Mélisse -Lemon Balm. Lemon Balm on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

   
Lemon Balm
https://www.flickr.com/photos/andrea_44/5744694087/

The other names of Mélisse and Lemon Balm

The other French names for lemon balm include Baume Mélisse and Citronella; in English, the herb’s other names include Citronella, Balsam and Balm Melissa. 

Lemon balm in the French kitchen
 
Lemon balm is used for salads, marinades, mayonnaise, herb vinegar, fish dishes and fruit salads.   Lemon Balm is also an ingredient of Benedictine, Chartreuse, and other French liquors.  In Asia, lemon grass is a favorite flavoring for soups and sauces.

The problem with calling Mélisse or Lemon Balm Citronella.

Be careful with Mélisse or Lemon Balm being called citronella in either French or English, Citronella oil that keeps away mosquitoes comes from citronella grass whose roots and leaves make  citronella oil.  Do not confuse the plants as that may result in painful or itchy consequences. Behind the misuse of the name are both plant’s lemony smell. The French word for lemon is citron, hence citronella; that created the confusion.

Lemon balm despite its name belongs to the mint family. The green leaves look like large mint leaves and have a mild lemon aroma with an even lighter hint of mint.   The Lemon Balm’s close cousin is the Bergamot mint, in French that is La Menthe Bergamote and it is used to flavor summer drinks and it is also used in some candies, sweets.        

La Menthe Bergamote will be on some menus:

Glace à la Menthe Bergamote – Ice cream flavored with the Bergamot mint.

Lemon Balm on French Menus:

Blanc de Turbot Poudré à la Noisette, Crémeux Du Barry, Cressonnière à la Mélisse – A farm raised turbot filet powdered with grated hazelnut and served with a creamy cabbage sauce and a watercress flavoring itself flavored with lemon balm. (The sauce used in this menu listing “Crémeux Dubarry” is named after Madame Du Barry (Comtesse Du Barry) who was the last Mistress of Louis XVI, the King of France guillotined during the French revolution). Madam Dubarry was always considered to have huge ears or possibly attachments to her wig which made her ears look larger and so many dishes that included cabbage were jokingly named after her.  Madame Du Barry was guillotined during the Revolution’s Terror on 8 December 1793.
   

Watermelon, lemon juice, and lemon balm.
 
Crème d'Oseille à la Mélisse  - A creamy sorrel (also called garden sorrel) soup flavored with lemon balm.
 
Escalope de Foie Gras et Gambas Snackées, Tartare de Mangue à la Mélisse - A round or oval cut of fattened duck liver prepared with jumbo shrimps cut into mouth sized bites and served with a Mango Tartar flavored with lemon balm.
   
Tea with a blend of 5 different herbs:
rosemary, lemongrass, lemon balm, spearmint, pineapple mint
https://www.flickr.com/photos/cityfoodsters/16723546768/

L'Omble Chevalier du Lac au Jus de Mélisse – Freshwater charr, the fish, from the lake prepared with the juice of lemon balm. This menu listing comes from a hotel restaurant in the village of Volkrange in the department of Moselle in the region of Lorraine. Lorraine became part of the super region of the Grand Est on 1-1-2015 when France reduced the number of mainland regions from 22 to 13. The decision to scale down the number of regions that govern France internally was to cut red tape and reduce the bureaucracy that citizens encounter and save money.   To see how the super region of Grande Est, the Great East, was made up of the regions of Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne, and Lorraine click on the link: France’s Mainland Regions and Their Borders Have Changed.
   

Rabbit, pork and lemon balm terrine.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/manidisroberts/5972383493/

Salade de Calamars à la Citronnelle (Pimentée) – A salad of calamari (squid) flavored with lemon balm and lightly spiced.

Ravioles de Tourteaux à la Mélisse – Ravioli made with the white meat of the brown crab flavored with lemon balm.

Sorbet Fraise Mélisse – A strawberry sorbet flavored with lemon balm.

Lemon balm with its light lemon taste with a touch of a mint accent is a combination that makes it a very popular infusion, a tisane, a herbal tea. French homeopathic doctors recommend Lemon Balm for stomach disorders and nervous attacks. In France, the essential oils of the lemon balm’s cousin the bergamot mint are also considered necessary for aromatherapy.
  
When planting herbs remember that rabbits like lemon balm
https://www.flickr.com/photos/janet_calcaterra/9027596219/

I use, with permission, Gernot Katzer’s Spice Pages to check on foreign language names for herbs and spices and where possible to make sure that the etymology of the names I am given in French restaurants and food markets is correct.

Below are Gernot Katzer's notes on the etymology of the word balm:
  
“Balm is a short­ened form of balsam, deriving from the Latin balsamum balsam tree, which was also used for the resin obtained there for (Balm of Mecca). The ultimate source of the word is Old Hebrew boshem (modern bossem) [בשם], which denotes the balsam tree (Commi­phora opo­balsamum syn. Amyris opo­balsamum, Burser­aceae/Rutales) and its resin, but also means fragrance or spice in general. It also appears as busma [ܒܤܡܐ] in the Aramaic New Testament.”
  
Even before chefs in mainland France were using lemon grass the French Caribbean departments were growing it in their tropical climates; from the Caribbean its popularity spread to Central America under the name citronella where confusion reigns between the two plants called citronella.


Mélisse, lemon balm in the languages of France’s neighbors:

(Catalan -  tarongina, arangí or melissakj). (Dutch - bijenkruid, citroenkruid, citroenmelisse), (German – zitronenmelisse), (Italian – melissa, cedronella, citronella, erba limona), (Spanish - melisa, citronela). 

Connected Posts:
 
 
 
   


 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Copyright 2010, 2017.
 

Beaujolais - Beaujolais wines. Beaujolais Wines on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

  
 
   
Beaujolais Nouveau
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sangre-la/2721052266/
 
Beaujolais -The wines.
   
Beaujolais, among the well known wines from Burgundy. We know the light, dry, red wines that are Beaujolais-Villages AOC and or the Beaujolais Nouveau; however, there are ten other well-known Beaujolais AOC wines from the area including, Brouilly, Fleurie, and Morgon among others. If you are in the area, try the different Beaujolais wines, and for a local digestif try their local Marc de Beaujolais. The names of the best Beaujolais wines are at the end of this link.

Beaujolais Nouveau
 
One of the most famous wines in all of Burgundy, even though it is far from the best of the region’s wines is Beaujolais Nouveau. Beaujolais Nouveau is bottled immediately after fermentation and drunk without any aging.  By strict French definition this wine should be called a primeur; however, most people, including myself, would be hard pressed to remember the difference between a Beaujolais Primeur and a Beaujolais Nouveau.  French regulations or not it is Nouveau Beaujolais to nearly everyone.
    
Beaujolais
Photograph courtesy of Hajime NAKANO
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jetalone/302631811 FF

Beaujolais Nouveau is a marketing manager's success story.  Thirty or forty years ago Beaujolais Nouveau was a local new wine and nothing else.  Outside of the immediate area, no one had heard of it, but now special dinners will be held on the third Thursday in November at midnight from New York to Tokyo when the new Beaujolais Nouveau is introduced.  The noise that surrounded a new Beaujolais Nouveau has quietened in the last few years; nevertheless, the extraordinary success of this simple light wine is now a part of wine history.
    
Beaujolais wines on French menus:

Le Pied de Cochon Rôti, Sauce Beaujolais, Spaetzlés Maison – Roast pig’s trotter served with a Beaujolais sauce and the restaurant’s distinctive take on Spaetzlés.  Spaetzlés are small dumplings from the Alsace; they look something like overweight bumpy noodles and will be served as a garnish instead of potatoes or rice.  Despite their shape, they are made, like most other dumplings, with flour, eggs, and water or milk; some may be flavored with herbs or mushrooms.

Steak Charolais, Lard, Oignons Confits, St Marcellin, Sauce Beaujolais A Charolais steak prepared with bacon,  confit, slowly cooked onions, the soft cow’s milk St Marcellin cheese and served with a Sauce Beaujolais.

Millefeuille de Carpe Sauce Beaujolais-Villages – Carp, the fish, thinly cut as millefeuilles inter-leafed with vegetables and served with a Beaujolais-Village sauce.
  
    The label from a bottle of Beaujolais Village.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/marywitzig/2374710374 FF
 
Sandre de la Dombes Sauce Beaujolais Blanc  -  Zander in the USA and Pike Perch in the UK caught or farmed in the wetlands of the Dombes (near Lyon) and served with a white Beaujolais sauce

Pièce de Bœuf Grillée Sauce BeaujolaisA unique cut from the rump and considered the butcher’s choice served with a Sauce Beaujolais.

When choosing a Beaujolais wine there are the best, the Crus, and then the good, the Beujolais Villages AOC.

The 10 Cru Beaujolais:

The Cru Beaujolais are considered the best of all the Beaujolais wines; nevertheless, you need an up-to-date wine book or a good friend who is an expert.  The variations that include the vintage and the vintner means that just picking a name and a year will not necessarily buy you a good wine. If you see a famous wine over five years old discounted in a supermarket leave it for others. 

Caveat Emptor: A cheap wine from a great vintage and great vintner with a great taste would have been snapped up by the French connoisseurs on the day the wine went on sale. In France, there are few bargains in AOC graded wines.

These are the ten crus.
 
Brouilly; Chénas; Chiroubles; Côte de Brouilly; Fleurie; Juliénas; Moulin-à-Vent; Morgon;  Régnié; Saint-Amour.

The Beaujolais Village wines:

The Beaujolais Village wines can be excellent, but here, more even than the crus, you need that up-to-date- wine book or friend who is a wine expert. In a restaurant a good sommelier may also help with the choice if he or she is given a budget.

Les Ardillats; Beaujeu; Blacé; Cercié; Chânes;  La Chapelle-de-Guinchay; Charenta ; Denicé; Emeringes;  Jullié;  Lancié; Lantignié; Leynes; Marchampt; Montmelas-Saint-Sorlin; Odenas; Le Perréon; Pruzilly; Romanèche-Thorins; Quincié-en-Beaujolais; Régnié-Durette; Rivolet; St-Amour-Bellevue;
St-Didier-sur-Beaujeu; St-Etienne-des-Oullières; St-Etienne-la-Varenne; St-Symphorien-d’Ancelles; St-Vérand; St-Julien; St-Leger; Salles-Arbuissonnas-en-Beaujolais; Vaux-en-Beaujolais; Vauxrenard; Villié-Morgon.



More about the Beaujolais Nouveau.

It is said that during a great meal with excellent service and good company the second bottle of Beaujolais Nouveau achieves greatness. There are also stories of those who have found great truths in a third bottle;.however, they were probably drunk at the time. In the same area, there are many fine wines, and as you can see from the wines noted above you do not even have to drink Beaujolais Nouveau unless you want to.
   
Beaujolais wine aging in barrels.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/karaian/3798493743/

Beaujolais produces more wine than the Burgundy wine regions of Chablis, Côte d'Or and Mâconnais put together. This possible as the  region of Beaujolais was already cultivated by the Romans who planted the areas along its trading route up the Saône valley.  The Roman vineyard Brulliacus is located on the hillside of Mont Brouilly and the Romans also planted vineyards in other areas that are now Beaujolais. From the 7th century through the Middle Ages, most of the viticulture and wine-making was done by the Benedictine monks

 

 
 
 
 
 
 

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Copyright 2010,2017.

Grenadier – Grenadier. The Fish Called Grenadier on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com




Grenadier
www.naturalhistorymag.com
   
The Grenadier family members seen on French ­­­­menus includes the Grenadier gris or Grenadier Berglax and the Grenadier de Roche. (On most French menus only the word Grenadier will be used).  These two members of the larger Grenadier fish family compete for space on some beautiful French tables. Nevertheless, you and I are unlikely to tell the difference between either of these two fish.  On the menu, only a filet will be offered.

Steamed Black grenadier
prepared with coconut milk and a light touch of curry
   
These two family members come from the deep waters of the North Atlantic, and they provide very firm sweet white meat. Chefs consider it them superior to pollack or whiting and they will be offered as filets pan fried or baked.   They are large fish reaching up to a meter in length; however, the head takes up to 25 of the length and the long thin tail even more.  All that is brought back to France is the filet.

The Grenadier fish on French menus:

Filet de Grenadier à la Concassée de Tomates et Basilic – A filet of grenadine prepared with coarsely chopped tomatoes flavored with basil. I imagine that the filet being offered here is pan-fried. 
     
Grenadier Piccata with Zucchini  Noodles.
In the UK the zucchini is called a courgette.
Piccata means sliced, sautéed, and served in a sauce containing lemon, butter, and spices. In this photograph, we can see chives and parsley. Piccata is usually a fish or meat dish.
   
Grenadier Cuit au Four, Concassée de Tomates, Beurre de Sydre 
"Les Argelettes"  -  Grenadine, the fish,  baked in the oven with coarsely chopped tomatoes cooked in a cider butter prepared with cider from Les Argeletts. 
 
When a chef has a duck, chicken, wine or cheese that he or she believes is very special then the name of the farm or the producer may well be on the menu. Here the menu notes the brand name of a cider used for the cider butter in the dish mentioned above. I looked into Les Argelettes and found that this is the private brand of cider. It is produced by a boutique cidriculteur, a boutique cider maker. In this case, the cider is made by an ex-three star Michelin Guide sommelier, Eric Bordelet.  Eric gave up the world of wine to return to his family’s roots as a cider maker.

Pan fried Roughhead Grenadier
with fresh prawns and bok choy in crayfish sauce.
    
Filet de Grenadier aux Épinards Sauce Citron – A filet of grenadine prepared with spinach and served with a lemon sauce.
 
There are quite a number of other grenadier family members and no doubt some of them may grace the occasional French menu, but I have yet to encounter them. As you travel, you may meet the Pacific Grenadier on a menu on the USA’s  West Coast and the Blue Grenadier in Australia or New Zealand.  
  
Grenadier Gris
attached to the back of this fish is a parasitic copod.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/noaaphotolib/14318884118/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/noaaphotolib/14318884118/
  
The Grenadier fish in the languages of France's neighbors:

The Grenadier Gris or Grenadier Berglax: - The Grenadier, the Roughhead grenadier or Onion-eye grenadier. (Dutch - noordelijke grenadier),(German- grenadier, grenadierfisch or rauhköpfiger grenadierfisch), (Spanish - grenadero de roca).
   
The Grenadier, Grenadien, Grenadier de Roche – The Roundnose grenadier, Black grenadier, Rock Grenadier.  (Dutch - grenadier ), (German –- grenadier, grenadierfisch), (Spanish – granadino).
   
Connected Posts:
    
  

  
  

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Copyright 2010, 2017.

Corne d'Abondance, Craterelles or Trompette des Morts, - The Horn of Plenty, the Black Chanterelle and the Black Trumpet Mushroom. French Mushrooms VII

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

    
The black chanterelle mushroom
https://www.flickr.com/photos/biodivlibrary/8510515768/
 
In France, this tasty trumpet-shaped, hollow, mushroom has a pleasant smell with a creamy and woody taste.  Fresh horn of plenty mushrooms will be on many menus in France from August through November.  This fungus loves France as there are many oak and chestnut forests where after the rains they may appear in significant numbers.
   
The family of Chanterelle mushrooms
   
The black trumpet mushroom belongs to the family of Chanterelle mushrooms; there are about 70 species of Chanterelle mushrooms around the world, and of the nearly ten family members found in Europe all are edible. The black trumpet mushroom will be found in black, black and white, dark brown or blue-gray and has the shape of a hollow trumpet or horn.
   

The horn of plenty mushrooms in the woods.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/40948266@N04/29072509564/

The post on France’s Chanterelle mushrooms:
   
I have written a post on the three chanterelle mushrooms most often seen on French menus. In that post I did not include this mushroom, the black chanterelle, the horn of plenty; black trumpet mushroom, it deserved a separate link. 
.
The other family members most often seen on French menus include:
The Chanterelle Girolle, the chanterelle; the Chanterelle Gris, the trumpet chanterelle; and the Chanterelle à Pied Jaune, the yellow foot chanterelle.  To follow the link to that post click here.

The Corne d’Abondance, Craterelles or Trompette des Morts mushroom on French Menus:
  
Suprême Poulet Poché, Sauce Veloutée aux Craterelles et sa Boule de Riz  - Poached chicken breast served with a velvety black trumpet mushroom sauce and a bowl of rice.
 
Filet Mignon au Pinot Noir et Craterelles - Pork fillet, a cut from the tenderloin, in a pinot noir wine sauce served with theblack trumpet mushroom.

Le Suprême de Pintadeau et ses Légumes Cuisinés à la Crème de Craterelles – Breast of Guinea fowl and vegetables cooked in a creamy sauce from the black trumpet mushroom.
   

Guinea fowl with horn of plenty mushrooms.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/marsupilami92/6927629344/
 
Terrine de Sanglier aux Trompettes des Morts A pate of farm-raised wild boar prepared with the black trumpet mushrooms.

Filet de Bœuf, Jus aux Trompettes de la Mort et Salsifis A fillet of beef, (a cut from the tenderloin), served with its natural cooking juices and accompanied by the black trumpet mushroom and salsify,  the oyster plant.

Filet de Truite au Beurre de Trompette de Mort, Sauce Riesling A filet of trout, this will be the Arc-en-Ciel, the rainbow trout,  prepared in a compound butter with a black trumpet mushrooms and serve with a Riesling wine sauce.

Petit Risotto Crémeux de Trompettes des Morts – A small creamy risotto made with the black trumpet mushrooms.
   

Horn of plenty mushroom risotto,
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sitsgirls/6320280072/
   
The origin of the name the Corne d'Abonance, the Horn of Plenty.

The Corne d'Abondance, the horn of plenty, is the mythical horn of plenty, the Cornucopia from Greek mythology.  The story of the Cornucopia is one of the most popular myths linked to Zeus the King of the Greek gods.  As the story goes the baby Zeus was hidden in a cave on the Island of Crete, and there he was fed by a goddess Amalthea who appeared as a goat and fed Zeus her milk. The baby Zeus already had magical powers, and when he broke Amalthea‘s horn, he gave her, in repentance, the gift of the horn of plenty.  The Cornucopia is a horn that would always be overflowing with fruits, meats, vegetables and wine at the owner's desire. The shape of the cornucopia has become an international symbol of plenty and part of the flag of a number of nations.
   

A Cornucopia
https://www.flickr.com/photos/30326710@N02/2867405986/

Checking the wild  mushrooms, you have found while in France
 
Every town and village in France have a trained mycologist, a volunteer mushroom expert, and local pharmacists have these expert’s addresses. Regular mushroom gatherers may easily spot the difference as look-alike mushrooms are poisonous and can make you very very sick!  In the kitchens of France’s restaurant's wild mushrooms, of all types, may be on the menu and chefs only buy wild mushrooms that have been clearly identified by their ramasseurs de champignons, their professional mushroom gatherers. 

NB. If you gather wild mushrooms when in France, do not eat any that have not been checked!!!

Horn of plenty mushrooms may be dried and retain much of their flavor, however, fresh they should be eaten or dried within 24 hours of being collected.

One of the mushroom’s French names is the Trompette des Morts, and that, unfortunately, translates into English as the “Trumpet of the Dead” though this mushroom is not poisonous. It second and third French names sound much better:  Corne d’Abondance means Horn of Plenty, and Craterelle is a link to its Latin name craterellus cornucopioides’ take your pick; it is mostly called the black trumpet mushroom in English.
   

Black Chanterelle mushrooms, radicchio,
and Talegio Italian cheese
  
The black trumpet mushroom  in the languages of France’s neighbors:

(Catalan – trompeta or trompeta de la mort ), (Dutch –doodstrompet,  hoorn van overvloed),  (German – totentrompete, herbsttrompete), (Italian - trombetta dei morti, orno dell'abondanza), (Spanish - cuerno de la abundancia; trompeta de los muertos).
(Latin - craterellus cornucopioides)

Connected Posts:

 
 
 
 

 

 

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Copyright 2010 ,2017
    .

Responsive ad