Un bonjour de Lyon: Salad for you my friends!

My dear, poor, non French people, 

Ever thought there could be magic in a salad? 

I mean not in that terrible all-washed no-cheese no-croutons no-life "Iceberg" you've been looking at every day at noon, now that you've decided you are going to lose the few pounds that separate you from being "the real you" (or may I say, the real boring you?).

I'm talking vraie salade.

I myself used to hate it. As a kid we would only eat salad after the entree, with a lot of vinegar, and I really didn't care for this sour sour sour moment.

And then I discovered the Salade Lyonnaise

La Salade Lyonnaise

Ingrédients

1 salad. Mâche. Dandelions. Frisee. Or even Aragula.

1 egg per person

8 oz sliced bacon (lardons)

3 slices of bread (the older the best)

Mustard. Organic Canola Oil.
Red Vinegar

I hope you poor non-French people know that Lyon, this great French city in the South East of France, is a great place for food. It's by many considered as the capital of gastronomy... 

That's where the French pope of gastronomy lives, Paul Bocuse. An incredible chef who was at the head of a French Revolution: La Nouvelle Cuisine, in the 60's. A real "bon-vivant", who very proudly tells how he's been living with three women at the same time for years... Oh la la, le coq français! But a great chef avant tout. As I'm writing, the best chefs of the world are competing in Lyon to get the best award in the world: le Bocuse d'Or.

I've lived and studied (well tried to) in Lyon, and the least I can say is that it's not only a place for high-end pricey restaurants. It's just a place of amazing food.
The market in itself is "une tuerie" (a killing... like it kills you because it's so good). And the little traditional restaurants "les bouchons" are to die for.

My favorite bouchon, le Café des fédérations

Charcuterie, (Yes, Jesus is a sausage in Lyon), Cheese (St Marcellin je t'aime), and amazing dishes: Quenelles de brochet (pike fish dumplings), Tablier de sapeur (soldier's apron, an amazing dish with tripes), or Cervelle de Canut
(litteraly "Silk workers brains"... actually fromage blanc with shallots and chives)... Aïe Aïe Aïe!

I learned to live and to cook in Lyon. My boyfriend at the time was coming from a family of restaurateurs, and I will always remember his step-father, the moustachy-grumpy-but-friendly Bruno, complaining about how "people didn't know how to make a proper Salade Lyonnaise" any more.
Well I don't know if Bruno would aprove of this one, but this is how I make it.

La recette

Slice the bacon into lardons

(just as I explain in the video)
Cut the bread in small croutons, of about the same size as the lardons.

On a very very hot and non-sticky pan, pour the lardons. When they begin to sweat, add the croutons. 
Let them dance together for as long as they need to caramelize.

Meanwhile put a pan of water to a boil

Add red winegar

Break your egg in a bowl, and gently slide it in the boiling water.

Use your spoon to gather  all the white around the egg, and cook them all for 3 minutes.

Make a vinaigrette (1tsp mustard +1 tsp red wine vinegar + salt + pepper+ 2 tbsp oil)

Mix it with the frisee (or whatever salad you have), add the lardons and the croutons, then the egg...

Et voila!

Bon appétit les amis!!

Cécile

PS: 

Promise I'll give you a list of my favorite places in Lyon if you happen to go there! 

Working on a brand new French and perfect website for bientôt!

Vive la saucisse !

My poor non French people,

You can't know how hard it is for a Parisienne to live in California like I do. 

Imagine, living in a place where everybody is smiling all the time! Where people actually say hello and "have a good day" in the shops or at the restaurant! I was so shocked when I first moved to LA that I thought people were actually making fun of me and were laughing in my back. Why couldn't they just groan and look depressed as any good and sensible Français would ?

But there's worse here.

The weather.

Sun sun sun! Always sun! Quelle horreur !

How can a decent human being live without rain? There are so many incredible meals you can't have if the weather is good...

That's why I clapped my hands and beamed with joie when the sky suddenly turned gray last week.
Another great occasion to watch Les Parapluies de Cherbourg!

And... to cook Saucisse de Morteau. 

 

Saucisse de Morteau aux Lentilles du Puy

Ingrédients

1 saucisse de Morteau
8 oz bacon
1 sliced oinion
1 onion on which you nail 4 cloves
3 carotts
1 cup lentilles du Puy
2 cups water
Laurel, Thyme, salt and pepper

Saucisse de Morteau is a smoked pork sausage which is made in Franche Comté, in the East of France. 

Actually, a real Saucisse de Morteau has to be made in Morteau or in its area. There's a protection on the name, as there are Appelation d'Origine Controlée for Bourgogne or Beaujolais. 

You don't mess with the Morteau: it has to be smoked with a special wood in special traditional houses. And people coming from Franche Comté venerate it as a national treasure. 

Take my friend Deborah for example: whenever you invite her, she comes with her saucisse. It's odd, but it's good!

It's very hard to find a real Morteau Sausage in the US (unless Deborah comes to visit you from France, of course), but I'm so happy I've found a very good one made here.

Now the other magical element of this recipe, is a little bit easier to find. 

Lentils.

Des lentilles, oui, mais des lentilles du Puy! These green lentils come from l'Auvergne, in South Center France. These French and perfect vegetables are loved by chefs and nutritionists aussi because of their great taste and healthy gifts. It's full of protein, fibers, and minerals. Et c'est bon !

 

La recette

Dice the onion, and cut the bacon in petits lardons.

Have them sweat for a while in a big pot, with some olive oil and/or butter.

When they are soft and melting like the heart of a teenage girl, add the diced carrots.

Make sure they have time to meet and chat a little, and then introduce them all to their new friends, the lentils.


Pour them in the pot, add enough water to cover them all

Salt, pepper, 3 leaves of laurel, the oinion and the cloves

Bring to a boil, and then let simmer for 30 minutes.

Then add the sausage. (make small holes in it with your fork before so it doesn't explode)

Cover, let sim for 30 minutes... and Enjoy!
 

Allez, bon appétit les amis!

PS:  

Ok, it's not very light, but it's a great healthy source of energy!

Did you know that there was actually a Saucisse de Morteau on the Tour de France, last year? It even passed the peloton! 

See Lance, why didn't you just have Morteau for breakfast...