Food in France

This week to start off a post on the dinning during yoga week, a feast of words not from my own mouth, but rather a testimonial from one of our vacationers who had the gourmet experience first hand:

“Thank you for a most wonderful week at Villa Plantat!
We could not have chosen a more beautiful place on earth!
The villa is lovely, the surroundings beautiful and the swimming lake is just gorgeous.

The most important asset is Huguette!! She made our holiday. Her French cooking was far better than any restaurant could have been and it was so lovely to dine outside every night in such a tranquil setting.”

Being a food lover myself, I had known Huguette, our chef for yoga week, from my time spent in the South of France. She is considered one of the top 2 best cooks in the region, though considering the other chef is also her best friend, we may never have a number one. But then having to choose would be like having to choose between a velouté de poireaux (a creamy leek soup) or a potage de tomate (a summery tomato soup)? Hungry yet?

A summery apricot tart

When it came down to food choices for yoga week, there seemed to be a lot of trend diets being offered on many of the yoga retreats. Macrobiotic, raw, melon-based, liquid, vegan, gluten free, diets based on your blood type, personality, star sign, etc. It all seemed a bit overly complex. On my retreat, I really wanted to focus on a more holistic approach to not only yoga and breath but also life style choices. I felt it important to give people a chance to be involved in the relatively slower paced living in the South of France. And what better way to access a culture than through their food?

Instead of jumping onto the latest food trend, I decided to give Huguette free range with the meal planning for yoga week. The focus would be on quintessential Provençal cuisine, which has its base in olive oil, garlic, rosemary, basil, added to fresh seafood caught from both the Mediterranean and local rivers, poultry from the local farm, and wild mushrooms foraged from the woods on the property. Accent this with produce picked straight from the garden Huguette tends on the property and you would be hard pressed to find a more wholesome, healthy diet anywhere else. Rather then attempt to describe the spectacular meals, we have enjoyed at yoga week over the years thanks to Huguette’s love and work in the kitchen, I thought I might let the food speak for itself with a few images from past feasts.

A fresh country loaf

Freshly picked produce from the garden

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