Your Weekly Voilà: How do you truly experience life in France? You buy a baguette. 😊💕🇫🇷🥖

PASSION • CREATIVITY • INSPIRATION

A baguette is a part of everyday life in France.

And bread made in France tastes like no other bread. Why? By law, a baguette can contain only four ingredients: flour, yeast, water, and salt. Nothing exotic or difficult there. But it's the process by which these four simple ingredients come together that makes all the difference in the world. The bakers are skilled at making hundreds and hundreds a day. The flour is a different variety of wheat. Bakeries have wild yeast in the air which aids in bread making. Plus, the humidity is ideal to produce the perfect baguette in most of France. You can't recreate this exact process and environment anywhere else. One bite and you know what I'm talking about.

The word "baguette" means "stick" or "wand" in French. Curiously, it also means "chopsticks." So the next time you find yourself in an Asian restaurant in France, ask for "les baguettes, s'il vous plaît." When visiting a boulangerie or bakery in France, you can request a baguette that is bien cuite (well-cooked) or pas trop cuite (not too cooked). It's a common request so don't be afraid to ask. For me, I have no idea why anyone would want a light and lifeless, doughy baguette. I'm a bien cuite girl, myself.

The history of the baguette contains many different stories. France has had a long, thin loaf of bread for some time. During the reign of Louis XIV (1638-1715), bread could be a yard or two long! Clearly, someone was overcompensating for something. The argument was a longer loaf allowed for more crust and that was a good thing for the French. It went well with the soups and stews prepared at the time. But it wasn't called a baguette.

One tradition gives the honor of inventing the current French baguette to an Austrian artillery officer, August Zang, who opened a bakery in Paris in the 1830s. (He is also credited with introducing the croissant to France. The Viennese do know good pastry.) Zang brought with him from Austria a deck oven that injected steam into the process of baking. The steam allowed the crust to expand before setting, creating a lighter loaf. Those telling the tale add that Zang's "baguette" became an overnight success.

Others wanting a more French story credit Napoleon's bakers for being the first to use the steam oven. Not sure that one stands up to historical scrutiny. Or there was a 1920 law that barred bakers from lighting their ovens before 4 am to curb night work. This one has some merit. To get fresh bread to breakfast tables, bakers used a thinner dough shape to cut the baking time. So the previous, heavier and round breakfast boule gave way to the long, thin baguette. Today, a baker is still known as a boulanger, named after the original bread shape.

The baguette did become a quick favorite amongst the Parisians. Everyone loved the new softer, lighter, crusty loaf. Bakers loved it too because it became stale so quickly, customers had to come back for more each and every day.

Voilà - an icon of French culture was born.

A good baguette should have large, irregular holes. If it has a fine, even mie (crumb), it was probably not left to rise long enough. Plus, if you see little raised Braille-like dots on the bottom, the bread was baked industrially. Avoid at all costs.

Only for petit déjeuner or breakfast do the French butter their bread. At other meals, bread is used merely as a vehicle for soaking up delicious sauce or to hold a delightful slice of cheese. Unless you are dining at a restaurant with a star or two after its name, you won't find a bread plate. The slice goes directly on the table next to you. Yep. On the table. One of those cultural things that I found difficult to get use to but now seems perfectly acceptable. (I have not yet convinced my mother.) By the by, the artisanal butter of Brittany butter maker, Jean-Yves Bordier, is sought after by the world's finest chefs. Worth every penny.

Going to the boulangerie to buy your daily baguette is a social occasion. It means you have to dress for the possibility of meeting your neighbors and most certainly having a chat with the shop owner or baker. Buying a loaf of bread is one of the best ways to experience daily life in France. Now. If you think you are going to pop in, grab your bread, and be on your way with some sort of efficiency, you might find yourself frustrated by the process. It's likely, you'll have to wait as lengthy conversations of each type of bread unfold. Perhaps, you'll be privy to conversations of how one's family is, the local happenings and upcoming events, or maybe just a simple exchange about the weather.

With each customer coming before you, there is a tête-à-tête that takes place. Don't rush it. Better to leave without your bread than attempt to hurry a time honored and culturally important routine. Enjoy it. Engage. Practice your French. Smile. Say, "Bonjour" before asking for anything.

You have to embrace the process.
For, this is truly what living in France is all about.

When in Paris, bread and pastry aficionados make a pilgrimage to the legendary bakery, Du Pain et des Idées. It's worth the trek to the 10th arrondissement to sample any of their divine treats, including the simple baguette.

Rumor has it, some folks have a bit of bread leftover at the end of the day; I have no idea of what they speak. But it has been said that one can wrap the baguette in a linen cloth or tea towel to help keep it fresh for the next day. You can also slice it, toast it, and use it as a giant crouton on top of your onion soup. Avec formage - bien sûr!

So how do you find a good baguette? Look for the boulangerie with a line out the door. That's a good first sign. Expect to pay around 1,10 euro for a good baguette. . . or a bad one for that matter. They're the same price.

More importantly, as you plan your daily list of "things to do" like buying bread, slow down. Go easier on yourself. I know that multitasking and being busy are encouraged and rewarded in many cultures. Not in France. Remember, we decide what is valued and important. No one "wins" for having the most errands run in a day. Take a page out of the "buying-bread-like-a-local-in-France" book. Be mindful. Savor the moment. Enjoy the process and not just the outcome. The iconic baguette is one of the joys of daily life in France. It has much to teach us about French culture and lifestyle and how we can find pleasure in simple daily tasks.

Take time to stop and smell the bread this weekend.

À bientôt,
Karen 😊💕✨🇫🇷🥖