Innholdsfortegnelse for January/February 2023 i My French Country Home

Dear Readers, Welcome to our first edition of the New Year! We hope you enjoyed the holiday season and that you and your family are looking forward to the year ahead. May 2023 be a peaceful and happy one for us all. This is our fifth year of publishing the MFCH Magazine, and we kick it off with the firm intention of bringing you even more beautiful French homes and gardens, decadent French recipes and detailed guides to the most fascinating regions of France. At MFCH we are fortunate to work with many talented photographers, and for this first issue, we are thrilled to share two gardens with you, shot in breathtaking detail by Eric Sander and Franck Schmitt. We invite you inside homes in Chantilly and Provence, where French…

* What’s new? Typology Typology is a 100% made-in-France cosmetics brand backed by leading health and beauty industry experts. A clean approach to looking and feeling your best, it offers a wide range of effective skin, body and hair products made with active ingredients. All-natural and chicly packaged, with Typology on hand, it is all too easy to get up and glow. www.typology.com A new address for Taillevent A fine dining reference in Paris since 1987, Taillevent now has a second address in the 16th arrondissement where clients can browse the Taillevent wine selection and be guided by Sommelier Yannick Bourgade. Choose from among over 1000 fine wines, at all budget levels. https://lescavesdetaillevent.com/en Shop the Winter Soldes France has just two periods a year where retailers are permitted to mark…

In restaurants and bistros across France — upscale or casual — les escargots (snails) are a staple entrée (appetizer) that can be found on most menus. Snails are one of the world’s oldest living species and evidence of these gastropods in the South of France dates back 6,000 years. During the Middle Ages, the French Catholihc church decreed that escargots should be considered seafood (pescatarians, rejoice!) — which meant that they could be eaten on traditionally meatless Fridays. French monasteries soon secured a monopoly on snail farms, known as escargotières, to get in on the tiny treat’s popularity. While accounts vary on exactly how the humble snail slowly slithered its way into the heart of traditional French cuisine, the legend of its gastronomic success is believed to stem from a…

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In her Paris studio near the Canal Saint-Martin, the founder of Blanche Patine, Cécile Viarouge, sells little antique treasures, cherry-picked from all corners of France and infused with a new life by her artistic hand. Her speciality lies in Terre de Fer tableware, a century-old manufacture that, thanks to Cécile, can now be found on the tables of a few Michelin-starred restaurants. Coming from a family of scientists and medical professionals, Cécile Viarouge may seem like an unlikely fit for the fantastical world of art. Yet, with one look at her work, anyone would agree that she was born for it (although she likes to believe her artistic flair was passed down by French painter and poet Gaston Chaissac — who, she recently learned, had been the former inhabitant of…

Tish Jett is an author, journalist and former editor at the International Herald Tribune and American ELLE. She pens our regular “Just Between Us” column. www.tishjett.com /@tishjett Michel Joly is a French photographer based in Burgundy. He is passionate about the region and in particular the work of the traditional vineyards, which can be seen in our “Fire and Ice” portfolio piece. https://micheljoly.viewbook.com @mjoly.photograph Eric Sander is a French photographer. He shoots some of the country’s most-loved properties and gardens. His photos featured in our “Gardens of France” highlight Les Jardins de Cadiot. www.ericsander.com @ericsanderphoto Franck Schmitt is an author, photographer and journalist. He shot our garden feature at the Jardins d’Etretat, provided photos for our regional guide to Le Perche and also created the Brioche & Company recipes for…

Any interior architect will tell you that their job is full of challenges. When a friend of Franck Delmarcelle contacted him asking for assistance on a property near Chantilly, he knew he had his work cut out. The client, based in Paris, was drawn to this estate due to its prime location as a weekend residence, as well as for its proximity to a fine golf course. Having worked together on other projects, the two already had great trust in one another’s style and taste. So, Franck was given carte blanche to fully renovate and design the space how he saw fit. The most distinctive and challenging aspect of the building was its unusual layout. Originally constructed as the caretaker’s home, the cottage was tacked onto a larger property in…

This is a hand-tied bouquet, and to create the flowing signature style that Catherine is known for, it is important to maintain the volume and width of the arrangement. When assembling the components of this bouquet, Catherine creates some initial volume with the feathery spikes of statice and cedar, followed closely by the branches of gray-green eucalyptus. Once these stems have created an outline, she inserts her roses to start the foundation of creamy pops of color. The roses are the stars of the arrangement, so it is best to keep some back to add later in the process to ensure they take center stage. Now, build up layers of viburnum, oak, amarante and miscanthus grass. Finally tuck in the hydrangea heads, the polygonum, chasmanthium and limonium, then choose carefully…

At the end of a winding road dotted with hackberry and plane trees appears a charming property of two hectares surrounded by lush evergreens. Behind the curtain of greenery, a family’s dream house with walls of ocher-colored limestone contrasts harmoniously against the clear blue sky. “We are at the gates of the city, but lucky enough to live in the lush greenery of a Tuscan-like valley that fills us with a breathtaking view over the olive groves,” says Florence. The family was on a vacation in Aixen-Provence two years ago, when they fell in love with the region’s wonderful sunny climate and its streets and squares that are always vibrant and full of life. Invigorated by the luminous surroundings — which felt like a real life Cézanne painting — Florence…

PRINT Delivered to your door, enjoy the magic of French living in a beautiful collector’s-quality magazine. US$79.95 for one year (6 issues)* US$14.95 for one issue* Yearly print subscribers get FREE access to the digital version of the magazine. DIGITAL Enjoy the same beautiful My French Country Home features, photography and delicious recipes - wherever you are. Ideal for commuting or holidays, read the latest issue of MFCH on your smartphone and escape to France with the click of a button. Yearly digital (and print) subscribers get issues conveniently stored within the Bookshelf, accessible from your My French Country Home account. US$39.99 for one year (6 issues) US$7.99 for one issue Enjoy easy reading with adaptable viewing modes, interactive live links for online shopping and a personal library of back…

While getaways to the likes of Chamonix and St. Moritz were always popular in the hot summer months, back in the 19th century, most French resorts used to shutter for the winter. With the expansion of rail travel, however, that began to change. Combine that with breakthroughs in print-making that came along in the 1890s — opening the door to mass-produced, full-color lithography — and a vibrant new artform was born. Back then, tobogganing, ice skating and cross-country skiing were common activities among those who lived in snowy regions — but elsewhere, few people considered the idea of a winter vacation dedicated to sports. To promote travel, railway companies, tour operators and resorts hired graphic artists to design colorful posters to showcase popular mountain activities, which were then plastered on…

Passion. Precision. Patience—lots of patience. The artisans at work in Maison Pichon’s ceramics studio rely on the same techniques used by the renowned Pichon family for more than 200 years. Every plate, bowl and platter is crafted with acute attention to detail and involves dozens of steps. Most pieces are manipulated more than 50 times, and a single piece can take up to four weeks to complete. There is no mass production and no mechanical shortcuts involved in the custom-made pottery that Pichon produces despite the high volumes ordered by its top clients, who include some of the world’s finest hotels and restaurants. “That may be what is most appreciated about our work,” said Christophe Pichon, director of the family business — now in its eighth generation. “What is so…

Pure Butter Croissants Serves 8 Preparation time: 40 min plus 2 hrs resting time Cooking time: 15 min Ingredients: • 1 ½ cups (150 g) softened butter• 1 tbsp (15 g) fresh baker’s yeast• ½ cup (10 cl) warmed milk• 1 cup (250 g) flour• 1 whole egg + 1 egg yolk for glazing• 1 tbsp superfine sugar• Pinch of salt Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk. Pour the flour and salt into a bowl, then add the whole egg, sugar and milk with the yeast. Knead and form a ball. Cover it with a cloth, and let it rest for one hour near a heat source (see tip below). The dough should double in size. On a floured work surface, roll out the dough with a rolling pin…

Champagne Fondue with Pickled Wild Mushrooms Serves 4 Add a touch of class to your fondue by using some Champagne or a quality Crémant sparkling wine: their high acidity levels make them an ideal choice for fondue, helping the cheese to melt to a rich velvety cream. I like to think I can taste the difference too, although this may be just the added glamor of a good bubbly. The mushrooms, brined with a spiced vinegar, are a perfect foil for the rich fondue. Ingredients: • Scant 2 cups (200 g) Beaufort, grated• 1 ½ cups (150 g) Brie, diced• 1 ½ cups (150 g) Raclette, grated• 1 tbsp (8 g) plain/all-purpose flour• ¾ cup (180 ml) Champagne or Crémant sparkling wine• 1 shallot, finely chopped• 1 tbsp (15 ml)…

Doisneau Paris Robert Doisneau - Flammarion Easily France’s best-known street photographer, Robert Doisneau began capturing scenes of Paris life in the 1930s. This seminal volume contains the most comprehensive collection of photos by this champion of humanist photography and pioneer of photojournalism. Curated by Doisneau’s daughters and including commentary by the photographer himself, the magic of Paris in black and white jumps off the pages in this truly timeless collection. Charcuterie, Pâtés, Terrines, Savory Pies from the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts Ferrandi Paris - Flammarion From the master chefs of the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts, this cookbook on all things charcuterie is the bible of cured meats. With 70 step-by-step recipes for making everything from charcuterie boards to cooked terrines, pâtés and other savory meat pies, you’ll be…

Every year, the last thing I buy in December and the first thing I use in January is my large French calendar/agenda. The purchase is an annual ritual and for reasons I cannot quite explain, the simple gesture always makes me feel hopeful: new year, new adventures. One of the first entries in my new agenda is always les soldes. The soldes are the twice-annual fashion markdowns, the dates of which are strictly governed under French law. This year the winter sales in Paris begin on January 11th and end on February 7th, while the summer sales debut on June 28th and finish on July 25th. (Other regions in France may have slightly different dates.) If you’re planning a French vacation, we at MFCH thought you, too might like to…