AubrysInFrance: Papilles en Éveil

We enjoy belonging to Acceuil des Villes Françaises (AVF) in Lyon. As we mentioned earlier, the group was initiated by the French government many years ago to assist French people returning from abroad and expats, like us, get acclimated into current life in France. There are branches all over France, and the one we belong to in Lyon is going strong.

One of the activities Anna enjoys with AVF is Papilles en Éveil which is roughly translated as “excited tastebuds.” Brigitte, an AVF member who lives in the Lyon area, came up with the concept and started a group when we were in Lyon for a year. Anna was a member of that original group and joins in when we are in Lyon and there is space. Papilles en Éveil has become so popular that there are now three groups! The idea is for eight women to get together once a month to prepare and then eat a nice three-course lunch. Each takes a turn hosting, providing recipes and ingredients, and all share the cost of the ingredients. Since we didn’t arrive in Lyon until late April this year, the groups were in full swing, and all three had waiting lists. Fortunately, there was a recent opening, and Anna was able to participate.

Aprons on and ready to go to work.

There's always lots of prep work!

We met at Brigitte’s and prepared an entrée (appetizer in France) of Salmon Citrus Mousse, plat (main dish) of Gambas à la Curaçao, and dessert of Tarte au Pralines (a Lyon specialty). As you can imagine, having 8 to 9 women (from 5 or so different countries) working in a kitchen can be a challenge, but there is always plenty to do, and it always seems to work beautifully and be great fun.