Sarlat Market + French Market Sacks
• 22 October 2009
Not fifteen minutes from Beynac stands the pretty Medieval town of Sarlat...it's a good-sized town with a an equally good-sized food market. While there we found out this market is one of the most famous food markets in France and a few hundred years old. I relished attending the market whenever I could get away and I'm glad I did because now I miss it a lot.
When I took a cooking class DaniƩle last year, she taught me that when you go to a French market, you should only buy produce/products from the producteur him/herself. Look for the dirty pants or stained knees...the homemade labels...the smaller selection. These are the signs that the person selling you the item actually produced the item. In a nutshell, the best finds come from the producteurs themselves. I tried to adhere to her advice and stayed away from those pre-printed labels :)
Another fun aspect of French marketing is the packaging. Many producteurs, namely those selling berries, place your fruits and vegetables in these cute little bags upon purchase. Since I am a total sucker for thoughtful packaging and anything kraft brown, I feel hard and fast for these little guys. By the end of the Summer my French improved enough that I was able to ask a woman selling berries where she purchased her bags (it was huge for me to get past just "bonjour"!). She mentioned the name of the town, but not the location so it took awhile to figure out just where to find them...but it magically happened one day and voila...here they are in my shop. Fill them with apples, little gourds or even muffins; tie them with string (included) and deliver to friends and neighbors. It's a fun way to present something very simple.
These sacks are SO darling (I'm a sucker for kraft brown and twine too). How big are they? It's hard to tell from the picture.
ReplyDeleteThose are so sweet, I love paper packages.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived in Paris there was a market just 1/2 block away from my apartment. It was amazing to have access to so much fresh food. And I loved those little brown bags, too.
ReplyDeleteThose tomatoes...and those figs...yum!
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