What a great piece! Thank you! I'm bretonne myself, and also have a never-ending love story with le beurre salé breton, but didn't know what made the difference, so it was very enlightening! Merci !
Thank you for the hilarious--and thoroughly justified--lyrical meditation on the joys of Breton butter! Butter is one of the many foods that Americans think are "good" in America but are actually kinda terrible (along with chocolate and probably all summer fruits)
Your article is filled with that unmistakable French charm! My own precious moment? A warm summer evening in Provence, sitting on the terrace after a sunny day, with a glass of chilled rosé, a few olives, some goat’s cheese and a slice of Beaufort… pure bliss!
Not to mention, the medical professional's opinions here in France. We see an "anti-aging" doctor, primarily for hormone replacement, but he's all about nutrition. We mentioned that we were trying to lose a few pounds. He told me to stick to cut sugar totally out of my diet and stick to lean proteins and steamed green vegetables with "LOTS" of butter. I was shocked at the "lots of butter" remark, and told him that doctors in the US always told us to skip the butter. He told me that the butter in France is much healthier for you than the butter in the US and it's perfectly fine to smother your steamed green veggies in lots of it. That's all we needed --permission to drown our vegetables in this heavenly butter from Normandy! Life is definitely better here, in France!
I’m so glad I’m not the only butter snob! It’s a recent revelation and frankly, I’m a little mad it took 50 years and moving abroad to discover this level of dairy divinity. One bite of Breton butter and I was like… wait, we were supposed to be eating this the whole time?
Slow travel has taught me a lot, but “life’s too short for bad butter” might be the biggest lesson yet.
Drop by for a glass of wine and some salted reflections here: Retired, Roaming and Rooted
This is such a coincidence because I just sent my husband shopping, a rare and unfortunate experience. We always buy beurre doux but he came home with beurre salé, although from none of those fancy brands that you mention. He really didn't like it -- but I was fine with it.
Oh Don! The last time we went to France we didn’t bring back trinkets or fine French fashion. I brought home butter!!! Wish I’d been bolder and brought kilos rather than just a bit. I share your rhapsodic adoration.
We discovered Beurre Bordier at lunch with a chef friend. Mid bite all 3 of us stopped and said “this is amazing butter!” The waiter brought us more and told us what it was, so we stopped and got more on the way home. It’s been my delicious treat until recently. The store where I was getting it stopped carrying it and now has Beillevaire. I asked if it was better was told that he likes it because it’s not pasteurized. He was right. It’s even more amazing than the Bordier!
I did a European butter taste test... because I agree the French butter is the only one worth the calories. I was stunned to find that the German butter won the taste test! Thank you for wonderful essay... I will look for your brand.
I wish we could send our butter for a semester abroad in Brittany. 😋
What a great piece! Thank you! I'm bretonne myself, and also have a never-ending love story with le beurre salé breton, but didn't know what made the difference, so it was very enlightening! Merci !
It's nice to know that the people of Brittany don't take their special butter for granted!
Thank you for the hilarious--and thoroughly justified--lyrical meditation on the joys of Breton butter! Butter is one of the many foods that Americans think are "good" in America but are actually kinda terrible (along with chocolate and probably all summer fruits)
Your article is filled with that unmistakable French charm! My own precious moment? A warm summer evening in Provence, sitting on the terrace after a sunny day, with a glass of chilled rosé, a few olives, some goat’s cheese and a slice of Beaufort… pure bliss!
Not to mention, the medical professional's opinions here in France. We see an "anti-aging" doctor, primarily for hormone replacement, but he's all about nutrition. We mentioned that we were trying to lose a few pounds. He told me to stick to cut sugar totally out of my diet and stick to lean proteins and steamed green vegetables with "LOTS" of butter. I was shocked at the "lots of butter" remark, and told him that doctors in the US always told us to skip the butter. He told me that the butter in France is much healthier for you than the butter in the US and it's perfectly fine to smother your steamed green veggies in lots of it. That's all we needed --permission to drown our vegetables in this heavenly butter from Normandy! Life is definitely better here, in France!
So true! French butter makes life worth living.
Great piece! As the saying goes: The secret to life is ... butter! 😀
I’m so glad I’m not the only butter snob! It’s a recent revelation and frankly, I’m a little mad it took 50 years and moving abroad to discover this level of dairy divinity. One bite of Breton butter and I was like… wait, we were supposed to be eating this the whole time?
Slow travel has taught me a lot, but “life’s too short for bad butter” might be the biggest lesson yet.
Drop by for a glass of wine and some salted reflections here: Retired, Roaming and Rooted
J’ai jamais lu un truc avec lequel j’étais plus d’accord. Avec le sel croquant, c’est mon favori.
This is such a coincidence because I just sent my husband shopping, a rare and unfortunate experience. We always buy beurre doux but he came home with beurre salé, although from none of those fancy brands that you mention. He really didn't like it -- but I was fine with it.
Oh Don! The last time we went to France we didn’t bring back trinkets or fine French fashion. I brought home butter!!! Wish I’d been bolder and brought kilos rather than just a bit. I share your rhapsodic adoration.
How did you bring it home. Didn’t know I could…
Breton butter is truly the nectar of the Gods. A perfect food. If I have it, I need only a warm piece of bread and I’m happy.
We discovered Beurre Bordier at lunch with a chef friend. Mid bite all 3 of us stopped and said “this is amazing butter!” The waiter brought us more and told us what it was, so we stopped and got more on the way home. It’s been my delicious treat until recently. The store where I was getting it stopped carrying it and now has Beillevaire. I asked if it was better was told that he likes it because it’s not pasteurized. He was right. It’s even more amazing than the Bordier!
I did a European butter taste test... because I agree the French butter is the only one worth the calories. I was stunned to find that the German butter won the taste test! Thank you for wonderful essay... I will look for your brand.
Paysan Breton is our house butter. When I’m making a
Be still my heart. Is there anywhere in America I can buy Breton butter? This is such a great piece and mouthwatering to boot.