Easy Peasy Bean Soup

As flight attendants we are often home for only a day at a time. This makes it difficult to prepare  nutritious and well balanced meals for our trips.  When I cook, I prepare a larger amount than I need and freeze single portions to take along on my trips. This week I wanted an economical first course that would lend itself well as a crew meal.
Bean soup fit the bill perfectly.
There are a lot of variations for this recipe. I used Trader Joe's organic cannelini beans, chicken stock, frozen roma tomatoes, rosemary, sage, bay and thyme all from my garden.
Served in small white soupettes it was perfect for a chilly day. My guests were dazzled and today when I reheated it on the plane, the crew was dazzled too. For an elegant presentation, puree it and serve it with a dollop of mascarpone.

Bean soup variations are endless. For a true Italian soup substitute the canneline beans for garbanzos add rosemary add a bay leaf, puree the soup and garnish with cooked pasta and parmesan cheese.

For Tex Mex use pinto beans, chile powder and top with sour cream, tortilla chips, cheddar cheese and scallions.

A la Francaise use white beans, thyme, bay leaf and garnish with creme fraiche and chives. 

See where I'm going with this? You can make your own signiture bean soup and literally everyone will love it! Just be sure to bring enough for the crew.

Easy Peasy Bean Soup

1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 stem of rosemary, leaves pulled and chopped
1 sage leaf
1 bay leaf
1 slice of ham, if your so inclined
4 cups of chicken stock
2-3 cans of cannelini or white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
Parmesan cheese, rind also if you have one
Handful of parsley, chopped


Heat the olive oil in a stock/soup pot. Add the onion and garlic cook for several minutes, add the celery and carrot saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the herbs and ham and cook for another 2 minutes. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil. If you have it, add the cheese rind and lower heat and cook for 1 hour to develop the flavor. Add the beans and cook another 15 minutes. Remove the rind and the bay and sage leaves.
Serve garnished with parmesan cheese and freshly chopped parsley.

All text and photos are sole property of The Gypsy Chef

Citroën

 

Everyday I would pass this Citroën 2CV on my way to school. I fell in love with it. I never saw it's owner but apparently he/she did appear occasionally and move the car because it was never in the same place. 

The bumper sticker translates; This is not a car........It's a lifestyle. 

 Like everything in France, nothing is simply what it is. It's all a part of a grand scheme that makes life in France so extremely sensuous.

All photos and text are property of The Gypsy Chef.

Learning French in France

When I arrived I truly had no idea what learning french would require. Don't ask me why, maybe I just didn't give it any thought.  My dream was to study the language in France. I didn't think much past that. My first day at the Cavilam included a test, it was deemed I spoke little if any french. Alors! I was assigned to a class with a terrific instructor. From the first day Souzic spoke nothing but french and insisted we speak in french also. As a class, we formed the United Nations.  Korea, Indonesia, Japan, Russia, Iraq, the Philippines and the USA were all accounted for in our merry group.

This Shot is from the first week. We roped an instructor in to take a shot, 10 cameras later he was glad to leave!

Leaving home for a month and studying a language is hard work. But it is also an adventure. I fell in love with France 34 years ago and this trip has intensified my love affair. The first 3 weeks I did nothing but study and practice. No matter what I learned there was still more to learn! I shopped at the marché, the Monoprix, tabac, boulangerie and also the patisserie! Every vendeur encouraged my french. 

I fell in love with the tarte citron, macaroons and chocolates at Cedric Iafati. Unfortunately it lies between the Cavilam and my home. Everything is divine at the patisserie. I spent nites studying for the next day. Little by little I began understanding what was being said to me.

My first week my friend Lynn of Autour Table d'Hote, Jardins des Thevenets was vacationing the first week. Which was a good thing, I was forced to use the french I was learning. 

I began to visit Janine and Marcel, Lynn's adopted parents. They had an unlimited supply of patience and spent evenings talking to me, correcting my french and my home work. But the best part was eating Janine's wonderful dinner. They have become my family here in Vichy.

 

With so much concentration I was just to exhausted to blog. Now that things are winding down I am going to try to record my adventure. You will have to excuse the pictures. I've been using my iphone to take snaps. I didn't bring my big camera, and I forgot the charger for my small one! C'est la vie! But it's not about the pics, it's about the experience. Which has been rich.

All photos and text are property of The Gypsy Chef.

Je suis fatigué, c'est le decalage horaire.

 

Monday's word was le decalage horaire or jet lag. I had only 4 hours sleep when I arrived at the Cavilam for my placement test. I could barely keep my eyes open to read the directions must less take the test. Luckily they didn't assume I was an imbecile and gave me a little slack. Could it be they are accustomed to this?
It was a busy day, new words, new friends and new abode and all in a new city. I was feeling like a fish out of water. By the end of the day, my mind was reeling and I was glad it was over. How I looked forward to bed. I thought 7 pm would find me asleep and dreaming. Alas at 7 I was wide awake! It took 2 hours before I could fall asleep. Nothing like conjugating french verbs to make one sleepy. I awoke at 0745 and had to return to school at 0845! I Was in such a rush I had time for only coffee. However, as luck has it, there is a wonderful Boulangerie next door to the school and at the break I enjoyed a croissant and a cafe creme!

This is the view from my studio. 
Bon journee!