The French Influence

It's hard not to think of the french on the Fourth of July.after all they supported us during hte American Revolution and gave is their best the Marquise  de Lafayette to help fight the war. Yet it's their cuisine that's had a lasting mark on the American table.

Our founding fathers from Ben Franklin to Thomas Jefferson spent time in the country namely Paris. Franklin was a notorious oenophile and had many good french vintages in his Passy home outside of Paris. Tom Jefferson was a farmer at heart and brought a variety of plants to cultivate here on his Virginia estate. He also had a French chef and made sure that Gallic fare was served during White House banquets. He introduced crepes, French fries (orignally Belgian but adopred by the French), meringues, ice cream and macaroons.By 1824 la cuisine francaise  or haute cuisine was de rigeur in the better kitchens. During America's Gilded Age  the wealthy would bring their chefs to Paris to pick up recipes and tips. They brought home such dishes as Hollandaise sauce,potatoes Lyonnaise ,omelettes souffle';s bisques and sweetbreads. it wasn't unusual to see omelets being served in South Carolina buffets or have a Mississippi paddle wheeler cooking up potatoes Lyonnaise for hungry gamblers.

We still adoreFrench cooking. Croissants are part of our lives, being sold everywhere from Dunkin Donuts to fancy patisseries. Macarons are such a part of our dessert table, being a standard now at brunches and showers. Then there are those frothy  sweet bites meringues which are fun to make. Brioche, once hard to get is everywhere. There are brioche hamburger buns and even bread companies like Sara Lee are selling brioche loaves.Of course there is Cajun  cooking coming from the Acadian area of Nova Scotia. These were from the French Canadians who were displaced after the French and Indian War and settled in Lousiana. then French owned. Cajun cooking has influenced many cooking emthods. They'r e big on barbecuing and injecting eats with liquod for fall off the bone tenderness. This was also the cuisine that gave us mirepoix or the holy trinity of Cajun cooking, bell peppers, onions and celery. Thanks to its' marriage with African cooking and ingredients its' give the Amercan table gumbo and boudin, a sausage made with sausage onion and green pepper.

The French have long been a facvtor in the American experiment. However it's their cooking that is a big part of our lives. It has been a strong influence for over three centuries.