Annette Charlton | A French Collection

French Salted Butter Cookies (Sablé Breton)

French Salted Butter Cookies (Sablé Breton)

If there's one dessert or sweet that makes me feel most at home in Brittany it's the little French salted butter cookies, the Sablé Breton. They are always included in our first grocery shop that we do when making our way to our village home in Côtes d'Armor after arriving in France from Australia.

With their delicate thin serrated shape and hint of salt, the Sablé Breton makes me think of the wild, but beautiful sea that borders the coastline of Brittany. This is because the biscuits are made with sea salt from our region, the famous Fleur de Sel salt.

Fleur de Sel

French Fleur de Sel is collected off the coast of Brittany and sold around the world for its prized subtle flavour. The largest production and collection of the salt is from the towns of Guérande (called Fleur de Sel de Guérande), Noirmoutier, and Île de Ré.

Quintin – A Charming French Town

Quintin is a charming French town southwest of Saint-Brieuc city, and is only a short drive from our village. The smallish town has lots to offer to visitors with its blend of old-world charm and modern attractions. Quintin is built in the heart of the scenic “Le Gouët” river valley and is set on a hill perpetually overlooking the serene waters of Étang de Quintin (Quintin Lake).

Quintin - A Charming French Town

Situated between Armor and Argoat, Quintin, which was a fortified town and the centre of the Marian cult, boasts thirteen classified historic monuments. That's a lot of historical monuments for one small town!

It's architecturally rich urban heritage, which is principally the legacy of two centuries of prosperity arising from the manufacture of linen, is what makes it so attractive.

Saint Honoré Day or Bread Day

Saint Honoré the Patron Saint of Bakers and Pastry Chefs

France is rather special in that it holds dear to its customs and has a rich tradition of assigning saints as special guardians and protectors of just about every aspect of our lives. There is even a patron saint of bakers and pastry chefs called Saint Honoré.

Saint Honoré is the saint or protector of all bakers and pastry chefs and with just about every village or town boasting at least one boulangerie (bakery), and cities with substantially more, Saint Honore is indeed a very busy Saint!

Place des Vosges – The Oldest Square in Paris

Place des Vosges - The Oldest Square in Paris

Place des Vosges is famously one of the most elegant residential squares in Paris. It’s an exclusive and much sought after address with its distinctive red and sand coloured stone and tile matching buildings, with large windows that overlook its beautiful enclosed park.

While living in this prestigious and glamorous Square is not possible for the majority of us; the park with its fountain, playground, large trees and manicured lawns are available for anyone to enjoy. Peaceful all year round, but particularly charming in spring and autumn, I love to visit Place des Vosges when in Paris.

Gifts for Francophiles

Recently shopping for a wedding gift for friends, I was initially surprised to see all the Christmas decor on display, but then I realised that Christmas and the holidays aren't too far away at all. So I got busy and prepared this post for you.

Christmas Gifts for Francophiles

Gift idea posts are some of the most fun posts I write, usually before Easter and Christmas each year. They are all about sharing, having fun together and gift giving ideas for your family, friends, business colleagues and everyone in between!

European Heritage Day – Journées du Patrimoine

European Heritage Day - Journées du Patrimoine

Have you ever wanted to look behind the closed doors of French government and wander the corridors of normally closed châteaux?

Well you can, on each third weekend of September during the annual Journées du Patrimoine, or European Heritage Days. Over the weekend the public are welcome to explore some of France's most exclusive locations as part of the 'portes ouvertes' (open doors) event that takes place across Europe.

Ratatouille Recipe

Ratatouille Recipe - A Perfect Autumn Food

Bonjour mes amis, and welcome to another recipe post. Ratatouille is the quintessential French vegetable dish that's colourful, healthy, easy to make and delicious. You may have seen recently on our socials, Instagram or Facebook, that we shared how we cooked Ratatouille to celebrate the arrival of all our new copper pots and the start of autumn in France.

Ratatouille seemed an obvious choice to mark the autumnal equinox with its rich fall colours, pleasingly reflecting in the copper pan, and yummy flavour. I think the colours of courgettes, zucchini, onions, tomatoes and yellow peppers mixed together are reminiscent of autumn. What do you think?

Far Breton – An easy & delicious recipe from Brittany

Far Breton - an easy & delicious recipe from Brittany

Okay, so you want to eat something sweet that's easy to cook, doesn't have fancy ingredients and is very French? Then Far Breton is just what you want. It's the great French classic #2. Far Breton comes in at #2 after Kouign Amann which is the big #1 dessert of Brittany.

Far Breton in its authentic version contains prunes because sailors used to bring back dried prunes from their voyages and prunes added a fruity touch to the cake. You can also add a touch of rum or raisins to add more flavour. This recipe serves 8.

French Salted Butter Cookies (Sablé Breton)

French Salted Butter Cookies (Sablé Breton)

Fleur de Sel

Quintin – A Charming French Town

Quintin - A Charming French Town

Saint Honoré Day or Bread Day

Saint Honoré the Patron Saint of Bakers and Pastry Chefs

Place des Vosges – The Oldest Square in Paris

Place des Vosges - The Oldest Square in Paris

Gifts for Francophiles

Christmas Gifts for Francophiles

European Heritage Day – Journées du Patrimoine

European Heritage Day - Journées du Patrimoine

Ratatouille Recipe

Ratatouille Recipe - A Perfect Autumn Food

Far Breton – An easy & delicious recipe from Brittany

Far Breton - an easy & delicious recipe from Brittany

PRESS & MEDIA

Follow Us

GET OUR NEWSLETTERS

JOIN ME IN FRANCE ON INSTRAGRAM

afrenchcollection