Appetizers | Gourmandistan

Appetizer solution (white bean bruschetta)

January 10, 2011 by Michelle

Our dinner guests being vegetarian wasn’t the problem—having dinner guests was the problem. Dinner guests, while certainly welcome in Gourmandistan, do require certain steps to be taken, such as picking up the numerous books and magazines scattered about, removing the cats’ countertop colander bed and making hors d’oeuvre. Michelle looked around the place and assembled some meat-free prospects: a few dried white beans in the pantry, a Blue Dog baguette in the freezer and some fresh sage leaves in the […]

Categories: Appetizers, Beans, Cooking, Food, Recipes, Vegetarian

Of rice and nems

September 26, 2010 by Steve

Many people have expressed astonishment that, even in France, we often enjoy Asian meals. “But you’re in France!,” people exclaim. “Shouldn’t you be enjoying French food?” We have two somewhat inter-related answers. First, even for Gourmandistanis, there can be such a thing as too much foie gras. Second, in many ways, Asian food in France is still very, very French. France was a colonial power in much of Southeast Asia for much of the 19th and 20th centuries, until leaving […]

Categories: Appetizers, Food, France, Restaurants, Vietnam

France, Southern style

September 8, 2010 by Michelle

We invited our British neighbors-for-the-week over for drinks and hors d’oeuvres this evening, a reciprocation for their including us in poolside drinks on Monday. Initially, we planned on an assortment of sausages, cheeses and perhaps a tapenade to accompany bottles of local wines. Then Michelle had a moment of genius. Instead of serving French food to British people vacationing in France, why not instead serve them Southeast U.S. classics made with Southwest French ingredients? Thus were born two marvelous appetizers: […]

Categories: Appetizers, Cheese, Cooking, Duck, Food, France, Recipes