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We're Not in Kansas Anymore

June 24, 2008

It's not that I have sardines on the brain or anything, but I came across the following line last night in a French food magazine:

Little children love sardine beignets sprinkled with some fleur-de-sel.

I don't know what it's like at your house, but had I handed our kid a fried sardine puff -- with or without ritzy salt -- I don't think I'd have been greeted with a grin.

Ah, those lucky French tots.  I love the thought that little ones might go from pureed peas and carrots directly to sardine beignets without stopping at Cheerios or peanut-butter sandwiches.  Of course, French children never get peanut-butter because their parents are convinced it's the root of all obesity. (I'm exaggerating only a smidgen.)  But that's a different story..


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Tags: Seafood

Categories: Potluck Posts





11 Comments

Paul. | June 24, 2008 2:10 PM | Reply

Hmmm, I love me my sardines and my beignets but I think a sardine beignet might give even this adventuresome eater a moment of pause.

Peanut butter might just be an American thing. Not to start a flame war but I remember working at a gourmet food store (in the U.S.) where Australians, loaded down with Vegemite ("Can't you get bigger jars?"), would pronounce, as they passed our display of fancy peanut butter, "Peanut butter?! That's disgusting! How you Americans can eat that...!" A chacun son gout, I suppose.

Jeannette Mara | June 24, 2008 4:13 PM | Reply

Obviously young children will eat what they are brought up on, if they've never tasted such things as peanut butter they won't have a taste for it! Unfortunately it is us adults who start them off on sweet stuff and unsuitable foods such as crisps/chips which are far too salty and addictive. Once tasted it is hard to break habits and the downward spiral in eating habits!

Greg | June 24, 2008 5:03 PM | Reply

I am so curious about your revelations about french weight vs. american. I am so burnt out on diets, superfoods, protein intake, saturated fat and your heart, on and on. What can the french teach us and can we do it in our cultural stew?
Have you read "French Women Don't Get Fat"?

izzy's mama | June 24, 2008 11:32 PM | Reply

As a former teacher at the Lycee Francais de New York, I can attest to the fact that French children do seem to eat a wider range of foods than American children. It was while working there that I decided that one day, my future child would learn to eat the same way. And so it came to be that my five year old would most likely gobble down that sardine beignet. A year ago:
http://izzyeats.blogspot.com/2007/06/sardine-scene.html

Jane | June 25, 2008 3:55 PM | Reply

As a friend of Florence whom you recently met, I have just discovered your blog. I'm an American/Canadian living in the South of France for the last 15 years. I have five kids and I do have some experience regarding childrens diets. My kids have grown up in France and they are proposed a very wide variety of foods, mostly fresh and homemade. I figure they'll come to like what they see often. My kids are big fans of rye bread, thick crusted, country sourdough. They like fish, blue cheese, artichokes, asparagus. I think in the States the foods that we eat on a daily basis are only seen on special occasions and so they don't feel comfortable with them. I also think most kids go through a difficult stage of eating when they are very young but instead of serving them only simple or sugar foods, the other ones are always present and little by little they come to like them. We all come to love what we are familiar with... a notion in psychology.

Maria | June 27, 2008 11:37 AM | Reply

I think it is important to introduce children to a wide variety of foods so they can decide what they like. I also think the longer they stay away from pre-packaged junk food the better! Let them experiece real flavors! Bring on the sardines and beignets!

Pauline | June 27, 2008 12:52 PM | Reply

Dorie,

I love your blog- I'm French but expatriated in New York so reading your blog brings me back from France a little...anyway, I used to a be a baby-sitter and I'm glad new recipes that can introduce new flavors and diversity to children are coming up.

ellen | June 28, 2008 1:34 PM | Reply

Dorie, I'm sorry but can I ask a non-sequitur question? I am sure you prefer us to stay on-topic but I am having such a hard time with my pie crusts lately! I have your blueberry pie in the oven - used your good-for-everything crust recipe. The crust looked great going into the oven. The crimps were standing up nice & tall and all looked as it should. I chilled it for 45 mins in fridge before baking. But after 15 mins in the oven, the crust was essentially melting. The sides have all fallen down, no more crimps and the top looks like it's bubbling. What did I do wrong? This has happened to me with a variety of pie crust recipes. SOS! Can you help!!???

sigrid | July 5, 2008 11:01 AM | Reply

well, if you take it the other way round, it's just that we havn't been raised on peanutbutter so it's not something we're used to buy/eat/give to our children... But, hum , actually I wouldn't be sure about the sardine beignets neither :-)

Bronwyn | July 7, 2008 12:52 AM | Reply

Don't know about sardine beignets (not totally sure I like the idea even now), but I used to love sardine sandwiches when I was a kid. I loved peanut butter sandwiches too, though the American idea of jam/jelly with it (as seen in books and comics) was very peculiar. And I'm from New Zealand - which was very conservative with respect to food in those days.

Macky | July 14, 2008 3:12 PM | Reply

I just now discovered your blog and what a nice surprise! About obesity in America, there really is no mystery. It's called hydrogenated oils, which is found in both breakfast cereals and peanutbutter. None in France.

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