On Thursday I got to enjoy a fun day of good food here in France. I met Janine Springall of l'Assiette de Paris (www.cookinparis.eu) during ASP's Living Skills Workshop - something the school puts on 2x a year to help people new to France and ASP. Janine does a great talk at the workshop about grocery shopping, food, etc. that really helps people get oriented to their new lives here in Paris. Things sure are different! She also teaches cooking classes at her home, and they can be really fun, informative and delicious.
I went with my friend Julie to Janine's house for a class based on fall flavors. There were 2 other women there - an Australian (who has lived in the US amongst many overseas assignments) and a South African. I always love meeting other people at Janine's classes from all over the world - we share good food, wine, and stories of times in France. The four of us sat at the horseshoe counter while Janine worked behind it - her classes aren't hands-on, but I really enjoy them partly for that reason. I'm a pretty decent cook on my own, and doing all the chopping and prep work are my least favorite part of cooking. I really enjoy sitting back, soaking up her expertise and getting answers to any questions we may ask. Janine's kitchen is quite amazing for France (where the kitchens are usually small), and we learned that she bought her kitchen first and then built her house around it. A woman after my own heart! I really loved each and every dish we made this day - it was one of my favorites so far.
Of course you aren't meant to serve all of these things at the same time if you were cooking dinner, but it gave a great view of all the different ways you can use winter/root veggies. These were all so good, I wouldn't hesitate to cook them again. And lots of the prep work can be done ahead of time, so it isn't too overwhelming in terms of effort.
