Hi,
1986 Paris, my wife and I saw a lovely Thai restaurant on the Champs alyses ordered our food and we were both starving !The huge plates arrived and a small Noveu Cuisine blob appeared on the plate ! Te bill was enough to feed half of Africa. We came out...still starving and went to a burger shop across the road for some real food.

Muck

Upon arriving at Charles de Gaulle, I went to a snack bar and asked for a Coke. The waiter told me that I would get it in a few minutes. Went back to my table and waited...and waited...and went back to the counter. Was then told that it was in the micro wave oven. Why? I asked. "Madame, I'm warming it up for you!" Oh la la! He thought I had asked for a Croque (croque monsieur), a sandwich made with baguette bread. I quickly realized that I should have asked for a coca or coca-cola. I ate the Croque and asked for a cola to go with it. Lesson learned.

hahaha! I love these language goofs. I thought I was saying smile when I was really saying mouse.
Now we all know when at times we got odd looks. Reminds me of n Indian friend who thinks he speaks exact english and no one really understands him(think me, saying to my provence friends: I spent the day in Saint Remy, and they scratch their head. I pronounced it as spelled in English but in French it is totally different
Remember my Nord Pinus Story?

Along the line of the ris de veau story, I learned that fromage de tete is not fromage. Nor is it anything I hope to ever see again on my plate.

Sally, for those of us who are language impaired, what do those phrases mean?

wren...just let me give you recipe and you can take it from there!

FROMAGE DE TETE DE PORC (FARMHOUSE BRAWN)

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Pork French

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 Fresh pig's head
4 Shallots
4 Carrots
4 Onions
1 lg Leek
1 Clove garlic
1 Sprig each parsley,
-marjoram, thyme
1 Bay leaf
1 tb Salt
10 Black peppercorns
4 Cloves
Black pepper (optional)
2 tb Finely chopped parsley

Serves 8- 10

Have the butcher split the head into halves and remove the ears. Place cut
side down in a sieve and pour fast-boiling water over the skin. Drain and
scrape off any blemishes. Peel and finely chop the shallots. Peel the
carrots and onions and trim the leek, cut them all into pieces. Place the
pig's head, car- rots, onions, leek and peeled garlic in a large pan, cover
generously with cold water and bring slowly to boiling point over low heat.
Skim off the froth that rises and when clear add the herbs tied together,
seasoning and cloves. Cover and cook, sim- mering steadily, for 2 hours or
until the meat detaches itself from the bones. Remove the meat, skin and
fat from the bones, Cut into pieces and place in a large bowl. Add the
brains, and the tongue skinned and cut into small pieces. Mash with a fork
and mix well. Test for seasoning, add black pepper if necessary so that the
mixture is well flavoured. Mix in the chopped shallot and parsley, and stir
to incorporate thoroughly. Pour into 2 wetted moulds and when cold
refrigerate until required.

To serve, cut into slices and arrange on a large serving dish surrounded by
lettuce leaves. Hand French mustard separately and a mixed green salad
tossed in vinaigrette dressing.

Being made of fresh meat this brawn should be eaten within a week.





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Fromage is cheese so when I saw "fromage de tete" on the menu I thought it was some kind of cheese. I was brought was a plate with 6 slabs of a disgusting looking sausage/salami type thing. Each piece was about the size of a piece of bologna you'd have in a sandwich, but a strange red color with big globs of gelatinous fat. I am still not sure exactly what it is but what I found when I searched on the internet is that it is basically a sausage made of the leftover parts of a pig's head that aren't used for anything else (e.g. snout, mouth, eyes, ears, etc.). tasted gross, looked gross, makes me sick to think about it and I eat almost anything.

as for ris de veau, I have no idea.

That is called Head Cheese in the Italian delis here :o

Hi

Ris de Veau is sweetbreads. A recipe is available at http://www.texasmonthly.com/mag/issu...000-07-01a.php

...and Ira's NOT talking about cinnamon rolls!

Sweetbreads and head cheese hold no candle to tripe. My husband and I were dining at a Left Bank restaurant and on the menu I spotted tripe. I was delighted as it was the first time I had seen it since I was in Scotland as a teenager. In fact, I am sad to say, it was the only thing about Scotland that stuck in my mind--that I the only one in my family adventurous enough to try it, and that it was delicious!!! (Looking back at it, I am sure that it was nothing but sheer teenage orneriness that compelled me to order it, and bravado that compelled me to actually eat it.)

So here I am faced with tripe and a wonderful travel memory AND I ORDER IT. Over my husband's objections, and he's English born and far more familiar with the stuff than me. Despite the pleadings of the waitress that it' not compatible with American tastes. When it arrives at the table I immediately know that husband and waitress were right on the money and that I should have let memories remain memories.

Of course I was too mortified to let the helpful waitress know she was right. When the coast was clear my darling sweet husband switched plates with me and ate my meal for me.

dln, I am curious as to how it was served. My mother cooked tripe in a tomato based recipe and it is the only time I have tasted tripe that I liked it. In England it was totally different and smelled different.

Cigalechanta, all I remember about it was the SMELL.

Sorry I asked about the fromage de tete!! Actually, authentic tamales are frequently made from cooked pig's heads...I am sorry to have to say. And what about our hot dogs? They have a scary story, which I can't verify...but I am sure you have all heard.

A few years ago we were eating lunch at a cafe in Paris. In my best Rick Steve's imitation I asked for a carafe d'eau, s'il vous plait. The waiter came back with a carafe of water and pour several tablespoons of water down my back (on a very hot day) and started laughing. I had no idea what to do and saw people around me laughing, so knowing that the crowd was not with me, I just smiled. Apparently, my pronunication of d'eau sounded like dos, the french word for back.

That was cruel(tho funny about the pronunciation errors{been there)
I want to know if he apologized later?