Padern village is situated on the D14 off of the D611 on the river Torgan. Not much to see apart from the castle which looks down over the main road and the Cafe Des Sports.
Poor old Credit Agricole’s taken a battering. Profits are down from a healthy 1.3 billion Euros to a rather meager 76 million Euros. Maybe it is time for me to look for a new bank? Things are so bad at Credit Agricole at the moment that they are having a fire sale and hoping to raise 5 billion Euros.
Tags: Credit Agricole, Credit Crunch
Tags: maison carree, Nimes
Just days before their unit suffered heavy losses in Afghanistan, FRANCE 24’s Matthieu Mabin accompanied troops from France’s 8th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment as they faced off with the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Passengers cried with relief as Ryanair flight made early landing in France. Explorer Pen Hadow was on board, he says no-one knew what was going on.
Tags: Montgaillard
Mireille Guiliano, author of the immensely popular French Women Don’t Get Fat returns with another book revealing secrets to living the good life. Branching off of her first book that dispelled the notion that you have to avoid everything wonderful in order to lose weight, with French Women for All Seasons, Guiliano suggests that the trick to living life to the fullest is to stay attuned to the “rhythms of the year” (that, and remembering that moderation is the key). Her new book offers new ideas for seasonal entertaining, shopping, cooking, and exercising. Want to know more? Watch our exclusive video message from Guiliano below. Want to know more about yourself? Take our “How French Are You?” quiz and discover your inner Frenchwoman.
Tags: Marcorignan
Ingredients
1 bunch of asparagus,
8 ounces (25 cl) of fresh cream,
8 ounces (250 g) of cultivated mushrooms,
7 ounces (200 g) of butter,
2 eggs,
1 lemon,
salt and pepper.
Preparation
1. Carefully clean and wash the mushrooms. Put them in a casserole with the equivalent of a glass of water, the juice of one lemon and a spoon of butter. Salt and let cook on a low fire.
2. Peel the asparagus with a vegetable peeler. Tie in a bundle and poach in a pot of salty water. Leave them slightly crunchy. Refresh them.
3. Melt the remaining butter on the corner of the burner. Separate the eggs. Put the egg yolks in a small pot with a drop of water. Whip energetically while in the double broiler in order to obtain a creamy zabaglione. Then, after you have mixed and added the mushrooms, progressively begin adding the melted butter.
4. Incorporate the remaining melted butter whipping vigorously until you obtain a mixture with an even consistency. Whip up the 8 ounces (250 ml) of fresh cream (do not add sugar).
5. Gently incorporate the whipped cream into the Hollandaise sauce. Decorate the serving dish in rosette form with theasparagus.
6. Nap the asparagus with the Hollandaise sauce and brown under the oven grill for a few minutes. Serve warm.
Tags: Asparagus, au gratin, French Food, Recipe
Lagrasse is the largest and probably one of the most picturesque villages in the Corbieres highlands. Situated roughly half way between Carcassonne and Narbonne and separated from the Aude valley by the low ridge of the Montagne d’Alaric.
Tags: Lagrasse
Tests carried out on some locals who have regularly eaten fish from the river Rhone in France have shown high levels of toxicity in their blood.
Gruissan and Gruissan-Plage are very nice quiet fishing towns about 20km southeast of Narbonne. The circular streets huddle around an ancient tower. Gruissan has not been affected by over development but is still popular with walking and cycling fans. There are the ruins of the Watchtower to explore (free entry) and not much else.
Le Musée du Luxembourg à Paris met à l’honneur René Lalique, un des plus éblouissants créateurs de l’Art Nouveau. René Lalique, l’inventeur du bijou moderne a signé des bijoux d’exception qui ont fasciné Sarah Bernhardt et d’autres grands collectionneurs.
We may be getting on towards the end of August, but the plants are having a second spring. Our Bottle Bush (Callistemon citrinus splendens) is in flower again and the Bay Tree (Laurus nobilis) is showing new buds. Even some of the other plants are showing a bit of new life. It is even odder given that the summers been mild this year and not the normal blazing hot. Lets hope this is a sign of a mild and short winter.
Bottle Bush in Bloom
Tags: Bay Tree, Bottle Bush, Callistemon citrinus splendens, Laurus nobilis
Fort de Salses ~ Salses le Chateau
Fort de Salses is an enormous stronghold built to dominate the strip of land between the Etang de Leucate and the uplands of the Corbieres.It was constructed by the Spanish in the fifteenth-century to guard the northern border of Roussillon from French attack.
Tags: Fort de Salses, Salses le Chateau
