A hachis parmentier is a french version of what is called shepherds pie in the english speaking world. Shepherds pie is traditionally made with lamb whereas as hachis parmentier is usually made with beef or duck. Hachis comes from the french verb hacher to chop or ‘mince’ and the word parmentier comes from Antoine-Auguste Parmentier the man who introduced potatoes to France.
A breton galette is a large, thin pancake from the Brittany region made with buckwheat flour, usually with a savoury filling – also known in France as a “galette complète” (or complete galette). Here in France you can buy ready-made galettes to which you can add your filling but you can also make your own easily enough.
This recipe is called Poulet Forestier in french which translates to “forest chicken” in english. The word forestier in the name comes from the sauce which is called une sauce forestière because of the mushrooms in the recipe and is a perfect autumn dish. Typically a forestier sauce does not have mustard in it but I find it gives a little something special to the sauce! 🙂
Flammeküche is the Alsatian word for what is called a tarte flambée in french. It has a thin bread dough base with crème fraîche, fromage blanc, onions and smoked lardons. This Alsatian street food is very easy to make at home and is perfect as a light evening meal with some salad, or as a finger food or starter.
Auvergne is a region in south central France, home to the city of Clermont-Ferrand. This recipe is from the region, hence the name, and uses the local Cantal cheese.
There are lots of quiche recipes but this is the original, traditional ‘quiche lorraine’ from the Lorraine region in eastern France which doesn’t include cheese! But once you have the basic quiche you can then add whatever you want : cheese, onions, leeks, courgettes etc depending on your tastes. It is perfect served warm with a side-salad.
You’ll need a pâte brisée for this recipe, which is simply the french version of a pie or tart pastry. I think its known as short cut pastry in english (open to corrections on that!)
