Voulez-vous être Parfumée?

Here is something I love in France:  When you go into any shop selling make-up or perfume, before you depart, Madame the sales clerk will always ask, "Voulez-vous être parfumée?" (Do you want to be ‘perfumed’?).  She puffs a cool cloud of scent into the air around you.  You walk out with an invisible aura of rose or honeysuckle, cinnamon or lavender.

Such a beautiful expression, to be parfumé. (An aside:  we may have the only cat in Burgundy who is parfumé on a daily basis.  Domino has a maison secondaire in the neighborhood, where he is as adored as he is chez nous.  His  ‘second mom’, Viviane, like every proper French femme, is very fond of her perfume.  So I know where that little devil Domino has been after an extended absence—he’s been cuddling with Viviane, and he’s parfumé to prove it).   PHOTO:  The rakish Domino, parfumé and ready to party.

The French are of course known for their fabulous perfume houses, and the fields  of flowers grown in Provence to create the scents.  Last spring when we were visiting the charming hilltop town of Eze-Village near Nice, my friend Joan and I spotted a sign that advertised a factory tour of the well-known perfume line, Fragonard.  Which happens to be my favorite, as much for their beautiful packaging as for their gorgeous scents.  We quickly abandoned the guys and off we went. 

We learned about the elite perfumers who construct the fragrances.  Known as ‘Noses’, they train for seven years and can distinquish between thousands of scents.  We smelled a few concentrated scents of various flowers to test our own noses.  We watched them mold the pretty soaps.  We learned about the 3000 year history of perfume and marveled over their collection of antique vases, jars, and pomanders.

 And of course—we were parfumée-ed to our heart’s content!  

PHOTOS:  Top, Delights from Fragonard, with testing strips.  Above left: rows of scents, ready for the Noses to do their magic mixing.  Below: A test for novice noses, and a new line of soaps being packaged for spring.

RECIPE:   A Fragrant Side Dish

While we’re talking of elegant matters, here’s a company side dish that qualifies.  I really like to serve rice as a side dish for guests, but how to cook it perfectly and then dress it up for a dinner party?  Europeans, by the way, often boil their rice like pasta (a technique I have not mastered but will share when I do) instead of cooking it the southern way .  But my friend Darlena taught me yet another way to make rice:  in the oven.  It’s reliable and hassle-free, and when it’s done we’re going to dress it up a bit for our guests.

The Basic Recipe:

• 1 1/2 cups regular brown rice or white rice  
• 2 1/2 cups water or broth
• 2 teaspoons butter
• ½ t. salt

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees (190C).  Place raw rice in an 8” (20 cm) square dish.  Bring water to boil with butter and salt, with pan covered (to keep amount exact).  Pour over rice in dish. Cover tightly with a double layer of foil.  Bake for one hour.  Serves 4 to 6.

Fluffing it up: 

• Darlena serves hers topped with rings of  grilled sweet onions and red peppers.  Delish and pretty, too.
• Add saffron or tumeric to white rice before cooking to make it a pretty yellow color.
• I stir in chives or sliced scallions and toasted pecans just before serving.
• Or stir in some green peas and chopped fresh herbs.
• You may have your own version of mix-ins—any ideas to share?

In the COMMENTS:  Wow!  Don't miss the comments from last week: Lots of strong opinions about French parenting and kids, vs. American. And on the dogs too! We've had everyone from expats to Americans to a French nannie check in.   The author of Bringing Up Bébé has a new book out, by the way, called Bébé Day by Day: 100 Keys to French Parenting.  While French parents and kids are far from perfect, I think Pamela Druckerman sums up very well the cultural differences in an interview this week in the New York Times: "There’s a growing conversation here {in the US} around whether it’s good for kids to be the focus of everything, and the French take it for granted that it’s not." Seeing both cultures as I do, the US has swung a bit too far toward the totally kid-centric family in my opinion.  But let me add that there is no tougher job than parenting, whichever side of the pond you live on!

NEWS:  There's a book giveaway over at Goodreads this week:  they're giving away 5 copies of my step-daughter's book about their around-the-world trip, Sailing to Jessica.  Be
sure to sign up!