The Normandy “3 C’s” are essential in regional French cuisine: Camembert, Calvados, and cider. Our dinner at Le Garde Manger in Bayeux included all of these as part of a 3-course menu, which offered an appetizer, entrée, and dessert for a fixed price. Normandy cider is very different from the bubbly American Martinelli’s, tasting more like alcoholic apple juice. Camembert cheese melted with the local Calvados brandy was an authentic and fragrant experience that every visitor must have. Our meal also included decadent slices of foie gras (goose liver) that melt in your mouth. To finish, we enjoyed two French desserts, profiteroles filled with ice cream and tarte Tatin, a buttery, caramelized apple tart.
Macarons have recently become popular in America, but none can replicate the original French confection. We sampled a variety, from the cheapest at Carrefour supermarkets to the most luxurious at upscale patisseries Ladurée and Pierre Hermé. They come in the most spectacular array of flavors and fillings – raspberry, rose, salted caramel, and chocolate are just a few that we ate. Ladurée is one of the best-known macaron sellers in the world; their packaging is beautiful, their stores are elaborately decorated, and each crunchy, creamy bite is worth the visit. Pierre Hermé is more expensive, but the one macaron we tried was the best in terms of texture and its prominent chocolate passion fruit flavor.
Going from France to Switzerland, food suddenly became much more expensive. However, groceries were still affordable at Migros, where we discovered new Swiss specialties. We sampled chocolate rum balls, carac, a mini piecrust filled with chocolate ganache and green icing, and vermicelle marron, chestnut puree with cream. My favorite was the Choco Drink, which looked like a chocolate milk carton but tasted so much better. Swiss milk is much richer and more flavorful while their chocolate is higher quality, resulting in a drink that is great for kids. Certain Migros also include its own restaurant, which provides large, reasonably priced portions for lunch.
Finally, Switzerland is famous for its fondue, best experienced on an outdoor patio in the Alps. A short hike down from Mürren,Pension Gimmelwald was the ideal place. The fondue came with its own burner to keep it smooth and melted, and we had a basket of bread cubes to skewer and dip into the warm, gooey cheese. The cheese was enriched with the addition of white wine, creating an exceptionally savory flavor. Paired with a glass of Feldschlösschen beer, a Swiss favorite, it was the perfect dish to accompany the view of snowy mountains and hills of Alpine flowers.
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