Have you ever read Asterix and Obelix ? If you did, you surely know the menhirs Obelix is walking around with. Well, the dolmen of La Roche aux Fées was not done by Obelix but thanks to breton fairies…



The dolmen is at about 20 km east from Rennes, under old oaks in the country of the village Essé. Once you reach Essé just follow the signs to the megalith. It is open all year long and free.
The dolmen is one of the most impressive in France : 20 meters long , 4 meters wide and you can stand inside, it was build with about 40 stones, some of them weighing more than 40 tons… Yes,the people at that time were quite strong…



A dolmen is a breton word that means table of stones, it is a chamber made with upright stones and covered with large flat capstones for the roof.…. Quite simple no… This dolmen has a long corridor, a portico nicely cut



and at the end a room. Until the 50’s the megalithic monuments were seen as building done by the Celts (they arrived in Brittany in 600 BC) but we know now thanks to the Americans that discovered the Carbon-14 that it is much older, for this one around 3500 BC.
It did not look like that during the neolitic time, because it was probably recovered by a tumulus (mound of earth and little stones). Specialists still don’t know if it was a temple or a grave (dictionnaire du patrimoine breton d’Alain Croix).
Neolitic people were really strong when you know that the stones weight more than 40 tons and that they come from an area that is 4 kms away. (foret du Theil)
Neolitic time (in Brittany from -3500 to-1800 BC) correspond to the beginning of agriculture and breeding. Thanks to the domestication of plants, a new type of social organisation appears with a specialization of men and work. They begin to build those monuments. But to build them they need specialized workers : “ geologists ” that choosed the type of stones, “ architects ” that think and build the construction and "drivers" to transport the stones – we guess that they were using woodlogs to rool the stones - , and "astronomists" that decide in which direction the corridor will be.




The building is orientated Northwest-South South East but it is not fate. No, it is a solstice alignment. You should go there on a 21 december and you’ll see the sunrays penetrating the building just in its center. You said they were wearing beast skins…
But may be we’re wrong and the fairies did it. That explains its name (Roche aux Fées = fairies rock) , the legend says that the fairies carried the stones from Le Theil. They let some fall around (at Retiers la Pierre de Richebourg or at Janzé la Pierre des Fées). I ll tell you the legend another day…

To sum up, you have to visit the dolmen for three reasons :
- to quench your curiosity
- to do the same thing that neolitic men were doing on december 21st
- to be sure of your lover. Don’t trust meetic, and test your love at la Roche aux Fées (also called lovers’oracle). Take your love on a full moonnight. Count the stones. If you find the same number, go on and marry him or her. If you don’t… recount them…
Last thing : take care of the building. I want my grand,grand grandgrand children to see it...
Leaving the place you can taste nice local products, see you on the next post

Read it in French : Visite au pays de la Roche aux fées (Ille et Vilaine, 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

1 –The biggest menhir in Brittany weights 30 metric tons ?
It weights much more. Menhir is a breton word : men means stone and hir means long. If you know the French Obélix, it is the stone he is carrying around. The biggest in Brittany lies in Locmariaquer (Morbihan) it used to be 21 meters (more than 65 ft) long but it is broken and lays down on the floor. It weights more than 300 metric tons.




2 – A dolmen is a circle of different stones ?
You’re wrong. A dolmen is a « stonetable » in breton language, that means upright stones that are carrying a roofstone. Dolmen are really often without roof and have misceallanous architectures : the passageway is short to long, it has one to many chambers that are round, rectangular… La Roche aux Fées (Essé, Ille et Vilaine) is a nice one. During the neolitic time, it was probably covered by earth and stones forming a barrow.



3- And what is a cromlech or a cairn ?
A cromlech is a circle of standing stones.
A cairn is a dolmen,( the stonetable I was talking about earlier), but covered by a barrow. It is hidden by an earthen mound and it looks like a small mountain. Barnenez and Gavrinis are two famous breton exemples. Here you can see the tumulus (barrow) of Dissignac close to Saint Nazaire, (Loire Atlantique).



All these buildings have been erected at several periods, some of the stones were carved with symbols. They probably have had different goals, but we don’t know for what. Some were graves, may be some others were temples but we can only guess, the stones could have religious functions, astronomical functions,... We also don’t know why our megalith builders destroyed them (menhir brisé de Locmariaquer). When Christianity begins to appear in Brittany, the stones are already used for pagan rituals, and the Church doesn’t like it. They try to christanize it and carved christian cross or others christian symbols on it.



4 – Were the Egyptian pyramides already built when our ancestors were carrying their menhirs.
Well, some of the breton buildings are much older. We know it surely since the 50’s when carbon 14 was found. And we finally discover that they are really old. The neolithic men built the megalitic buildings between – 5000 and – 2000 BC. Our Egyptian friends began their pyramids around - 3000 when our Bretons are megalith specialists. The megalith time lasted 3000 years. And the buildings done are quite different : short corridors, long corridors, square, circular chambers…



5 - Menhirs , dolmens and other megalithic buildings were built by
- a Celts
- b Druids

a – During the XVIIIth century when the “scientists” began to look at those strange constructions, they thought that the Celts built them. We know now thanks to Carbon 14 that they are much older as Celts arrived in Brittany around 500 BC.
b – Caesar wrote about the druids in their stonetemples but they just used it and did not built it.


6 – In Brittany we say that Pantagruel, and his friends let menhirs everywhere ?

May be you don’t know who is Pantagruel. he is a hero of a book from Rabelais, a French writer from the XVI th century. He is part of the French folklore. Pantagruel, a jovial fellow, is a giant with an enormous appetite, and he is good-humoured.
He is the one who left a tooth in Saint Suliac (menhir de Saint Suliac, Ille et Vilaine). He took a gravelout of his shoe and let it fall in Fort Lalatte,another one in Cap Frehel ...


7 – Others say that the fairies did it !!!
They actually did the dolmen called la Roche aux Fées, that explains its name fairyrock. Look at the work they’ve done with the stones !!!



We don’t have any written signs for this civilization and archeologists guess every time they discover something new. They think now that the settled agricultural communities, that erected the buildings, were quite organized. They probably had a leader and asked the other communities around to help them to built the monument. So the monument was a common work : it needed the help of geologists (stones were not choosen at random and were often extracted far from the place where they wanted to build the monument), engineers for the architecture, astronomists to position the building…they did not need mason as the building are done without mortar.
Some experiences have been done to try to carry the stones : in 1979 at Stonehenge, about hundred men succeded in towing a 32 metric tons stone, supported by logs and using vegetal ropes.
To extract the stones, they probably were introducing small pieces of wood in the crevices of the blocks, and swollen with water, it did fissure the block. What a job!!!


8 – The megalithic architecture was born in Brittany ?
No, it was not but the alignments of Carnac are a famous place because of his high number of stones ( about 3000 and specialists guess that they were much more, may be 10 000). You can see megaliths in many other places in the world, close to us in Corsica, in Sardinia, Malta, Majorca… but also in Asia or South America.


9 – There are just 5 to 10% menhirs left in Brittany ?
Yes, that’s right. During the XIXth century, the “learned society” wanted to study the past and were carrying out excavations. These excavations were destructives because they were just dismantling the sites and razed it after. And also for many centuries, people used the stones to build their houses, later to do the roads. They did not care of culture and inheritage at that time.


10 – Why don’t we find bones under breton stones ?

Well, because the dogs came first !!! Some of them were burial chambers and you find no bones because the soil in Brittany is acid and « eat » the bones. Flints, pottery, pearls,arrows…were found in the megalithic constructions.


11 – What were those stones used for ?
We can only guess, they must have had a religious purpose. Standing stones may be calendars, markers of territory … Dolmens or cairns were burials sites…

Read it in French : Menhirs, dolmens, cromlechs et autres cairns en Bretagne : testez vos connaissances,

Your walk will start at Rohan, a small village in Morbihan, located between Pontivy, Loudéac and Ploërmel and along the canal that connects Nantes to Brest.



Park along the canal and cross the bridge ; The path is on the other side of the canal. You’ll see a chapel, chapelle de Bonne Encontre, which is on the opposite of your walk. The chapel was part of the Castle of Rohan. There is nothing left except the building erected in 1510 as you can read it on its walls. You can’t visit it as it is being restored.



Here you are ready for a 30 to 45 minutes walk to reach a good breton speciality. Your first lock is the number 52 Rohan. After 10 minutes you will cross a sign indicating a B&B called Manoir de Quengo. This B&B is not far, but you have to leave the towpath and go up for about 3 minutes. But keep walking.
The next lock is Quengo, go on till you find the lock of Timadeuc. There you will see a cross on a small road to the memory of Gwénaël, a father deported to the concentration camp Buchenwald.



Leave the towpath, go up the alley and you ‘ll see a big wall : it is the beginning of the estate of Timadeuc. If it smells like cows, you’re at the right place !!! Timadeuc is quite big, walk along the wall till you find the entrance.



The abbey of Timadeuc was built in 1841, on the place where the manor of the Lords of Timadeuc used to be. The actual building has been rebuilt many times ; the monks adhered to the benedictine rule (work and prayers). You cannot visit the abbey as a tourist but you can stay and share the monks’ life as a believer.

And for cheese? you’ll find it in the nice shop at the entrance. It is full of miscellaneous items : books, novels, travelguides, CD and other home made goods from other abbeys. Also, soap, essential oils, jams, candies and sweets and of course the goal of your walk.




The monks breed the cows and with their milk they produce the cheese. They also grow apple trees for the crystallised fruits.They make two types of cheese : the cheese of Timadeuc (1,7kg for about 20 euros). They don’t sell small ones but you can freeze some of it and it is still as good as it used to be when you take it out of the freezer. It tastes like the french Port salut or the Chaussee aux Moines but is much better.
The second cheese is the Timanoix. Its rind is brown and as its name indicates it – noix in french means walnut - it has a walnut taste thanks to a liqueur used to complete the maturing process.
And last but not least are the crystallised fruits (3,15 euros for 250g). They are made with apple jelly and natural flavours. It has a delicate taste compared to others crystallised fruits made out with artificial flavours.

After your snack, go back the way you came in.

Read it in French : Balade au pays du fromage et des pates de fruits des moines de l'abbaye de Timadeuc

Ready for a hike … As I used to work as a guide for walkers and cyclists ... I have some tips and advices to tell you.

1 - A map, it is always better to have one, even when you think you know the place … Cut paths or heavy rain that causes a forced retreat (I know ... I survived an amazing rain with a group in Jersey …)... It is always better to be abble to find a place to hide... Just in case ...

2 - Two is better as one... You never know ... A little twist (again, I had that problem once) ... and you're so happy not to be alone... with your bad foot !

3 - A minimum of "fast food" ... Water and something to eat... depending on the walk ... Classic cereal bars (I'm not a fan), dried fruit, a bag of cookies or chocolate ... (be careful, in summer, it melts ...). If it's a day's hike, think picnic with carbohydrates (bread) and protein (meat, fish, cheese ...), some fruits ...

4 - The minimum for your health ... dressings against blisters ... disinfectant and an advise that may be unuseful in the nowadays mobile phone's world... walk with an onion in your bag (for a "natural" home remedy...)... ... My aunt, a former scout, was in charge of several young girls .... They were singing while hiking .... and she (my aunt) did swallow a wasp or a bee that stings her throat ... Panic on board ... A farmer working in the field,gave him an onion to chew slowly ...... The swelling has deflated ... An old treatment that helped then... She still lives ...

5 - Clothing. Light clothes for summer, warm clothing for winter and the whole year a raincoat. Summer cap or winter cap ... Sunglasses ...

6 – Bike tour ... The minimum... pump, patches and tools or even the bomb. An elmet too...

7 - Walking tour : good shoes ... (waterproof if possible), and already used ...

8 - Worrying about the weather : it's better ... and avoid the coastal paths and cliffs on windy days ...

9 - Telling someone what you do ... It's easier if we are looking for and you've been eaten by a wolf ... Include in your mobile phone under the name ICE (in case of emergency) the person you would like to call if necessary).

10 - Have fun ... Touring is great... Enjoy the Tro Breizh , our paths Compostela ...

Read this article in French : Randonner à pied ou à vélo : les 10 conseils

Once you ‘ve crossed the bridge, walk up the street and soon you are in front of the priory looking like some centuries ago...




The first abbey Saint Magloire was erected in 850. Nominoë, first King of Brittany gave land and money to the monks to settle the monastery. The first one was in wood but it didn’t last long…



The church is dedicated to Saint Magloire, an holy Breton from across the Channel who arrived in Brittany at the end of the 6C. Magloire was the bishop of Dol, one of the nine breton bishopric, he retired in Sark (Channel island). The abbey was founded once the relics of Saint Magloire were brought back in Brittany. This time the church was built in stone but it did not resist to the Norman attacks. The monks left the place for Paris and came back much later during the 11C.

The nowadays church is a mixture of buildings of different times. It has stones from the 11C, taken from Corseul, a city some kilometers away. Corseul was one of the Roman capital, 5 to 8000 inhabitants were living there. After the Roman, the old capital became less important or even an ordinary small town. As it was already expensive to build in stone… the old Roman city became a stone quarry…



The foundations are from the 12C and the 13C – the front of the church is romanesque and each century will add its piece to the building.

The abbey is a rectangle and during the 14C and the 15C they added a chapel where the important families of Dinan were buried. It has been restored during the 19C and works still go on.



Inside the church the chapel shelters the graves of the Lords of Dinan, the family Beaumanoir. The chapels were at that time the possession of famous families and they were buried there (14C and 15C recumbent statues).



The 13C stoup with carved heads was used to bathe the young children during their baptism.



Next to the church, a 15C doorway



leads you to the closter (17C)



with its square pillars.



It was used as a passage to go from one place to another in the priory and in its center there is a nice garden…

North you’ll see one of the two best kept refectories of Brittany.



The second is at Paimpol (monastery of Beauport). This 13C building is gothic, with its large stainedglass windows showing the Rance estuary. It is the oldest building of the priory and it has been restored between 1987 and 1991. The 17C dormitory houses are on the first floor.



During the 18C, the King Louis XV decided to close the abbey. The French Revolution sold it to a family who lived there for 30 years. It then became a brewery, a canvas manufacture… and a classroom for young girls. As it was in ruins, the council of Léhon wanted to restore it to use it as the parish church.
At the end of the 19C, the works began. Nowadays the priory belongs to the Council and is used for religious purpose. In the buildings of the priory, a museum shows you the life of the monastery.



The priory of Léhon was a Benedictine monastery. The monastic life of the order was a mixture of work (agriculture, writing...) and prayers. The first Benedictine covent was founded by St. Benedict of Nursia in Italy (529). He explained the Rules of his future Order in a small book of 73 chapters. The Benedictine Order became very popular in Europe quite quickly.

Each priory is autonomous. The abbot rules his church following the Benedictine rules, he has total authority over the monks and represents the Christ in the community. Monks have a shaved head and wear the scapular (long piece of canvas).

The place is free and open all year long. The buildings have signs in English explaining the story of the priory. To visit the museum, you have to ask for the timetable at the tourist office.



Read it in French : Balade à l'abbaye de Léhon dans une petite cité de caractère des Côtes d'Armor (Bretagne)

Or how to introduce medieval life to your children and teenagers.

- Do you know what Middle Ages are ?
- Of course ! It is a period that lasted about 10 centuries : from 476 (Fall of the Western Roman Empire) to 1453 (Fall of Constantinople capital of the Byzantine Empire).
- And archaeology ?
- It’s a place (prehistoric or historic) that has been investigated… And where do you go with that ???
- In Brittany (France), in Melrand, you can visit an archaeoligical site that used to be a medieval village…



Melrand is divided into two parts : one where the historical remains are



And the other where the village has been reconstructed.

Signs as well as english guides (only summer time) help you through the site.



Lann Gouh (that is its breton name) has had a short “life”. During the Middle Ages the population of Europe increases and people are looking for new land to settle. Lots of villages, like this one, have been created in lands that were not really attractive (they were either land with poor soil or full of stones, forests or marshy land…). The only advantage of those lands was that the landlord was not too greedy then…

This place was deserted after the Black Death (1347) (one inhabitant out of three died) and the few survivors tried to gather and looked for more pleasant places… easier to exploit that are the “first“ villages in the valley…. Back to the start…

Only two houses have been excavated among the 17 (I think it is 17) found. Other researchs have been done in other villages in Brittany and thanks to those excavations, we can guess and understand better what the Medieval life in the countryside was.

The village was on a hill, surrounded by a fence : around the square were low-roofed dwellings. You can enter in the houses… and imagine…



Inside men and animals were living together (animals were the heating then), doors were low so that the warmth will not get out, and the ground was on a slope (the animal’s excrements will not run down in the living !!!). The fire was in the middle of the house… and smoke had no way out…

As the soil are acid in Brittany, you don’t find lots of useful objects… But we know that our ancestors used to eat in wood plates.

You’ll see the reconstruction of a baker’s oven and of a mantrap (wolfs were living in Brittany then).



You’ll also meet nice local breeds :
cows, sheep or goats…




Melrand is not an incredible place, it is just a medieval site that shows the modest life of countrymen. In february, it is a bit strange as nature is still asleep and as we were alone on the place. The botanic garden (100 plants of the Middle Ages) is not and is waiting for the spring to recover. It is a nice visit for a family holyday…

It is open from February to November. Winter time from 1.30 pm and from april at 10 am. 4 Euros for those who are more than 6 and 5 euros for adults.

You can drive around on the Blavet valley (you feel you’re on the mountains, it goes up and down, it ‘s incredible) and the road is really nice. You can also visit the Venus de Quinipily or Poul Fétan.



Read in in French : Site archéologique en Bretagne : le village de l'an Mil à Melrand (Morbihan)

My regular readers may have noticed that my last posts have no picture ...
And yes that's the mystery of the computer system, my PC has some shortcomings, a failure ... A screen full of colored stripes... Horror, all my photos are in, in my computer (and many other things too). How to fix my computer? Calls here and there, tips but no solutions that work for now ... I dare not even imagine if I must take it to repair ....
So, I use my little one.... And I make notes without pictures!

For these two activities watch the weather forecast and be a little prepared in advance, waiting for the winter and rain in Small Britain.
You need some material ... straight branches, rather thick (1.5 cm diameter) and nuts you did harvest in September.

For the rest, wait for a good winter weather forecast and a nice rainy weekend ... Wait for THE sunday until you hear "what we do, it's raining ..." .

So what do we start with : recipe or branches?

Free activity for kids with branches of hazel : dwarfs and other colored snowmen

This DIY needs :
Secateurs
A long branch of hazel
A knife without tooth
Markers
Cotton

Cut your branch into pieces. Cut the heads and hats. Paint and draw faces.
You can also make another craft such as a family, a small dwarf with a beard, a dress ...


Hazel can also be used to make a bow, it is flexible ... but I do not know yet how to make the arrows ...



In Germany for the Christmas period, very different cakes, biscuits and shortbread cookies are made. It is a recipe from my girlfriend living in Freiburg.

This recipe has a nice taste of chocolate and are similar to gingerbread cakes topped with chocolate... The good ones for this Christmas period.



Ingredients
60 grams of dark chocolate
60 g butter
3 eggs
80 g sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
60 g flour
60g hazelnuts coarsely crushed

For the frosting
80 g chocolate
Icing sugar to sprinkle
Baking time : 30 minutes
Preheat oven to 180 ° (6).
Coarsely grind nuts.
Melt butter and chocolate.
Meanwhile, mix sugar and eggs. Add flour, cinnamon and nuts. Then the chocolate-butter mixture. Mix well.
Cover your dish (square or rectangle) of a baking sheet.
Pour your dough and spread on a regular basis (thin layer). Bake for 30 minutes.
Once baked, melt chocolate and pour over the square cake and spread. Sprinkle with icing sugar. Wait to cool and cut into small pieces.
Read this article in French : Activités pour les jours de pluie

You’re visiting Rennes during this Christmas period ??? Then walk around and stay till the end of the day, when night is «on» and enjoy this new show at Place de la Mairie (right downtown) when it is dark.

The show is free and takes place every half an hour from 6 pm to 9 pm.The company SpectaculaireS has been entertaining the Rennais for the last three years and still do… The show mixes light, buildings and music…It is nice for both kids and adults…

And if you’re still around for Happy New Year, spend your last half an hour of 2008 in front of the Mairie de Rennes… You’ll see peculiar fireworks in front of the historical building of the town hall.

Happy New Year.

Read it in French : Spectacles et animations gratuites à Rennes pendant les vacances de Noel

Villecartier Forest, not far from Fougères is quite important over 1000 hectares of oaks... and other trees... A good escape from everyday life...

Major historical episodes took place there... No French Robin Hood did live here but it was a refuge when Normans did invade Brittany... or during the French Revolution when it was not good to believe in God.... and better to hide...
It was also the place where shoemakers used to live and work.. until the early 20th C ...



This forest is now a place of leisure and recreational activities for families ... It is a really nice on sunny Sundays of winter... Few people and lot of things to do: hiking with kids, uncles, aunts and grandparents, biking tours for cyclists, nice way to exercise with your dog... In short, everybody will found its pleasure...

Well-marked trails invite you to explore the landscape, the nature and its heritage. You can also imagine you're an adventurer and you wander in the forest ... and you'll face chaos of rocks, remarkable trees ...
Playgrounds for children will finish the walk before getting back to the carpark.



If you like to exercise... do the CRAPA (sports course ?) in the forest which is more physical... And that's free ...

The crêperie is also open on Sundays in winter ... to warm up after so many activities ...

Summer and weekends (April to September), the forest turns into a recreational park with climbing activities.



In the middle of the forest, the small port on the pond Villecartier (3 hectares), is the departure of cruises : electric models ( 2 to 4 people) will drive you around for about twenty minutes ... During yout trip, you'll admire replicas of wonders of Brittany.



The port is open daily in July and August. Only on weekends and public holidays in April, May, June and September.

The other leisure is connected with trees... in Récré nature, au parc des Grands chênes ...



Tree climbers will be welcomed from 2 years old to …. There are two different possibilities : the park designed for children (OK from 5 years old). The other one is for adults or for kids aged 10 Be careful, the child must be 1.40 meters at least...
The opening of the tree climbing park is daily in summer: in July and August. And on weekends and public holidays in April, May, June and September.
Remember to take the proper clothes and the rest of the equipment is provided. Spend the entire day … and enjoy Mother Nature !

Read this article in French : Parc loisirs en forêt de Villecartier en Bretagne

Buckwheat is not what it’s name suggests : it’s not wheat neither a cereal or a grain. It is a Polygonaceae, a sister of rheum, docks or sorrels.

In French and even in Breton, its name is blé noir (black wheat, the flour is dark) and it is used to make the famous galettes de blé noir (sarrasin).

Archeologists found it in Brittany in prehistorical pollen. But it is a common plant in Britain since the 15 th C, probably because it was reintroduced at that time in the region. And soon it became the basis of the food of the breton farmers.

Because it was so easy to grow it in Brittany : first of all, buckwheat is a crop that loves acidic or low fertility soils, it needs lots of water too. And Brittany was the place… we have “bad” soils and lots of rain.



As it grows quickly, farmers used to cultivate it beetween the winter crop and the summer one. It was also used to cover the fields and then as fertilizer.
Farmers could use hand mills to obtain flour, they did not have to use the mill which one must pay for!!!
During the 19th C, Brittany was producing 50% of the French buckwheat.

At the end of the 19th C, buckwheat was abandoned for new cereals and potatoes. And its cultivation began to decrease. During the 80's, 90's, crêperies had to import the flour from Russia or China as it was no more cultivated in France. And with the green movement, hardy plants have a new life : farmers in Center Brittany began to produce it again. Now you find organic buckwheat produced here, in the region.

Today buckwheat has other nice advantages : gluten free, it is also a good provider of vitamins, proteins, minerals such as iron… it is nice for food allergy.

Beer is also done with buckwheat in Brittany.



And all over the world, buckwheat has its specialities. Specially in its original region South East Asia : in Japan, people eat it as pasta. Or the grains are used to make special pillows to relax…

Read it in French : Blé noir ou sarrasin en bretagne : une farine miracle