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The town, named Gignac, has about 5000 people, living in a typical southern French village (think: winding streets too narrow to fit a car, and houses with red tiled roofs grouped around a central square where much of the village life still occurs). It’s only claim to fame? Beating back an invasion by the Sarrasins in the year 719 (yes, their memory is that long). Legend has that that a donkey named Martin woke up the villagers, warning them of the impending attack; his role is still celebrated every year by the villagers, who parade a larger-than-life papier-mâché donkey through the village. He even appeared, this year, at the ‘entertainment’ offered at school lunchtimes; like many schools in France, children are treated to a set of cultural shows at mid-day, to accompany the nearly two hour break they get at the mid-day meal. For some fun photos of what this looks like, click here.

So, what were children eating in Gignac this week?

As usual, the meals follow a four course structure: vegetable starter; main dish with vegetable side; cheese course; dessert. All meals are served with fresh baguette (eaten plain) and water. No flavoured milk, juice, sports drinks, or pop. No vending machines. No fast food or junk food. Food for thought!

Monday, May 7th
Green salad and croûtons
Chicken drumsticks with paprika, served with green beans and parsley
Cheese: Samos (a light, creamy cheese)
Dessert: Flan with cookies

Tuesday, May 8th
Holiday

Wednesday, May 9th
Red cabbage and celery salad with vinaigrette
Beef with carrots
Cheese: Edam
Dessert: Chocolate eclair

Thursday, May 10th
Cucumber with yogurt sauce
Fish: Hake with aïoli sauce, served with potatoes and carrots
Cheese: Camembert
Dessert: Fruit Compote
* (aïoli is a traditional sauce made with olive oil, garlic, and (typically) egg)

Friday, May 11th
Lentil salad with hard-boiled eggs
Ratatouille Provençale
Cheese: Comté
Dessert: Fresh fruit

The cost for these meals? An average of €3.34 per meal (approximately $4.30). Remember, lunch is the main meal of the day for the French (approximately 40 to 50% of caloric intake), so children are expected to eat a large meal at lunch time, and a smaller meal in the evening (just like adults). This requires more time: so children typically have at least 30 minutes (if not more) to eat, and an hour to play.

This blog post is part of my French Kids School Lunch Project. Every week, I post the school lunch menus from a different village or town in France, where three-course, freshly-prepared hot lunches are provided to over 6 million children in the public school system every day. These meals cost, on average, $3 per child per day (and prices for low-income families are subsidised). My hope is that these menus (together with my other blog posts about the French approach to kid’s food) will spark a conversation about what children CAN eat, and how we can do better at educating them to eat well.

Today, Annonay has about 17,000 people, and a struggling economy, with a higher-than-average unemployment rate. In many ways, it’s typical of many smaller towns in France, confronting issues such as an aging population, and deindustrialization and competition from abroad.

So, what are French children eating in Annonay this week?

As usual, the meals follow a four course structure: vegetable starter; main dish with vegetable side; cheese course; dessert. All meals are served with fresh baguette (eaten plain) and water. No flavoured milk, juice, sports drinks, or pop. No vending machines. No fast food or junk food. Food for thought!

Note: all of the bread served at every meal and some of the vegetables in the following menus are organic.

Monday April 30th
Leeks with vinaigrette
Beef bourguignon with gratin dauphinois (scalloped potatoes baked in a béchamel (white) sauce – a French classic!)
Cheese: Whipped fromage blanc — an even lighter version of the French classic
Dessert: Kiwi

Tuesday, May 1st
Holiday (Labour Day)

Wednesday
No school French children typically have Wednesdays off for sports, arts or other activities that North Americans would usually do after school. They compensate by having a longer school day the remaining four days of the week. Children either stay at home or go to a full-day ‘recreation centre’, where lessons and outings are offered (free or at low prices).

Thursday, May 2nd
Green salad, radishes, and butter (sounds strange, but it’s the classic combination; the butter goes on the baguette, which is otherwise eaten plain)
Roast porc and pureed courgette (that’s zucchini in ‘American’!)
Cheese: Saint paulin
Dessert: Apricots in fruit syrup

Friday, May 3rd
Green beans with vinaigrette
Salmon paupiette with tarragon sauce (typically, a ‘paupiette’ is rolled and may be stuffed with delicious tidbits – likely another kind of fish and/or a cream sauce)
Pasta
Cheese: Chanteneige – a whipped form of ‘fromage frais’ (sort of like ricotta), lightly salted
Dessert: An apple

How much do these meals cost, you might be wondering? As is typical in France, parents pay according to their income. The French believe that all children have the same right to the same healthy meal–and that higher-income families should pay more than lower-income families. The lowest price is 1.26 € (Euros, or about $1.65 US), and the highest price is 4.17 € (Euros, or about $5.50 US). For the poorest families, the meals are provided for free. Food for thought, n’est-ce pas?

This blog post is part of my French Kids School Lunch Project. Every week, I post the school lunch menus from a different village or town in France, where three-course, freshly-prepared hot lunches are provided to over 6 million children in the public school system every day. These meals cost, on average, $3 per child per day (and prices for low-income families are subsidised). My hope is that these menus (together with my other blog posts about the French approach to kid’s food) will spark a conversation about what children CAN eat, and how we can do better at educating them to eat well.

What I find exciting about Ruhlman’s post is that he describes the US as a country ‘hungry for good, delicious choices’. He challenges the notion that healthy food has to be bland (the French know — and prove — otherwise). He also challenges the idea that only ‘foodies’ can appreciate good food; rather, it’s something everyone can enjoy. But it does require a little practise, and it helps to start young (which is where his mention of French Kids comes in!).

What do you think? Are we at a tipping point (just like we were with smoking a few decades ago), where there is sufficient momentum to make changes in why and how as well as what we eat — at home, in schools, and in the workplace? Or is our collective “culinary intelligence” still in its infancy?

(Read Ruhlman’s post here).

Canet is a retirees’ haven: on the Mediterranean, calm, warm, and sunny. Most of the population is older; out of 10,000 residents, less than 1000 are under the age of 18.

I was curious to find out what will meals might be like in a smaller place like Canet. To my pleasant surprise, they look wonderful. A colorful online menu is posted every week. Lots of yummy veggies, and a few new dishes I hadn’t come across yet. Read on!

As usual, the meals follow a four course structure: vegetable starter; main dish with vegetable side; cheese course; dessert. All meals are served with fresh baguette and water. No flavoured milk, juice, sports drinks, or pop. No vending machines. No fast food or junk food. Food for thought.

Monday, April 23rd
Tabouleh salad
Turkey cordon blue and spinach à la crème (much nicer than creamed spinach, trust me)
Emmental cheese – much like mild cheddar, a French classic
Fruit

Tuesday, April 24th
Grated carrots
Cassolette de poisson (seafood casserole, often with a breadcrumb topping)
St Bricet cheese
Ice cream

Wednesday, April 25th
Friand à la viande (somewhat like a Chinese vegetable roll, with vegetables and meat inside)
Roast chicken and Poêlée bretonne (sauteed vegetables)
Petit Louis – A popular (processed) dairy product for kids
Strawberries with sugar

Thursday, April 26th
Tomato salad
Beef Mironton (a sort of casserole) with green peas
Fromage blanc (Yum – somewhat like cottage cheese, but creamier)
Crème de marrons (Chestnut conserve): a traditional, delicious dessert with the consistency of custard, made with the ‘flesh’ of chestnuts, flavoured with vanilla. Typically, it is served with fromage blanc, so perhaps in this case the ‘dairy’ and ‘dessert’ courses were combined!

Friday, April 27th Italian-themed menu
Green salad
Pasta Coquillettes (tiny macaroni style pasta) with carbonara sauce
Fruit yogurt
Exotic fruit salad

The menu also offers a ‘Choice of the Week’: Beet salad with parsley (as the starter) and Pureed Squash (as the vegetable side dish)–for kids to sample or substitute.

And the menu also informs parents them of the origin of the meat (all European–important given ‘mad cow’ and other scares in England and North America).

And (this is not the first time I’ve seen this) the menu also provides some historical information on the origins of ‘carbonera’ sauce–all in the spirit of educating kids about all aspects of food. Turns out ‘carbonera’ means ‘charbonnière’ (coal miner); was this a sauce originally eaten by Italian coal miners in the Alps? Va savoir!

This blog post is part of my French Kids School Lunch Project. Every week, I post the school lunch menus from a different village or town in France, where three-course, freshly-prepared hot lunches are provided to over 6 million children in the public school system every day. These meals cost, on average, $3 per child per day (and prices for low-income families are subsidised). My hope is that these menus (together with my other blog posts about the French approach to kid’s food) will spark a conversation about what children CAN eat, and how we can do better at educating them to eat well.