Stocking up on Stock

Let me tell you about my latest obsession. Brace yourself. This is super exciting. I am obsessed with making the perfect broth. As in chicken broth, beef broth. You know the kinds of liquids you buy in a can from the grocery store in American for like a dollar.

Do I need to get a life? Yes, most definitely. But for the moment, it's a cheap and very useful form of entertainment. And despite notions of how eternally sunny the French Riviera is, we've had quite a spell of cold, rainy weather. (I've been told this is the rainy season, so the weather isn't all that unexpected, but I've also heard this year is far worse than "normal"). So this perfect, wholesome, broth becomes the base for my constant cravings for soup.

While in the US I always had a couple boxes/cans of chicken broth on hand in my pantry, because there are so many recipes that call for it. I knew the homemade stuff would taste better, but who has time for all of that production. Here in France, they do not sell liquid chicken or beef broth. The best I can find are bullion cubes. And I don't really have a life, so I began

making batches and batches of broth myself, and now I have an entire freezer full.

I've been consulting multiple cookbooks for my concoctions. Most notably the Julia Child "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" cookbook. I find the cookbook exceptionally helpful because with her recipes in English (with a lot of French vocabulary thrown in) I can understand some French techniques and attempt to make dishes (or just know what ingredients are in the dishes) that I see on the restaurant menus here. Julia also explains the French cuts of meat -which helps me so much at the grocery store. ***Side note--I know there is a movie dedicated to the topic of cooking when lonely...no, I haven't seen it...but from what I've heard, I can relate to both character's lives in multiple ways!***

Most of my homemade broth ends up becoming some sort of soup. And most of my soups are

orange and involve lots of butternut squash (although the orange squash here tastes a little different) and carrots. How healthy and wholesome !****another side note...How does a girl go from living in Jacksonville, eating fast food for lunch four times a week to eating homemade vegetable soup everyday for lunch??? She moves to France and there where Wendy's doesn't exist, and fast food is not at all convenient!***

My broth has also inspired me to try recipes like Beef Bourguignon. My homemade beef stock, along with a good bottle of French Red wine yielded fantastic results--if I do say so myself.

Actually, I got rave reviews from Phil, Lily and Zachary (who ate his weight in soft, melt-in-

your-mouth pieces of beef).

And can a rainy lunch really get any better than a big bowl of soup with a piece of fresh, warm baguette? No, not here in France it can't. I think I'll have some cheese for dessert!