By far, the best dinner yet tonight. Helene's brother and his wife are in town from Provence so they came over for dinner. This was a true test of french ability and I seemed to do quite well. Helene and Thomas kept asking if they were speaking too fast, and miraculously they weren't. I think I understood about 85% of the conversation between the four of them.
We started out with white wine from Bourgogne and crackers with smoked salmon pate. After that, there was a wonderful soupe de poisson, yet it did not have chunks of fish. It was silky smooth and we put croutons, rouille and cheese on top.
Next came an enormous pot of steamed petit moules (mussels) in a fragrant broth. Helene and Thomas brought the mussels back from their trip to the coast yesterday. Thus, they were straight out of the ocean. Small and delicate, they were the exact opposite of those enormous, tough hunks of flesh normally served at seafood restaurants. We learned to eat mussels the French way. No forks or utensils involved. The only equipment used are your hands and mussel shells. Using the mussel shells like chopsticks, we pried the little guys out of their shells and popped them in our mouths. The mussels were served with a fresh mixed green salad, baked frites, and hot brown bread.
For dessert? Galette des Rois since it gets discontinued tomorrow as it will no longer be January. And who won the prize and got the glory of wearing the crown tonight? Yours truly. All in all, the perfect Sunday night dinner.
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