August fulfills its promises

Or "a change is as good as a rest."

Aug 13, 2022

What a wonderful thing August is. It delivers what summer has promised—too hot, too thirsty, and too sunny to cook; lazy mornings, busy mornings, books read, and books written; gardens blooming (zinnias!) and harvested (tomatoes! green beans! and now eggplant!); ripe fruit confitures to make and jars to fill the pantry; small silly projects accomplished like framing posters and sewing cushions. All this is accompanied by liters and liters of cold chilling drinks (tea, tisanes, rosé, juice, iced coffee), finger foods, and fresh, crisp salads.

At the same time, August promises “a change as good as a rest.” With three-quarters of the year put to bed for better or worse, there is a new season to anticipate and plan for. There are the sweet/salty days and weeks of good beach weather ahead layered over the dreaded back-to-school nerves. The minute I see the ads for la rentrée (the back to school-work-non-vacation life that the French mark around August 15), I sigh a frisson of anticipation. This is the changing time when I unearth my best life-changing decisions. Curious as to what’s coming? Good! I want to share some of my thoughts on what lies ahead for Camont, me, and this “...quiet place to work.”

First—Back to School In Real Life

A few lucky guests will go ‘back-to-school’ in September as I finish and deliver the last (and much delayed by Covid) Basquelandia RoadTrip and weeklong Classic Gascony cooking course at Camont. I'm sorry if you always wanted to come and take a class with me. This is the official end of an era. many years ago, my good friend Jhon Corbin told me, “Every good day deserves to end.” And while I have fond memories of the hundreds of guests and students who have cooked with me in my Kitchen-at-Camont over the 30-plus years of teaching, I am ready to move on to new and exciting work. (see third below!)

Second—Online Classes Reboot after a Pause

The patient and loyal members of this year’s Club Camont will return to school for the final four live workshops put on hold due to my unhappy knee and the ensuing complications, which I am happy to report have been resolved, and I am almost ready. To go dancing again! At least, metaphorically. This is where you can now jump up and say, I want to go back to school, too! as live online Zoom workshop dates are now back on schedule. All the details are coming next week on the Kate Hill Cooks Online School website. Drop me a note in a comment and I’ll send the dates for all four workshops— Le Steak- a French BBQ in September, French Farmhouse Pastries in October, A Special French Friendsgiving in November, and a festive Ultimate Camp Cassoulet in December.

Third—and most excitedly, What’s Next at Camont…a quiet place to work.

Earlier this year, I announced what I hoped would be the next step in living at Camont: Artists’ Residency and Creative House welcoming writers, photographers, artists, cooks, thinkers—really anyone who craves "‘a quiet palace to work.’ I sat on this idea for years, an idea that I, too, could spend serious chunks of the day in the quiet of my quiet rooms surrounded by the quiet garden alongside a quiet canal in a quiet corner of nearly forgotten France… and write. Then born out of the devastating Covid pause in travel, I realized I wasn’t alone. And didn't want to be. There were other creative people out there who sought some inspiring and stimulating place to gather the winds of their thoughts and put them on paper, capture the tune in a song, burn an image of France onto a page, or maybe cook a plate of garden perfect haricots verts to share around a gently convivial table. This is what I hungered for myself—a bubble of positivity in a scary world to share with a few like-minded people.

Since the Spring, a dozen creatives have spent a week or two underneath the tiled roofs of Camont along the gently flowing canal. It’s a good beginning. I see how each hour I spent tending the garden or arranging a reading nook or a well-lit workspace has allowed kindred spirits to work on their own stories. Heartened by the response and encouragement, I open the door to my creative self and the need for time and silence in which to work. What could be better than when you share an idea with the world and are as inspired as inspiring others?

Interested? There are two bedrooms/studios in Le Pigeonnier open for residents for Fall 2022. In 2023, I will add a third charming off-the-grid space—La Cabane, for those craving an unplugged experience. Read here for more information on the website.

#AperoAugust

Meet Le Kir’s Rustic Cousin- Le Kir Gascon!

I’ve not jumped onto the cocktail bandwagon these last couple of years. I never felt the need. I have stayed too long in Francelandia and drunk too much good, natural wine to be seduced by strong spirits and overly sweet concoctions sipped from tiny glasses. While I enjoy a good Bourbon on the rocks with a ginger ale back from time to time or an evening Armagnac with friends, I am decidedly more lightweight these days. However, classic apéritifs fill the void when I want a bit more alcohol than straight wine, a bit more complex layering of flavors, and something as stimulating as it is satisfying. Let me introduce you to my all-time favorite house apéritif—the first thing I ever learned to drink on a giant barge called the L’Agenaise moored in the canal port of Agen— Le Kir Gascon.

A Kir Gascon is a purely fictitious riff on the classic Burgundian apéro, Le Kir, named after an early Mayor of Dijon, Father Félix Kir, who championed the regional aperitif made with Crème de Cassis and white Burgundy Aligoté wine. Simple and elegant, barely tinted and sweetened by the black currant liqueur and balanced by the acidic white wine. But when in Gascony…

Apéritif days aboard the Julia Hoyt 1990’s

When I arrived in Agen in 1988, I rescued my companions on the Julia Hoyt with enough hard-earned yacht chef wages to repair a broken transmission. Instead of the stressed-out “oh, no!” of boat life, I found them relaxed and unworried under the spell of local legend Christian Barthe, boat builder and fabled bon vivant. The expansive windows of his 39-meter péniche L’Agenaise—essentially a party boat and oversized cocktail cruiser—mirrored the peaceful canal that ran along the train tracks and vibrated the shunting of trains at the Gare d’Agen. My little 25-meter dutch barge was sistered to his boat awaiting repairs, and I realized I was outnumbered and outpoured as Christian filled yet another wine glass from a dark red pitcher and laughed his contagious laugh. “Bienvenue La Kate! Eh voila! Pas de problems ici en Agen! Salut, Santé et Bonheur!”

With the first taste of the chilled red wine strongly fortified with Crème de Mûres (blackberry liqueur), I understood my friends’ “Who cares?” attitude. Strong, sweet, tannic, and fruity, this Kir Gascon was the larger-than-life version of the gentile Burgundian drink. Maybe the 15% local red wine had something to do with it. Maybe the homemade blackberry liqueur made with Armagnac. Served by the pitcher rather than a small glass, I quickly caught up with the spirit of “all for one and many for all!”

It was not long before I learned to maneuver the barge's bow into the overgrown blackberry banks so we could pick and fill buckets of sun-sweet blackberries. What a sweet memory of all those days and long evenings along the canal as August ripens on the blackberry brambles. It’s a perfect time to make a quick Summer Apéro to share with friends. If you haven’t the time or the berries to make a whole bottle of Crème de Mûres, you can muddle a few ripe berries with a tablespoon of sugar in a glass and pour over some chilled red wine. The taste of Summer!

Recette: Crème de Mûre for a Kir Gascon

500g Blackberries (preferably wild)
750ml alcohol (80 proof or 40°)- use Armagnac for a true Gascon flavor.
400 sugar
200ml water

Pick some wild ripe blackberries.
Place in a bowl and smash with a fork.
Add a bottle of clear alcohol and leave overnight.
The next day: prepare a syrup of sugar and water. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is clear.
Strain the blackberries, conserve the alcohol; add the blackberries to the syrup.
Simmer for 5 minutes or so.
Strain the syrup through a fine sieve or filter. Add the alcohol and store it in a bottle with a stopper.

To make a Kir Gascon, I use about 20% Crème de Mûre to 80% of my local red Buzet wine (Merlot, Cabernet and Tannat varietals) or any hefty red. Serve on ice or chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. It’s perfect with summer melons and charcuterie.