Tour de French Cuisine-Stage 11; Vatan to Saint-Fargeau. Escargot & Boeuf Bourguignon

The start town of Vatan is getting a first time stage visit from the Tour de France, but has been a part of the Paris-Nice, or Race to the Sun in 2007. The small town of 2000 sits in the Berry province in between Vierzon and Châteauroux of the Indre department as part of the Loire Valley.  The name Vatan actually means “Go Away”, not really a welcoming cry, but the motto of the town is a little better “Vatan…you’ll be back” The Berry green lentil festival and the Circus festival are popular local events.

 

Just outside of Vatan is the small village of Reuilly with a religious history dating back to 638 when King Dagobert gave Reuilly the Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis. It remained a religious seigniory until 1789 and the Revolution. Reuilly at one time belonged to Normandy in 902 and then during the Hundred Years War belonged to England. Reuilly lies above the river Arnon on the borders of the Cher & Indre departments. The local limestone soil vegetation of the appellation results in an herby white wine that is lighter then Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume.

 

Quincy is another small village that is built on its Sauvignon Blanc. The village use to belong to the nearby abbey of Vierzon that is located just 9 miles away. In 1620 the monks from the abbey of Beaumont introduced the Sauvignon Blanc grape to the town. It was the second winemaking area in France to achieve AOC status in 1936. It now has over 200 hectares or 495 acres that produce the white wine similar to Pouilly-Fume.

 

Menetou-Salon is another town devoted to wine and much like its neighbors Reuilly and Quincy its grapes are the cousin to Sancerre. The smaller growing regions and its location being further from the Loire has not given the wines the prestige of its cousins Pouilly-Fume and Sancerre. But the Chateau Monetou-Salon is a crowning glory in the town. Surrounded entirely by vineyards the Gothic Revival style chateau was originally owned by the French Minister of Finance Jacques Coeur but at the end of the 19^th century is became the home of the Prince of Arenberg, whose family still owns it today.

 

Pouilly-sur-Loire continues the wine theme and white wine to be specific. You may have guessed from the last few towns what with a name like Pouilly they must produce Pouilly-Fume wine. They can date the vineyards back to the 5^th century where it was first mentioned by Benedictine monks. With the Loire River running near by the town benefited from the river traffic and the wine became a favorite with Louis XI and all the way to Flanders. In 1937 Pouilly was awarded two appellations, Pouilly-sur-Loire and Puilly Fume. The Pavillion du Milieu de Loire is a local museum that has a permanent exhibit on the River Loire and the world of wine and is worth a visit.

 

The town of Treigny is the only town in the world that has two medieval castles and over 1000 years separate the building of the first and the second one. The Castle of Reilly overlooks the town and is partially hidden by the undergrowth and dates back to the 11^th century. It was first mentioned in 1160 but in the last 50 years it has been a location rich in culture and activity. Organized theater, summer concerts and pottery workshops are located in the castle for anybody to attend.  The second is the fortified castle of Guedelon which was inspired by the architecture of Ratilly. The project began in 1997 and the builders that are working full time on the castle can only use materials that are available nearby, the castle should be completed by 2022.

 

Saint-Sauveur-en-Pauisaye holds a personal attraction to me, it was the birthplace of the much loved French author Colette. She wrote one of the most popular series in French history, the Claudine novels. (give me a break, I never see my name anywhere but in French things). In her novel, Claudine a l’Ecole, she renamed the town to Montigny-en-Fresnois. The other books in the series Claudine a Paris, Claudine en ménage & Claudine s’en va. She may be more recognized for writing the novel Gigi that turned into a movie. The town has a museum dedicated to the author in the 17^th century castle

 

The finishing town of Saint-Fargeau is also a new stage finish for the Tour de France and the smallest town that is hosting a stage this year. The Chateau de Saint-Fargeau has been a part of the town since it was built in 980. It was seized in 1411 by the English in the Hundred Year War and then in 1450 was purchased by Jacque Coeuer where he had it rebuilt in 1453.  In 1652, Anne-Marie Louise d’Orléans, the Grande Mademoiselle first cousin of king Louis XIV, was exiled for five years because of her stance during “la Fronde” (cival war). She settled in the Castle of Saint Fargeau where she hired the architect Le Vau to decorate the interior.  In 1713 the family of Louis-Michel Le Peletier purchased the castle. In January 1793 a vote was taken to decide what they would do with the King Louis XVI, it is said that it came down to a vote of 361 to 360 and the deciding vote was cast by Le Peletier and the King was sentenced to death by guillotine.  The rumor of his vote spread quickly among the Royalist and the day before the king was to die, Louis-Michel Le Peletier was assassinated in a restaurant at the Palais Royal.

 

The Burgundy region may have the most recognizable cuisine, at least items that almost everybody can say they have at least tried one of them. Curnonsky said “there are many gastronomic paradises in France, but there is a paradise of paradises-Burgundy”   Of course the most famous, may be Boeuf a la Bourguignonne which basically a beef stew with bacon, onions and mushrooms slow cooked in red wine. It is a rather inexpensive meal to make and can be made in large quantities and made in advance, as it just gets better and better as it sits. I went to the mother of all French cooking Julia Child for the recipe and altered it a bit to fit the time I needed to make it. I call it:

 

Boeuf Bourguignon jeuner acheminet (fast forward)

 

Adapted from "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck (Alfred A. Knopf, 1961)

Time: About 3 hours (normally 5 to 6 hours)

One 6-ounce piece of chunk bacon or 6 or 7 strips of bacon

3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

3 pounds lean stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes

1 sliced carrot

1 sliced onion

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons flour

3 cups full-bodied, young red wine (like Beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone or Burgundy)

2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups brown beef stock

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cloves mashed garlic

1/2 teaspoon thyme

A crumbled bay leaf

18 to 24 small white onions

3 1/2 tablespoons butter

Herb bouquet (4 parsley sprigs, one-half bay leaf, one-quarter teaspoon thyme, tied in cheesecloth)

1 pound quartered fresh mushrooms.

1. Remove bacon rind and cut into lardons (sticks 1/4-inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and lardons for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 quarts water. Drain and dry.

2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

3. Sauté lardons in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a flameproof casserole over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon.

4. Dry beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Heat fat in casserole until almost smoking. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and sauté until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the lardons.

5. In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the excess fat. Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat again and return to oven for 4 minutes (this browns the flour and coves the meat with a light crust). Remove casserole and turn oven down to 375 degrees.

6. Stir in wine and 2 to 3 cups stock, just enough so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs and bacon rind and small onions. Cover casserole and set in lower third of oven. Regulate heat so that liquid simmers very slowly for 2 hours. Turn up the heat to 415 degrees and continue to cook until the meat is tender and a fork pierces it easily about 45 minutes to an hour more.

7. While the beef is cooking, prepare the mushrooms. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with one and one-half tablespoons of the oil until bubbling in a skillet. Add mushrooms and sauté over moderate heat for about 10 minutes, rolling them so they will brown as evenly as possible8. Wipe out skillet and heat remaining oil and butter over high heat. As soon as you see butter has begun to subside, indicating it is hot enough, add mushrooms. Toss and shake pan for 4 to 5 minutes. As soon as they have begun to brown lightly, remove from heat.

9. When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and lardons to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms on top. Skim fat off sauce in saucepan. Simmer sauce for a minute or 2, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons stock. Taste carefully for seasoning. Pour sauce over meat and vegetables. Cover and simmer 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in casserole, or arrange stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles or rice, and decorated with parsley.

 

Another dish that is synonymous with the Burgundy region is Escargot. In French escargot literally means snail and I know some people may freak out at the thought of eating a snail, but you really must try it. Drenched in butter, garlic and parsley these little tiny morsels are fantastic. I was just a child when I first tried escargot in a small French restaurant near the a town we grew up in and then continued to love it as I was in high school where I would frequently have it at a favorite restaurant.  

Escargot a La Bourguignonne

4 oz butter, at room temperature

1/4 c Finely chopped parsley

1 head of garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 shallot, sliced

½ cup white wine

24 Canned French snails

24 Snail shells

1. In a sauté pan, combine the shallots, wine and snails and bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.

2. Combine the parsley and garlic in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to blend well, add butter and pulse until it is a smooth green paste. Season with salt & pepper.

3.Turn on the broiler and place rack in the middle of the oven

4. Place a snail in each shell and fill the cavity with the seasoned butter. Place on a baking pan and broil until the butter is melted. Serve hot and then slop up all the butter and garlic goodness with slices of baguette.