Green Juice and Tomettes (tomettes, and not tomates!)
It's a rainy day in Bandol, a perfect morning for some pancrêpes. Instead, Jean-Marc and I are drinking green juice (this time with fennel–and it's dill-like leaves–bergamot lemon, ginger, pomme, and celery). We'll definitely have pancakes this weekend! Read on… Meantime, put your pancake tips here in the comments and we'll keep them in mind for the next batch!
pâte (pat)
- batter (mix), pastry; dough
- base (for pizza)pasta
- play dough
- pulp (wood)
la pâte à crêpe = pancake batter
la pâte à modeler = playdough
la pâte à pain = bread dough
Expression: vivre comme un coq en pâte = to relax and enjoy life, to be very pleased with one's living circumstances, to be in clover
Audio File Listen to Jean-Marc pronounce the words, above, and the sentence, below: Download MP3 or Wav file
Quels sont les ingrédients pour la pâte à pancakes?
What are the ingredients in pancake batter?
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE… by Kristin Espinasse
"Would you like me to go to the store and get ingredients for pancakes?" Jean-Marc is standing at the door to our room, a best-husband smile on his face.
Pancakes? What a complicated undertaking that was for this quiet and cozy morning. Why couldn't my husband just grab a couple cups of coffee and return to bed?
Well, if he wanted pancakes, he didn't have to go all the way to town.
"But we already have all the ingredients here," I point out. The informative tone of my voice tells Jean-Marc he might have first looked for the flour!
"What's the recette for pancakes, then?"
"But why don't you just make crêpes?" I suggest, not wanting to get all involved in the process of baking. Jean-Marc is an expert at crêpes. Why did he need to complicate things?
"Because I want pancakes! How much flour does it take?"
I sit up in our cozy bed. So much for a do-nothing Sunday morning. Jean-Marc would need a recipe, and for that he'd need me to get up and start searching for a cookbook.
…Then again, there was that Jamie Oliver recipe, the easy-to-remember one. I liked the one-two-three quality about it, like the fool-proof yogurt cake… only which number corresponded to which ingredient? How many cups of flour? Was it 2 eggs? And one of what? All these thoughts made me begin to grumble.
Jean-Marc's patience was thinning, too. "It's a simple question, no need to pass by Australia, South Africa, and Chile to answer it!
He always says that when becoming defensive! But it is HE who has complicated things by involving me in the first place!
"YOU are the one who's gone all the way to Chile by leaving the kitchen and coming this far to make your pancakes!
Harrumph! Throwing the covers aside, I follow the globe-trotter into the kitchen.
***
Standing beside Jean-Marc and the kitchen comptoir, I'm in pyjamas, he's wearing a raincoat. We are looking into a large mixing bowl, wondering whether or not to double the recipe. Suddenly, I am very hungry.
"Double-le," Jean-Marc decides.
As soon as we begin, I notice my husband's casual approach to cooking.
"But you didn't measure a full cup that time!"
"Don't worry. Ça ira."
Doubtful, I hand over the poudre chimique.
"What are you doing with the baking powder?!" Instead of dumping it in the center of the farine, in the "well", or trou, Jean-Marc is shaking it, ever so daintily, across the top of the flour.
"Just dump it! There, in the center!"
Rather than rush him through the egg and butter stage, I quickly crack and measure them myself.
"Je suis désolée, it's just that I don't have a lot of patience for these things… and I can't help but want to control things."
"Oh, si! Yes you have patience," Jean-Marc says, sweetly, stirring the pâte.
"Don't over stir…," I smile. "…just enough to wet the flour!"
***
I watch our 15-year-old daughter eat breakfast. "They're a cross between pancakes and crêpes," she notes, admiring the "starburst" pattern, as well (a happy accident. Our old sauteuse it so scraped up that the batter formed little jagged edges all around. Sun cakes!)
"Do you like them?"
"Beaucoup."
"It was your Dad's idea. Wasn't that sweet?"
'Mmmhmm.Where'd he get the recipe?"
"Oh… in Chile!"
***
To comment, click here. Looking forward to more pancakes this weekend… or maybe tomorrow morning! Any tips? For buttermilk pancakes, have you tried the replacement (one TB of vinegar? Does it really work?). What types of flour do you use? Bacon grease or vegetable oil in the pan? And pancakes sans gluten?
French Vocabulary
(click on the highlighted words to view the entries)
une recette = recipe
une crêpe = thin pancake
double-le = double it
ça ira = it'll do
la poudre chimique = baking powder
la farine = flour
je suis désolé(e) = I'm sorry
La Bonne Cuisine de Madame Saint-Ange: The Original Companion for French Home Cooking. Order your copy here.
Father and daughter playing cards, over the relaxing weekend. See the grape-cluster above Jackie? That is one of the gifts Caroline made. Click to enlarge the photo. Click here to comment.
Photo of a cabanon taken in Tulette. Marie-Françoise was here yesterday. Touring our new stomping grounds, she said, "come see…" She delicately lowered the branch of an almond tree, quizzing us about what we could see…. BUDS! Could it be that springtime is around the corner? And buds in your neighborhood?
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what a lovely post! your family look lovely & I wish I could pop over & join you for a coffee!!
PS if you ever wonder about my name, spabbygirl, it’s because I love & volunteer for the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings = SPAB & I love anything old & proud of it, hence spabby!
what a lovely post! your family look lovely & I wish I could pop over & join you for a coffee!!
PS if you ever wonder about my name, spabbygirl, it’s because I love & volunteer for the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings = SPAB & I love anything old & proud of it, hence spabby!
Crepes are easier to make than pancakes – I think. You can also roll up crepes with so many different fillings, both savory and sweet. My favorite is apricot preserves with ground walnuts. When I make Hungarian chicken paprikash, I can use the chicken pieces in the crepes and pour the sauce over it. Yumm!!!
Crepes are easier to make than pancakes – I think. You can also roll up crepes with so many different fillings, both savory and sweet. My favorite is apricot preserves with ground walnuts. When I make Hungarian chicken paprikash, I can use the chicken pieces in the crepes and pour the sauce over it. Yumm!!!
Bumpa’s Pancakes
Use any pancake recipe (I use Bisquick), and substitute ORANGE JUICE for the milk/water liquid. Your joy will be perfect pancakes with a citrus zing!
Bumpa’s Pancakes
Use any pancake recipe (I use Bisquick), and substitute ORANGE JUICE for the milk/water liquid. Your joy will be perfect pancakes with a citrus zing!
Are there any crêpes left? When we were living in mainland France, we would have homemade cider with our crepes. Here, on Reunion Island we add a dash of rhum and vanilla – from our garden!!- to the dough! No almond trees on Reunion Island, but vanilla and cocoa from the garden, not too bad too! Have a very lovely day!
Are there any crêpes left? When we were living in mainland France, we would have homemade cider with our crepes. Here, on Reunion Island we add a dash of rhum and vanilla – from our garden!!- to the dough! No almond trees on Reunion Island, but vanilla and cocoa from the garden, not too bad too! Have a very lovely day!
I’ll have to try Dave’s Bumpa’s pancakes – sounds interesting. We always have buttermilk pancakes with New England maple syrup. I think it’s the syrup that makes the pancakes taste so good.
I’ll have to try Dave’s Bumpa’s pancakes – sounds interesting. We always have buttermilk pancakes with New England maple syrup. I think it’s the syrup that makes the pancakes taste so good.
Marika, glas you mentioned the savory possibilités. Here, salmon is popular.
Dave, those sound healthier, too.
Adeline, vanilla and COCOA in the garden–what luck!
Bill, maple syrup! That reminds me of an entire section of the story I have forgotten about… Involving ants!
Marika, glas you mentioned the savory possibilités. Here, salmon is popular.
Dave, those sound healthier, too.
Adeline, vanilla and COCOA in the garden–what luck!
Bill, maple syrup! That reminds me of an entire section of the story I have forgotten about… Involving ants!
The English word ‘pancake’ comes from the French ‘pannequet’, which is a large, round pancake.
It’s comical to hear Americans ordering a ‘crêpe’ that they pronounce ‘crape’, like the creped (folded in a particular way) paper
we used at school.
In older American films they ate flapjacks at breakfast-time. Now they have pancakes 🙂
To balance things out, the French speak of ‘ le cake anglais’, and seem surprised that “cake’ means any cake.
English people also use ‘gâteau’ to mean ‘pièce montée’
If we are what we eat, is it any wonder we’re all a bit mixed-up?
The English word ‘pancake’ comes from the French ‘pannequet’, which is a large, round pancake.
It’s comical to hear Americans ordering a ‘crêpe’ that they pronounce ‘crape’, like the creped (folded in a particular way) paper
we used at school.
In older American films they ate flapjacks at breakfast-time. Now they have pancakes 🙂
To balance things out, the French speak of ‘ le cake anglais’, and seem surprised that “cake’ means any cake.
English people also use ‘gâteau’ to mean ‘pièce montée’
If we are what we eat, is it any wonder we’re all a bit mixed-up?
Since Lent is just around the corner, I’m reminded of the recipe my church used for Shrove Tuesday. The magic ingredient ? Ice cream instead of milk. It’s obviously meant for “Fat Tuesday!
Since Lent is just around the corner, I’m reminded of the recipe my church used for Shrove Tuesday. The magic ingredient ? Ice cream instead of milk. It’s obviously meant for “Fat Tuesday!
And it’s comical to hear the French try to pronounce any English word with “th” in it (“theater” and “mother” come to mind). Everybody can”t pronounce something! But it’s important that we try. And not laugh at those who are trying.
And it’s comical to hear the French try to pronounce any English word with “th” in it (“theater” and “mother” come to mind). Everybody can”t pronounce something! But it’s important that we try. And not laugh at those who are trying.
The best recipe for pancakes includes the consumers of them: mother, father, daughter and possibly dog! The best pancake I ever enjoyed were the ones my Uncle Al made for me. He was a Renaissance Man, and those pancakes of his were works of heart! Very nice post–the sweet butter and syrup were built into your words!
The best recipe for pancakes includes the consumers of them: mother, father, daughter and possibly dog! The best pancake I ever enjoyed were the ones my Uncle Al made for me. He was a Renaissance Man, and those pancakes of his were works of heart! Very nice post–the sweet butter and syrup were built into your words!
Yes, the “Tête à Tètes” are poking through the ground. Former warmer winter days may have hastened their debut, but the Artic chill biting us now–oh please don’t allow those frigid fingers to “nip these beauties in the bud”!!
Sweet photo of J-M et La Belle Fille…lounging in bathrobes, dreamy! What IS that très interessant top that J-M is wearing? Morroccan? Cool.
Yes, the “Tête à Tètes” are poking through the ground. Former warmer winter days may have hastened their debut, but the Artic chill biting us now–oh please don’t allow those frigid fingers to “nip these beauties in the bud”!!
Sweet photo of J-M et La Belle Fille…lounging in bathrobes, dreamy! What IS that très interessant top that J-M is wearing? Morroccan? Cool.
no, no buds here in Bucksport, Maine . . ..
only frozen snow and ice crystals…. The chickens are hunkered down, and staying alive despite the lack of bugs, seeds, grass and lazy afternoons to wander around.
no, no buds here in Bucksport, Maine . . ..
only frozen snow and ice crystals…. The chickens are hunkered down, and staying alive despite the lack of bugs, seeds, grass and lazy afternoons to wander around.
When I was a kid and we went to visit my grandparents — maybe once or twice a year — my grandfather would always make pancakes. And he always poured them into special shapes for my sister and me: Mickey Mouse, a dog, an elephant, the Empire State Building…. My sister still insists on making pancake shapes, and she’s 50 now.
When I was a kid and we went to visit my grandparents — maybe once or twice a year — my grandfather would always make pancakes. And he always poured them into special shapes for my sister and me: Mickey Mouse, a dog, an elephant, the Empire State Building…. My sister still insists on making pancake shapes, and she’s 50 now.
John, thanks for these interesting additions to our pancakes post! I wanted to use the word flapjack, in the story (an alternative to all the pancake references), but forgot! Flapjack is more soulful.
Cyndy, your words about pronunciation motivate me to share my daughters recent struggles –and her determination –to speak English without her French accent. Will try to write that story.
Janet, that should be illegal.
Mary, what a lovely thing to say. I will quit kicking myself for leaving out the ants-in-the-syrop episode…then again, there is always the rewrite process!
John, thanks for these interesting additions to our pancakes post! I wanted to use the word flapjack, in the story (an alternative to all the pancake references), but forgot! Flapjack is more soulful.
Cyndy, your words about pronunciation motivate me to share my daughters recent struggles –and her determination –to speak English without her French accent. Will try to write that story.
Janet, that should be illegal.
Mary, what a lovely thing to say. I will quit kicking myself for leaving out the ants-in-the-syrop episode…then again, there is always the rewrite process!
“Expression: vivre comme un coq en pâte = to relax and enjoy life, to be very pleased with one’s living circumstances, to be in clover ”
If a rooster wrapped in pastry is pleased with his circumstances, he clearly has no idea what is coming next.
“Expression: vivre comme un coq en pâte = to relax and enjoy life, to be very pleased with one’s living circumstances, to be in clover ”
If a rooster wrapped in pastry is pleased with his circumstances, he clearly has no idea what is coming next.
Growing up in England, what we called pancakes are French crêpes. What Americans call pancakes were called by some dropped scones (because you made them by dropping the batter onto a girdle) and by others Scotch pancakes. Whatever they were called, we ate them cold with butter for tea, not hot with butter and syrup for breakfast.
Offered a choice between American pancakes and English pancakes/crêpes, I’ll take the English ones every time — with sugar and lemon juice sprinkled on top.
Both types of pancakes are equally easy to make, and the only significant difference in the recipe is the inclusion of butter in the dropped scones and the fact that the batter is much thicker.
Growing up in England, what we called pancakes are French crêpes. What Americans call pancakes were called by some dropped scones (because you made them by dropping the batter onto a girdle) and by others Scotch pancakes. Whatever they were called, we ate them cold with butter for tea, not hot with butter and syrup for breakfast.
Offered a choice between American pancakes and English pancakes/crêpes, I’ll take the English ones every time — with sugar and lemon juice sprinkled on top.
Both types of pancakes are equally easy to make, and the only significant difference in the recipe is the inclusion of butter in the dropped scones and the fact that the batter is much thicker.
savor those buds — it was 2 degrees in Chicago yesterday, with a high today of 27. So I’m pumped.
savor those buds — it was 2 degrees in Chicago yesterday, with a high today of 27. So I’m pumped.
Bruce, thanks for the snort of laughter your latest comment provoked!!
Pat, ment to mention JMs gown. He got it in Djbouti, while on an audit mission (in his former, pre-winemaker life). Another picture of his man dress here http://french-word-a-day.typepad.com/motdujour/2012/10/va-ten.html
Passante, have always wanted to eat homemade scones but thought they were more complicated. Thanks for the info… Next on the menu …:-)
Sherry, peuchere, as my daughter says, or poor things, those chickens. Keep warm.
Bruce, thanks for the snort of laughter your latest comment provoked!!
Pat, ment to mention JMs gown. He got it in Djbouti, while on an audit mission (in his former, pre-winemaker life). Another picture of his man dress here http://french-word-a-day.typepad.com/motdujour/2012/10/va-ten.html
Passante, have always wanted to eat homemade scones but thought they were more complicated. Thanks for the info… Next on the menu …:-)
Sherry, peuchere, as my daughter says, or poor things, those chickens. Keep warm.
For “sour milk” pancakes,or buttermilk pancakes, sour the regular milk with vinegar. It does work. Thats the way I always make pancakes. but I agree with Bill, real maple syrup is what makes them taste good. I also love my son-in-law’s crepes with powdered sugar, jam, nutella,or best of all, chocolate spread. Peggy
For “sour milk” pancakes,or buttermilk pancakes, sour the regular milk with vinegar. It does work. Thats the way I always make pancakes. but I agree with Bill, real maple syrup is what makes them taste good. I also love my son-in-law’s crepes with powdered sugar, jam, nutella,or best of all, chocolate spread. Peggy
Wonderful to see your happy husband and child. One of the best pics of your daughter, ever! Fun article, too — making pancakes can be quite the production at my house, too.
Wonderful to see your happy husband and child. One of the best pics of your daughter, ever! Fun article, too — making pancakes can be quite the production at my house, too.
When we have the time, we separate the eggs, and whip the whites, then fold them into the batter (from a recipe of Edward Harris Heth). It always makes the batter a lighter and airier mix!
When we have the time, we separate the eggs, and whip the whites, then fold them into the batter (from a recipe of Edward Harris Heth). It always makes the batter a lighter and airier mix!
“..you made them by dropping the batter onto a girdle”
Instead of eating them first and waiting for the kilos to hit your hips. tee hee!
“..you made them by dropping the batter onto a girdle”
Instead of eating them first and waiting for the kilos to hit your hips. tee hee!
I have a special recipe for Jean-Marc, it is called a pre-packaged box of pancake mix. You use Jamie Oliver’s, he can use the box.
Ah,it was the dead of winter for two weeks and this week is spring. All the daffodils are up, the oxalis is rampant and the acacia are thinking of spreading their allergens in a few weeks. With any luck winter will hit again soon and put a stop to this early bloom.
But I must admit I do love the warm days. It was 69 on Monday.
I have a special recipe for Jean-Marc, it is called a pre-packaged box of pancake mix. You use Jamie Oliver’s, he can use the box.
Ah,it was the dead of winter for two weeks and this week is spring. All the daffodils are up, the oxalis is rampant and the acacia are thinking of spreading their allergens in a few weeks. With any luck winter will hit again soon and put a stop to this early bloom.
But I must admit I do love the warm days. It was 69 on Monday.
Here in Freiburg in our Market Hall a French lady makes buckwheat crêpes, either sweet or savoury. My favourite is filled with raclette cheese, bacon and potato. Served with a side salad, it is a marvellous lunch!
Here in Freiburg in our Market Hall a French lady makes buckwheat crêpes, either sweet or savoury. My favourite is filled with raclette cheese, bacon and potato. Served with a side salad, it is a marvellous lunch!
I use the classic recipe in King Arthur Flour’s Baker’s Companion–see it at http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/simply-perfect-pancakes-recipe. It reduces or doubles well, can be modified easily, and indeed turns out perfect every time.
I use the classic recipe in King Arthur Flour’s Baker’s Companion–see it at http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/simply-perfect-pancakes-recipe. It reduces or doubles well, can be modified easily, and indeed turns out perfect every time.