one of the reasons we moved to france was for the bread… in our little rural part of the Lauragais 81 there are perhaps 20 independant boulangeries selling stunning, unusual and different bread…
oh my, how confused we are! is it a baguette? a flute? a ficelle?
i’m thinking a guide to bread would be a good idea. I’ll start with 2 favourites from the very local baker (with a piece of a4 paper to give an idea of size)
a flute
crisp, but not burnt, white and chewy inside
a montegut
from our local baker - very crisp, but soft like a cloud and a bit brown inside
la maison verdigris
www.maisonverdigris.com
and don’t forget if you prefer it a bit less golden, ask for Une Baguette Blanche ou un Gros Pain Blanc (slightly bigger than baguette)…the Blanc/Blanche follows the object - this confused us for months. Another friend told us to ask for Pas Trop Cuit but one boulangere didn’t like this as it inferred he’d burnt the bread - if you like it golden I think it’s pronounced D’orree.
Names will change depending on the region. I remember being in the South and asking for a ficelle and pointing at what I wanted. I was told that was in fact a baguette.
I find the choice of breads remarkable but still use our bread machine at least once a week.
The second one looks like it would be very tasty with butter and jam Teresa. I’m not a big bread eater myself but when I do eat bread I like it to be a nice artisanal bread, a bit unusual. I do like the breads with olives and nuts in…yum yum…
