Emily in France 🇫🇷 Spring Produce is Here!

Grateful.

I recently wrote a story (forthcoming) about légumes oubliés – forgotten vegetables. This category, made up of items like rutabaga and Jerusalem artichoke, gets its name because it is comprised of veggies that were, quite literally, forgotten for an entire generation. Those living in France during the Vichy Régime had to give over great swaths of their agricultural production to the Nazi Occupier, left only with these easy-to-grow veggies. Combined with coffee made from acorns and bread bulked up with sawdust (or human bone meal during the 100 Years War...), they're far from the worst things that Parisians have had to endure in times of scarcity.

I cannot help but count my blessings: during confinement, we are so very lucky.

We are lucky to have access to chat apps and video apps and reading apps (not to mention books and electricity and refrigeration). And here in Paris, we are also lucky have access to a plethora of options for delivery and takeaway: phenomenal bread, coffee, cheese, and wine coming straight to our doorsteps. Today, I took advantage of another service, La Ruche Qui Dit Oui, a cooperative of local farmers who sell their wares to Parisians using an online platform. I have used them for years, and I am so grateful to these farmers who keep us so well-fed.

1. If you're interested in who is still serving Paris, I've been updating this list for Paris by Mouth (almost) daily.

2. If you're bored and need something to do, archivists and librarians are looking for people to help from home.

3. This story charts the incredible story of Lithuanian book smugglers who undertook to protect their language from Russian occupiers.

4. In this video, Bon Appétit staffers attempt to try everything on the menu at my favorite burger spot in New York.

5. And in this video, ducks attempt go to the theater. (Sorry ducks: the Comédie Française is confined too!)

Stay safe, stay INSIDE, and à bientôt !

Emily in France