For Love of the French Breakfast

Greetings dear readers and friends. I hope you’ve had a lovely week and have some nice, relaxing plans for the weekend. Today I’m sharing a bit on one of my favorite topics… French food.

I mean, what’s not to love? And it’s funny how ingrained some of the French food traditions are and how quickly we adapt to them when we visit or spend time in France. I remember, quite a few years ago, that I went to the doctor because I was feeling a bit tired (vitamin D folks!) and she said to me, “Well, you’re just going to have to cut back on the jam”.

Jam? Huh? I just nodded and said yes… which is how I solve a lot of situations that I don’t understand in France.

Later I went home and thought about it… breakfast, she was taking about breakfast! As funny as it might sound, some French folks eat buttered bread with jam (confiture) every day.  My in-laws, for example, that’s the only thing they eat, Monday-Sunday, 365 days a year… oui. They buy 3-4 baguettes at a time and stock them in their freezer so they always have bread on hand. Funny enough, they taste just fine. They’ve switched to a low-fattish, Omega 3 butter, but otherwise the tradition continues.

I make sure I have a tub of said butter and at least 3 different confitures each time they visit. And my belle-mere brings her own homemade jams with her. 🙂

So at first I was like… this breakfast thing is crazy. Who can eat the same thing, day in, day out? But then, the years crept by, and my rotation of madeleines, petit beurres, croissants, and the occasional toast with jam became my breakfast staple (and coffee of course, lots of coffee). So much so that on a recent trip to the US, all I did was dream about an oversized American breakfast with all the trimmings: pancakes, hash browns, sausage, scrambled eggs, etc etc… That was until I got there.

Then I got pretty hung-up on having the same breakfast I was used to in France. Let’s be honest, it was a little weird. Maybe more than a little… My husband and I spent those too weeks living off muffins & these delicious gluten-free donuts I found at Whole Foods. Not something I’m necessarily proud of, but I just couldn’t kick “the cakes”.

Yes, of course there are croissants here & there in the US but dang if they’re not expensive as heck…

And what’s even more amazing, is that the French stay so slim on these breakfast staples. Which brings me to another rule I try to live by in France… don’t ask too many questions & just enjoy it, c’est la vie.

Do you have a favorite French breakfast, one that you enjoy in France or have made a tradition back home?

Wishing you a very bon week-end from belle Provence!