Scroll down for these delicious family-friendly recipes:

1. La soupe à l'oignon: Onion soup

2. Salade Niçoise    Salad in the style of Nice

3. Truffes "Maison"  (Chocolate Truffles "House")

4. Croque Monsieurs   French toasted ham and cheese sandwiches

 

 

  

SOUPE À L’OIGNON- ONION SOUP

 

 

Here’s Louis’ l’escargot’s favorite soup. I'm making it often: c'est délicieux!. 

 

Serves  6

Ingredients:

4 onions

¼ cup butter

1 tablespoon oil

1 tablespoon flour

1 cup white wine, optional* if not using wine, substitute more chicken broth

1 quart chicken broth.

6 slices of crusty French bread

½ cup grated swiss-style cheese like gruyere or comté

Salt

Pepper

 

 

 

1. Peel and mince the onions.
2. Sauté onions in the mixture of butter and oil until they are tender and lightly golden.
3. Sprinkle the mixture with flour, add the chicken broth and wine, and season with salt and pepper.
4. Cover, bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Adjust the seasoning.
5. Toast the bread.
6. Put each slice of bread in the bottom of individual oven-proof bowls.
7. Sprinkle with some grated cheese. Pour the soup on top.
8. Sprinkle again with cheese, place under broiler until cheese is melted and lightly browned.

 

*Marie R., who is French, says that her mother used water, and never used wine in her soup.

Thanks to Janette H. for her family recipe. I combined her ideas with another recipe.

You can make this recipe for 4 people by just reducing the bouillon to 4 cups, using 4 slices of bread. I make it for 2.

   Note: for a crunchier topping, eliminate the bread and top the soup with a layer of croutons followed by grated cheese, just before broiling in the oven.

 

                     

   

 

 

  

 

LA SALADE NIÇOISE

 

 

Here’s a dish from Nice, a town on the French Mediterranean coast. It’s perfect for the summer and easy to make. Kids can help with the preparation. Taylor the ingredients to your family’s taste. Amount of ingredients below vary with the number of eaters.

 

Ingredients:

Can of tuna fish

Black olives, preferably the Mediterranean type

Anchovies

Green pepper

Bermuda (red) onion

Hard boiled eggs

String beans

(tomatoes) (potatoes)

olive oil, salt as needed

Trim and cook the stringbeans. Hard boil and peel the eggs. Slice in quarters.

Slice the green pepper and Bermuda onion and place in the salad bowl or big plater. Separate the tuna with a fork and add to the bowl. Place the eggs around the tuna. Place the tomatoes if using. Add the olives and anchovies. Season with olive oil, mix and serve.

This is a great opportunity to practice  your French.

Salade Niçoise  is pronounced “Sah lahd nee swahz”. Sorry I couldn’t find a decent pronunciation link on the internet.

Click here for the pronunciation of  Bon appétit !

This is a nice time to use some expressions from Bonjour! Let’s Learn French:

C’est facile ! 

C’est délicieux !

J’adore !

 

TRUFFES “Maison”

Here's Babeth's recipe for truffles. They are delicious, make a great gift, especially for Christmas and holidays, and kids can help making them. Mom or Dad does the cooking; kids can gather, and measure. They can roll the truffles and wrap them.

                                               

125 gr. de chocolat à cuire                  4 oz semi-sweet dark chocolate

2 cuillères a soupe de lait                   2 Tbsp milk

75 gr. de beurre                                   2 1/2 oz sweet butter

1 jaune d’œuf                                       1 egg yolk

2 cuillères a soupe de sucre glace       2tbsp confectioner’s sugar

Cacao                                                Cocoa powder

 

(*Optional for adults: add in ½ to 1 oz liqueur, such as Grand-Marnier, Rhum, Cointreau…) – Yields about 20 truffles.

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

 

Place chocolate chunks with milk in a saucepan and melt slowly over low flame until homogeneous.

Remove from heat and add the butter gradually until the mixture is smooth and shiny. Add the egg yolk stirring rapidly. Mix in the confectioner’s sugar gradually and stir until smooth (*add the optional liqueur if desired).

Mix for an additional 2-3 minutes. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 4 hours minimum (or overnight) until the mixture gets hard.

Spread cocoa powder on a baking sheet.  With the palm of your hands, gently shape spoonfuls of the hardened mixture into rough balls - the size of a small nut - and roll them in the cocoa powder.

Place truffles into paper cups and refrigerate in an airtight container (tin can /Tupperware) – They will keep for several weeks.

Let stand at room temperature for 5 or 10 minutes before serving.

Bon Appétit!

Click here for pronunciation of "truffes" 

 

Croque Monsieur

 

Croque Monsieurs are toasted ham and cheese sandwiches. They are sold in cafés everywhere in France.

Recipe serves 4 sandwiches.

Author: Lauren Allen

 

 

Ingredients

Béchamel sauce:

   ¼ cup unsalted butter (½ stick)

   ¼ cup all-purpose flour

   1½ cup whole milk

   Salt and freshly ground black pepper

   ¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard

   Dash of ground nutmeg

 

Sandwich:

   8 thin slices of white sandwich bread

    5 ounces good quality ham, about 8 slices

   6 ounces Gruyère cheeses (or Emmental cheeses), grated (about 2½ cups)

   ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

 

Instructions

 

For the Béchamel:

   1.Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring      constantly, for about 3 minutes.

   2. Gradually add milk, stirring well until the mixture is smooth. Cook stirring, until sauce is thickened. (This took up to 20 minutes for me. Sooner or later, the sauce will thicken.)

   3. Season with a little salt and pepper. Remove from heat and whisk in mustard and nutmeg.

 

Assembly:

   1.Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

   2.Spread all bread slices with a layer of béchamel, spreading it all the way to the edges.

   3.Place 4 slices of bread, béchamel side up, on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

   4.Top each with a piece of ham, a handful of gruyère, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. Place remaining slices of bread on top, béchamel side up, then top with remaining gruyère and parmesan cheese.

   5. Bake at 425 degrees F for about 5-6 minutes, until cheese is melted, and then turn the oven to broil until the cheese on top is golden, 2-4 minutes. (You may turn the temperature up to “broil”, but keep the oven partially open and watch that the sandwiches don’t burn.)

 

Bon appétit!

 

Recipe thanks to Lauren Allen, “Tastes better from scratch”, with a few notes based on my experience.