The Paris Traveler

Vin Chaud and Nougat

by Kim on December 19th, 2007

   You will hear much about wine throughout this blog because…. quite simply, I love it.  All shapes and sizes, reds, whites, bubbly.  Even warm wine or as the French call it–vin chaud.  

     Two years ago while my youngest daughter and I were living in Paris, we felt the city wasn’t working as hard as it could to be Christmas-y.  Things were pretty and sparkly but in a very subtle, sophisticated way.   No nutty glitz.  There were no snowmen, Santas, reindeer or candy canes–all the things that take up residence on people’s front lawns for the month of December in the States.  Where to find this missing Christmas spirit was the question we asked ourselves.  The answer……

      Crazy, Christmas-y Strasbourg.  If this place doesn’t get you into the sprit of things, nothing will!  Every street looks like a winter fairyland and the town square is filled with traditional stalls selling all kinds of goodies, Christmas and otherwise.

     Now there’s good and bad news where Santa’s village is concerned.   We’ll start with the bad.   The temperature hovers at a brisk 20 degrees Fahrenheit (-6 Celsius).  Some of us are better equipped to handle this than others.  Me, I felt nothing the minute I walked out of my hotel.  You can’t spend too much time in one place because all blood flow will cease.   Maybe this is the good news ( I try to keep my glass half full) because to counteract the cold, these brilliant village people of old came up with the idea to heat red wine, throw in some spices, a few orange peels and voila!  Instant thaw.  Who knew?   Vin chaud stalls were everywhere–sort of like Starbucks but better.   I was in heaven.

      We started our day at 8:30am hitting the first vin chaud seller we found.   My cup was at least 16 ounces and gone before I knew it.  I was desperately trying to keep warm! Even my 15 year old daughter was able to get in on the action, with a much smaller serving, as the consumption of alcohol is not the hot button issue it is in the States.   I had a second helping which brought us to the noon hour and lunch.  Had some yummy fondue thing, a shot of coffee and we were off again.  

      But wait–is that a store filled to the brim with nougat?

      My most favorite thing in the whole world after my new discovery, hot wine?  Yes, it is and I need to go and buy at least a pound of it. And then I must proceed to eat most of it while my daughter looks on in disbelief that her mom is being this crazy nougat glutton.  It was so good…..in the moment.  

      Those of you with more self-control probably saw the writing on the wall way back.  Vin chaud and nougat are great,  just not together!   Or maybe they are a nice pairing, in moderation.  This holiday, I think enough time has passed from that crazy Strasbourg day and I can revisit the vin chaud and nougat combination in my home.  At least, I am going to try.   Below is a very nice recipe for the fantastic warm concoction and good French nougat can be found at www.artisansweets.com.  Enjoy!  Let me know how it goes for you.  

 Ingredients

• 2 bottles of Beaujolais
• 1 cup of cassis
• 1 Tbs orange zest
• 1 Tbs lemon zest
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 5 whole cardamom pods
• 5 whole cloves
• 6 allspice berries (or 1/2 tsp ground allspice)
• 1 tsp nutmeg

Directions 

1. Pour the wine and csassis in a large pot.
2. Add the orange zest, lemon zest, and all spices.
3. Heat the wine until it just begins to simmer.
4. Lower the heat and allow to steep with the spices for 20-30 minutes.
5. Serve in punch cups or mugs. You may wish to garnish with lemon slices and cinnamon sticks        

 Additional Information:

http://travel.nytimes.com//2007/02/04/travel/04next.html 

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POSTED IN: Outdoor Activites