Five Day French Cooking Holiday

On Tuesday morning at Les Ruches there will be an informal chat about kitchen and knife safety to ensure everyone's wellbeing in the kitchen before the more fun business of cooking can commence. During your French cooking holiday we will be cooking a wide variety of food from down to earth country fare, the lighter Mediterranean influenced Provençal cuisine and a little Haute Cuisine which is guaranteed to impress your friends. The course will include food presentation, sauce-making, preparing and cooking fish and meat, sausage-making, delicious pastries and classic French puddings. By popular demand we will also be incorporating Pasta and Pizza-making into the itinary for your French cooking holiday. Here are a few mouth-watering examples of what you can expect to be making during your stay... for more examples please see the links Welcome and Our Chef

Each day on your French cooking holiday we will be preparing a three course lunch and leave you with free afternoons to relax or enjoy the surrounding countryside. Every evening we will treat you with an evening dinner showcasing the local produce of the Poitou Charente region.

On the Thursday morning we will continue your French cooking holiday with a visit to the vibrant market town of Poitiers. At the market we will choose fresh produce for the remainder of week and Mark can offer you advice on what to look for when choosing meat, fish and vegetables. You will then be given some free time to soak up the atmosphere of market, relax with a coffee at a pavement café and do a little shopping. For the history and art lovers among you we highly recommend a visit to the stunning Notre Dame Cathedral which has beautiful frescos and carvings.

We will enjoy lunch in Poitiers at one of our favourite restaurants La Serrurerie and return to Les Ruches for a relaxing afternoon.

During the week, if you wish, we will supply you with the appropriate clothing and visit the bees for a fascinating insight into their world and the world of beekeeping.

On the final day of the Five Day French Cooking Holiday we will be sausage making and you will get the chance to make a French sausage or, if preferred, design your very own sausage to try at the farewell barbecue on the Saturday evening. We are always open to suggestions for any additions to the Five Day Cooking Holiday in France so please let us know if you want to include anything specific and we will do our best to accommodate it into your French cooking holiday.