SALT OF THE EARTH

Sel de la terre

Selling between ten and fifteen euros for 100 grams or so, this gourmet salt flavored with bits of black truffles is a bit steep--but because only a pinch will do it's an interesting way to dress up scrambled eggs. Fleur de sel is the finest upper layer of salt crystals caused by the evaporation of sea water. It's  delicately hand-harvested with a special rake from coastal basins.

Vocabulary

les salines or les marais salants:  salerns or series of shallow sea pools where salt is collected

une truffe:  a highly prized black mushroom or truffle; the end of a dog's nose

truffer:  to be garnished with truffles (cooking)

être truffé(e):  to be stuffed with (slang)

©2013 P.B. Lecron

A PASTEURIZED SURPRISE

For years ex-pats in France have substituted the French cream cheese St. Moret in American recipes calling for Philadelphia cream cheese. We've noticed that the Pennsylvania city's namesake cheese, however, has become available in most French chain supermarkets this past year and is being advertised nationally. Coinciding with this widespread Yankee intrusion on the French industrial cheese market has been an upgraded version of the pasteurized St. Moret cream cheese, moulé à la crème and salted with the gourmet fleur de sel. We're emballés, even if for an industrial cheese.

Vocabulary

moulé:  molded

fleur de sel:  "flower of salt;" a high-quality French sea salt hand-harvested from the surface of shallow pools of seawater along the coast of France, especially in the Brittany region

emballer:  to wrap up or to envelop; to be enthusiastic about something,  familiar

un emballage:  packaging

©2012 P.B. Lecron