le beurre de cacahuètes (bur deuh kaka wet)
: peanut butter
Audio File: Listen to Jean-Marc pronounce today's word, and phrase: Download MP3
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A Day in a FRENCH DOG'S Life…
by Smokey "R" Dokey & Mama Braise
Smokey: Parce qu'elle nous quitte… je vais manger tout son beurre de cacahuètes! Et voilà. Tant pis pour elle! Ça lui apprendra de se séparer de moi!!!
MamaBraise: Smokey-Chou, si tu souhaites la revanche tu es mal tombé… car elle voyage dans le pays du beurre de cacahouète!
Smokey: Que ça me donne envie!
(Mama Braise compte les boîtes pour bien vérifier qu'elles sont toutes là.)
Braise (à gauche): Fais attention, Smokey. Il en reste douze! Fais très attention à toi!
Smokey: Qui? Moi? Mais regarde mon air innocent!
Smokey: Hum…
Smokey: Et si je les ré-ammènage. Elle ne sera pas au courant… s'il en manque… non je ne lui ferais pas ça. J'suis fidèle!
Smokey: Elle me manque déjà et elle n'est toujours pas partie!
Braise: Fiston, la verité c'est que tu as hâte d'entamer la première boîte! Ne sois pas hypocrite.
Maman Braise: …et ces trois là… c'est pour moi!
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Le Coin Commentaires
Corrections and comments are welcome in the comments box. Click here. P.S.: what is your very favorite brand of beurre de cacahuètes?
* Dual-language story: Don't miss the English version of the story: click here.
Full Disclosure Statement: The peanut butter company appearing in these photos did not contact Smokey or Braise or any member of the Espinasse family. No peanut butter perks, privileges, pennies, or prizes were promised. The beurre de cacahuètes pictured above was a gift from the importers of our Domaine Rouge-Bleu wine. (Thanks again to Tim and Phyllis of French Country Wines!)
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Lucky you! We made a 340g jar last 4 months because it is hard to find in our French supermarché and très cher!
Love the story and the photos!
I live in Paris and I have a huge stash of Simply Jif!
Suzanne didn’t mention that we have to get it shipped from the US. Can’t find it here in Paris!
Love it. I usually pack peanut butter in my luggage when I come back to France. This time I had too many books and Christmas gifts to fit any jars! (I know, I probably won’t get any sympathy for that one).
It really is one of my comfort foods. There *is* some type of peanut butter I find in ethnic food shops in Paris sometimes, but it just doesn’t taste the same to me (or is that just psychology?).
Anyway, a very fun post. Thanks!
Oh yes, peanut butter could be an underground commodity here in Lyon.
We do have an “Anglo-American” store that stocks Jiffy. We prefer the African markets for “Pate d’arachide” (peanut butter) et sans sucre et a trace of salt. And we stockpiled pure maple syrup too, and find it everywhere here. What about those chocolate chip supplies? It’s amazing what “we” Americans crave over here!! Thank you Kristen.
Maureen, some of us here might love some tips on making our own peanut butter. Will a hand-blender suffice (in a peanut butter pinch?) Are there any ingredients to add besides shelled nuts (sans skin)? Did you first roast the peanuts? Was it a messy adventure? Worth it?
Jilly, thanks for the photo cheers — means a lot coming from you!
Susan, John, and Sion: have you tried MyAmericanMarket.com — here in France?! Anne-Claire is a sweetheart and shell ship us all American peanut butter. (I need to order some Bisquick… by the way). I just noticed she even stocks Reeses!!! Check out http://www.myamericanmarket.com/fr/accueil/lister-tous-les-produits?keyword=peanut+butter
Kate: interesting about the Pate darachide – sounds like what Sion was referring to. My friend, Mariem, brought some homemade Pate darachide back from Morocco. Delicious.
Great story, Smokey and Blaise are looking great and well-cared for. Even as a person of a cetain age, I still need my fix of peanut butter, especially on a home-made English muffin with cookie toast (cinnamon sugar), butter, and peanut butter. It’s a quick energy boost.
What a surprise to see tha topic of your post today! Just yesterday afternoon I was at Wal-Mart and a woman I know was in conversation with another woman and, seeing me, said, “Ah, SHE’LL know… How do you say peanut butter in French?” (I used to teach French to middle school-aged students.) It brought back memories of my elementary school years and how we giggled when the nun taught us that word! I hadn’t thought of that word in years and, lo and behold, there it was in today’s column. Thanks for the memories, Kristin!
Creamy or crunchy….Skippy!
I was able to find peanut butter when I lived in France, but it was not good. Monoprix had it. In Paris at the time (around 8 years ago)…there were a few small grocery stores that imported American Food, so I always knew I could hop the RER into Paris (I lived about 10 minutes outside)….and get my PB fix if needed. My husband, who is French, hates peanut butter. He said the French are not big fans! LOL So these photos held a special memory for my time in France….
We’re partial to Skippy. The other thing my cousin who lives in Lyon complains about not finding is a good Margarita!!!
I bet someone could make a few euros by opening a Margarita bar that offers peanut butter sandwiches!!!! For all you expats who don’t know how we in the US crave all the good French food!!!
Smokey is a DOLL and un petit voyou!! Lucky mama Braise has a good eye on him!! I really loved this story, thanks for taking all those pix!!!
How funny! Loved this post, the story and the photos!
PB is now included in the list of “packing essentials” for students at the school where I used to work who participate in an exchange with a French boarding school. PB always makes friends!
Merci, Kristin, comme toujours!
Charming story. Made me smile on a cold snowy day. My favorite peanut butter by far is made by Arrowhead Mills.
Loved today’s column and commments on homesickness for peanut butter…All this to do about
a particular food. “Who’d a thunk” so much value placed on such a commmon commodity we take for granted here in the U.S. Then I got to thinking: What I really misssed most while travelling and living abroad (Indochine 1967 -un an) was good old Mexican enchiladas from my hometown of Phoenix, Az.)..Best to you all..
thank you for the cute story, such a good way to start my morning 🙂
my favorite brand of PB (and ALMOND butter!) is Marantha
to Bill in St.Paul: to your english muffin concoction add some honey. Mmmm! Let me know what you think.
Connie: I had forgotten (until writing the phonetic guide today…) about cacahuète being that famous giggle inducer and one of the first inside jokes that French kids share with one another from the age of 3! cacahuète (ahahahahahahah!) My phonetic guide sure didnt help!
Suzanne: LOL (or as my kids say MDR)… margarita lovers should indeed steer clear of France!
Dr Ed: I miss enchiladas much more than PB! Also, were you aware that Herm, Karen, and I are trying to organize a PHX meetup on Friday, Feb 11th. It looks like it will need to be earlier: at 9 am. Were planning a hike (on level ground, for lazybones like me!) and a light snack at a bistro. Ill need to hit the road at 10:45 am to drive to CA and see my Dad. These plans are tentative… in fact my flight was cancelled and Im not there yet!… Will keep you updated via this blog.
Sharon: Im with you — add the honey to the PB and butter!!!!
Salut Kristin,
When I first heard that you were stopping in Phoenix:
I looked to my left and there I was!
I looked to my right and there I was!
I was beside myself!
We are anxious to meet-up with you and others from the area.
The weather’s in the 70’s and sunny. Some easy desert trails are waiting and, in case, the bistro don’t work there’s a Starbucks close by with an outdoor patio.
Wish you could stay longer.
À bientôt
You have way too much peanut butter on your hands. I better come relieve you of some of that 🙂
Can’t wait to see you on Feb. 11th. We will have to meet at the Starbucks as the bistro doesn’t open until 11:00. If you only have a short time why don’t we all just meet at the Starbucks so we have a bit of time to visit. Herm, Dr. Ed how does that sound.
My peanut butter is Safeway Organics Creamy. xoxo
I love the pictures of Smokey Dokey and Mama Braise; sweet faces and gentle curiosity. We always notice dogs first and say, “There’s a pretty face.” Goldens have the prettiest faces of all. (Crunchy local grocery store PB, I mean, cacahuetes.)
It is wonderful to see Smokey’s face looking so good…plus it looks like you and Chief Grape that decking finished quite nicely…
My favorite peanut butter?
Skippy, of course!
Thanks for the fun pictures today, Kristin!
Skip Anderson in Durham, NC
I ate so much peanut butter as a kid and young adult that I don’t eat it much any more, although we always have some in the house in case we run out of other sandwich ingredients – a desperation lunch, one could say.
Does “MDR” mean “mourir de rire”?
I recall a post from FWAD some years back. It was “beurk!” (Yuk!), and I think it was Max and Jackie’s response to peanut butter. Do they like it any better now?
PLEASE fix the sound file if you can. What happened to the WAV file? I can’t get the MP3 to work either in the e-mail or directly at the blog. Both used to work in whatever the previous format was. Now it looks different on the screen, and just sits there.
Herm and Karen in Phoenix, how much do i love that i now have images of you guys! I can just see you, heads huddled with Kristin over coffee, laughing and gabbing it up. Isn’t it amazing how peoples’ orbits mesh in life. each person a star in our personal constellation of friends. kristin, you are an entomological ambassador–bringing people together one word at a time.
okay, peanut butter. i put it on my chocolate chip cookies, on my oreos, on shortread–in fact my list of cookies that are made heavenly by a smear of pb is a little embarrassing. i put it on my banana bread (and since i’m baring my soul–i then sprinkle chocolate chips on it). And to put a big dab on a piece of good european dark chocolate?! Reese’s evil twin.
Hands down, Laura Scudder’s Old Fashioned Peanut Butter is the best! “Just peanuts and salt….that’s all”.
I remember spending a semester studying in Paris. The two items I really craved were: peanut butter and burritos (not together, of course). I bought a small can of beurre de cacahuètes at the supermarché. It was not the same but it at least satisfied my craving for a taste of home. Sadly, couldn’t say the same for the burritos.
This is so cute, and thanks to Kristin and my three years of French study since I retired, I could read it all!
I will stop by French Country Wines next time we’re in Houston!
The only real peanut butter is freshly ground with no salt added, which I buy from our food market – Bishops in Guilford CT. Jif and Skippy just can’t compare. This peanut butter is so rich in flavor and crunchy with no preseratives and put it on an English muffin with a little butter – oh my – soooo gooood! (You need a really strong grinder to make your own peanut butter – peanuts only!)
If Smokey ate it, it would stick to his tongue and he’d be lapping it at for a long time.
Love the pictures of them and having their comments in French. It made me work on my French.
I’m with Victoria, Laura Scudder’s Old Fashioned Peanut Butter, chunky. As far as I can tell, the Adams-branded product is identical.
Speaking of missing certain food groups, after I returned to California from a few weeks in France, my sister asked me where we should go out to eat. “Somewhere with American food,” I said. “Let’s go to the Mexican restaurant.”
Salut tout le monde,
In “days of old” in Phoenix, there was a place called “Crazy Ed’s” that served a foot-long peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Beer was served in mason jars and boot-shaped glasses. They also had hilarious melodrama shows. It was a fun place that some old timers might remember.
À bientôt
Wish I could insert the musical notes, but some of you might recall the peanut butter song without them … “I like peanut butter, creamy peanut butter, chunky peanut butter too!” It was recorded in 1961 by the Vibrations. Once you get that melody in your head .. look out, it won’t go away! Much like that snow in Philly! Aloha, Bill Facker
Is your younger Golden moving to the US “the land of peanut butter”?
If so, may I take his place? (joking)
As the old Jif commercial used to say, “only choosey mothers choose Jif” and after 50 years, I still do!
Another song: I like peanut butter, I like toast and jam, etc. etc.
I love this post and all the comments!
Peanut butter (Skippy Crunchy!) was something I really missed when I lived in France. My French friends did not (still don’t) like it at all—too sticky. But I could eat PB&J every day and be one happy girl!
Cacahuète IS a fun word!
Hey! I found your blog and I have to say I find it excellent. Keep up the good work and give us more stories about France.
Well, it has been a day of true confessions! I go for creamy Jif. Portia likes creaming Laura Scudder’s Natural. For fun, put some on the dog’s tongue. They love it but it is a wee problem for them. Great things for hiding pills if you need to for the dogs!
Have fun in Mexico. Looking forward to seeing JM in DC.
Margaret in Durham, NC – we are having a heat wave 50 degrees!
Hi Kristin,
On my first visit to Paris I was much put out
by the lack of ginger ale in the restaurants
and cafes. As a consolation we discovered
Orangina, which is now available everywhere
in Boston. (Maybe Orangina was in Boston
before that trip to Paris, but we never noticed it.) Anyway, on our latest trip to
Paris I forgot to see if the French finally discovered ginger ale. Did they? It seems
that there are business opportunities along
these lines in France, with some effective
marketing.
Best regards,
Paul
Being from San Diego in southern California, I missed authentic mexican food the most when I lived in Provence. My mother-in-law brought me some picante sauce and I found a place in Marseilles that had something pretty close to Mexican food. Peanut butter is good ,but I found Nutella was a pretty good substitute and my kids agreed!! Now, I have switched to almond butter because it is healthier and I have grown used to it. I buy Maranatha almond butter, but still like to make homemade peanut butter cookies occasionally.
Oh, Smokey and Braise are so darling…Braise talks like me…must be the genes.
I think this is the first time you have ever been away from Jean-Marc and the kids.
They are going to think you are the most beautiful, kind, loving, great cook, etc. when you return. Your first week home will be one of your happiest, they will all learn alot about themselves while you are away. Enjoy every minute of your vacation Honey, you deserve time by yourself. As we all know traveling with two kids and a husband is never a vacation.
I am really getting excited!
XOXO
MOM
Couldn’t find peanut butter when I was an exchange student in Grenoble (1989). I missed popcorn too. The main essentials, chocolate and wine, were plentiful! I’m not a big fan of peanut butter, but I’d pick Jif as the best. Enjoy your column…brings me back to my days in France. I miss it and hope to return soon with my family 🙂
Ils sont trop mignons, bon voyage chère voisine 🙂
Hi Kristin:
Delighted to hear that you will be returning to your old stomping grounds in Arizona next month for a quick trip. I will keep reading your blog for further details and hope to meet up with you on February 11th. Chances are I may be enroute to Virginia that week ” pour feter l’arrivee de mon petit fils”(mon deuxieme!)
In order to kill two birds with one stone, is there such a thing as a peanut butter enchilada??? Sounds dreadful, doesn’t it.
Best,
Dr. Ed in Phoenix
My Darling Kristi & FWAD ANGELS,
I am sure Kristi is ‘FLYING HIGH’ at this very moment….I am too. I couldn’t get to
sleep last night, then woke up this morning, My Dear God hadn’t even put the sun up yet. I ran into the guest bedroom – I haven’t cleaned up my rat’s pile of papers and pictures (things that inspire me to paint) since I returned from France two years ago this May. Every week my precious little “Adela” comes on Saturday to try and straighten out my act, walks into the guest room and shakes her head. Anyway Adela is on her way from the mountains on a bus this morning to help me finally get everything in place for Kristi.
I am thinking I should probably hide some chocolate under her pellow.
XOXO
JULES
Hi Kristin and Jules,
Hope the flight was uneventful. Time to enjoy each other’s company. Jules with chocolate under her pillow who would see the piles!
See you soon Kristin. xoxo
Hi Kristin:
Haven’t been here in a while, but what a treat to see Smokey, Braise AND peanut butter in the same photos. Love the story (and didn’t even need to check the English translation – yeah!).
BTW, here are the ingredients on my no-name peanut butter jar. If you want to make your own, try it in a food processor: peanuts, sugar, vegetable oil, salt, molasses.
Must admit, the molasses was a surprise, but does make sense for a little flavor depth. Good luck with the experiment – take photos, and share with the doggies. 🙂
Cheers –
Voie de Vie
Loved the story and the photos. And, like you, I LOVE me some peanut butter–I’m a Jif girl, too! We even had jars ready to take to France for the holidays this year as Christmas gifts “à l’américaine” but had to leave them behind because our bags were too close to the weight limit. Dommage! Maybe next time! In the meantime, anytime I partake of some, I will think of you!
Skippy Roasted Honey Nut.
Hi Kristi,
Not a peanut butter comment – not too keen on the stuff, too gluggy for me! However, regarding the trompe-l’oeil of the previous post, I don’t have the name of Fabrice’s brother (the painter). If you don’t mind waiting, I’ll be in France in July and will note in my diary to send it to you then. Just a note, our wedding anniversary is Jules’ birthday, so I’ll think of her then. Glad she’s a Libra, so am I.
Will be in the States this week and the first item on my shopping list is Skippy Extra Crunchy. Love my peanut butter toast or peanut butter & banana sandwich for breakfast! Great post and thanks for the link for My American Market. Cheers!
We call it ‘pate d’arachide’, but that may be an ‘africnism’, as we lived in Mali for 10 years. I wouldn’t touch Jif with a 10-foot pole! I use Smuckers, which is the only one I can find with no added junk, like sugar, oil (really? in peanut butter which is already 80% oil?), or salt (I think they may sneak just a bit in though).
We eat it straight out of the jar with a spoon, or make ‘mafe’, an African peanut stew with your choice of protein. My husband even mixes it wit yogurt (yuk).