Weekend Cooking: Two South American films

I love a foreign film festival. We have a cinema chain here who has a steady stream of them from British to German and French, Scandinavian and so much more. Recently, it has been the Spanish and Latin American film festival, and two of the films that I have seen have had a foodie connection, one more than the other.

Let's start with the second movie we saw which is a Peruvian film called Mistura.

When a society woman's husband leaves her for a younger woman, she is left with the mortgage for the house and no idea how she is going to make ends meet. This is 1960's Peru, and upper class women do not work but she only has four months to come up with a plan. Her reputation is already damaged enough because of the scandal associated with recent events.

Nora's father was the French ambassador and he loved to cook and Nora loved to learn from him. She has a recipe book where she recorded the recipes he shared. After being initially distraught and retreating to her bedroom to smoke and drink, her driver Oscar convinces her to try cooking again, and from there she decides to to open a classical French restaurant in the room that used to be her husband's studio.

Whilst the reviews for her restaurant were good, the people did not come. It was only once a customer asked for a ceviche that things began to turn around. Whilst Nora didn't initially have an appreciation for the food of her adopted country, her team members began to share their own comfort food. Will changing the focus be enough to save her house. 

This is one of those films which is filled with images like a lemon being juiced in slow motion, and sauce being stirred slowly. In other words, this is a food porn movie. I don't know a lot about Peruvian food, but I did leave the cinema wishing that I could try some.

It wasn't only food that was focussed. This was set in Lima and so we got to see what I imagine would be key events in Peruvian history, we got to see the amazing cliffside of Lima, and Nora's 60s fashion was amazing!

If I am going to be a bit critical, there's one aspect of the story which was telegraphed from quite early in the movie and I don't know that it really needed to be in the movie, but it was! But the food and fashion more than made up for it! I would definitely watch it again if I happened across it

Here's the trailer:

The first film my friend and I saw was called Nothing Between Us and explores an affair which happens at a corporate conference between a Mexican man, Guillermo, played by Gael García Bernal and a Uruguyan woman named Mechi played by Natalia Oreiro.

The two work in different regions in South America but are bought together in Baja California in Mexico due to a commerical crisis for the large company they work for. For Mechi it is something of a surprise that she was invited, and it gives her a break from a crumbling marriage and a sullen and rebellious daughter. Guillermo has his own issues at home where he feels distant from his wife and son.

On the first night, they meet by chance on the beach in the middle of the night and soon they begin an illict affaiir which they must keep secret from their colleagues, and of course their respective families. Their connection is strong and immediate and over the course of the few days they are drawn together time and again.

You may be wondering what the food aspect is here. It is a company that produces canned foods and they have been caught up in a case of food poisoning which has left hundreds of people ill or dead. At first the CEO seems to think that just an apology will do but soon the group that is sequestered together must come up with some other strategies to deal with the crisis and rebuild the confidence of the public. It is an interesting glimpse into that kind of world.

Whilst I ddin't love this movie, it was interesting enough, and the scenery looked amazing!

Here's the trailer

Weekly meals

Saturday - Away 
Sunday - Chicken, Chorizo and Orzo
Monday - Pork Chops, mash, broccoli and gravy
Tuesday - French Onion Rigatoni (new)
Wednesday - Pork nachos
Thursday -
Friday -

A note on the future of Weekend Cooking

I love doing Weekend Cooking and have no plans to stop. I often have Weekend Cooking posts planned weeks in advance and don't often run out of content. However, as an event there are really only a couple of us who are linking up each week so going forward I am not going to worry about putting in Mr Linky or the whole banner and blurb thing. 

Please feel free to continue to add your link in the comments if you want to.

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking: Le assaggiatrici (The Tasters)

 

In 2012  a German woman named Margot Wolk shared a story that before then was unknown. She claimed that she was one of a group of 15 women who were forced to be the taste testers for Hitler's food, and that she was the only one of the women to survive the war. Some have cast doubts on the story, but whether it is true or not, it does make for an interesting tale. Le Assaggiatrici is an Italian movie which tells that story.

Rosa is a young woman who moves to a small town in what is now Poland to live with her in-laws. Her husband is a solder. They have been married 4 years but in that time she has only seen him for a few weeks as he has been off fighting the war. The letters have become at first infrequent and now non-existent so she is not sure if he is alive or not.

Not long after arriving, there is a knock at the door and Rosa is ordered to board a bus by soldiers. She doesn't know why or where she is going or who the other women already on the bus are. The women on the bus arrive at a facility where they are taken to a dining room where they are ordered to eat. At first the women are reticent, but food is food. It is only after they have eaten that they are told that they have now been conscripted to be the tasters of Hitler's food as the Fuhrer is paranoid of being poisoned.

Each day they are bought to the dining room and they have to eat. They then have to wait for a prescribed period of time to see if they are ill after eating. Only then will the chef give the all clear for the food to be presented to Hitler. It is easy how this could absolutely affect your mind. After all, if someone is going to try to poison him, you could also be poisoned. The guards are very alert, and even if you aren't hungry, or not feeling well for other reasons, you must still eat or face the consequences.

At first, the women are wary of each other, especially of Rosa who is an outsider. These women are doing the best they can to survive a brutal war, to raise children, and for those who are single hoping for the opportunity to find love. Some of the women are also trying to keep their secrets safe, some more successfully than others. Over the course of the film, the dynamics between the women shift constantly from rivals, to uneasy friendships and strong bonds.

I wasn't sure about one aspect of the film which is when Rosa began a passionate secret affair with one of the lieutenants who was in charge of the group. It did add additional tension into the movie but it did seem like an odd decision. 

As the war progresses, the desperation of the soldiers increases as well as the fear of what will happen  if and when the Russians arrive.

This is a WWII movie which focuses predominantly on the experience of a group of women, which makes it unusual given that so often women are on the outside of the story. It is based on a bestselling book called The Wolf at the Table by Rosa Postarino

This movie was originally shown here as part of the German Film Festival in 2025. However, I missed it then so I was pleased when I saw it as one of the options on the plane when I was travelling recently and that I took the opportunity to watch it! I quite often watch foreign movies on planes. Given that we are travelling again soon it will be interesting to see what I find to watch on these flights!

Here's the trailer

Weekly meals

Saturday -  Away
Sunday - Away
Monday - Tomato and Paneer Curry and rice (new)
Tuesday - Spicy Pork and Beans Noodle stir fry 
Wednesday - Grilled cheese on toast
Thursday - Enchiladas 
Friday - Swedish Meatballs and mash

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking: The Golden Spurtle

 

When we visited Scotland a couple of years ago, we visited the border town of Jedburgh on our way to Hadrian's Wall. We wandered through the town and made our way to visit Mary Queen of Scots House which was very interesting. Of course, whenever you visit tourist attractions you have to exit via the gift shop and while we were there we bought a spurtle. The woman in the shop insisted that our porridge will taste even better than it normally does. To be honest, we have had many bowls of porridge since then but I don't think we have ever used the spurtle. What is a spurtle? Apart from being a fun word to say, it is a wooden implement that is used to stir porridge. I was intrigued when I saw that there was a movie coming out called The Golden Spurtle and so I dragged my husband to see it with me. He only came under sufferance but we both enjoyed it!

When you travel, you often come across small towns that are making big claims like home of raspberry jam, or best tomatoes in the world. Back in the 1990s the small town of Carrbridge in the Scottish Highlands was looking for something to differentiate itself. They wanted something very Scottish and so the World Porridge Championships were born.

Sometimes people get obsessed with something unusual and this movie is testament to this. I would never have expected people to get obsessed with porridge. Now when I think of porridge, I think of winter mornings, creamy oats, made with milk and topped with little blobs of butter and sugar. But for the people who take porridge very seriously, they would probably be horrified at that description. For the purists, porridge consists of just three ingredients - oats, salt and water.  

This documentary focusses equally on both the organisers of the competition but also the competitors. Among the competitors we meet an Australian chef, Toby Wilson. We follow him from Sydney as he practices his technique through to the community hall in picturesque Carrbridge where the competition is held. We also meet returning champions, the ultra competitive health food shop owner, other international competitors and the man who is returning to the competition after a 15 year break. We hear about their dedication to finding the perfect oats to cook, and the techniques they practice at length to get the texture and taste just right. There are rivalries and friendships, secrets, obsessions, controversies and ceremonies. 

As interesting as the competitors and the competition are, if you had to pick just one of the stories, it is probably that of the chieftain Charlie Miller. He has been leading the organisation of the event for 30 years but this is his last time as he is retiring due to ill-health. He is ably backed by the rest of the organising committee who grapple with the logistics of an event that seems to have almost outgrown the venue. Other members of the committee include the woman who is charged with washing all the pots (not my favourite thing to do after cooking porridge) to the person organising all the flags of the competitor's nations, sound and video links, dealing with the Scottish weather and so much more. 

It's probably a bit of cliché, but the word charming absolutely applies. This documentary is funny, heart warming and offbeat, and definitely worth checking out. Just finishing this post makes me wish I could watch the movie again! It comes to streaming here next week so maybe I could make that happen!

Oh, and our spurtle is only made of wood, not gold! What I did learn from this movie is that we need to make sure that we stir our porridge in the right direction. Apparently, if you stir in an anti-clockwise direction. you let the devil in!

Here's the trailer

Weekly meals

Saturday - Roast pork, crispy potato galette, cauliflower cheese
Sunday -  Honey Chicken and Rice
Monday -  Beef and Broccoli Noodles
Tuesday - Thai Chicken Meatballs with rice (new)
Wednesday - Japanese Pork Curry
Thursday - Takeaway
Friday - Takeaway

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking: Grande Maison Paris

Last week I went to watch a Japanese movie that is set in Paris called Grande Maison Paris at a local cinema. I was actually very surprised to see this movie showing, but it turns out that this particular cinema complex shows quite a lot of foreign films, which is unusual for one of the big chains! Most of the films were Indian but I will keep an eye out to see what else they show as it was pretty easy to get to!

The movie opens when we see Japanese chef Natsuki Obana getting a phone call to tell him that he has maintained his two Michelin star rating. Whilst you would think that is something to be celebrated, he is devastated as he has been striving for years to get a very rare 3rd Michelin star for his Paris restaurant. If he had of been successful, he would have been the first Asian chef to achieve this in Paris. The chef is not the only person who is disappointed either. His team have worked very hard for him, and take the news badly.

Chef Obana and his team are cooking for a very fancy dinner and for various reasons a number of things go wrong. One of the guests is his main backer who subsequently calls him in and tells him that he is ending his lease, and that he has another chef lined up to take over the space. Obana makes a deal. If he can get a three star review from Michelin, he can stay. If he cannot, then the restaurant will close and he will return to Japan.

Obana leads a talented, multinational team in his kitchen, but he isn't always a great leader. He doesn't listen to the people around them, or their ideas and this soon leads to a clash with his sous chef, Rinko, which leads to her leaving the team. It turns out that Rinko is the one with the interpersonal soft skills and her leaving causes the team dynamics to change.

Part of the issue for the restaurant is that, being outsiders, it is often difficult for them to get the best ingredients from the suppliers. Often, they are are told that the best quality ingredients are only available to the top restaurants in the city which is very frustrating when you are trying to get to be one of those restaurants. Sometimes, the market traders pretend they cannot understand the orders. 

In reaction to the deal he has made, Obana determines that the only way that he is going to achieve what he is striving for is to be almost more French than the French, despite his team telling him that he should be using their uniqueness as a way to shine.

There are ups and downs as Obana is threatened with closure several times, with interpersonal relationships being strained and one of the team members bringing their personal issues close to causing a tragedy.

It is only as Obana begins to work with his team, instead of dictating to them, and brings more of himself and his team to the food that he is creating, that he begins to see what the possibilities might be for the future.

If you need no other reason to watch this movie, then watch it for the food porn! Oh my goodness, there is so much delicious looking and sounding food in this movie! Obviously, given that the storyline is about striving for that third star, we are talking very, very high end food, but the way that the dishes are put together on the screen, the cooking and plating sequences! So beautiful. It is probably best not to go and see this when you are hungry.

One of the key messages is about French cuisine itself, about how it continues to evolve into something new. Yes, there are the classics but there is also room for new ideas, concepts and tastes, as long as your get it right!

Interestingly, I have only just learned that this movie is actually a spin off from a very successful Japanese TV series called Grande Maison Tokyo. Learning this has given me an a-ha moment as there is a point in the movie where we see the Tokyo restaurant and I was a bit perplexed as to why that would be! It also explained a couple of the tangents in the movie which added some drama but I found myself wondering why it needed to be there. I am definitely going to see if I can find the TV show to watch!

I really enjoyed watching this movie, especially for the food elements, and I was cheering on the team from Grande Maison Paris right to the end!

I have watched several things over the last few months that have a French/Japanese crossover. I watched a movie called Umami which starred Gerard Depardieu as a French chef who nearly dies and decides to just disappear to Japan to look for an old rival. Another movie I watched was Sidonie in Japan about a French author who goes to Japan on a book tour and keeps on seeing the ghost of her husband. I also started watching a series on AppleTV called Fools Gold. I must get back to that and finish watching it. 

Here's the trailer for Grande Maison Paris

I am sharing this with Paris in July hosted by Emma at Words and Peace.

Weekly meals

Saturday - Chicken enchiladas
Sunday - Roast beef and vegetables
Monday - Pork chops, mash, broccoli and gravy
Tuesday - Out for dinner
Wednesday - Chicken Stir Fry
Thursday - Beef Casserole pie
Friday - Chicken and broccoli pasta bake

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking: Tucci in Italy and Nonnas - Italian Food!

I have a bit of a problem at the moment in that I have more Weekend Cooking posts than I have Saturdays available to post them on. I do, however, have a spare Sunday so today I am going to share another food related post, just because I can. That does make three for this weekend but that's okay

Tucci in Italy

In the last few years, I have become a big fan of Stanley Tucci. I have watched both of TV series, watched movies, and he personally read both of his audiobooks directly to me (or at least it fell to me). In his most recent book, What I Ate in One Year, there was a running joke through it about whether his TV series where he features the food and regions of Italy would find a new home, and if so what would it be called. 

It turns out that the series would be called Tucci in Italy and it would be shown on the National Geographic channel, and we binge watched it recently! 

It is very similar in concept to Searching for Italy which was originally shown on CNN. Stanley goes to a particular region of Italy, talks to them about their food, history and customs. Everyone he meets falls under his spell (I mean, I would too) and he loves everything that he eats, and then he moves onto the next place. 

Stanley visits five regions in Tucci in Italy.  Some of them are places he has been before, and others are new. The places are Tuscany, Lombardy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Abruzzo and Lazio. I was particularly interrested in the Trentino-Alto Adige which is a region in the very north of Italy. Some parts of the region are also called South Tyrol. Over the years it has sometimes been part of Austria and sometimes Italy, so it has a very particular language, food and style that it different to the rest of Italy. I had recently read a book that was set there so I think that was part of why it interested me so much!

I think the production values for this series are probably a bit more restricted than they were for the CNN show. The sound isn't quite as full, the subtitles are more obvious...just small things. For the most part though, it is more of the same captivating TV.

I guess the big difference for this series compared to the other show is that in order to watch it again I will need to go search it out specifically.  For the original series, it is shown repeatedly on one of our cable channels and if I see that the show is on then I will often start watching it, no matter which episode it is and what part of the episode we are at.

Now, we wait to see if there will be more episodes of Tucci in Italy. I really hope so.

Coincidentally, as I was writing this post I found a video of Stanley Tucci hosting a dinner with F1 Carlos Sainz, presenter Tan France and Spice Girl Melanie C, all answering questions about their lives and food including a crisp sandwich.  It was a lot of fun! Check it out here! The series is called Cards on the Table and I am looking forward to watching more episodes. It looks like there are a few episodes available everywhere.

Nonnas

A recent Netflix movie release, Nonnas stars Vince Vaughan, Susan Sarandon, Lorraine Bracco and Linda Cardenelli amongst others. It tells the story of a man named Joe Scaravella who inherits some money following the death of his mother. He reminisces about the great Italian food of his childhood, and decides to use his money to open a restaurant, despite the fact that he has no experience whatsoever. He is also trying to figure out what some of the ingredients are in some of the dishes he remembers like Sunday Gravy.

He finds an empty restaurant for sale on Staten Island and sets about refurbishing the restaurant with help from some very good friends. What he hadn't counted on was opposition from the locals who had fond memories of the previous restaurant that was there and didn't want it reopened. That doesn't really make sense as it was an empty building otherwise but people are sometimes strange, right? Thanks to support from good friends, Joe gets the restaurant ready despite some unexpected setbacks along the way.

Joe's plan is to have Italian Nonna's cook their specialities and so he puts an ad in Craigslist and his first three women come to apply. However, things don't quite go to plan when two of the nonna's don't get along due to the fact that one is from Bologna and the other from Sicily

It is touch and go as to whether the restaurant will even get off the ground, but Joe's persistence and determination mean that he is going to give it the best shot he can.

I love a movie that is based on a true story, which this one. The Staten Island restaurant which is called Enoteca Maria is still running, and there are still nonnas doing all the cooking, although these days they are from all around the world!

With humour, a touch of romance, and plenty of Italian food porn, this was a very pleasant way to pass a couple of hours.

Weekend Cooking: Widow Cliquot

I love a good film festival, and here in Melbourne, the British Film Festival has just started. As usual during this annual event, there are more films that I want to see than I can possibly find time for. However, as soon as I saw that there was a special preview for this film, I jumped at the chance to see it, and of course chose the option where we had a glass of Veuve Cliquot in hand whilst we did so.

This film tells the life-story of Barbe-Nicole Cliquot basically starting from her marriage through her widowhood as she fights to be able to continue to run the champagne business that her husband, Francois,  left her when he died and trying to raise her daughter Clementine.

The story is told in a very non-linear way. The movie opens as her husband, Francois, is being buried, and before the wake is even finished, the men from the local champagne producing families like Moet are deciding how they are going to divide up the Cliquot vineyard. However, Barbe-Nicole is having none of it. She is determined that she is going to continue the work that she and Francois started and she begs her father in law to give her a chance to prove herself. Unfortunately though, she soon comes to learn that she is facing an uphill battle, and world events are not helping her. Many of the traditional champagne markets are closed to her due to Napoleon's trade embargo, so in order to succeed she has to think outside the box. Fortunately she has her wine dealer, Louis Bohne, to assist her in this regard. And she has her own new ways of creating champagne that changed the face of the industry.

The other factor is that Napoleonic law has very strict rules about what a woman can and can't do, and it does not allow a woman to continue to operate a business if she remarries. With many of the men hoping that the Widow Cliquot does not succeed, these laws can and are used against her.

Through the mechanism of flashbacks we see how the Cliquots worked together building the vineyards facing challenges together, whilst still in the throes of young love. It is easy to differentiate between the flashbacks and current story. In the earlier story, everyone is dressed in white and it is all bright and fresh. We slowly we begin to see how Francois is struggling with his demons so the colours become a little muted, and then everything after his death is dark, everyone clothed in black for mourning clothes.

Earlier this year, I read Rebecca Rosenberg's book Champagne Widows, which also tells the story of Barbe-Nicole Cliquot, and I know that there are at least a couple of other books about her as well, including the book The Widow Cliquot by Tilar J Mazzeo, which this movie was based on. This movie didn't concentrate as much on Barbe-Nicole's childhood, including her family's connections or her "nose" which enables her to use her sense of smell as she developed her wines which we saw more about in Champagne Widows. My review of Champagne Widows is here.

I really enjoyed the performances of the three main actors. Haley Bennett effectively ran the gamut of emotions from joy to despair, from challenge to triumph. Tom Sturridge was great as the rapidly descending Francois and Sam Riley bought a devil may care attitude to the role of Louis Bohne.

This is the story of a woman who changed the way that champagne was made, who triumphed despite adversity and continues to leave her mark in the world. After all, the very name of the champagne house, Veuve Cliquot, means Widow Cliquot.

Here's the trailer

Weekly meals

Saturday - Butter chicken
Sunday - Out for dinner
Monday - Mac and cheese
Tuesday -
Wednesday - Out for dinner
Thursday - Out for dinner
Friday - Toasted ham and cheese sandwiches

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking/Paris in July: The Taste of Things (La Passion de Dodin Bouffant)

For a couple of years now, I have tried to see at least one movie at each international film festival as it comes to town. For example, recently I watched a couple of Spanish movies, and this weekend I am going to see a Danish movie. Earlier this year, it was the French Film Festival and I managed to see three movies, one of which was The Taste of Things, also known as The Pot-Au-Feu.

The Taste of Things is set in 1899 and tells the story of a passionate gourmand, by the name of Dodin Bouffant and his housekeeper Eugénie. A gournand is defined on Wikipedia as someone "who takes great pleasure and interest in consuming particularly good food and drink."  

For the first 30 minutes or so there is very little dialogue in The Taste of Things. Instead we witness a complicated but well choreographed dance as Eugénie, Dodin, her assistant Violette and a young protege named Pauline work together prepare a lavish, multiple course feast for Dodin and his group of foodie friends. During this whole scene. the only words are directional ("put the veal in the oven" for example. Other than that we watch as vegetables are chopped, broths are made, fish are poached, and love and passion are expressed in the form of food. It is food porn at it's finest.

However, whilst there is a lot of cooking in this movie, it is more than that. Dodin and Eugénie are lovers and have been for many years. He has asked her multiple times to become his wife, but she is content with life as it is and doesn't see the need to change. The life that they have is very comfortable. They live in a gorgeous chateau, where Eugénie oversees the growing of the freshest ingredients.

No matter how content people may be, time passes and things change, and so it is for Dodin and Eugénie. When the latter becomes unwell, it is Dodin who takes care of her and who has to face into a life without her.

This movie was the French submission for the Oscars last year and won a couple of French awards as well, and you can see why. It is a beautifully shot, very emotive story and the two stars shine on the screen. It is interesting that Juliette Binoche and Benoît Magimel are former partners and share a daughter. I am not sure I could work with my ex for months on end. Actually, I 100% could not work with my ex under any circumstance. 

If you like food, or you like French movies, or indeed if you like both, watch this movie!

I am sharing this post with my fellow participants in Paris in July, hosted by Emma at Words and Peace.

Weekly meals

Saturday - Out for dinner
Sunday -Chicken Kiev, Mash, Broccoli and Gravy
Monday - Beef and Broccoli Noodles
Tuesday - Work dinner
Wednesday - Chicken Stir Fry and rice
Thursday - Butter chicken and rice
Friday - Takeaway

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking/Paris in July: Sugar and Stars (À la belle étoile)

I have mentioned a few times now about how I am trying to see at least one film from the various foreign film festivals that are held in Melbourne each year. Earlier this year, there were so many films at the French Film Festival that I would have liked to have seen, but I didn't have enough time. I am therefore very glad that they have had a wider release and I have been able to see a couple more. A couple of weeks ago I went off to see Driving Madeline and last weekend I went to the movies by myself to see Sugar and Stars. There were only a 4 people in the cinema, but the theatre complex was busy with most people opting to see the Barbie movie! Lots of people dressed in pink!!

So many times we hear about how sport has lifted someone out of poverty. In this case, it was food, in particular pastry, that was the mechanism. Our story begins with a small boy who we meet as he is helping himself to the ingredients that he needs to make a cake for his mum. We watch Yazid grows up. His childhood is tough. His mother is neglectful and he spends a number of years being cared for by a foster family who encourage his love of cooking but he ends up in what looks like a reform school. The one passion that keeps him going is his love of pastry and he is going to do everything he can, even if it means having to catch  a train 180km to get to a job every day.

Yazid is obsessed. In order to keep a job he has to create an amazing looking black forest dessert that's created by a master pastry chef. He doesn't get it exactly right the first time but the chef sees enough there to keep him on the job. Yazid then practices and practices until he has it perfect in every way. This attention to detail holds him in good stead, but there are times when he experiences racism and bullying in the kitchens he works in. His economic situation doesn't help. At one stage he is working in a top restaurant in the south of France and yet he is sleeping on the beach.

This is the story of a man who chased his dream, all the way to the top, culminating in participating in the International Pastry Championships. Once you work out who is who in the movie, it is an uplifting and inspiring story, made even better by the fact that it is based on a true story. The movie is based on the autobiography by Yazid Ichemrahen, and at the end we get to see the pictures of the actual chef whose story we have just seen. Any movie that you see that has a part where you get to find out what happens next to the real people involved is always better in my mind.

For all that the story is good, the food porn in this film is pretty amazing. From eggs being dropped into flour, to melting chocolate, gorgeous fruit, and amazingly beautiful creations that look so extravagant and beautiful it is a visual delight!

I am sharing this post for Weekend Cooking but also for Paris in July hosted by Emma at Words and Peace.

Weekly meals

Saturday -  Baked Ratatouille and Beans

Sunday -  Smoky Sausage and Rice

Monday - Chicken Shwarma

Tuesday - Pork chops, mash, beans and gravy

Wednesday - Pressure cooker spag bol

Thursday - Cheese on toast

Friday - Takeaway

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Top Ten Tuesday: Foodie TV and movies

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the them

e is Non-book Freebie so I decided to talk about foreign movies.

The whole point of this post at the beginning was to talk about a movie called Language Lessons which I watched a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed. Then I started putting my list together and realised that I could easily make a list of ten which are all about food! So here are ten foreign foodie TV series or movies I have enjoyed. 

Midnight Diner (Japan) - I have watched a season and a half of this. Every now and again I think I should watch more. (Review here)

Foodie Love (Spain) - I binged watched this during lockdown (Review here)

Tuesday Club (Sweden) - I watched this as part of the Scandinavian Film Festival and really enjoyed it! (review here)

Babette's Feast (Sweden) - Something of a foodie film classic. (Review here)

The Perfect Dinner (Italy) - I saw this one as part of the Italian Film Festival last year. (Review here)

The Recipe (Korea) - This was one of the earliest foreign movies I posted about on this blog. (review here)

The Tasting (France) - My most recent French Film Festival movie. I saw this a couple of weeks ago and just posted about it last weekend. (review here)

Delicious (France) - This is supposedly the story of the first restaurant although I am not sure how historically correct it is! (review here)

Kings of Pastry (France) - These days I watch Bake Off:  The Professionals to see amazing creations like the ones in this, but these were next level. (review here)

Romantics Anonymous (France) -  I have probably watched this movie 3 or 4 times over the years. It is a lovely film (review here)

Oh, and watch Language Lessons. It was good!

I will be sharing this post with Weekend Cooking which I host here each Saturday.

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weeking Cooking: The Tasting (Le Degustation)

With each international film festival that is on here in Melbourne I am making an effort to see at least one movie. It will be no surprise to you that my favourite festival is the French Film Festival and It has been running for the last month or so. There were a number of films that I had earmarked to see. I had already seen two, but there were two foodie films that I still wanted to see but I was running out of time. Luckily, the festival was extended by a few days and I convinced my somewhat reluctant husband to come and see this movie with me.

I first watched French actress Isabelle Carré in Romantics Anonymous which is still one of my favourite French movies to watch and which I posted about here. I have since watched her in the movie Delicious (review here) and now in this movie. In a way, this movie has some similarites with Romantics Anonymous, particularly in the first half where we meet two characters who have difficulties in establishing and maintaining romantic relationships.

Hortense is a single woman with a big heart. She is a midwife, she volunteers with a group of homeless men, and she looks after her cantankerous mother. She has one great desire, to have a child, but she has been unlucky in love and so it has never happened for her. Her mother constantly reminds her of her failings.

Jacques is a wine merchant who has been told by his doctor that he needs to stop drinking as he has a heart condition. Jacques is in denial about his drinking. His wine business seems to be struggling but he really seems to be emotionally disconnected from his life. His only real friend is Guillerme, the local bookseller.

Jacques is convinced to give an internship to a young man called Steve who lives in a homeless shelter. In return for giving Steve some work he will receive some badly needed funding. At first, he asked Steve to help clean up the basement, but Steve wants to be doing more glamourous customer work

Hortense meets Jacques when she comes to the wine store to buy a bottle of wine. Soon she is returning more often, even buying quite pricey wines to take to serve to the homeless men she cooks meals for. She notices a poster saying that there are wine tasting classes available and so Jacques agrees to run a lesson, even though it will be quite difficult for him given that he can't actually drink the wine. Now, he just needs to find some other people to come to the classes. And so it is that Hortense, Guillerme and Steve attend the tasting class.

The first half of the movie is very much a comedy, but as Jacques and Hortense get to know each other we learn their secrets, and the movie takes a more serious turn. There are reasons why Jacques has closed himself off from the world. And Hortense has her own plans for the future that very much will influence their relationship before it even gets started.

I really enjoyed this movie. It was a lovely way to spend a couple of hours on a rainy Saturday afternoon, and Robert also laughed out loud and enjoyed the movie. And now I am thinking about watching Romantics Anonymous again.

Here is the trailer for The Tasting.

The two movies that I did see where The Innocent and Two Tickets to Greece. The other movie I wanted to see what Sugar and Stars (French title À LA BELLE ÉTOILE) so I will be trying to find that so that I can watch it. We also saw the trailer for a Gerard Depardieu movie called Umami. Now, I have studied the festival program at length and yet I never noticed this film. Now I need to find this movie to watch too.

The next festival is the German Film Festival, and I am sure I will find something to watch, although I haven't decided on which one yet. Unfortunately it doesn't look like there are any foodie films on this list this year. Maybe there will be some in the Spanish film festival which is the one after.

Weekly meals

Saturday - Steamed fish, veggies and rice

Sunday -  Chicken Cacciatore

Monday - Easter Celebration Cake

Tuesday - Nasi Goreng

Wednesday - Tuscan Chicken Pasta Bake

Thursday - Takeaway

Friday -BBQ

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking: Julia

It has been a while since I had to do a long haul flight so I had forgotten how tedious they can be. Sitting in one place, limited space, trying and failing to sleep, airplane food. But there is one bonus in that you can watch movies and TV shows that you have been meaning to watch for a while. As long as the entertainment system is working that is (yes, I’m looking at you Qantas!)

 

On the way back from Europe, we had two 8 hour flights to get to Singapore, and I decided to watch the TV series Julia, which came out last year. I have had it saved on my TV to watch at some point for months, but just hadn’t gotten to it yet. I watched the first 5 episodes on the first flight and then the final 3 on the second flight. Originally I was planning on sleeping on the second flight but I am rubbish at sleeping on planes at the best of times. I was glad I didn't save it for the flight from Singapore to Melbourne as we didn't have an entertainment system at all on that flight. I really missed the maps that show you where you are!!

 

Julia, which stars British actress Sarah Lancashire as Julia Child, tells the story of how her iconic TV show came to be on air. I was aware of Lancashire as an actress way back to her early years in Coronation Street and more recently in the movie Yesterday. She excels in this role! 

 

When we meet Julia, she has already had success with her cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. She has been living in Europe with her diplomat husband Paul, played by David Hyde Pierce (who will always be Niles from Frasier to me) where she has been introduced to French food, going on to study at Cordon Bleu cooking school.

She appeared on a book review show called I've Been Reading, where she surprised everyone by cooking a French omelet. This sparked the idea of a cooking show. At first, the station wasn't keen because they didn't see a cooking show as a valuable addition to public television but Julia was passionate about her vision and fought hard. And eating her food no doubt helped convinced the powers that be and the crew.

 

Gradually, the show begins to garner viewers, and the rest is, as they say is history. Julia Child became an American TV cooking trailblazer, beloved by many, and in many ways she pioneered many of the features that we still see in cooking shows today. She is ably supported by her husband and her best friend Avis, played by Bebe Nieuwerth (Lilith from Frasier). There are also several other big names in the cast including Isabella Rosselini and Judith Light.

This is a very enjoyable series. There is drama, humour, friendship, love and of course food! I found myself laughing out loud several times, and watching this series definitely helped the flights pass by quicker.

I don't know why, but I haven't really spent any time looking at Julia Child's recipes or TV shows until this week, and I also haven't watched any of the shows about her. Maybe she wasn't shown here?  I know there is the Julie & Julia movie but there are others. For example, did you know that there is a reality TV show called The Julia Child Challenge where 8 home cooks compete to win a prize to Paris by cooking various recipes in a replica of Julia's kitchen. And, of course, there are plenty of videos on Youtube where you can watch Julia herself cook, whether it be on her own shows or even on shows like The Late Show with David Letterman.

 

 

One of the interesting things for me was to see what was true and what was made up for the story. One of the major characters in the story is Alison, a young African American producer who plays a pivital role in both bringing the show to the attention of the station owners and then in getting the show onto other channels across the country. However, this is one of the made up characters. There are some other key scenes that are also fictionalised and there are some plot points that I have no idea if they are true or not. I guess that means that they fit into the story well. What I do know is that there is at least one recipe that I am keen to try at some point, maybe more! We'll see.

Apparently a second series has been authorised so I will be keen to watch it, and I will probably even watch it when it comes out!

Have you watched this series yet? Did you enjoy it?

Weekly meals

Saturday - Plane food

Sunday -  Roast pork with mash and vegies

Monday - Chicken and vegie stir fry

Tuesday - Chicken skewers, baked potato and salad

Wednesday - Hamburger

Thursday - Nasi Goreng

Friday - Takeaway

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page