Another Trip to France!  Why just go to Paris?  After finishing shopping, leave Paris and head West to a wonderful region where Cider and Calvados and the best Camembert are produced.  It is only a two-hour drive from Paris, and many French people leave the capitol on weekends to stay in their country or seaside homes in Normandy.

Don't stay at the famous beaches of Normandy, but explore the glorious countryside. 

There are magnificent old villages, medieval abbeys, castles and picturesque towns as well as unspoiled countryside.  You will learn a lot about French history and French cuisine.

Two years ago we rented a house half an hour from Rouen, a lovely city with ancient streets and buildings and a medieval Gothic cathedral.  Our holiday home was an old half-timbered house from the 18th century with many original features and the old glass in the windows.

 

We rented the entire house from an elderly gentleman who lived next door, who was originally from Germany, and who loved visiting with his guests.  We found the rental via the internet, and at a very reasonable price.  The sitting room above, as the rest of the house, is furnished with antiques.  The ancient church clock across the street struck every quarter hour, and we thought we had returned to the 18th century!  It was heaven, and we are sure to go back for another vacation.

When we traveled to Provence for the first time in 1980 we immediately fell in love with the beautiful countryside, the ancient towns, the glorious food and the vibrant colors.  Since that time we have  come back again and again, at least once a year.  We were fascinated by the Easter antique markets in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, Avignon, Barjac, etc. and decided to take some furniture back home to remind us of the wonderful colors all year.  Most of the furniture is painted in light blue or shades of yellow, reflecting the colors of lavender, sunshine and honey.  At first we just took back some flower stands that we could easily put into our car.

But what we were really looking for was an antique cabinet to display various collections or just vases and dishes in.  These cabinets often came from old shops and I remember that you could easily find the complete furnishings of a huge shop, bakery or pharmacy.  Unfortunately, most of the cabinets are so tall that you cannot use them in modern houses or flats.  Finally we found one in a light blue that we could just get into the house. 

We have had this cabinet for almost 15 years now and still enjoy it every day, especially in the dark months when it reflects the colors of spring and summer.  The small table is from an old boulangerie.  It has been bought to display an antique doll house and some old French fabrics.

The old wardrobe which is in the entrance of our house, is no real wardrobe.  We found the three antique doors in an antique shop in Provence, had a frame set up and built in the doors to make a wonderful wardrobe.

We are a little sad that our house is full now and we can no longer go furniture hunting, but there are still lots of small antiques to be found in these markets.  In March we will be back to look for more...........

Many German families own nativity scenes that have often been in their families for several generations and have been passed on to children and grandchildren.  Ours is at least 100 years old and it was made in Grulich, a town which now belongs to the Czech Republic. All the figures and  animals are carved from wood and the artists have used very vibrant colours. We open the huge box a few days before Christmas. The children are excited when they unwrap the figures they have not seen for a year. They enjoy arranging them around the buildings, having the three wise men with their wonderful animals coming from the left side and and all the shepherds and sheep coming from the right side. The buildings did not come with the figures. We found them on eBay last year,  it was the ideal setting. It shows the town of Bethlehem as an oriental place with lots of small towers and walls. There are cliffs and trees, a small pond and even a well. Everything has been made of wood.
The nativity scene will remain in our living room till the three wise men return to their foreign country after January 6th. Then everything will be wrapped up for another year.

Of course, it wouldn't be Christmas without a German feather tree trimmed in antique German ornaments!  We began collecting these 30 years ago and now try to buy at least one special ornament every year. 

Walnußschäumchen

100 grams Powdered Sugar

200 grams Walnuts, chopped

Pinch Salt

2 egg whites

Half teaspoon cinnamon (Optional)

Mix chopped walnuts with the powdered sugar, pinch salt and stiff egg whites.  Put in small drops on a baking sheet into preheated oven.  Bake them for 40 minutes at 225 degrees (Yes, 225!).   Baking very much depends on your oven.  The walnut foam drops need to dry and bake very slowly!

CHRISTMAS TREE SHOPPING IN GERMANY

Celebrating Christmas without a tree is unthinkable and we have finally found our tree in the courtyard of an old farmhouse. Many old farmhouses in our area open their courtyards and sell Christmas trees in all sizes. It is a wonderful event to go there and look at lots of different trees before you decide. There is a stall where you can warm up with a glass of Glühwein and a variety of Christmas cookies. They also sell their own geese for a festive dinner.

We are looking forward to the beginning of the festive season.  There are so many different Christmas traditions here in Germany and we would like to describe a few interesting ones.  Some of you might have German ancestors and might realize that these traditions have  crossed the Atlantic and stayed alive in your families.  We would like to present some photos of our decorations at home and give you a recipe for a traditional German cookie which is easy to prepare and very delicious.

Later on we are planning to show you photos from the famous Christmas markets.....

                                           Spitzbuben

150 gr. unsalted butter, room temperature
200 gr. sugar
2 eggs
1 small packet vanilla sugar
375 gr. flour

     Beat the butter until creamy.  Add the sugar and continue to beat until combined.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Mix in the vanilla sugar, then the flour.
     Roll out the dough (ca. 0.5 cm) and cut out the shapes with special cookie molds.  Put them on a cookie sheet into the preheated oven and bake for 8 minutes (ca. 166-180 degrees).  Don't wait until they are brown.  We use the old family molds that belonged to our great-grandmother and were used around 1900.  You can see some of them in the photo below.  If you do not have any molds, you may use a round shape such as an eggcup of a wineglass.
     If you have baked small round shapes you may take one of them after baking, put on marmelade or jam and put another cookie on top.  They are delicious.
     If you want to store them, please put them into a tin box.

Come with us to a medieval castle surrounded by an ancient moat and wonderful grounds which has been turned into a restaurant.  Climb up the staircase decorated with wonderful garlands and red ribbons for the festive season.

Open the old oak door and you enter another world.  There is a wonderful antique fireplace with crackling fire in the huge hall next to a very tall Christmas tree. 

A waiter leads you to a table surrounded by antiques with a view over the grounds and horses.  In the kitchen the chef with a Michelin star prepares the most delicious French dinners.  If you think this is terribly expensive, you are mistaken.  Of course, the exchange rate is not very good for you, but you can still afford and enjoy such a wonderful treat.  We went there on Saturday and chose a four-course dinner which we would recommend. After a wonderful "amuse bouche", we had loup de mer in four varieties and accompanied by the most delicious small rolls and bread.  The second course consisted of a very unusual soup (pot au feu) with deer and vegetables.  Our main course was a risotto with wild mushrooms and Argentinian filet of beef. 

We could not wait to try the dessert, which is always a highlight:  creme brulee and ice cream from white chocolate, delicious.  And, of course, our espresso came with a small etagere full of chocolates and French pralines. 

We find the meals reasonably priced and paid Euros 59 for the meal.  The castle is approximately a 30-minute drive from Cologne in Germany.  In the summer they have opera evenings on the grounds and a wonderful dinner in the restaurant and catering in the garden. 

If you are planning a trip to Germany and prefer French cuisine to Sauerkraut and Haxn, look at the following website:  www.schlossloersfeld.de