Programmes
Programme One. Family
There's a lot being said at the moment about getting children into the kitchen and getting them cooking with grown-ups and getting them interested in food and cooking. I don't agree that they should be given lessons or that it should be some sort of special activity. What I think is it should be part of life and with my kids, I encourage them to come and help when I am cooking in the kitchen. I have also always encouraged them to come shopping with me and now, as they get older, I let them out with lists to the shopping for the evening meal.
Programme Two. La Parisienne
'French women don't get Fat' was a recent best seller that describes a woman who takes great care of both diet and grooming. My friend Anne Charlotte, an archetypal and perfect Parisienne loves her food, but what she says is her brule is 'never too thin and never too rich.' She loves her food, her cheese and her wine, but says the secret is in the size of the portion. Oh well!
Programme Three. Bread
When I first came to Paris, it seemed like the most French thing to do, to go out every morning and buy a fresh baguette. I still do that, especially at the weekend or with the children. But they do say 'man cannot live by bread alone' and surrounded as I am by the irresistible patisseries of Paris, I heartily second that assertion. There is of course a lot more to baking than bread alone, but before we pursue that thought, we should go back to bread.
Programme Four. Wine and Cocktails
Making wine, drinking wine and teaming wine with food is something the French are famous for, and to my mind they still do it the best of all the wine growing nations. It's great fun to cook with wine and not just with wine, with liqueurs as well, because they give great depth and intensity of flavour to all manner of sauces. Where better to start our adventure than in the champagne region itself.
Programme Five. Fast Food
The French attitude to fast food as we know it, nasty burgers, kebabs and chicken wings and chips, is pretty disdainful, as you can imagine, but in fact they do eat a huge amount of it and just don't like to admit it. But they do have their own versions of fast food which are much healthier and tastier than that. There are fabulous sandwiches everywhere, often in baguettes, but also crêpes which are available to pick up and eat everywhere - fast! And if you would like a little sit down comfort with your fast food, there are bistros all over Paris where you can order a healthy and freshly prepared meal, eat it and be up and gone in about half an hour.
Programme Six. Lovers Paris
They might call Rome the eternal city, but I am sure no one would dispute that Paris is the city of love. Toujours l'amour they say and, as you wander around, you can see why. It really is a beautiful place to stroll with your beloved, by the Seine, up to Montmartre or through the Marais.