Simply Gourmand Weekly Newsletter

A saison to savor...

Autumn has arrived. It's time for earthy flavors and tasty rustic dishes. Take your picks from our selection of French fall favorites and have yourself a delectable season!

Our selection features Sabarot dried mushrooms (including morels, ceps, and chanterelles) and pulses (including renowned Le Puy green lentils and mogettes from Vendée), Tarbais beans (the white creamy beans used for cassoulet and other traditional dishes), Pébeyre truffles, Clément Faugier chestnuts, Rougié duck confit and pâtés, and many other classics the French are keen to savor and cook with this time of the year.

In the mood for cooking? Try our recipe for potage au potiron (pumpkin soup) or another of our seasonal recipes like cream of chestnut soup, endive gratin, green lentils, duck and cep casserole, mogettes and ham, or chicken with morels. Bon appétit!

Marianne

Owner & Gourmand-in-Chief

This month's deals: 20% off our top 12 sellers so far this year (coupon code TOP2019)

Just in: more French favorites

Among the French favorites recently added to our shelves you will find Les Délices du Lubéron anchoïade (anchovy cream), a tasty treat from Provence, and Distillerie du Périgord raspberries in liqueur, the perfect final note to a gourmet meal.

Suggestions for your French agenda

So many exciting French cultural events all around the USA this month and next. We hope you'll enjoy our picks!

Atlanta's Breman Museum presents Henri Dauman: Looking Up, an exhibition showcasing the work of the French photographer of some of the most important events and personalities of the 20th Century. Through December 30.

The Brooklyn Museum presents Pierre Cardin: Future Fashion through January 5, 2020 and JR: Chronicles, the first major U.S. exhibition of the works by the groundbreaking French multimedia artist, through May 3, 2020.

The Denver Art Museum presents Claude Monet: The Truth of Nature. October 21 through February 2, 2020.

The Detroit Institute of Arts presents Humble and Human: Impressionist Era Treasures. Through October 13.

In Fort Worth, TX the Kimbell Art Museum presents Renoir, The Body, The Senses. October 27 through January 26.

In Los Angeles the Getty Center presents An Enduring Icon: Notre-Dame Cathedral through October 20 and two other exciting shows will open this month: Manet and Modern Beauty, October 8 through January 12, 2020, and Peasants in Pastel: Millet and the Pastel Revival, October 29 through May 10, 2020.

In Miami the French Cinema Floride festival celebrates French film with a lineup of box office hits. November 1-3.

New York's FIAF (French Institute) presents a new film series, Magnetic Gaze: Isabelle Adjani On Screen. Through October 29.

New York's FIAF (French Institute) presents the 13th edition of its wide-ranging, critically acclaimed arts festival, Crossing The Line. Through October 12.

New York's Fashion Institute of Technology presents Paris, Capital of Fashion, an exhibition exploring the cultural construction of Paris as the capital of fashion. Through January 4, 2020.

In New York the Frick Collection presents Manet: Three Paintings from the Norton Simon Museum. October 16 through January 5, 2020.

New York's Met Museum presents Félix Vallotton: Painter of Disquiet. October 29 through January 26.

In New York the Poster House, the recently opened museum dedicated exclusively to posters, presents Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau / Nouvelle Femme. Through October 6.

In Pasadena the Norton Simon Museum presents By Day & by Night: Paris in the Belle Époque. Through March 2, 2020.

In Washington, DC the Maison Française presents a series of films showcasing the multiple facets and history of French fashion, So French, so Fashion! Through October 22.

Last but not least, ZAZ's North America tour stops in Washington, DC, Boston, New York, Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Oakland (October 4-13) and French electro swing band Caravan Palace will spend all of October extensively touring North America, with shows in Boston, Washington, DC, New York, Philadelphia, Montreal, Toronto, Detroit, Chicago, Minneapolis, Denver, Seattle, Portland, OR, Oakland, Los Angeles, San Diego, Austin, Dallas, and Atlanta.

Try our recipe for potage au potion (pumpkin soup)

Talk about a fall classic!

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

6 cups water (more if necessary)

4 cups pumpkin, peeled and cubed

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 large carrots, thinly sliced

2 medium onions, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

a pinch tarragon

salt and pepper to taste

1 quart whole milk

⅓ cup olive oil

½ cup parsley, finely chopped

Directions

Pour water into a large pot. Add pumpkin with potatoes and carrot and bring to a boil. Add onion, garlic, tarragon, salt, and pepper, and continue boiling for aboout 20 minutes. Reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes.
Blend the soup. Add milk and oil, stirring well, and over low heat bring the soup to a boil again. Simmer for about 10 minutes and serve immediately in well-heated soup bowls, garnishing each with a pich of parsley.