 scallops 3 leeks 1 mango 8 slices of parma ham or prosciutto 5 cl of olive oil French Espelette pepper (can be replaced with normal pepper and paprika) For the dressing: 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar 4 […]

Inspired by Claude Monet’s Cookery Notebooks, chicken prepared in the Honfleur tradition…. Ingredients for 6 people: 6 chicken fillets 10 g butter 1 teaspoonful oil 3 shallots 125 g “French lardons” (or thick smoked bacon cut into pieces) 5 cl de Calvados 10 cl dry white wine 20 cl water 2 tablespoons veal base (paste) […]

Tartiflette is a baked gratin of potatoes, onions (or shallots), lardons (bacon), wine, cream and cheese, a staple of all ski lodge or chalet suppers. The dish originates from the Savoy (Savoie) region of France, famous for its skiing resorts, hosting the Winter Olympics, cheese and charcuterie. The region was annexed by France as late […]

This tasty dish is a Normandy speciality and easy to make… Ingredients 50g (2oz) butter 2-4 (Normandy) Apples peeled and cored and roughly chopped 1kg (2lb 4oz) shoulder of free-range butcher bought pork, cubed 200g (7oz) lardons or chunky streaky bacon, chopped 16 shallots, peeled and left whole 1 small onion, chopped 2 celery sticks, […]