La cuisine végétarienne

This past week I worked with the second graders, who were fresh from collecting chocolate eggs over the Easter holiday. Consequently, the vocabulary of the week focused on Easter and spring-themed words, such as "bunny", "chick", and "nest." I showed pictures of the annual White House Easter Egg Roll to the class, but obviously the students were more impressed by the pictures of colorful plastic eggs filled with candy. In geometry, the students have started learning how to identify angles, right angles, sides, and equal sides in various shapes. In math, students started to write basic multiplication sentences (without solving the problem.)

This evening the foyer where I live invited a chef and his family to show residents how to cook la cuisine végétarienne (vegetarian food). Vegetarians can have difficultly living in France because food (especially meat) is such a huge part of the French culture. The French have the expectation that you will eat what has been prepared and served to you, and restaurants will rarely allow special orders. I thought it was a neat idea to have a vegetarian chef come to they foyer to demonstrate a cuisine that many French people do not know. The meal we had was vegan because the chef only used non-animal products in his recipes. In addition, the meal had an Asian influence- tofu was incorporated in nearly every dish. The chef allowed people to assist him in cooking and we ate through several courses...

Salade aux choux rouge au vinaigre d'umeboshi (Red cabbage salad dressed in umeboshi vinegar) and
Pâté de tofu (Tofu spread)

Steak de tofu (Tofu steak) served with sauce tahin (sesame seed sauce) or sauce shoyu (soy sauce) 

Curry d'épinard au tofu lactofermenté (Tofu with curried spinach)

Mousse au chocolat végétalienne (Chocolate mousse) 

Tapioca au lait de soja et lait de coco (Coconut tapioca)

I don't think I'll ever be able to recreate these recipes, but the food was delicious and filling! Yum!