Amande de Mer. The Sea Almond or Dog Cockle. A Tasty Clam on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

The sea almond shell.

Photograph courtesy of British Marine Life Society

              

Amande de Mer, Amande Marbrée or Amande - The sea almond or dog cockle. This clam is often part of a French fresh seafood platters. They are on most French seafood restaurant menus as “amandes” which can cause some confusion for visitors with only a French - English pocket dictionary for translations as outside of seafood restaurants amandes translates as almonds. 

           

When dog cockles are on the menu on their own, they are often lightly fried with garlic, and parsley butter or stuffed with tomatoes and herbs. This is a tasty clam and does not need to be buried in a sauce.

  

Dog cockles stuffed with tomatoes and herbs.

Photograph courtesy of Yummly.

 

Dog cockles on French Menus:

          

Amandes de Mer Farcies au Fromage –  Dog cockles stuffed with cheese and lightly baked.

Assiette de Fruits de Mer (crevettes roses et grises, bulots, amandes, langoustines, huîtres bretonnes) – A platter of seafood: pink and gray shrimps, whelks, dog cockles, Dublin Bay Prawns and oysters from Brittany

  

Cannelloni d'Amandes de Mer et St-Jacques, Sauce Vierge – Cannelloni, the tube-shaped pasta; here filled with the meat of the sea almond and the King scallop and served with a sauce vierge.  A sauce vierge is made with virgin olive oil, herbs, and wine vinegar.

   

Fresh dog cockles

Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor.

   

Duo de Moules et Amandes de Mer Farcies au Beurre d'Épinard et Parmesan – A matched serving of mussels and dog cockles prepared with buttered spinach and Parmesan cheese.

   

The sea almond is not the most popular clam in France since it is a little tougher than others, but it is a delicious clam and has its own fan base. This clam is also considered a prime candidate for an escabeche.

      

Dog cockles, sea almonds, on sale in a French market.

Photograph courtesy of gigile

www.flickr.com/photos/gigile/6557132747/

                       

The sea almond shell is easily recognized; it has ridges, but the shell itself is relatively smooth. These clams can be up to 6 cm (2.3”) across and usually are colored a pale brown to yellow-brown with clear markings.

    

Cockel boat at Leigh on Sea, UK.

Photograph courtesy of Donald Judge

www.flickr.com/photos/donaldjudge/22085012719/

               

Remember, if an amande or amandes are on a regular menu, then they will be indicating the nut, the almond, not the clam, but on a seafood menu amandes are seafood restaurant shorthand for the amande de mer. Make sure what you are ordering!

The Sea Almond or Dog Cockle in the languages of France's neighbors:

  

(Catalan – ràbia), (Dutch - gewone marmerschelp), (German- meermandel, gemeine samtmusche), (Italian - pie' d'asino), (Spanish - almendra de mer).   

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Bulots, Bourgets or Buccins Whelks on the Menu in France are Very Tasty Sea Snails.

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Langoustine – The Dublin Bay Prawn, Scampi or Norwegian Lobster on French Menus.

Moules - Mussels. Moules Frites and Much More. Mussels on French Menus.

Parmesan, the Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano is an Important Ingredient in French Cuisine.

Vinegar, Vinaigrette and Verjus in French Cuisine.

 

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by
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behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010,2012, 2016, 2018.

Fourme d'Ambert AOP - One of France's Finest Mild Blue Cheeses. The Fourme d'Ambert in French Cuisine.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

                      
Fourme d’Ambert
Photograph courtesy of the La Société Laitière de Laqueuille
(The Société Laitière de Laqueuille also produces its own blue cheese called La Bleu de Laqueuille).

The Fourme d’Ambert is a 28% fat, pasteurized, cow’s milk cheese, with a blue mold.  Despite being a blue-veined cheese, it is smooth and relatively mild.  The cheese is allowed to age and develop its taste and texture for four to eight weeks in humid cellars. Even when matured for the full eight weeks this cheese is still far milder than many other blue cheeses.

   The cheese’s documented history going back over four-hundred years but was undoubtedly produced even earlier.  The producers claim that its history goes back to the Druids worshipping in the Forez Mountains, which are divided between the departments of the Loire and Puy-de-Dôme.

 

A view of the Forez mountains around Ambert
Photograph courtesy of Jeanne Menjoulet
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jmenj/15506887602/ 

The town of Ambert that gave this cheese its name is a small town of under 7,000 in the department of Puy-de-Dôme in the region of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.   The word fourme, which is part of this and other French cheeses' names, has nothing to do with the type of cheese; fourme refers to the form, the shape of the cheese, and the container into which the cheese is poured.  The regulation shape of a whole Fourme d'Ambert is a cylinder 11 cm (4.3 “) in diameter by 22 cm (8.7 “) high. A whole cheese weighs approximately 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs).

Fourme d’Ambert AOP AB
AB is the European label for products following the rules of the EU Organic Farming. 
See Organic Food and Wine in France.
Photograph courtesy of BBG Bio.bon

When buying this cheese to take home, you’ll see that the Fourme d'Ambert, like most blue cheeses, does not have a rind and keeps very well without one.   Have a round cut, wrapped well in plastic wrap (only for blue cheeses without rind) and then vacuum-packed, which will travel well for one or two days. At home, keep the cheese in the refrigerator, never the freezer, and in plastic wrap; it will keep well for a month or more. For more about buying cheese in France and taking it home, click here.

 

Ambert on Thursday Market day.
Open from 8:00 t0 12:30.
Ambert’s round town hall  is in the background.
Photograph courtesy of Livradois-Forez National Park

The Fourme d’Ambert on French Menus:

Asperges Blanches à la Fourme d'Ambert, Jambon de Vendee – White asparagus served with a Fourme d’Ambert sauce and the Vendée ham. Asparagus and ham are often paired, and here, hot white asparagus has a Fourme d’Ambert sauce.

Entrecôte Charolaise (Environ 300 G) à la Fourme d'Ambert. – A grilled or fried entrecote from the highly rated Charolais beef (approximately 300 grams (11 oz )) prepared with Fourme d’Ambert cheese.

Magret d'Oie Grille à la Fourme d'Ambert  - Grilled goose breast prepared with Fourme d’Ambert cheese.

Salade Auvergnate: Salade, Croutons, Fourme d’Ambert, Tomate, Jambon Cru, Noix – Those who live in the Auvergne are called Auvergnates, and so are their local recipes. An Auvergnate salad is prepared with mixed salad greens, croutons, Fourme d”Ambert cheese, tomatoes, cured ham, and walnuts.

Truffade à la Fourme d’Ambert avec Jambon Sec, Saucisson et Salade – The truffade is a traditional Auvergnate thick potato pancake made from thinly sliced potatoes fried in goose fat. Here, it is made with the Forme d’Ambert and served with cured ham, sausage and a salad.

An open sandwich with fruit and Fourme de Ambert
Tartine de Fruits et Fourme d’Ambert
Photograph courtesy of Bordeaux Sweet and Dessert Wines

 

 In the town is  the House of the Fourme d'Ambert and the other four Auvergne AOP cheeses. Check their website's opening times as these can change; entrance in 2023 costs less than six euros per person.  If you are a French speaker, call them on 04-7382-4923. Their French language website is Maison de la Fourme d’Ambert et de Fromages d’Auvergne AOP,  it is easily understood using the Bing or Google translate apps.

 

A view of the town
Photograph courtesy of Jérôme Decq
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lesphotosdejerome/6141038669/

 

The Auvergne has a Route des Fromages AOP d'Auvergne, an Auvergne cheese road with plenty of dairies to visit and appreciate their wares. Their website is also in English: 

       https://www.fromages-aop-auvergne.com/route-fromages/ 

     The route runs near to many vineyards, restaurants, and other places of interest. You may follow the map:  https://www.fromages-aop-auvergne.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/LIVRET-RDF-portrait-V2.pdf. The map is also in French but easily understood and you can join at any point, just use the Bing and Google translate apps.

The Fourme d’Ambert and the Fourme de Montbrison cheeses.  Linked forever to Ambert and its cheese is a town called Montbrison and their cheese, the Fourme de Montbrison AOP.  Ambert is in the department of Puy-de-Dôme and as the crow flies  Montbrison in the department of Loire is just 30 km (19 miles) away from Ambert, about 40 km (25 miles) by road.  The Fourme de Montbrison AOP is a very similar cheese to the Fourme d’Ambert AOP.  It is a long story, too long for this post, but one cheese, now with slight differences has ended up with two names; each with its own right to an AOP label.            

Other Auvergne-Rhône-Alps AOP cheeses:

Abondance AOP -  A hard, yellow cow’s milk cheeses.

Beaufort AOP - A hard, yellow cow’s milk cheese.

Bleu d’Auvergne – A blue cow’s milk cheese.

Bleu du Vercors-Sassenage AOP  - A mild, pasteurized, cow’s milk, blue cheese.

Cantal AOP and Salers AOP – Semi-hard, yellow cow’s milk cheeses.

Chevrotin AOP - A  soft, goat's milk cheese.

Fourme de Montbrison AOP - A mild cow’s milk blue cheese,

Picodon AOP or  Picadon de l'Ardèche AOP-  The first goat's milk cheese to be awarded an AOC.

Reblochon AOP -  A soft, cow’s milk cheese.

Rigotte AOP or Rigotte de Condrieu AOP -  A soft, goat’s milk cheese.

Saint-Nectaire AOP - A creamy and nutty, semi-firm, cow’s milk cheese.

Tome des Bauges AOP -  A semi-hard, cow’s milk cheese.

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

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 470 posts that include over 4,000 French dishes with English translations and explanations.

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

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Copyright © 2010, 2018, 2023

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