17 January 2010

Daylight

At this date the sun comes up in Saint-Aignan at 8:32 a.m. and doesn't go down again until 5:32 p.m. That's nine full hours of sunlight — or low, gray clouds, most days. We actually had a visible sunrise yesterday, but it lasted only five minutes. Then clouds moved it and blotted it out.

Yesterday's sunrise (15 January 2010) at La Renaudière

The hamlet called La Renaudière in the pink light of dawn

About endives, they are called just that in French: des endives. In America, the term endive used without modification means what is called scarole (escarole) or salade frisée (curly endive) in France. Americans call endives Belgian endive. In England, as Autolycus said, endives are called chicory and chicorée is called endive. It's all as clear as the mud all these plants grow in.

Endives — 2 kg pour 2,75 €

Belgian endive (a.k.a. chicon or witlof) leaves are also good raw in salads. They are slightly bitter so they are good combined with foods that are sweet, such as beets (beetroot, betteraves), green apples (pommes vertes), or walnuts (noix). They're good with Roquefort and other cheeses too. La salade d'endives et de betteraves is a traditional French combination, with vinaigrette.

6 comments:

  1. Hi Ken, To add to the confusing ... how about this? :^)

    Chicorée is actually the root of the plant while the witlof or the endives are the leaves ... same as with the ordinary beetroot or 'navet' or radish. In this case, however, the leaves are the best part of the plant, while the roots are either thrown away or ground and dried. The dried root is used as a substitude for coffee or added (in very small quantities) to ground coffee to enhance the bitter flavour of it.

    P.S.In the sixties, when my father was working as a flight engineer with Sabena, he saw witlof being sold by the 'LEAF' in Tokyo, Japan!

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  2. Okay, Martine, thanks for answering my question, which was going to be: What is the chicory that is often added to coffee (at least in New Orleans, here in the U.S.)? So, it's the ground and dried root of what Ken braised yesterday :)) I get it! Whew.

    Ken, it's hard for me to imagine the sun not rising until 8:32! We have sunset around 5:00 or 5:30-ish in the winter, but the sun rises by 7:30... it's up by the time I get to school.

    Judy

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  3. I made the salad with endive, mango slices and an orange vinegrette.

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  4. I made an endive salad for dinner yesterday with proscuitto and avocado. Beautiful sunrise.

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  5. Thanks for the sunrise which is especially beautiful!

    I now know lots about endive and chicory, thanks too for everyone's conversations and to Ken for keeping us entertained and learning how to cook cool veggies.

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  6. I Wikepedia Diennes-Aubigny but got nothing. I was born in Nevers and raised in La Machine. Decize is a sweet little city. I went there 3 years ago with my sister, for few hours. I like the Southwest so much better where all my family resides now. (I am looking at older blogs; I have been working on a movie "Thor" since last week and don't have too much time for my favorite hobby).

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