Red Currants
The great thing about leaving France for another European country is you don’t have to abandon the food right away. Here’s a list of what I couldn’t leave without:
Tomme Noire des Pyrenées
One of my favorite cheeses. So expensive in the States; so cheap in France. I first had it as a summer exchange student in Brest. It’s dimpled, and soft for a firm cheese, and somewhat sweet and creamy. I could eat a whole wedge on a whole baguette.
Petit Ecolier Cookies
These are available in the States, but I didn’t want to ride the train without them. If you weren’t raised on these, go out and buy them right now. A Petit Beurre cookie with an equal amount of chocolate stamped onto it. Confection perfection.
Red Currants
I can’t get over the fruit in France. It’s made me quite the snob actually. If a fruit isn’t sweet and juicy and ripe at the store, I don’t want to know from it. The one fruit that is so common in France and that I can never find at home is currants–golden, red, and black. They are tart, and snap in your mouth like salmon roe. I forgot to put these in the fridge, and I almost cried when I saw how they’d deteriorated overnight. At least I had one branch in the hotel room before I left!
