With Thanksgiving arriving and Christmas not far behind, this may be a good time to try your hand at Brussels sprouts, French style. This savory dish — in which the sprouts are halved and sautéd with bacon, with carrots, with both or with neither — bears no relation to the version you may have been served as a child. Garlic and herbs brighten the flavor, and the sprouts retain flashes of lovely green by being cooked just enough, uncovered.
Choux de Bruxelles à la française / Brussels sprouts, French style
Brussels sprouts, which are an integral part of Christmas dinners in Britain and often feature on Thanksgiving tables in the United States, are perhaps one of the world’s most controversial veggies. If overcooked, they become gray, mushy and bitter. In years gone by they were served this way in many homes — including by my mother, an otherwise excellent cook — and in school cafeterias, as a British friend was quick to confirm.
‘One of my worst memories of my childhood was being fed Brussels sprouts boiled within an inch of their life,’ he recalled. ‘They spoil Christmas for me. I cannot bear to eat a sprout ever since.’ When I offered to make the French version for him, he said he would happily eat the bacon, carrots and garlic but leave the sprouts behind. And yet, and yet…
Brussels sprouts cooked properly are mild, slightly sweet and tender. In this recipe, they are first cut in half, exposing their beautiful yellow centers. The halves are boiled to the al dente stage, the key being not to cover the pot so that they remain bright green. The sprouts are then sautéd in olive oil with the addition of garlic, herbes de Provence and, if you like, lardons (bacon sticks) and/or carrot rounds. In the final stage, a little water is added to braise the sprouts and blend the flavors.
Brussels sprouts, a member of the cabbage family, take their name from the Belgian capital because they began being cultivated intensively there during the Renaissance. Garden plots outside the city walls had been used for growing cabbages, which require a lot of space. As the population grew, farmers switched to sprouts, which grow vertically.
These days Belgians have been surpassed as producers of Brussels sprouts by the Dutch and also the British, possibly due to the Christmas connection. Brussels sprouts have pride of place on traditional British Christmas tables along with dishes like roast turkey, Yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, red cabbage and flaming plum pudding.
In the States, if you’d like to add a French touch to your Thanksgiving in addition to the sprouts, you could check out the following recipes: roast turkey, French style, sweet potato purée, sweet potatoes with herbs, Georges Blanc’s pumpkin gratin, pumpkin purée with parmesan, green beans, French style, and walnut tart. But you don’t need a holiday to enjoy Brussels sprouts, French style. They’re good any time of the year.
Happy cooking.
An earthy soup of red lentils with coconut milk will brighten your table in these dreary days of November. In Paris, where’s its been gray and cold for weeks, we actually had November in October and now we’re having December in November. My neighbors across the way have already strung out their Christmas lights, and I’m seriously considering lighting a fire in the fireplace tonight. Just to create some cheer in this dismal season…
A quiche brings out the best in the humble leek. Sautéd in butter to tenderness, bathed in a mixture of eggs, milk, cream and a dash of nutmeg, piled into a savory crust and topped with grated cheese, the leek rises from peasant status to nobility. And the beauty is that this quiche can be prepared very easily, especially if — as I did on a lazy Sunday (blush) — you use store-bought puff pastry (pâte feulletée) instead of making the crust from scratch…
The quiche can make a meal in itself, accompanied by a salad — for example, in autumn, a 
The beauty of a vegetable gratin is that it can be made with virtually any veggies you wish. I made a gratin of potatoes, carrots, leeks and baby spinach last month when the gray, rainy weather set in after our all too brief summer season in Paris. A week later it was back on our table by popular demand. The veggies are steamed, bathed in a 
The mixed veggie gratin may be served as a main course with a salad alongside for a simple meal, or as a side dish for a more elaborate meal. In autumn, you could begin with a seasonal starter, like a 
This zingy smoked herring salad proved a winner when I was asked to cook for 50 people at a party in Normandy in late August. It was meant to be served on the night of the party as part of a salad buffet to accompany a mechoui — slow-roasted lamb cooked over an open pit. But the 30 or so guests who had arrived by noon had it for lunch, which worked out well as I hadn’t really made enough for 50. Reader, they ate it all and asked for more.
Pasta with broccoli, sausage, olive oil and red pepper flakes is a family favorite that I tend to make when cooler weather sets in — which has suddenly happened in Paris after a couple of warm months that went by in a flash. We had a hailstorm yesterday and overnight the temperature dipped to 6º C (43º F). It’s enough to send you scrambling for a warm quilt and a bottle of hearty red, which goes well with this spicy, garlic-infused dish.
If you’re serving this pasta to guests and would like to add a dessert, I’d recommend 
This fluffy cheese omelet, a classic of French cuisine, is the last thing I expected to write about when I returned from Provence last week. I’d picked up three new recipes, including one for a fabulous garlic spread that is served in the region but largely unavailable elsewhere in France. Well, dear readers, I made it twice — and both times it was a dismal failure. So I consulted my fridge to see what else I could make on short notice…
This dish of fish in a tomato-coconut-lime sauce hails from Brazil, where it is known as moqueca. I discovered it at the home of a friend in the English countryside, and found it so wonderful that I had to share it with you. Jane, the friend in question, learned to make it while her husband was serving as a senior British diplomat in Brasília. They entertained a lot and, as she put it, this is a great party dish because it can be largely prepared in advance.
This summery salad of roasted eggplant with tomatoes and sweet red pepper is a versatile dish that may be served as a starter, as a side dish, as part of a mezze spread or as the star of a vegetarian meal. It is similar to its French cousin, 
This deeply flavorful Moroccan dish of garlicky chicken infused with cumin and coriander on a bed of meltingly soft peas makes a fine family supper or a festive dish for special occasions. And as we are reaching the tail end of the season for fresh peas, this is a good time to try it out. The recipe is easy but takes time as the chicken needs to marinate before going into the oven. The peas are cooked separately, and everything is combined at the end.
