Behind the French Menu

Côte, Côtes, Côtières - A Bone-In Rib Steak, a Rib Roast, a Wine Growing Region, the Coast, and More. All will be on French menus.

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Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

A bone-in rib-eye.

www.flickr.com/photos/peanutian/2332671822/

The French diner, with his or her native language skills, will understand the meaning of the accents over and under letters and the masculine, feminine and plural variations that may appear on a menu. For visitors with only high-school French, the gender-linked variations alone can be a problem. However, when dining in French restaurants, where many printed menus ignore the accents there will rarely be any problems.

Côte and Côtes

Bone-In Rib Steak/s, a Rib Roast, a Cutlet/s or a Chop/s and Vegetable Ribs:

Côte on French menus:

Côte d'Agneau Grillees Sauce Paloise – Grilled lamb chop served with a Sauce Paloise. Sauce Paloise is a child of Sauce Bearnaise where the tarragon has been replaced by mint.

Côte de Bœuf, Frottée au Romarin et Cuite au Beurre Noisette – A bone-in beef rib steak flavored with rosemary and cooked in a beurre noisette. When ordering ask the weight as a single portion will often be intended for two diners, and the bone is generally 50-60% of the total weight. A Beurre Noisette is a melted butter sauce where the butter has been allowed to cook until its color and taste resembles noisettes, hazelnuts.

Côte de Veau Rôtie au Jus, Beurre, Herbes - A veal bone-in, roasted, rib steak served with a sauce made from the natural cooking juices flavored with butter and herbs.

Côtes

The plural of Côte:

Côtes on French menus:

Côtes de Bœuf de Charolais, Grillée à l'Os - A grilled bone-in beef rib roast from France’s famed Charolais beef.

Côtes de Porc Laquées – Glazed pork chops; they will have been basted in a honey or a fruit coating. Pork spareribs would be on the menu as echine de porc or travers de porc

Côté

Côté also indicates a side or a part, and your menu may offer:

Côté de Saumon Grillée à l’Orange. A salmon filet grilled with an orange sauce. N.B. The same spelling is used when describing something that is close by, in French that's à côté.

A bone-in rib roast.

Photograph courtesy Annie Kavanagh

www.flickr.com/photos/spencersbrookfarm/4610852339/

Côtes

May also indicate the ribs of vegetables.

Aligot au Fromage de Laguiole, Verts et Côtes de Blettesettes– The traditional and uniquely tasty Aligot dish of mashed potatoes and Laguiole cheese. Here, the dish is served with the leaves and côtes, ribs, of Swiss chard.

Swiss chard

Photograph courtesy Rochelle Hartman

www.flickr.com/photos/tinfoilraccoon/48074592/

Côtelette

A cutlet or chops.

The word côtelette or côte may be used interchangeably when referring to chops; though the use of the word côtelettes, cutlets, usually indicates smaller cuts. The menu may offer cutlets from pork, veal or lamb, but not from beef.

Côtelette de Porc Noir – A pork chop from the Porc Noir Gascon, the black pigs of Gascony.

Côtelettes d'Agneau - Lamb chops

Photograph courtesy of LeonardKong

www.flickr.com/photos/30216515@N05/6923392679/

Nos Côtes

Our coasts, and the fish and seafood that may be caught there.

On fish and seafood menus, the word côte or côtes indicates the coast, and fish and seafood caught off that coast.

Le Pavé de Cabillaud des Côtes Normande Rôti – A large cut from a cod caught off our Normandy coast, served roasted.

Roast Cod.

Photograph courtesy of Sodexo USA

www.flickr.com/photos/sodexousa/5781078553/

Langouste de Nos Côtes Bretonnes Rôti ou Grillé, Pistou de Basilic - Rock lobster, the owner of the lobster tail, from our Brittany coasts roasted or grilled and served with a basil pistou basil sauce. The French pistou sauce appeared not long after the Italian pesto; they are close cousins.

Langouste - Lobster Tail.

Photograph courtesy of Elizabeth K. Joseph

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pleia2/8372407066/

Wines:

Wine-lists may carry the word Côte as part of a wine's name; then Côtes will indicate the hills, slopes, valleys within the borders of a wine appellation, a wine-growing area.

Côtes de Provence AOP - This is the AOP for wines coming from specific wine-growing areas in Provence. The Côtes de Provence wines include red and white wines; however, more than half the wines produced are rosés.

Cotes de Provence

Photograph courtesy of JeroSig

www.flickr.com/photos/jerosig/36670083676/

Côtes du Rhône AOC/AOP – AOP wines from France’s Rhône Valley that include reds, rosés and some white wines. This is an enormous wine growing area that stretches for over 200 km (115 miles) from the North to the South of the Rhone valley along the River Rhône. Other appellations within the Côtes du Rhône include the famous Château-Neuf-de Pape, and the Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise one of France’s most famous fortified wines, as well as the Côtes du Rhône-Villages AOP wines, and the less well known, but unique pre-Champagne, sparkling-wine called the Clairette de Die AOP.

Côtes du Rhône Rosé

Photograph courtesy of Fareham wines,

Côtières

Coastal. On your menu for fish and seafood caught locally.

Les Crevettes Côtières de Bretagne – Shrimps from the coastal waters of Brittany.

The Coast of Brittany.

The multi-colored cliffs of the Cap Frehel along the Côtes d'Armor, Northern Brittany.

Photograph courtesy of Jean-Marie Hullot

www.flickr.com/photos/jmhullot/2271122071/

Coteau and Coteaux

A hillside or hillsides

Coteaux-du-Quercy AOP - An appellation for red and rosé wines in the old province of Quercy between the Cahors vineyards and the vines that produce the Chasselas de Moissac AOP table grapes in southwest France.

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Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

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Basil - Basilic or Herbe Royal. Basil in French Cuisine. The Italian Pesto is Pistou on French Menus.

Bœuf Charolais - The Charolais Beef. Le Bœuf Charolais du Bourbonnais AOP - The Charolais Beef is Considered Among the Best France.

Beurre - Butter. Butter in French Cuisine.

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The Cahors AOC Wine and Cahors the Town. Cahors Wine in French Cuisine.

Chasselas de Moissac AOP, The Fabulous Table Grapes of France 1.

Clairette de Die AOP; A Sparkling Wine far Older than Champagne.

Crevettes and Gambas - Shrimps and Prawns. Shrimps in French Cuisine.

Dining in Quercy. The departments of Lot and Lot-et-Garonne in the Midi-Pyrenees.

Estragon - Tarragon. Tarragon, the herb, in French Cuisine.

Laguiole AOP Cheese. One of France's finest cheeses.

Langouste. Lobster Tails and the Tails’ Owner, the Rock Lobster, Spiny Lobster or Crawfish. Langouste on French menus.

Muscat de Beaumes de Venise AOP. A Unique Wine.

Romarin - Rosemary, the Herb in French cuisine.

Sauce Béarnaise, its Creation, its Creator and its Connection with Béarn. Sauce Béarnaise in French Cuisine.

Saumon, Saumon Atlantique - Salmon. Salmon on French Menus. Atlantic Salmon is the only Salmon Generally Available in France.

Madeleines – France’s Famous, Small, Sponge Cakes; They are Shaped Like Scallop Shells.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Madeleines.

Photograph courtesy of Kimberly Vardeman

www.flickr.com/photos/kimberlykv/4300963888/

The Madeleine or Madeleines on French Menus.

Nearly every French historical figure of the last 200 years has taken or been given credit for creating or promoting the success of, the Madeleine. Please do not take these little, scallop-shaped, sponge cakes lightly; they are part of French culinary values and tradition.

Madeleines are part of the culinary tradition of France.

If you wish to be an active part of the French culinary world to begin by buying yourself a Moule à Madeleine, a Madeleine cake baking pan, they are available in every kitchenware shop in France. You may be making Madeleines yourself as soon as you return home; all that is required is flour, sugar, milk, butter, eggs, yeast, and for flavor vanilla or orange zest. Each pan will hold 6, 12, or more Madeleines.

A Madeleine baking pan.

In France, when a host or hostess cannot think of a biscuit or cake to serve with the coffee, they take the Madeleine pan out, and voila fifteen minutes later you are served Madeleines.

The town of Commercy where all Madeleines began.

The small and attractive town of Commercy, population 8,000 claims to be the source of the original recipe for Madeleines. Commercy is in the department of Meuse, part of the historical Lorraine that since 1-1-2016 is in the super region of the Grand Est. The department borders Belgium and Commercy by adding the scallop shell shape, and the name became famous, giving the residents the glory of ownership over the most well-known small sponge cakes in France. Also, from the Lorraine comes the Rum Baba and the Quiche Lorraine along with nearly 50% of France's beer. Commercy, is just 54 km (34 miles) from the beautiful city of Nancy; a trip of about 45 minutes by car and 35 minutes by trains that run every hour.

The town hall of Commercy

Photograph courtesy of François MORARD

www.flickr.com/photos/45368675@N03/5676186374/

Defending the original Madeleine.

The original Madeleine has to be protected against cheap imitations, and to that end, way back in 1963, a group of townspeople formed Les Compagnons de la Madeleine. The Companions of the Madeleine are like the hundreds of other French food and wine confréries that promote and defend their favorite foods and wines. Members dress up in inventive, would be ancient costumes, hold parades, and dinners while defending and promoting their chosen product. The Companions of the Madeleine promote and protect the origins of the Madeleine sponge cakes as well as organizing banquets for their members. At their banquets, Madeleines are the only dessert, and significant quantities of wine are consumed, and, of course, long rambling speeches are made in French. In and around the town of Commercy, there is much to see, do, and eat, and that includes their local truffles. The town's English-language website is an excellent place to start looking:

https://www.france-voyage.com/cities-towns/commercy-20053/tourist-office-commercy-6902.htm

Compagnons de la Madeleine.

Photograph courtesy of the Tourist Information Office Commercy

Marcel Proust and the Madeleine.

Marcel Proust (1871 – 1922) is considered by many to be France's finest author. His most famous work was À la Recherche du Temps Perdu, a novel in seven volumes. The novel uses the Madeleines as an example of involuntary memory. The last translation, from 1992, by J.D. Enright, is published by Modern Library as a Complete and Unabridged 6-Book Bundle: Remembrance of Things Past, Volumes I-VI.

The seven parts of À la Recherche du Temps Perdu

Photograph courtesy of unsingequiparle

www.flickr.com/photos/137131236@N08/32113310482/

The name Madeleine comes from the French for Mary Magdalene.

You may have heard or have read that the Madeleine sponge cake is associated with a French religious tradition. That tradition has Mary Magdalene, Sainte Marie-Madeleine in French, arriving in France, by boat from the Holy Land. Then Mary Magdalene is said to have brought Christianity to France, and that was over 2,000 years ago. However, let us face it, Mary Magdalene would not have come with sponge cakes, and sponge cakes were not part of French cuisine 2,000 years ago. Despite that, she did bring to France the name Madeleine. The town of Stes-Maries-de-la-Mer in the Camargue, on the Mediterranean coast, holds a once yearly memorable, and impressive, French Roma, Gypsy, festival; shades of the DaVinci Code. That festival re-enacts the arrival of three saints. Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, and their black servant Sara. Saint Sarah became the patron saint of the Roma.

Stes-Maries-de-la-Mer

Photograph courtesy of Andrea Schaffer

www.flickr.com/photos/aschaf/4830446707/

The scallop shell

and its French and Spanish religious connection

The scallop shell itself has a religious connection. That connection is built around traditions honoring St James, Saint-Jacques in French, Santiago in Spanish. The King Scallop is called the Saint-Jacques in French. St James was a disciple of Jesus Christ and is the Patron Saint of Spain. French and other pilgrims from all over the world still follow a pilgrimage trail called The Way of St James. They follow the signs of the scallop shell through France and Spain. The pilgrimage leads to the assumed resting place of Saint James in Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

Plaque with scallop relief

At the entrance of a church that is part of the "Way of St. James" a pilgrimage route leading to Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

Photograph courtesy of sonderzeichen

www.flickr.com/photos/overhere/222026959/

St James is said to be buried in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, Spain. The cathedral is in the city of Santiago de Compostela, the capital of the Spanish province of Galicia. The scallop shell is the personal sign of St James.

Today the city of Santiago de Compostela is also well known also for its excellent restaurants; many of them are seafood restaurants. When the scallop meat is served in its shell on a French-language menu it will read Coquille Saint-Jacques; the French word coquille just means shell. Scallops are rarely cooked in their attractive shells, though many may be served on them. Serving a cooked scallop on a scallop shell is a part of attractive restaurant theater.

Scallops on the half shell

Photograph courtesy of jules

www.flickr.com/photos/stone-soup/290079986/

Paris’s La Madeleine Church.

The most famous Madeleine church is in Paris. The site was first built on as a synagogue; then, in 1183, the site was taken from the Jews. Following on, a variety of churches were then built on the site, demolished and built again. Finally, after the church had been demolished again and left as an empty building site Emperor Napoleon I, entered the picture. Napoleon decided the site should become a temple raised to the glory of the soldiers of his Grande Armée. Building began in 1806 with the architect Pierre-Alexandre Vignon drawing the plans that included many obvious Greek and Roman influences.

La Madeleine, Paris.

Photograph courtesy of Emilio del Prado

www.flickr.com/photos/emiliodelprado/223102483/

Napoleon’s plans for The Arc de Triumph made him place his Temple of Glory on the back burner, when, as often was the case, his government was short of money. The two enormous national remembrance projects could not be financed and completed together. Later, with Napoleon’s defeat by the combined armies of the European monarchies and his own exile, along with the return of the French monarchy, changes would be made. King Louis XVIII, the brother of King Louis XVI, who had been beheaded in the revolution, decided that the building, with only a few changes in the plans, would once again be the Eglise de La Madeleine, the Madeleine Church. In 1842, the church that you see today was consecrated and today holds religious ceremonies as well as classical music concerts.

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