The peak season for artichokes lasts several months : from May to November.




The artichoke is a domesticated thistle ... Have you seen it blooming ? The flower looks like the thistle’s one and it smells so good…

The reproduction of the artichoke is often done thanks to a rejection from an other artichoke that grows beside and must be replanted. The plant is almost a bush, which can reach 2 meters high and provides several artichokes (big ones) for 2 or 3 years.
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Its name comes from the Italian language which took it from Arabic. Originally, the plant is Mediterranean. Already known in Italy during the 9th century, the marriage of the French King Henry II with the Italian Catherine de Medici (1533) who loved it made him popular in France.

Even if it is a Mediterranean plant, it grows well in Brittany- the culture began early 19th century-, specially on the North coast, where the climate is quite mild. The famous golden belt around Roscoff is the coast for early vegetables and 75% of the artichokes produced in France come from the area.



In France the favorite one is the camus de Bretagne,the largest species (2 to 3 kg per head), the one eaten peeled. The southern one is much smaller and often eaten like in Spain or Italy, in oil.

Read it in French : Artichaut de Bretagne

Winter is the season for soups and stews, good simmered dishes and rich meals... Apple pies and roasted chestnuts are also part of the winter menu... and the excess of Christmas time...

It is also the season of cold, where diseases are more predictable ... Therefore vitamins of fresh produces and food are even more recommended ... to fight your bad cough... Fresh fruits or vegetables are the best natural source of vitamins... and the best way to loose weight after the plenty of New Year... Some days of a diet of fruits and veggies, that the best way to recover...

So let's see what we can eat... to enjoy the winter production without worrying ...

Some vegetables are edible all year long if they are well kept : Beets, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes and Onions.
Same thing for nuts...
Exotic fruits, even if they are produced in warm lands, are also connected to seasons.

Better than eating food supplements in winter, try the natural vitamins and the right minerals...

Links are connected to recipes or specific vegetables and fruits produced here ...

Vegetables
Beet, Horseradish, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrot, Celery, Chicory, Cress, Crosne, Fennel, Jerusalem artichoke, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkin, Salad, Salsify, Turnips
Fruits
Apples, Clementines, Kiwis, Mandarins, Oranges, Pears
Dates Nuts
Exotics Banana, Grapefruit, Lychee, Papaya, Pineapple



Vegetables
Avocados, Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Celery, Chicory, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Salads, Salsify, Turnips, Watercress

Fruits
Apples, Blood oranges, Clementines, Kiwi, Lemons, Mandarins, Pears
Nuts
Exotics Bananas, Grapefruit, Mangoes, Passion Fruit, Pineapples



Vegetables
Avocados, Beets, Carrots, Cabbage, Celery, Leaves, Leeks, Mushrooms, Onions, Potatoes, Radish, Salsify Spinach,Turnips
Fruits
Apples, Clementines, Kiwi, Mandarins, Oranges
Exotics Bananas, Mangoes, Pineapples

If you want to eat the right products at the right time, the easiest way to do it is to go to the market next and buy the vegies and fruits produced in your area.
You'll discover vegies that we do not eat often anymore and you need just a bit of imagination to accommodate some vegetables! Bon appétit

Read this post in French : Fruits et légumes de saison : calendrier d'hiver

Spring time... Nature is waking up.... And you too.
There are so many reasons to enjoy fruits and vegetables in spring...Good vitamins and diversity of taste are back... Nicer and longer days too. Prepare your skin (fresh veggies and fruits are the best diet to have a wonderful complexion) and your body for the sunny days... and loose quietly the overweight of the wintertime.

Spring is the best excuse to go back to a nice healthy diet to be fit and nice looking for the -soon- sunny beaches... Cold is gone and it is easier to eat light....

Specially because the spring vegetables and fruits mature without being helped and that's much better for our palates, our health, our body and our wallet ...

The common Beets, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes and Onions are still around as they are the basis, edible during the whole months of the year...

We do often forget that green salads are also related to the seasons ... The lettuce starts to appear on the shelves in April ... while the winter salad (chicory for example) disappears ...

Remember that exotic fruits don't grow all year long...

The links refer to vegetables and fruits produced in Britain or to recipes ...

APRIL

Vegetables

Asparagus, Avocados, Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Chards, Celery, Cucumber, Garlic, Green beans, Lettuce, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Radishes, Rockets, Sorrel , Spinach, Turnips

Fruits

Kiwi, Lemons, Oranges, Rhubarb

Exotics Bananas, Pineapples

MAY

Vegetables

Asparagus, Avocados, Beets, Carrots, Celery, Cabbage, Cucumber, Eggplant, Green beans, Lettuce, Leeks, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Radish, Spinach, Sorrels,Turnips, Watercress

Fruits

Apricots, Cherries, Currants, Kiwis, Lemon, Raspberries, Rhubarb, Strawberries

Exotics Bananas, Passion fruit, Pineapples

JUNE

Vegetables

Artichokes, Asparagus, Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Celery, Chanterelle mushrooms, Cucumber, Eggplants, Fennel, Green beans, Leeks, Lettuce, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Peppers, Radishes, Salads, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnips, Zucchini

Fruits

Apricots, Currants, Cherries, Kiwi, Melons, Nectarines, Peaches, Strawberries, Raspberries
Exotics Bananas, Mangoes, Papayas

Well, this is easy when you have a life in harmony with nature, time, goodwill and principles .... Otherwise, you can also go on a healthy diet of vegetables and fruits, using canned ... or frozen products. Canned vegetables are full of vitamins and frozen fruits too as they are freshly collected and preserved in the same day.

Read this article in French : calendrier de printemps des fruits et légumes de saison

It's summer ... the best season to enjoy veggies and fruits ... because they're plenty...because the fruits are sweet and juicy... And because you can prepare nice cold salad with so many different kinds of products.... because it's the best diet... to loose weight (Vegetables and fruits are low in calories) or to feel fit and healthy... Natural vitamins for a beautiful complexion and a nice skin. The best time to eat fresh food.

You can still eat Beets, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes and Onions as they can be preserved all year long but try to enjoy some other ones...
As the weather is nice and warm, enjoy eating cold... outside...

You can also enjoy collecting what you would like to eat by going to farms where you can pick what you want to eat and savour... In Brittany, it's possible, in many places...

You can also when walking around, collect blackberries, sloes and other nuts and chestnuts ....

Remember that exotic fruits do not grow all year long....

Here is your monthly calendar... July, August and September. For free and full of nice local recipes...

Blue links are connected to vegetables and fruits produced in the region... and the culinary specialties...

Vegetables

Asparagus, Artichokes, Batavia, Broccoli, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Fennel, Garlic, Green beans, Lettuce, Peas, Peppers, Radishes, Rockets, Salad, Spinach, Tomatoes, Zucchini

Fruits

Apricots, Blackberries, Blueberries, Cherries, Currants, Melons, Nectarines, Peaches, Plums, Raspberries, Rhubarb, Strawberries
Exotics Bananas

Vegetables

Artichokes, Broccoli, Corn, Cucumber, Eggplant, Fennel, Green beans, Lettuce, Peas, Peppers, Rockets, Squash, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnips, Zucchini

Fruits

Apricot, Blackberries, Blueberries, Currant, Gooseberries, Grapes, Figs, Melons, Mirabelle, Nectarines, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Raspberries, Strawberries, Sloes

Vegetables

Artichokes, Cabbage, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Fennel, Green beans, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Peppers, Pumpkins, Spinach, Radish, Salads, Tomatoes, Truffles, Zucchini

Fruits

Apples, Blackberries, Blueberries, Currants, Figs, Grapes, Melons, Mirabelle, Nectarines, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Quinces, Raspberries, Sloes, Strawberries
Chestnuts, Hazelnuts, Walnuts
Exotics Bananas, Pineapples

2 differents steps... Ratatouille is easy to make but needs time to be good.

1 - Preparation of vegetables ratatouille
2 - Crumble and cooking
1 – Ratatouille with summer vegetables
In summer, the ideal is to make a French ratatouille. The secret is to cook it a long time. Better to make a big one that you can freeze.The recipe is for 8 people.

Ingredients for 8 people 2 garlic cloves
An onion
2 peppers
2 eggplants
5 zucchini
8-9 tomatoes
Olive oil
Garlic in olive oil for 5 minutes. Peel the onion and add to garlic (15 minutes).While the onion and garlic cook. cut into small pieces peppers. Add and cok fr 15 minutes. Continue with the other vegetables (15 minutes each). Then cook over low heat for one hour (no cover). Let cool a few hours and again cook for an hour. It's done

2 - Crumble
Ingredients for 4
100g flour
50g butter
50g Grated Parmesan
Cut butter into small pieces and add to flour and grated Parmesan. Mix until small balls. Pour the ratatouille into a baking dish. Add the crumble top. Oven for 20 minutes to 7.
This winter you can do the same thing with carrots, leeks, potatoes and mushrooms ... Or any other vegetable that you will cook in the oven before proceeding.

Read it in French : Recette du crumble salé aux légumes de saison

You can do it salty or sweet… It is an easy recipe, nice to do with children.
Several ways can be done : vegetarian with vegetables thinly sliced, with crumbs of tuna fish or sweet with fruits.

Ingredients :
50 g flour
2 yolks and 2 whites
150 ml milk
25 g melted butter
A large pan

Mix the ingredients. Add the whites softly.
Slice thinly your vegetables. Add them with a bit grated cheese.
Pour into a frying pan. 10 minutes for each side.
Eat it with a green salad.

The sweet recipe

Add 25 g of sugar to your dough. Slice thinly the fruits.
Add them. Same cooking time.

Read it in French : Recette de matafan végétarien à la mode de Bretagne

Have you heard about the Copenhagen Summit... Of course... States and men have to act together to change the habbits we have for years...

One step can be simple : eat the right vegetable or fruit at the right time...
But as most of us don’t grow anymore vegies, we have forgotten when it is the right season to eat that kind of vegetables or this type of fruits…
And it is not just politically correct, it is also healthy (fresh vitamins) and wise (less expensive if you buy them when they're naturally mature.... cheaper...) to eat well and good (better taste)...
To help you through and to discover some of our regional products, I have done this calendar for the autumn production… October, November and December...

Some veggies can be kept through the year, if well preserved : beets, carrots, celery, potatoes and onions...
We often forget that exotic fruits are also related to the seasons.
Autumn is also the season to collect and enjoy fresh nuts (chestnuts,wallnuts...).

Enjoy the recipes and the local production clicking on links.



Vegetables
Artichokes, Beans, Beets, Horseradish, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflowers, Celery, Chicory, Cucumbers, Fennel, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Radish, Romanesco cauliflower, Roquette Salad, Spinach, , Turnips, Zucchini

Fruits
Apples, Dates, Figs, Grapes, Lemons, Oranges, Pears, Persimmons, Quinces
Almonds, Chestnuts, Hazelnuts, Walnuts
Exotics Pineapples

NOVEMBER

Vegetables
Beets, Broccoli, Carrots, Cabbage, Celery, Chicory, Fennel, Jerusalem artichokes, Leeks, Lentils, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Salad, Salsify, Spinach, Turnips Fruits
Apples, Grapes, Kiwis, Mandarins, Oranges, Pears
Chestnuts, Dates, Walnuts



Vegetables
Avocados, Beets, Horseradishes, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Salsify, Turnips

Fruits
Apples, Clementines, Mandarins, Oranges, Pears
Almonds, Dates, Hazelnuts, Walnuts
Exotics Bananas, Guavas, Lychees, Mangoes, Pineapples

Read it in French : Calendrier des fruits et légumes à consommer en saison d'automne

You love questions! With no easy answers… And you’ve been to Roscoff ? Do you know why there is an expressway that runs from Roscoff, a small village of a bit more than 3000 habitants to Morlaix?

1 – This highway has been constructed because ferrys to England or Ireland leave from Roscoff ?
2 - Or because Johnny Halliday the famous French singer is behind the Anglo-French friendship!
3 - Or is it due to a love story between a Queen of Scotland and a French king?
4 - Or rather a history of shipowners, privateers and pirates!

1 – This highway has been constructed because ferrys to England or Ireland leave from Roscoff ?

If you are regular customer of the ferry, you have already taken the fast lane along the Bay of Morlaix. Ok, Roscoff is the port to Plymouth and Cork. But is it the only reason why there is this highway ? Why Roscoff rather than another port on the coast of Brittany?



… Well for economic reasons ... due to climatic reasons ... : The whole area around Roscoff has two major advantages: - A very regular climate with a low difference between the highest temperatures and the lowest due to the Gulf Stream (warm water current that goes in front of Roscoff).
- And a really good land for agriculture.
Yes, and then ... it creates unique conditions for an exceptional agriculture.

We harvest almost uninterrupted even in winter ... Agricultural products are shipped from Roscoff to Paris, Brest, in the ports of Holland and England, and particularly on the English coast of Cornwal l: in 187,5 7 803 055 tons of potatoes were sent, 2 million kg of artichokes ... the pier of the port is full of carts that provide vegetables for vessels. (Joanne Guide 1884)

It is not surprising that this stretch of coastline is known as the Golden Belt (ceinture dorée). Vegetables grow quicker than the rest of the Bay (3 weeks in advance) and the mildness of the weather allows a rapid succession of crops.More than 70% of French couliflower and artichokes are produced here.

If you take a walk on the coastal paths, you will see the agricultural wealth. Every parcel is cultivated.

And this production has to be sold. As the old port is depending on tides that empties it and impede commercial traffic, Roscoff had to find another way to sell its vegies.

The city needed a deep water port and the energy of a man, Alexis Gourvennec who, thanks to the capital of local farmers (and the help of the State that wanted to help economically this part of Brittany), created a ferry line to England to sell vegetables (1972). And then to develop tourism.... This is how the Brittany Ferries began cross-links.



2 - Or because Johnny Halliday the famous French singer is behind the Anglo-French friendship!

This connection with England is not new, and is not due to the fame of Johnny, the singer.
It is much more trivial…

Roscoff onions had already created the path. Yes, in 1828, one of the first Johnnie exported onions to England. They were called Johnnies because at the time they took with them their young children. And everybody knows (specially the British !!!) that all the Bretons sons then were called Yann (Jean in French).You nicknamed the youngs Johnnie…

Those Johnnies and fathers used to leave mid July, for 5 to 9 months with their bicycles covered of onions and were selling them across the sea. More than 1200 Johnnies made the crossing before the 2nd World War.
This breed of onion has been brought from Portugal by a monk (mid XVIth century) and was gradually introduced in the region. Indeed, it was a good product for the sailors fighting against scurvy (a disease caused by a lack of vitamins). Easy to preserve, the onion was useful for vessels, it could be taken on board and kept delaying the effects of the disease on the crews. Trade stopped after the war. A small museum in Roscoff commemorates this episode.

3 - Or is it due to a love story between a Queen of Scotland and a French king?

The connections with England existed long before this onion story ... Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland ... You know her… The legend said she resided here.
The future wife of François II landed at Roscoff in 1548 to join the Court of France, where she had to continue her education before marrying the king 10 years later.

But it is a legend, because the houses where she lived did not exist at the time! The chapel of Saint Ninien or rather what remains of it




(close to the watchtower, a remnant of the old city walls) commemorates the Scottish episode.

4 – Or is it rather due to an history of shipowners, privateers and pirates!




The relations with the British have not always been as peaceful as they are today. In the Middle Ages and beyond, Roscoff was repeatedly attacked and destroyed by the English troops. The honor of both side is safe because the reverse is also true.

It is a hole for buccaneers and an old nest for privateers, the Breton poet Tristan Corbière described it in the 19th century.
It is also a port that trade with Flanders, Spain or Portugal (linen, cloth, salt ...). During the French Revolution period it became a place for smuggling brandy, tea and gin with English ... The Wines and Beers are the worthy successors of that time!

This wealth is still encarved in the walls of the houses : sculptures still decorate the granite.



Read it in French : Roscoff : porte vers l'Angleterre et l'Irlande

If you have some time after your visit of La Roche aux Fées you should try a bend to taste a really nice bread. On the way back to Essé, you’ll see a sign for le Theil (D99). Follow it till you see a sign for Fagots et Froment ( Le Rozay 35150 Essé - 02 99 47 04 26). That’s the name of the farm where you can buy bread.



The farm is a biological farm. Arriving on the parking place, you’ll see the bundle of sticks used to warm the oven.



Inside, you’ll see big baskets full of bread and you’ll hear the oven crackling.

The farm has an old tradition of making bread. Till some years ago, in Brittany every farm has had its own oven and was doing its own bread. In this farm, the children are just continuing tradition and making bread not only for the farm but to sell it on markets, in shops…

Bundle of sticks are outside the farm waiting to be burnt. Do you know the story of the sticks in Brittany ? It has a connection with the breton countryside and specially the hedges of trees. Well, to understand the strange look of the trees, you have to know a bit of the peasant history. The peasant when he rented the farm, could not use the trees. He was just allowed to cut the branches and that makes the strange look of the hedges. But after years, the trees then were no good for woodwork.



Bread is done with bio flour, produced on the farm. The farmers are trying to cultivate old types of wheat that were cultivated for centuries. They do that because scientists have noticed that the « old » wheat has an easily digestible gluten.
Most of the wheat is produced in the farm, it is milled in the farm, the bread dough is hand knead and then cooked in the oven, with wood from the surroundings… Culture to cooking, most of the bread is produced in one place : you want sustainable development. Here you are !!!



Well the only trouble is that they are one kilo stick… well it is not a real problem because it is a really nice bread and not expensive ( 4 € for one kilo, that makes the baguette at 80cts). You can choose a white flour bread or a wholemeal flour one.
It is open every day except sundays, from 10 am to 6 pm and saturdays from 10 to 12. You can find them in several markets from Nantes to Saint Malo. Have a look at their website to discover the closest selling point .

You can also buy bio meat produced by the son. Boxes from 6 to 12 kilos at 12 € for the beef and 14 for the veal. The 6 kilo boxes are small you can easily fit them in your freezer.

Leaving the place, if you’re driving direction le Theil, stop at the chapel Notre Dame de Beauvais (leaving the village, direction Sainte Colombe).



Notre Dame de Beauvais or Notre Dame de la Charité has a nice architecture and is full of commemorative plaques, nice stained-glass windows. It used to be a place of pilgrimage. On the porch an epitaph with 100 days of indulgence



shows that the chapel was a place for remission of punishment. Facing the porch, a calvary is carved with a Virgin (XVth century).




You can finish your day jumping back to neolitic time : direction Sainte Colombe. At "Le Haut Bois" hamlet, look for the menhir de Rumfort. The fairies let it fall when they were building la Roche aux Fées.

Read it in French : Visite au pays de la Roche aux Fées (suite) : déguster du pain paysan bio en Bretagne

5 a day they say…

Ok, but when tomatoes have no taste, when peaches are unripe and when strawberries are time bombs, what should we eat ?
Well, choose the breton strawberries… the one produced at Plougastel, called gariguettes. They are slim, very long and really tasty…



Plougastel has a long reputation as a land of strawberries. Again, it is due to a mild climate ... as often for the cultivation of vegetables in Britanny. Sea regulates the temperature (it is never really hot and it does not freeze). The season lasts from April to November.

The strawberry fields are located in the countryside of Plougastel Daoulas. During the last century, strawberries were protected by small stone walls. Today the plants are hidden in tunnels or in greenhouses.

Let’s go back to the 19th century. Strawberries are grown, replacing the cultivation of flax which was then the wealth of Brittany. Flax was used to make canvas (called daoulas) that were exported around the world. But the international competition (American and British) is too strong, breton producers have to evolve. They began to grow strawberries on the peninsula to replace the flax.

At that time, 25% of the French production was breton. And soon they tried to exporte their fruits to... England. Or Paris when the railway connects Brest to the French capital in 1865.

Since then, the strawberry culture oscillates between periods of plenty and bad times....Competition is fierce on the large international market of strawberries.

Have you ever eaten a gariguette. It is not the cheapest one but it is full of smells and extremely tasty. They are picked by hand, when they are ripe enough and delicately layed down on trays. No need to add sugar, as it is harvested at maturity.

And then if you are interested in sustainable development, they don’t come from far, far away…

If you buy organic strawberries, have you noticed the one with strange shapes: these are flowers that have not been properly gathered… they grow "distorted" ...



Want to know more about the history of the strawberries… In Europe and in our countries, the wild strawberry has been around forever (at least during the Roman times). Amédée François Frezier (Frezier in French even if it is not spelled the same, means strawberry plant), a French explorer, brought back from South America a variety of strawberries that are the ancestors of those of Plougastel.

Visit a strawberry farm at Plougastel. You'll learn much more!

Then, what do you think ? Are the strawberry a Breton tradition? A gastronomic heritage? A speciality of Brittany? Please vote !



Read it in French : Les fraises de Plougastel : tourisme ou patrimoine gastronomique

You may have come to France, or even Brittany to enjoy music festivals? Yes, Small Britain is the best place for live music... the region where there is the more important number of music festivals in France. The biggest, les vieilles charrues, gathers more than 200 000 visitors … and it's money worth... Famous international bands (old and young ones) and French singers will sing for you for a nice price !!!
And maybe, if you went to listen live music in Breton festivals, you've noticed that your glass was refundable! Using and using it again and again !



Festivals lovers know or imagine the quantity of plastic cups used on an outdoor demonstration ... Thousands of plastic glasses are used on those week ends... and sometimes (at best) they end up in a bin ? Or (at worst) on the floor...

And we have a local figure who is fed up of this mess of plastic and is looking for a solution... to fight this over-consumption of oil... Bruno, the boss of a pub (le sablier) in Rennes.

He began to work (voluntarily) with a supplier of glasses in the South ... of France. Who had a product made in Spain with the C E symbol (made in China not to be confused with our symbol European CE! It is almost the same... just the gap between the letters is wider!) ...
But it is a nonsense: to sell a « green » product that is not produced locally, that needs to parcourir miles to be washed and again ...... No, no, really, green washing will not go on with him!
He needs a more logical solution, a local one, a real green cup... produced here with recyclable plastic... And he did it !

The adventure began some months ago with a plastic food industry, Française des Plastiques, (located in Louvigné de Bais a few miles from Rennes), that makes the precious « container » with .... ITS waste, ITS defective products...The raw material is there, the cup Esprit planète is born ... The glass is recyclable and manufactured here. ... It is also washed in Brittany ... and the festivals love it ( Bobital, Reggae Summer Fest...).

And for good reason ... it has lots of advantages:
It can be rented or purchased by the event organizers. It can be used many times up to a 100th. You can customize it.



The principle: a deposit of 1 euro, you get a cup documented and reusable. For hot or cold drinks. Washable again and again.
The only problem : the tab. Because of it the glass is not 100% recyclable but 30 %. The tab does not hold when it is a 100%. But Bruno is looking for a solution... And he will find one !
Cheers



Read it in French : Festival du gobelet réutilisable en Bretagne : esprit planete détrone le verre en plastique à usage unique