Monday, November 20, 2006

Le petit déjeuner


Yesterday was Sunday and it's really the only day of the week where I can enjoy a real Petit Déjeuner (literally "small break from fasting"). In France, we don't eat salty food such as sausage or ham like they do in Northern Europe, but mostly sweet things such as marmelade, croissants, orange juice, and, needless to say, baguette "tartines" (a piece of baguette with butter and marmelade). Also, due to the excellent marketing of cereal brands, we are starting to eat more and more of these too.

Put this photo on a card, mug, t-shirt, bag and more here!

84 comments:

  1. et bien moi c'etait huitre de Diana, prizuttu, clémentine du village et pour arroser le tout un peu de vermentinu de Patrimonio...
    mais ce que j'apprécie beaucoup au p'tit déj ce sont des oeufs au plats cuit dans du beurre de baratte salée et déglacé avec du vinaigre balsamique...

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  2. Hey vieille terre, comme quoi finalement même en Europe du sud on mange des oeufs au petit déjeuner. Ce n'est pas très courant tout de même... Quant aux huîtres au petit dej, euh, là je ne suis pas très sûr !

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  3. Huîtres pour le petit déjeuner? C'est dégueulasse!

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  4. But the photo is excellent Eric. I especially love the link you made to the word "ham" in the caption!

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  5. Michael cela n'est pas dégueulasse du tout à savoir le celebre Casanova en mange six a huit douzaines le matin pour etre plus proche de ces conquétes et de plus c'est affrodisiaques alors messieurs mangez en et vous verez pour la suite héhéhé...
    Eric mon pére est Breton donc dans mes génes j'ai encore quelques racines celtes du moins un croisé Breton Corse ca ne coure pas trop les rues mais ca existe et comme je suis Chef de cuisine la bouffe ca me connait et c'est tellement bon de manger...

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  6. Sûrement il devrait y avoir du JAMBON coupé en tranches sur la table de petit déjeuner, est lui pas ?

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  7. Again Eric, I am sorry to tell this, but this is so cliche...really...

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  8. The baguette makes my mouth water. All you need to make this a perfect breakfast is a cafe au lait.

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  9. Il manque le grand bol de cafe au lait pour tremper !

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  10. OK you GUYS! All this Francais is making me feel....well....AMERICAN! Looks absolutely DELISH! And FYI, I can eat breakfast ANY time of the day! Bone Ape Tit! ;-)

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  11. Cliche or not, it's very nice.

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  12. NO! NO! don't give up baguettes for nasty cereal!

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  13. Baguette in the morning, baguette in the evening, baguette at supper time... J'aime les baguettes.

    Hey, Tomate, you wrote of winning things and traveling. I just got a three night stay at the Hilton Cannes at a silent auction, a benefit for the French American Chamber of Commerce here in Minneapolis. I'm planning for April, maybe, and ending up in Paris, bien sur. Maybe another fete au bord la Seine?

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  14. Looks like a very tasty and sweet brekfast. I'm a sweet addict so I don't miss ham and bacon.
    Scrambled eggs are nice for breakfast though.

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  15. I wish I could stop by every day, Eric. This is one of my favorite blogs. I miss Paris.

    As far as sinks discarded in the street, I never saw anything like that. I guess they picked them up before I made my way around the city.

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  16. merci merci merci for this photo!!
    This is definitely what I miss most about Paris.... the wonderful breakfast with baguette that we dip into our "cafe au lait", which is definitely missing from this picture! hehehehe...

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  17. wow eric that looks really good..i wish more people here in the states would eat a breakfast like this instead of the "monster" meals...even though i am big for my age (16, 6ft 4inches) i still eat a very light breakfast like a bagel and then my younger brother will come and eat so bacon, eggs, toast 2 bowls of cereal and i just look at him likes he crazy haha can't wait for a meal like that!!

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  18. True this pic is cliché. But, et alors?!...
    At least, there is no stupid béret around!

    We do find good baguette here in Sydney. Produced by a French bakery bien sûr...

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  19. Congratulations, Jeff!!! Well done!! :-D

    BV: Did you say a stupid beret?!!! Why, my grand-father must be rolling over in his grave right now, if can see your comment!! He wore a beret Basque as long as I can remember, as far as I can tell every day of his life (hopefully not the same one?) (Don't worry, no offense taken, I'm just joking with you, although the part about my grand-father wearing the beret is totally true).

    What I meant to say is, OK, I love the picture (believe me, it really "talks" to a long term expat abroad), but where is the large bowl of café au lait to go with it? Dipping the tartine in there is really the best part of the petit dejeuner!! :-D

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  20. Ah la la!! Eric...C'est parfait!! I think this photo will be wallpaper on my desktop at work very soon! LOL!! My usual "break-fast" is a Pot of Coffee...left over baguette warmed in the broiler with lot's of butter and Bonne Maman "Peach Preserves"...yes, we have them here; about $3.29 for one jar. Favorite cereal[hot]is Oatmeal...soothing on a cold winter morning and good for you!

    In San Francisco we have a Brunch Omelette called the "Hangtown Fry"...it dates back to the Gold Rush[1848??]and it consists of Eggs[Omelette]with OYSTERS, and Bacon! It is called "Hangtown Fry" because when a Claim-Jumper stole your gold during the Gold Rush he was HUNG[with a rope]but the criminal was always given his request for his final meal...the most difficult things to find in the Gold Country were Eggs, Bacon and OYSTERS...they had to be brought from San Francisco. The criminal would request the Omelette with Oysters and Bacon in hopes that it would give him time to prove his innocence or stall his execution or both! Drole ehhh??? Not funny though...LOL!!!!

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_gold_rush

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  21. b bertrand said, "Again Eric, I am sorry to tell this, but this is so cliche...really"...Cliché or not, this is true Paris (or even France). When I first saw people dipping their buttered bread into their coffee I thought they were raised badly. Now I know it's exactly what makes this part of the petit déjeuner wonderful!

    The first couple of discussions were about eating oysters for breakfast. I don't have time to translate, but basically terravecchia said he likes them for breakfast and I said it was disgusting. He then replied that even the celebrity Casanova ate 6-8 oysters in the morning to be closer to his conquests and in addition, this aphrodisiac helps men keep ready.

    Great news Jeff on winning the bid for Cannes. We'll expect an invite down there for the next picnic. Forget the river Seine, the Mediteranean will do just fine!

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  22. Sorry, it's me again... Wanted to welcome Than to PDP from South Jefferson Central School (see below). Glad you made it in and we'll look forward to hearing about your upcoming visit to France!

    Regarding omelettes kpgallant, I loved your story. Here in France omelettes are mostly eaten for lunch or even dinner. Hard to find them for breakfast! Of course, there's always the Mere Poulard restaurant at Mont St. Michel that is famous for it's omelettes (and tourists, and high prices)!

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  23. Michael!!! Ready for WHAT?!?!?!? If I had to eat oysters to keep ready for ANYTHING...I'd NEVER be ready! What did I just SAY?!? This still looks OOBER YUMMY TO MOI!!!! ;-)

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  24. mmmm this picture is so nice....breakfast is definitely one of the favorite things i like to do on sundays!

    today i ate crepes at a cafe downtown with my best friend who is visiting.... :-)

    I know i've been MIA lately from the blog! but i have been reading the comments as always!

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  25. Yummy from my desk. I really liked the "Ham" !

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  26. Great pic. In general, British are disappointed by french breakfasts, as when we are on hols in the UK we have the 'full English breakfast' as it's known; orange juice, cereal, bacon, eggs, tomatoes, sausage, toast & jam, coffee or tea.
    It is a myth though to think we eat this every day. Not at all. Most of us just on holiday or at weekends when we have more time, or visitors to the house.
    I love this breakfast, however, it is not so filling and sweet is always good, especially first thing.
    Usually my own p.d. is tea and a muesli bar - quick and easy - or porridge. Proper Scot's Oats. In my view this should be made with the oats in water with pinch of salt only, boiled then simmered until thick and ready. Pour into bowl then trickle some cold milk around the edges. The porridge will then float. Sprinkle some sugar on top. Yummy! Slow release too, so will see you through til lunch. Wow i've gone on a bit, sorry!
    Deliciously tempting photo Eric, i love it and your breakfasts there in France.

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  27. Lovely photo of a perfect breakfast! When we are in France,we notice sandwich boards advertising "American Breakfast". We walk on by. We prefer to do as the French do when we are in France. Even though we visit France on a cusp period, we have to work hard to avoid other American tourists. We aren't being nasty but we are desperately trying to learn the language. Three or more Americans.....you'll only hear English being spoken. I know this is normal so that is why we try for authentic French places such as the Batielle des Reines, etc. This revelation might open another bag of worms. LOL

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  28. I like better the French way then Brittish when it comes to breakfast. There is nothing political in it..I just love sweet things in the morning.
    Even if the world is more globalized when I was in France I felt the culture around these things..so in this way its not a cliche.

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  29. Eh ben quoi, Eric, Michael ?
    No eggs for breakfast in France ? It seems you forget les œufs à la coque and les mouillettes, don't you ? I agree we don't do every day but there is no french sunday breakfast without them… At least, there shouldn't be !!!
    ;o))

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  30. hey guys i dedicated a pblog post to you so check my blog out.

    http://catalystinmyhead.blogspot.com/

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  31. I love breakfast in Paris, French breakfasts are the best, especially in Hotel Alison near the Madeline!

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  32. Eric...I put the photo on my computer at work as wallpaper and in it's blown up state I noticed the nice big chip in the bottom of the butter dish!!! I love it!! It makes it even more authentic!!! A big hunk out the china at beakfast always brings everything into proper perspective...the most important thing is the baguette...I can almost hear the "Crunch..."...Merci encore!!

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  33. I could do with a Petit Déjeuner just about now.

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  34. I just stumbled across this website yesterday, and now I am hooked!! I love learning about your country and thank you for this great insight to your world!!

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  35. kp - I loooove the Hangtown Fry! So much, I've just ordered one from Just for You! I'm gonna go pick it up now. Thanks for the reminder.

    Mais oui ! J'adore les huîtres au petit déj !

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  36. Oh Eric, how cruel of you to tantilize us like that...We can't get a decent baguette in Naples (Panera and Evoo tries hard, but the bread is too heavy -(
    So we just settle(!) for homemade bluberry pancakes with real maple syrup! Mmmmm...

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  37. Michael and Eric, if you want to meet in Cannes, maybe in April, that would be a fun PDP photo! And what about Tomate: another holiday a France? Eric, your friend Laura? And Michel? Now, I hope to end up in Paris anyway, but I liked Michael's suggestion.
    By the way, it's very difficult to get a decent baguette here, too. Never crispy enough.

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  38. Great idea Jeff! Hey, how about everybody joining us down in Cannes! I'm sure Jeff wouldn't mind. Yeah Eric, invite Laure along!

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  39. Has anyone noticed that Soosha is conspicuous by her absence? She's at that game isn't she! ... when she should be telling us what she had for her p'tit dej. Viens ici Soosha!

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  40. So buzzgirl....You're in SF??? I didn't know...and Tomate is also in SF/Bay Area??? Very interesting!! I wonder which city has the most PDP daily visitors...Maybe we could have a contest to find out and Eric will fly the winner to Paris...YAYYYY!! Just kidding...but I think a PDP "Daily Visitor Convention" should be in order..do you think we'll fill Le Palais des Congrès de Paris?? LOL!!

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  41. Donuts. Left over from what I bought to give to the Wii crowd yesterday.

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  42. *bangs head on desk and wall* ARGH!MAKE THE YELLING STOP!

    Ehem...sorry. Yep, been busy with the Wii, among other, more mundane things. Didn't mean to be so curt. I LOVE YOU LYNN!

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  43. Du chocolat chaud serait très bien pour accompagner ce petit festin !

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  44. he he he je t'aime aussi ... ! Good that you're back.

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  45. Good lord, someone needs to teach me French so I don't have to rely on Babel and the episode of Dora the Explorer where she goes on a world adventure!

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  46. Oh, duh. Je t'aime. I totally knew that. Took a brick to the head to have my memory jogged, though.

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  47. Soosha x he he so how's the game and what's a typical breakfast where you're from? i don't mean france.

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  48. Hey Than...

    I just checked out your blog! Really cool that you returned the favour to Eric with your own dedicated post.

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  49. Well I'm American, so anything fatty and bad for you! Though I've been trying to be good, so usually a Special K bar for me. I'm sure someday I'll get back to pre-pregnancy weight! Perhaps I should move to Paris and eat what all the beautiful people there eat!

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  50. Okay, I clicked on "ham" and guess what I got? Ham....you got me this time even though I had already checked out Ham today. What's next?

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  51. My favourite thing for breakfast in France is the assortment of viennoiseries
    available. I like the miniature pain au chocolates because you get more chocolate with each bite versus the large ones. Of course, the standard croissant ain't bad either! Heck, I'll eat them all!

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  52. Oh my goodness guys, I just realized: I only have to go into the office 2 days this week! Then's Thanksgiving, then-as of Friday- I have one business month before I go back to being a stay-at-home mommy. Then you guys wont be able to get rid of me! Which is scary with as much as I'm on PDP already!

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  53. Ok, are the croissants in france really as flaky (or more) then the standard supermarket variety around here? Cause I can't stand the flakiness. Yuck. A baguette I love, the flaky stuff ...I dunno. There's just a couple textures I can't stand.

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  54. Extra flaky Soosha versus extra rubbery in the supermarket. You probably wouldn't like them if you're not into flaky. But hey...flaky's in the eye of the beholder!

    Stay at home mommy? Hope you let the kids play with the Wii at least!

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  55. lol. I take it by "kids" you mean 3 year old son and 25 year old husband? A truer word was never said! Jeff will be devoting most of his time to trying to get his financial business up and running, and cause he can't really concentrate on that while he has to care for Owen I will be leaving my job so he can get successful. Plus we can't afford day care, and I really feel I should be home with Owen until he's old enough for school.

    Aaaand that's all I have for now.

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  56. No eggs for breakfast in France ? It seems you forget les œufs à la coque and les mouillettes, don't you ?

    Ah, oui, il a raison, je me disais bien qu'il manquait quelque chose!!! C'est pourtant bon, les oeufs à la coque!


    (By the way, a little translation help for everybody:

    Oeuf à la coque (egg "in the shell"?) = soft-boiled egg.

    Mouillettes = silly name that means you slice pieces of toast very thin so you can dip them into the soft boiled egg opening (mouiller means "wet").

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  57. Yup, kp, I live in the Mission. What part of town are you in? I think there's a pretty sizable Bay Area contingent hooked on PDP!

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  58. hmm i did that Soosha and when we divorced i was left starting a career from scratch penniless while he was at the top of the tree earning loads. Bitter? Just a tad. I will say, though, that being a stay-at-home mum was the best thing i ever did, wouldn't swap that time for the world and loved it. A wonderful time. Enjoy it they grow so quickly!!

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  59. I plan on enjoying every minute of it! He's at a great age. Very curious, very smart, and we can understand pretty much everything he says. And sometimes he says some darned cute things!

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  60. It's marvellous. I adore my three sons and have fantastic memories of when they were little. They're 19,18 and 15 now! Young men and i still cuddle them to bits! Ok they struggle a bit, mainly when their mates are around, lol, but hey, i'm still going to do it! lol...anyway we digress. I could do with that breakfast right now. Who says it has to be only in the morning?

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  61. Damn, what wouldn't I give for a Chausson Aux Pommes right now (sigh) ...

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  62. Than,
    Merci de nous diriger vers votre nouveau web-site.
    C'est très kool.
    Je vous souhaite le meilleur de la chance.

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  63. Eric - a little something which may amuse you at my painting blog!

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  64. Sorry for the shameful plug, but I've changed my blog a tad bit. It's a bit more interesting than it was previously. Quite frankly I'm surprised as many people have stopped by as there has been thus far. Anyway, go to my blog and Discuss. If you want to. You certainly don't have to.

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  65. Love the new look Soosha! Great idea. I shall be looking for each question with enthusiasm and brain-ache. Good luck with it.

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  66. BTW how do you do links in the comment box? I'm such a newie - ahhh...? - i don't know!

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  67. Making Links tutorial

    Learned everything I know about HTML on websites like this.

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  68. My favorite breakfast while living in Paris was always at Paul, the one near l'Hotel de Ville. It was inexpensive, and wonderfully delicious! No eggs, no pigs...just coffee and jam.

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  69. Michael you just made me soooooooooo nostalgic when you were talking about croissants au chocolat!!!!!!! I miss it sooooooooooooo much!!! Oh my god, when you just bite into it and the chocolate just oozes into your mouth.............
    best taste/feeling in the world!

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  70. Soosha- great link. Have saved it to my favourites.

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  71. so have i Soosha thanks!

    I can report that this morning in the UK my breakfast was one cup of tea, one bowl of Sugar Puffs (cereal: puffed wheat coated in honey)and one banana. Anyone else's report? lol

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  72. Sugar Puffs! There's a blast from my past. I hated that stuff and my parents would always buy it. Ugh! I've gome to appreciate it now. Haven't had it in years, though.

    Glad the link was helpful! Here's the main site it came from: html Tutorials for the complete idiot. It's got the basics. I've several other links if you ever need more than that.

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  73. Soosha...did I read that wrong or did you just call Lynn a complete idiot?

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  74. This sure beats hospital food in any country!

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  75. This picture makes me hungry. It also shows how different things even that such as bread between American and French can be.

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  76. I guess the question is....WHERE? did you get this very nice breakfast, I'm always looking for new places for breakfast or brunch, my favourite time of the day....yummy!
    Thanks

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