Autumn in Sète

You see what a really bad camera and a fantastic Autumn view will get you?

I got so (1) frustrated by the total inability of my camera to capture what I saw, and (2) awe-struck by the glowing kites and Autumn leaves, that I finally broke out my paints.

This is from my mind's eye - the kite surfers really are far away, but they loom larger than life from my apartment...

Winter Squash Fritters

Winter Squash Fritters

I decided to try making fritters with the local squash (it looks like this musquée de provence); I ended up using a basic latke recipe, and exchanging squash for the potatoes!

2 cups cooked squash*
3 eggs
2 Tablespoons flour
~1 tsp salt, to taste (less than you would use with potatoes)
optional other seasonings: ginger, coriander, cumin, curry, nutmeg...

Stir everything together (it will be very wet); heat a mixture of butter and oil on medium-high; drop ~2 Tablespoons of mixture in the pan, and flatten. When crispy, flip to brown the other side.
Remove to paper towels, and keep warm.

Note: if you rarely use an apron, this is the time to do so!

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* cut unpeeled squash into chunks and boil covered in a little water for 1/2 hour. Pull the squash flesh off the rind with a spoon.

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I started with a little of every seasoning except curry; I will probably add more next time.

We had this with chicken tika masala - mmm, mmm...

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UPDATE: 2020

I didn't use butter, the eggs were large, and I only had 1 1/2 cups of squash. They held together better, and spattered less. For flavor, I used just 1 TBS "hot" curry.

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UPDATE: 2021

I have used as flavorings:

- Persillade (parsley, garlic, onion)

- Pumpkin pie spices plus cayenne

Both are great!

An Airport in Sète?

An Airport in Sète?

Just the other day, a friend asked if Sète had an airport. I had to say no, and then detailed how to get to and from various airports in the area.

But then, yesterday, I found out that we used to have one! You can't find it via Google; I learned about it from a presentation by the Sète Historical Society*.

The first plane to land in Sète (Cette, back then) was flown by Louis Gilbert in 1911 - he landed in a field.

Some time during world war 1, we gained a 3-hangar airport. The planes ("hydravions") took off and landed on the Étang de Thau, but parked on land.

The airport was used at least through world war 2, but at some point, the hangars were replaced by this patch of green at the end of the "Long Point."

We still have a very nice train station...

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Un Aéroport à Sète ?

Juste l'autre jour, une ami m'a demandé si Sète avait un aéroport. J'ai dû répondre non, puis j'ai détaillé comment aller et de venir entre Sète et les plusieurs aéroports dans la région.

Mais, hier, j'ai découvert que nous l'avons eu, mais pas encore ! Vous ne pouvez pas le trouver dans Google ; j'en ai appris grâce à une présentation par La Société d’Etudes Scientifiques de Sète et sa Région*.

Le premier avion d'atterrir sur Sète ( Cette, à cette époque ) a été piloté par Louis Gilbert, en 1911 - il a atterri dans un champ.

Pendant la première guerre mondiale, nous avons acquis un aéroport de 3 gares. Les avions ( << hydravions >> ) décollaient et atterrissaient dans l'Étang de Thau, mais ils se garaient sur terre.

L'aéroport a été utilisé au moins jusqu'à la fin de la seconde guerre mondiale, mais à un certain moment, les gares ont été remplacées par ce coin d'herbe au bout de la << Pointe Longue >>.

Nous avons toujours une très jolie gare de train...

Site of old airport in Sète

* http://histoiredesete.fr

(Feedback on my French is most welcome!)

Trout and Coquille St. Jacques

Trout and Coquille St. Jacques

Heat butter in a pan, with chopped onion and chopped Clementine orange (including ~1/2 the peel, julienned).
When onion is soft and translucent, turn up heat, add 2 Coquille St Jacques. Cook ~2-3 minutes, deglaze with Grand Marinier, then remove everything to a plate and keep warm.
Add more butter, 2 pave de trout, and a green vegetable (eg, green beans or broccoli), add black pepper, cover and cook ~7-10 minutes till done. Remove to plates. Add cream to drippings, stir for sauce, and pour over fish and veggies.
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Last night's dinner - delish!

A Nice Day

Yesterday was a very nice day...

I woke up when I felt like it, and skipped my usual chores.

After a pleasant breakfast, we walked to our bank and finished setting up our proxies. We now can each do whatever we want to the other's account - feeling evil anyone?

We went into town, and ended up trying a new restaurant for lunch - pretty good lasagna (almost Florentine good), and at a good price (21€ for two, including wine and coffee). Then we arranged for a taxi at the tourist office for later (yep, 8 1/2 months, no car, first taxi). Got home, relaxed, then a quick dinner before heading back out for a concert.

I think the last time we had heard classical music live was in Albuquerque (over a year ago!). Now we enjoyed Hayden and Mozart, brought to us by a string quartet called Quatuor Debussy. Quite a lovely evening!

We found our taxi, and (taking the long way :-\ ), got home without too much of a chill.

Saved my bubbly for tonight's sunset, and it was yummy!

DELF - The Results!

DELF - The Results! I PASSED!!!!

I passed, passed, passed! Breathing...

So, the DELF tests you on 4 elements: written comprehension, written production, oral comprehension, and oral production. Each is worth 25 points. You can't pass the test if you score less than 5 on any one of the four elements. Your total score has to be 50 or higher to pass. That sounds easy, right? But not so much once you know that French school children can and do come home with *negative* scores on their tests!

My scores? Totaled 74/100 - I'm very happy with them! My worst subject is oral comprehension, and I was essentially hoping to get at least 5 so it wouldn't automatically drop me to a fail - and one of the pieces was completely incomprehensible. The others are better than I'd expected - after all my rehashing, I counted quite a few minuses, and figured I hadn't caught them all...

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You can read about my taking the DELF here.

November Skies

I've fallen behind on my "sky" posts! Here's this morning's view

And one from October - our sunsets have moved towards the South; I guess Winter is coming!

Toussaint - All Saints Day

Today is Toussaint, a holiday here in France

Read more about it here:  https://frenchmoments.eu/all-saints-day-in-france-la-toussaint/