Showing posts with label Rocamadour. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rocamadour. Show all posts

Roquefort Cheese - Roquefort Fromage AOP. The Roquefort Sheep's Cheese is The King of French Cheeses.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

   
Roquefort cheese.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/milstan/5304118608/sizes/m/  FF

What makes the Roquefort cheese special?
    
This cheese is the famous, blue-veined, semi-soft, 33% fat, sheep's cheese, made with unpasteurized milk.  It has a medium to strong flavor and has no rind.   It is slightly pungent, crumbly, and somewhat moist.  The cheese comes from the village of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon in the department of Aveyron in the Occitanie. 

This is the cheese that many call the king of cheeses and was the first cheese to be awarded an AOC (in 1925),  and that was before the first wine carried those initials.  The cheese is aged for five months before it may be sold in the natural damp, aired caves that are close to the village.

Roquefort is one of France's oldest known cheeses; it was probably already appreciated by the Romans when they occupied France in 121 BCE.  Roquefort is not unique because it is a sheep's cheese or because of its age; however, it is unique as it is the first recorded blue-veined cheese inside or outside France.
   

Roquefort cheese aging.
Photograph courtesy of Per-Olof Forsberg FF

Comparing Roquefort and the other blue cheeses.
   
When discussing blue cheeses Roquefort's name will always come up and I read an article recently where Roquefort was compared to English Stilton. However, Roquefort and Stilton are not the same at all!  Their tastes and texture are very different. Even more to the point, Stilton is a cow’s milk cheese and Roquefort is a sheep's milk cheese.   Both are excellent blue veined cheeses and much appreciated on their own or with a glass of Port and a few grapes but there the similarity ends. 
   

The village of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon
    
The village of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may have given its name to the cheese but today since there are less than 700 inhabitants in Roquefort-sur-Soulzon you may be sure that most of the farmers come from outside the town.   The cheese is ripened in the local limestone caverns called Causses; these caverns are part of the Parc Naturel Régional des Grands Causses.  You may visit the park, with its mineral and hot springs and see the limestone caverns. For a few Euros you may try the cheese and or buy one. If you speak French you may still have some difficulty listening in on the local’s private conversations that is because many of them, amongst themselves, speak the local Occitan dialect, the traditional language of the area.
     

Entrecote with Roquefort Sauce and French Fries.
   

The Grands Causses Regional Natural Park has an English language website.
 
https://www.parc-grands-causses.fr/en
 
When in the area you will also find other local blue-veined sheep’s cheeses on sale. They are not made in Roquefort-sur-Soulzon and have no AOP on their label; however. some are very good, and they are also much less expensive! Do not forget that within the Midi-Pyrénées there are many excellent cheeses and three more that hold the AOP grade. These are the cow’s milk Bleu des Causses. the cow’s milk Laquiole,  and the goat’s milk Rocamadour.
   

Salad with Roquefort and walnuts

   
If you are looking for a local wine to accompany your Roquefort cheese, consider the Entraygues-Le-Fel AOP and Estaing AOP  these are whites, roses, and reds that were probably originally planted in Roman times.
   

Entraygues Le Fel AOP

Also, try the red and rose Marcillac AOP wines.  This is a wine brought to the Mediaeval village of Conque 125 km (78 miles) away from Roquefort by the monks who also saw their abbey become a major stop on the Saint-Jacques de Compostelle pilgrimage on the way to Spain.

Connected Posts:
    
   
   
 

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2016


Dining in the Ancient Province of Quercy. Quercy is Mostly Divided Between the Departments of Lot and Tarn-et-Garonne.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

 
The village of St-Cirq-Lapopie, Quercy.
Photograph courtesy of Tourism Lot.
 
Where is Quercy?

Two hundred years ago, during the French revolution, the province of Quercy in France's southwest was divided into the department of Lot and part of the department of Tarn-et-Garonne, with other parts reaching into neighboring departments. The Causses du Quercy overflow to the north into Corrèze, to the north-west into the Dordogne, to the west to Lot et Garonne, to the south to Tarn et Garonne, and the east to Aveyron. Since 1-1-2016, the department of Lots and Tarn-et-Garonne have been part of the administrative region of Occitanie. Despite the 200 years that have passed, Quercy's

Quercy was an ancient province in France's southwest. Much of its land is made for farming, and the green and fertile fields are still seen as a patchwork of meadows, orchards, woodlands, and valleys. Wherever you look, you will find fruit, poultry farms, livestock farms, and more. Through the Northern Causses of Quercy, there are limestone plateaus carved by the Lot and Dordogne rivers.

Quercy on French Menus:

Selle d'Agneau IGP du Quercy Rôtie – Roast saddle of Quercy lamb. The saddle is a large cut, so you will be offered slices. N.B. Lamb in France is served slightly pink, and unlike steaks, you will rarely be asked how you prefer your lamb cooked. If your preference is for well-cooked lamb, advise the server. The Quercy lambs are the Agneaux Fermier du Quercy, Label Rouge, IGP., and were the first French lambs to be awarded a red label for the consistently high quality of their meat. They spend their first 70 days raised by their mothers are free of antibiotics and growth hormones.

The Natural Regional Park, Causses du Quercy 

The famous Quercy Red Label, IGP lambs, are mostly raised on the park's limestone plateaus (it is also a UNESCO Global Geopark). Part of the park overlaps into the pastures of the National Park of the Cevennes.

https://uk.parc-causses-du-quercy.fr/

The beautiful National Park of Cevennes, where some of the lambs are raised, has its own website, and it is also a lovely place to travel through:

http://www.causses-et-cevennes.fr/en/i-discovered/natural-parks-and-large-sites/the-cevennes-national-park/


The black-eyed Agneau du Quercy lambs.
Photograph courtesy of France-Voyage

There is a fete celebrating the Quercy lambs: The Fête de l'Agneau du Quercy. The fete is held every year on the 2nd Saturday and Sunday in August. (N.B. Always check dates before traveling). The fete is held in the village of Cressensac in the north of the department of Lot. With less than 700 inhabitants Cressensac combines with other nearby villages and grows overnight to welcome the visitors in their thousands. Visitors are welcome, and the town of Rocamadour so famous for its own Quercy product, the Rocamadour goat’s cheese AOP is just 35 km (22 miles) to the south of Cressensac in the same department. Rocamadour is a fantastic place to visit and the place to stay when visiting the fete. N.B. Book a long time ahead.

Duo de Crèmes Brûlées au Safran du Quercy et Lavande - A duo of crème-brules. One is flavored with the famous Quercy saffron,(L’Or Rouge de Quercy, Quercy’s red gold), and the other with lavender. Quercy is one of the few remaining places in France where saffron, the herb, is still grown. A mechanical harvester cannot pick saffron; saffron must have its deep red stigmas picked by hand, which is both a backbreaking and expensive job.

Saffron remains the most expensive spice in the world. In Quercy, a farmer with a whole acre planted with saffron in a good year will have, at most, two kilos of saffron stigma. The farmers only begin to make a profit when they receive over $1,000 for 100 grams.


Half a gram of Saffran
Photograph courtesy of Miss Meister
www.flickr.com/photos/miss_meister/2458311069/

Grosses Crevettes Marinées au Safran du Quercy, Gaufre de Pomme de Terre et Fenouil Croquant Large shrimps marinated in Quercy's saffron and served with potato gaufres and crisply cooked fennel, the herb. Potato gaufres are potato wafers that look like very thin Belgian waffles. Fennel is a member of the same licorice-flavored family as dill, with a slightly more robust flavor. Despite that caveat, the taste of the fennel plant is mild and appreciated by French chefs who use it in many fish and shellfish dishes. 

La Salade Endives aux Betteraves et Cerneaux de Noix de Périgord AOP  - A salad of endives and beetroot served with the locally grown Périgord Walnuts AOP. The department of Perigord-Dordogne borders Lot, and many of Périgord's famous walnuts are grown inside Lot's borders. 

Endives, goat's cheese, and walnuts
www.flickr.com/photos/29183526@N06/5336795456/ 

The endive is the Belgian endive, witloof or whiteleaf, and called chicons in Belgium. Endive leaves are mostly white with yellow to slightly light-green tips and are firm and crunchy; they have a nutty and slightly bitter flavor.

Melon du Quercy, Avec de Fines Tranches de Jambon Sec – The much appreciated Quercy melon served with thin slices of cured dried ham. These melons are claimed to be descendants of melon seeds brought in the 15th century from Naples. Italy. The Quercy melon is a round, light-green melon with thin, dark green stripes. It has a sweet, orange-colored, beautifully scented flesh. The locally cured hams offered here may be cured in a variety of ways and have many different tastes. Here, the cured ham will complement the melon's sweetness.


The Quercy melon.
Photograph courtesy of Thomas.
www.flickr.com/photos/charros/17110768538/

Blanc de Volaille Fermières de Quercy et Segala Label Rouge au Vinaigre de Xérès et Gambas Chicken breast from the Quercy and Segala Red Label poultry prepared with sherry vinegar and served with large shrimps. Segala is a unique agricultural area in the Occitanie region, and together Quercy and Ségala are an agricultural region that straddles the border between the departments of Aveyron and Tarn. Quercy and Ségala jointly raised France’s first red label poultry. Their poultry, including turkeys, ducks and Guinea fowl, are all raised free-range in grassy fields. The poultry are antibiotics and growth hormone free.  N.B. Segala Label Rouge veal is considered among the best in France, and it will be on many Quercy menus.

The English language website of Aveyron and Segala is:

http://www.aveyron-segala-tourisme.com/index-en.php

The French language website for tourism in Lot will introduce you to many Quercy events, food products, and more. The website can be easily understood with the Bing or Google translate apps.

http://www.tourisme-lot.com/pratique/brochures

Magret de Canard de Quercy Sauce au Vin de Cahors Duck breast from the highly-rated Quercy ducks prepared with a sauce made from Quercy’s famous Cahors red wine.

Risotto Carnarolli au Vieux Parmesan et à la Truffe Noire du Quercy - A risotto made with the most expensive of all risotto rices, the Carnarolli rice. Here it is prepared with aged Parmesan cheese and the black Quercy truffle. This truffle is the same as the one that comes from across the border in Périgord. The Périgord truffle, the black truffle, their black diamond is the most famous, tasty, and costly of all French truffles; however, truffles have no respect for borders. The perfect risotto must be soft, not mushy, with each grain identifiable. Ninety-nine percent of all Italian and French chefs will agree that while the Arborio and Baldo are better known, the Carnaroli rice is unbeatable where risotto is concerned.

Also from Quercy:

The Raisin Chasselas de Moissac AOP – One of the two most famous table grapes of France. These uniquely tasting grapes are virtually hand-raised, and they are only available in the markets from late August through the first week of November. The farmers who grow these grapes also sell fresh grape juice, and a bottle will cost more than many wines. If you dine in the area, you may be offered a cocktail made with this grape juice and brandy called an Emoustille.  

 

 

The Raisin Chasselas de Moissac AOP grapes.

Photograph courtesy of Jean Weber

www.flickr.com/photos/inra_dist/23592913481/

  

Rocamadour AOP  A 45% fat goat’s milk cheese made with non-pasteurized milk. The ancient city of Rocamadour is in the department of Lot. The Rocamadour AOP cheese is creamy, and when young is quite mild, then it may well be in your salad, or it may be part of another dish. When it is older, it will be on the cheese board or a cheese plate. If you are considering taking one home, you will not pay overweight; all Rocamadour AOP cheeses weigh less than 40 grams ( 1.4 oz). For more about buying cheese in France and taking it home, click here. 


The hillside town of Rocamadour
Photograph courtesy of dynamosquito
www.flickr.com/photos/dynamosquito/4643726309/

Les Bières Artisanales Lotoises – Many craft beers are produced in the department of Lot, and links to many of these Brasseries (brewers) can be reached through the Cahors Valee de Lot website.

https://www.cahorsvalleedulot.com/decouvrir/vin-et-gastronomie/les-bieres-artisanales-lotoises

Le Pastis du Quercy (not to be confused with the southern French liqueur Pastis) – The Quercy Pastis is a tourtière, a pie, made with apples marinated in a plum-based liquor. There are many stories linked to this pie’s origins, with the French language website of Cuisine à la Française offering three. The website is easily understood with the Google and Microsoft Translation apps.

https://www.tourisme-lot.com/les-incontournables-du-lot/saveurs-du-lot/produits-du-terroir/le-pastis

The Capital of Quercy.

The capital of the province of Quercy was the town of Cahors. When you look for an exceptional French red wine, the red Cahors AOC/AOP will be among those heading the list. In fact, Cahors is among the top ten red wines of France, and that is a grading that you will never hear disputed. The Cahors’ local Route de Vins, their wine road, with its wine tastings, may be visited by car or, for a refreshing change, by boat on the river Lot. Quercy has other red, white, and rose wines that are on the wine road; the Coteaux du Quercy Reds, Rosés, and White AOP wines and the Côtes Du Lot IGP.

In the town of Cahors, do not miss the Pont Valentré, the Valentré Bridge. In Occitan, the original and still used local language, the bridge is called the Pont de Balandras. This bridge is the symbol of the town and a UNESCO World Heritage site. This bridge first opened in 1378 and was rebuilt in 1879. Look for the emblem of the little devil on one of the towers. Then ask why!

 
The little devil on the Valentré bridge in Cahors
Photograph courtesy of Archeology Travel - Photograph © MathieuMD/Wikimedia 

If you are visiting the area, check for more information and places to visit with the English language website of the Cahors Tourist Information office:

http://www.holidays-cahors.co.uk/useful-info/contact-your-tourist-office

Ask for the dates of the next Fete du Vin de Cahors, the Cahors Wine Fete. The fete is held at the end of July or the beginning of August in a number of the villages close to Cahors. When talking with the locals note that the town’s name is pronounced without sounding the H; just say ka-ors. N.B. the locals call themselves Cadurciens.

Quercy and the English connection:

Those who went to school in the U.K. will have learned about the 100 years war fought between England and France. That was one war among many that were spread over 400 years! In the province of Quercy, most of these battles were fought among the towns and castles built on hilltops. Many of these castles, towers, and hilltop towns remain.

--------------------------------

 

Searching for the meaning of words, names or phrases
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a French menu?

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Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2015, 2017, 2021
 
 
--------------------

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Rocamadour Goat’s Cheese, AOP and the Medieval city of Rocamadour.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

 
A farm made Rocamadour cheese.
The word fermier on the label indicates farm made cheeses.

Rocamadour or Cabécou de Rocamadour AOC/AOP, the cheese, is a 25% fat goat’s milk cheese, made with non-pasteurized milk. The cheese has a light ivory color, and is aged for a minimum of 12 days and then it is creamy and mild. A young Rocamadour, with its nutty flavor, may well be in your salad or part of another dish.  Older and mature Rocamadour AOP cheeses, with their stronger flavor, will be on the cheese board and the cognoscenti prefer the cheese when aged for a few months when it has a clear bite. 

If you are considering taking a Rocamadour cheese home, you will not be paying overweight; all Rocamadour AOP cheeses are small round cheeses weighing about 40 grams (1.40 ounces) each. For more information on buying French cheeses and taking them home click on this link to Buying Cheese in France and Taking it Home. (The cheese was initially known as the Cabécou de Rocamadour, but the Cabécou  is part of the name of other cheeses, and today it is plain Rocamadour).

The medieval city of Rocamadour is in the department of Lot in the region of Occitanie.  The new super region of Occitanie was created from the old regions of Midi-Pyrenees and Languedoc- Roussillon.   Then, on 1-1-2016,  France reduced its number of administrative regions from 22 to 13.
   
The Medieval City of Rocamadour.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lejournaldemaman/7110887787/

Rocamadour AOC/AOP

Farm-made Rocamadour Cheeses.
Photograph courtesy of Lafromagerie.
  
In local fromageries, cheese shops, you may see two types of this cheese, a Rocamadour Artisanal, and a Rocamadour Fermier. The first is made in communal dairies; the second is made by the farmer on his or her farm where the goats are milked.  Local cheese shops will stock young cheeses, just two-weeks old, along with other cheeses that have been aged for up to one year. This cheese is available all over France; however, the assortment of aged cheeses will be more limited the further you are from Rocamadour.
  
Rocamadour on French menus:

Confit de Canard, Pommes Forestières et son Rocamadour (20 mn) Recooked duck served with woodsman potatoes and Rocamadour cheese. (20 minutes wait).  Pommes Forestières, woodsman’s potatoes, are made with cubes or slices of potatoes fried with a little goose fat, mushrooms, garlic, and parsley. (Confit has many meanings in French cuisine and duck confit is one of the tastiest).

Rocamadour Chaud sur Blinis et Lit de Jeunes Pousses – Warm Rocamadour on blinis on a bed of young salad leaves and or vegetable shoots..  (Blinis are small pancakes of Russian origin traditionally made with buckwheat flour, but now often made with regular wheat flour).

Salade Rocamadour. Mesclun, Tomates, Rocamadour Tiède, Poitrine de Porc , Miel, Pommes de Terre, Noix. – A mixed green salad, made with tomatoes, warm Rocamadour, braised pork belly with honey, potatoes, and walnuts. This menu listing is for a Salade Rocamadour which has no agreed composition; another chef’s version may be completely different.

Tartines de Rocamadour, Lardons, Noix sur Lit de Salade Verte – Open sandwiches with Rocamadour cheese, fried bacon pieces, and walnuts on a bed of green salad leaves.

Souris d'Agneau Fondante, Ecrasé de Pomme de Terre au Rocamadour Lamb shank cooked until it is falling off the bone served with mashed potatoes made with Rocamadour cheese.
    
Rocamadour cheeses maturing.
        
While Rocamadour AOP is mainly produced in the department of Lot in Occitanie.  For historical reasons individual farms in the new super-region of Occitanie departments of Tarn and Aveyron as well as in the departments of Lot et Garonne, Corrèze, and the Dordogne in the newly expanded super region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine also make Rocamadour cheese. Take a map of the Route de Rocamadour, the Rocamadour road, from the Tourist Information office and spend an enjoyable day touring, and tasting Rocamadour and other local cheeses. Restaurants are carefully spread out along the route along with many farms offering other cheeses and wines.
   
The Route de Rocamadour.
    
Rocamadour was a medieval city though, in today’s terms, it is a village. Today, Rocamadour has some seven hundred permanent inhabitants.  French Medieval cities rarely had more than 3,000 citizens, with most under 1,000, Paris excluded. Since the 10th century, or possibly earlier, Rocamadour has been a place of pilgrimage for those who come to pray to Notre Dame de Rocamadour.

The Medieval City of Rocamadour.
Photograph courtesy of dynamosquito.
www.flickr.com/photos/dynamosquito/4643726309/

The Rocamadour Fete de Fromage
 
Rocamadour, of course, has a cheese festival, their Fête des Fromages; it is held on Whit Sunday, that’s 48 days after Easter, and it celebrates French farm-made cheeses from the South of France and not just their own along with wines from the area. A farmers’ market is held at the same time  Following its position as a place of pilgrimage, the fete begins with a mass and blessing of the local sheep and goats.
 
See the French language website of the Rocamadour Fete de Fromage. The site is easily understood with Google and Microsoft translate apps.

                   
The exact date of their Fete changes every year in coordination with Easter. Easter falls between the 22nd of March and the 25th April so you will need to check the dates on the web, or with the English language website of the Rocamadour Tourist Information Office. (Many French festivals have dates linked to Christian Holy days. Today all these festivals are secularized but their dates have not changed). 

For the English language website of the Tourist Information Office of Rocamadour click or copy paste the link below:


Rocamadour is an excellent place for those with gastronomic interests at any time of the year. The area is part of the ancient province of Quercy, and that means, you may enjoy, apart from many other kinds of cheese, excellent Quercy lamb, duck, melons and much more. Also, try the AOC Coteaux du Quercy wines along with the enjoyable and very inexpensive local Vin des Côtes du Lot IGP wines; these include whites, roses, and reds. Then just 62 km (39 miles) away is the town of Cahors with its excellent, and famous, red Cahors AOP wine.
    
The Statue of the Black Virgin.
                                 
Whatever time of the year you visit Rocamadour there will be pilgrims from all over France and beyond.   Our Lady of Rocamadour, the Vierge Noire, the black virgin, has become even more popular for pilgrims since the reputed burial site of St Amadour was discovered in Rocamadour.  When visiting Rocamadour today's visitors, and pilgrims will be pleased to know that one of the old traditions has changed. You are no longer required to walk up the 216 steps to the shrine of the black virgin on your knees!  Today you can now walk up and down and no one will say a thing. Maybe next year there will be a cable car?
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2012, 2016, 2019


Searching for the meaning of words, names or phrases
on
French menus?
 

Just add the word, words, or phrase that you are searching for to the words "Behind the French Menu" and search with Google. Behind the French Menu’s links include hundreds of words, names, and phrases that are seen on French menus. There are over 450 articles that include over 4,000 French dishes with English translations and explanations.

Connected Posts:

 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 

 
 

 




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