Fall harvests in Provence are an excuse for food-themed festivals celebrating local produce: courge (squash), olives, mushrooms and more. Local menus change in tandem with shorter daylight hours and cooler temperatures. Gone are the summertime salads and gazpachos. Provencal stews (daubes) of beef or taureaux and slow-cooked meats replace the lighter fare. Chilled rosé moves aside for red wine blends on many dinner tables.
Aside from grapes, the olive harvest signals the final quarter of the year. The fruit’s maturity depends on Mother Nature, while the producer attempts to choose the timing to maximize flavour and quality. Commercial operations harvest in cycles. A small percentage of the olives are picked early and cracked for the olives cassées. Others are left on the trees much longer to darken for the heavier flavoured oils.
Autumn weekends call for a warm layer and an outing to a brocante (professional vendors of 2nd hand goods), marché aux puces (upscale flea market) or a vide grenier (community yard sale). Now is your chance to discover hidden treasure.
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Bon weekend,
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