Running a château offering family-friendly holiday experiences in France is far from child’s play, but it’s exactly what Jon Barnsley left a high-profile job at one of the UK’s biggest newspapers to do. Greg Cook finds out more. How…
Chef Stéphane Reynaud treats us to another of his favourite dishes which would make up a perfectly hearty and tasty French supper for six Serves 6 – Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 40 minutes Ingredients 1 wild…
with cherry tomatoes, shiitake mushrooms and marigold petals The word ‘omelette’ comes originally from the French word lamelle, meaning ‘thin strip’ because of its fl at shape, and gradually changed via alumette and then amelette. However, although omelettes are…
This verdant region in southern France seduces with its space, natural beauty and the quality of life it offers. Gascony could be your property heaven
There are two main types of Pithiviers; the version here, where puff pastry encloses a filling of frangipane (almond cream), and another which has a base of sablé pastry and a filling of glacé fruit and frangipane, all coated in a smooth glaze.
After a number of dramatic votes in parliament, we take a look at the way ahead for Brexit and the pound. Reading the recent news headlines has felt like being Alice in Wonderland, with a rapidly changing landscape and sometimes…
La Môle’s marbled chocolate mousse For me, only one chocolate mousse cuts the mustard, a homemade one inspired by our local restaurant, La Môle. This marbled mousse is a striking dessert to bring to the dinner table in a…
Thousands of Britons have discovered the charms of Normandy’s coastline, countryside and cuisine. Some buy holiday or rental properties here, while others settle permanently. Dominic Bliss finds out what the big attraction is…
If you’re looking for a year-round investment – somewhere soaked in sunshine, but a stone’s throw from the pistes – consider these hotspots just outside the main resorts
FrenchEntrée is a French property and lifestyle resource, curated by real people who have lived and worked in France. We have a network of multilingual lenders and brokers with whom we work to provide our clients with the best options to finance their plans.
I have been making this recipe for over 20 years and it always produces a beautifully high crème caramel with a deep mahogany gloss that sits in a puddle of caramel sauce.
Tip: Narrowing down your search area early is crucial. Not only will it save you time in the long run, but estate agents will take you more seriously.
From Philippe Mouchel A beautiful winter stew from Normandy combining lamb, turnips (navets), carrots and potatoes. Philippe uses lamb shoulder and ribs cut into large pieces, but the dish also works well with lamb necks. He likes to serve it…
We head to the east of France to weigh up these neighbouring départements in Burgundy…
Celebrate the unique gastronomic offerings and relaxed rituals of midday meals in Provence with this delicious, authentic Provençal recipe
If Nice, Monaco and Villfrance-sur-Mer were a sandwich ( gourmet, naturally), Villefranche in the middle would be the nutritious filling.
Where did the town of Bellac get its name?
The official tourism website posits several possibilities, but we find ourselves favouring the idea that it’s simply an amalgamation of ‘Belle’ and ‘lac’… in short, ‘beautiful lake’. Even if that doesn’t entirely make sense (the only body of water here is the Vincou river). Still, you get the gist.
If remote is your house-hunting watchword, consider the hillside village of Arles-sur-Tech. Burrowed in the lush Vallespire valley and bordered by the Canigou massif, most of this 2,882-hectare territory is densely forested, with a population of just over 2,700.
When Bob and Diane Kirkwood renovated a dilapidated lakeside ‘bunker’ near their home in Dordogne, they had no idea they’d be creating an off-grid, eco-friendly holiday experience that would win awards, they tell Greg Cook
You fall in love with a property in the South of France, it has olive trees and you buy it. What do you do? You make olive oil, of course! Patrice Bertrand finds out more
As soon as they clapped eyes on a faded farmhouse near Saint-Tropez, Katrina and Christophe Denoux knew they had found a diamond in the rough, says Nicola Venning
With his Michelin-starred restaurant and plaudits aplenty, Bruce Poole is one of the country’s leading chefs whose inspiration lies in the greats of the French food writing genre. Serves 4 as a luxury starter 50g hazelnuts, skinned 2 endive…
It took just one visit to Pas-de-Calais for Katharine Tasker to fall in love with this charming corner of France. Two years later, she’d swapped London’s traffic jams for gâteaux, tartes and wide open spaces. Janine Marsh finds out how she did it…
I once worked as a waitress at a restaurant called Le Relais de Venise, or L’Entrecôte, and I was immediately drawn
to its menu, ‘The Formula’: a simple walnut salad with mustard dressing followed by steak and chips smothered in
a sauce with 26 different ingredients.
A classic dessert from the Basque region, this recipe from the book France by Chef Luke Nguyen features layers of cake that sandwich a rum-spiked creamy custard.
This is a play on the classic fondant pudding – soft and melting inside – combined with Italian meringue. Sometimes I embed nuggets of chocolate salted caramel into the chocolate filling before baking. With or without them it is a serious hit of rich sweetness: you have been warned!
Remodelling a château isn’t always worthwhile, as structural repairs can cost a fortune – especially if the building is listed
Thanks to the British love of the Dordogne, there’s a corner of southwest France that is forever England. But with its bastide towns, rolling green hills, verdant valleys, and food to die for, it couldn’t be more typically French, so don’t be put off when you hear it referred to as “Dordogneshire”!
If you’d like to make this pâté for the Christmas holidays, you can use pink and green peppercorns to give a festive look. Other additions could include capers, dried chopped apricots or prunes.
We head to France’s northwest coastline, where two départements jostle for the top spot…
Succulent Poulet Rôti à l’Orange et aux Olives Noires
Leaseback properties can be a fruitful long-term investment, but they can’t be found just anywhere. From the dizzy heights of the Alps to the glittering French Riviera, these are the spots to comb
Rosemary and thyme are classic flavours to match with lamb, but lots of other herbs also go well with it
Why buying property in and around Chalabre, with nearby lakes, castles and stunning views of the Pyrenees, makes for a great investment!
Your essential guide to facilities in towns to be found north of the Loire and east of Angers. You can find details on bars, restaurants, chemists, banks, supermarkets, broadband, English-language cinema, distance to the ports and much more.
Where to buy in France now! Ready to make the move? The FrenchEntrée Property Services team reveals its top search areas – on and off the beaten track
This most sparsely populated department of Languedoc-Roussillon is rugged and mountainous but crossed by many rivers and densely forested in places, all of which lends the local gastronomy a truly unique flavour.
Justin North began his career in his native New Zealand before travelling to England to work with renowned chef Raymond Blanc. This recipe is an excerpt of his beautifully illustrated book French Lessons which is a guide to mastering French cooking
Where to buy in France now! Ready to make the move? The FrenchEntrée Property Services team reveals its top search areas – on and off the beaten track UZÈS, Gard, Occitanie A shining example of la France profonde, you’ll…
Corrèze has a rich medieval past with evidence of these times to be found throughout Correze’s towns and villages.
The eastern half of the Aveyron has been neglected. But the opening of the Sir Norman Foster-designed Millau Viaduct last year increased interest in eastern and southern Aveyron, and a boom in the property market could soon follow.
The department of Aveyron has not always been known for its property appeal but it has recently become much more popular.
Situated between the sea and the farmlands of the Avesnois and the Monts des Flandres, Nord-Pas de Calais offers an unexpected cuisine which will delight the palate of the adventurous in search of lovely culinary surprises.
This exquisite dessert takes a little time to prepare, but it is a real treat – for the eyes as well as the taste-buds.
Clare Howarth and husband Carlos ditched the bustle of Paris for Impressionists’ favourite, Picardy, 20 years ago. Today they run a thriving guesthouse. Greg Cook finds out how they created their rustic idyll in this peaceful spot
The region’s volcanic soil has helped shape every aspect of its gastronomy. From the cows that graze on it to the grapevines that are planted in it, the Auvergne produces food and drink unlike any other part of France.
From the country’s fine rustic traditions come so many varieties and styles of French cheese to choose from, that there is a fromage to suit everyone. But there are also surprising and inventive ways of using cheese in recipes.
We find out how Jacqueline Franc de Ferrière and her husband Wilfrid breathed new life into this treasured family home in the Gironde…
Plateaux of fruits de mer and delicate sweet crêpes are just some of the things we look forward to eating on most of our holidays to France.
Slice or cut the warm pudding into any shape you fancy. Pour some hot chocolate sauce over it and add a generous scattering of toasted almonds. Serve with a large scoop of the praline parfait.
