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Cooking holidays and one-day cooking course in South-West France. Traditional French cooking taught by a French cook in a relaxed atmosphere. Seasonal cooking, French Pastry course, fat duck cooking workshop. Set in the beautiful Gascony countryside, just 1 hour from Bordeaux.

 

For real-food lovers!   

 

French cookery course with a French cook... because it makes sense!

 

Creative, all-inclusive holidays to learn traditional French cuisine.

 

Holiday Programs | Seasonal Cooking | Tariffs | Day Courses | Gift Vouchers

 

 

   

Molly and Krystal brought a ray of sushine

in the kitchen. Here making profiteroles.

Outing to the market

Foie gras has no more secret for John

and Vikki, with us on their honeymoon.

Mark and Christophe (aka "Topol") cooked fat duck from A to Z

       

 

French cuisine is rich in history and tradition. The culinary heritage is very much alive, being passed from one generation to the next, and we are giving you an insight into French cuisine by getting you immersed in our French life, in the heart of beautiful Gascony, South West France.

Our totally informal cooking courses are run in English by French cook Marlène, your host. Passionate about food, experienced both in teaching and cooking, she is dedicated to sharing with you traditional French home-cooking techniques and recipes, as well as all the useful tips and tricks that will make your life easier in the kitchen. And once your day in the kitchen ends, you will be looked after by Marlene's British husband Marc, who will no doubt be waiting for you with a nice drink as a reward...

  Marlene (the smile is for the chocolate, not the photo!)               Marc (making sure there will be enough food for his double portion)

 

Our cookery courses are designed to demystify French cuisine, and make you practice the real French food, the one mothers and grand-mothers are cooking in kitchens all around France, not the single-mouthful dishes with extravagant garnishes and sprinkles you find in fancy restaurants. We are all about taste!  What better way of getting acquainted to a country's cuisine than visiting its village markets and farms, and being introduced to its succulent products? Join us and get a taste of Bazas beef, cèpes de Bordeaux, prunes of Agen, " gariguette" strawberries, melon, asparagus, Marmande tomatoes, ...

 

 

 

 

YOU WILL LEAVE US HAVING LEARNT MANY OF THE BASIC TECHNIQUES FOR PREPARING FRENCH DISHES amongst which are: mayonnaise, omelette, pâté, quiche, finger-licking gravy and sauces, confit, stews and gratins, without using any measuring instrument. Our goal is to teach you so that you have a feel for the food, and thereby increase your confidence so you can improvise cooking a French meal without a recipe book.

 

Cooking comes from the heart, and food should make your belly smile, so we make sure you learn to cook dishes that you will enjoy producing back home for years to come, from dinner parties to every-day family meals. Of course we also make sure that you have great fun in the process... It is your holiday after all! And Marlene is more than happy to incorporate in your program any French dish you are specifically interested in, so do not hesitate to ask!

 

Re-discover shopping for food, buying products of quality, and experience cooking from scratch: bone poultry, fillet fish, make bread and pastry, etc... We source ingredients from local producers, farms and markets. We could be making bread, stews, roasts, soups, quiches, pâtés, tarts, cakes, or curing and smoking meat or fish.

 

 

Click here to read our customer's comments, or just give us a call on 0033-553207535 to see how we can accommodate your own special requirements.

 

 

 

 

 

Olivia working hard at her brioche

Jessica in deep concentration,

building a two-chocolate mousse delight

Sandra with sticky fingers

in her pasta dough

Joanne discovering the joys of the apple peeler/corer/slicer

Liz making duck ravioli

 

 

 

 

The purpose-built kitchen has 4 distinct and fully equipped workstations, each with its own stainless-steel 5 rings cooker. There is a suggested maximum of 4 participants per venue, to make sure everyone gets individual attention (and enough space to "spread out"). But on request, we will accept up to 6 participants. 

 

 

 

 

OUR HOLIDAY PROGRAMS:     

 

 

Our 6 nights "Seasonal Cooking Course":

 

White chocolate cream in tuile basket

Duck ravioli

Ballottine of chicken basque

Choux à la crème

Trio of home-smoked trout

(rillettes, soup and gratin=

 

- You arrive on Sunday afternoon. You settle in and make yourself at home. We meet up before dinner for drinks and canapés, to discuss the program of our week.

 

- On Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we leave after breakfast to go to a market or visit a producer, to get our ingredients. We come back for lunch. From 2.00 pm, we meet in the kitchen, where everyone gets involved in a real team effort to prepare dinner (no pressure, but the meal you prepare will also be served to all customers of the guest house!). You can do as little or as much as you like: your holiday, so your time, your rythm!

 

- Friday is free, to give you a chance to relax and visit. Lunch is provided should you decide to stay at home. We meet up early evening for our aperitif and dinner. 

 

- Departure is on Saturday morning.

Depending on the season and on their availability, we will visit some producers among the following: cheese maker, duck farm, game farm, wine-producing château, fish farm ... as well as producers markets.

 

Bordeaux cookery - MarketCookery holiday Bordeaux – As seen in Psychologies magazine (Jan.2012)

Sophie Herdman heads to the ‘garden of France’ for some lessons in cooking to ‘make your belly smile’.

“I can’t cook. My cooking consists of heating up ready meals in an oven or microwave. So a cooking course in France, I thought, was a pretty good idea. I headed to Le Gargantua in Anzex, an hour by train from Bordeaux.

Its a relaxed, family environment, where all the guests eat a 3 course evening meal together which they’ve prepared.

‘I want to demystify French cooking‘ said our teacher Marlene. We started with a visit to a foie gras farm (to my relief the geese were still stractching around and not yet on death row). The following day we visited a bustling local market filled with colourful vegetables and rare cheeses.

The afternoons were spent in the kitchen, just myself and one other woman (there are never more than 4 in a group), learning, in English how to cook a whole meal from salmon mousse to profiteroles. Making bread was a particular highlight.

I haven’t exactly cooked haute cuisine since I got back – perhaps I needed a more basic course – but I have ditched the ready meals and am cooking more from scratch. I have also conquered my fear of throwing a dinner party. That alone is an achievement.

 

 

 

Our 3 nights "Seasonal Cooking" Course:

 

Salmon mousse

Ratatouille

Home-made bread

Stuffed belly of veal

Apple tart tatin

 

- Day 1: You arrive in the afternoon. We get to know each other over a welcome drink and canapés. Basically, you just settle in and make yourself at home. We meet up for a 3 course dinner.

 

- Days 2 and 3: We leave after breakfast to visit a market or a producer, to get our ingredients. We come back for lunch. From 2.00 pm, we meet in the kitchen, where everyone gets involved in a real team effort to prepare dinner (no pressure, but the meal you prepare will also be served to all customers of the guest house!). You can do as little or as much as you like: your holiday, so your time, your rythm!

 

 

- Day 4: Breakfast. Departure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our 3 nights "French Pastry" Course:

 

Lemon tart

Chocolate and raspberry entremet

Strawberry tartlets

Chocolate religieuses

Learning to "build" desserts

 

 

 

- Day 1: You arrive in the afternoon. We get to know each other over a welcome drink and canapés. Basically, you just settle in and make yourself at home. We meet up for a 3 course dinner.

 

- Day 2: After breakfast we go to a pâtisserie, to get a few classics, that we will sample at the terrasse of a café (is the weather allows it). We come back for lunch. From 2.00 pm, we meet in the kitchen, to reproduce some of the pastries we sampled. They will be served for dessert that very same night.

 

- Day 3: After breakfast we meet in the kitchen, to start baking. We will stop for lunch and finish our pastries early enough in the afternoon to give you some free time. Once again, your creations will be served for dessert that very same night.

 

- Day 4: Breakfast. Departure.

 

Examples of pastries we could make: chocolate and coffee eclairs or religieuses, fruit tartlets, millefeuilles, bavarois, tarte tatin, charlotte, 2-chocolate-mousse gâteau, frangipane galettes, lemon tart, brioche.

 

 

Fraisier

Millefeuilles

Traditional apple tart

Brioches

Strawberry bavarois

 

 

Sun, Sea & Socrates: great learning breaks - As seen in Conde Nast Traveller Magazine

Learning to cook a foreign cuisine is an appealing way to immerse yourself in a new culture, and the benefits are obvious. Just about everywhere you stay, from the beach shacks of Kerala to a five-star hotel in Florence, can arrange cookery classes for you, and even signing up for half a day can give you skills for life.


A four-day course near Bordeaux, in France, will teach you how to make authentic French pâtisserie. The course starts with a visit to a local patisserie to taste what you will learn to recreate; choose your favourites from delicate millefeuilles, bavarois, charlotte, paper-thin crêpes, gâteau, tarte au citron, éclairs and French breads such as brioche and croissants.
Accommodation is in a traditional 19th-century French farmhouse, where the grounds have views of the surrounding sunflower fields and pine forests of the Lot-et-Garonne region, and the rooms are en-suite, with exposed wooden beams and thick stone walls. All meals are included - and if you don't like the puddings, you've only yourself to blame.

 

 

Our 3 nights " Fat Duck Cooking" Course:

 

- Day 1: You arrive in the afternoon. We get to know each other over a welcome drink and canapés. Basically, you just settle in and make yourself at home. We meet up for dinner.

 

- Day 2: We leave after breakfast to visit a fat duck producer. We come back for lunch. From 2.00 pm, we meet in the kitchen, to cut up our ducks, cook our foie gras and salt-cure our meat for the confit.

 

-  Day 3: After breakfast, we meet in the kitchen to make rillettes. Lunch. Back in the kitchen form 2:00 pm to cook confit and grattons.

 

- Day 4: Breakfast. Departure.

 

Below, cutting the duck

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SEASONAL COOKING:

 

 

Spring

 

 Asparagus 3 ways

(mousse, soup, and steamed)

 

This is the time of year when we have had enough of the cold, when flowers start blooming, new vegetables appear, everything gets colourful again, including our plates. Our Spring course celebrates just that!  

Among many other ingredients, we could cook with the organic asparagus grown by our neighbour, prepare succulent desserts with the local "gariguette" strawberries (from April), ...

Classic Spring dishes include Navarin of lamb, Blanquette of veal, veloute of asparagus, ...

Local strawberries

 

 

 

Summer

Beautiful & juicy local tomatoes

Summers in Lot-et-Garonne are very hot, be prepared!

We will make the best of the abundant fruit and vegetable that we will pick up from the market or the organic orchard down the road.

We could prepare the basque fish soup (the "cousin" of the bouillabaisse), cook farm-bred poultry, make jellied terrines, fresh pasta, soufflés with local goat cheese, tarts with the garden peaches, cherry clafoutis, ... We could also smoke salmon or trout.

As we will rather grill meat and fish in summer than stew them(!!), it is the perfect occasion to practice all classic French sauces like mayonnaise, aïoli, béarnaise, beurre blanc, etc....

The weather is also perfect to prepare beautiful sweet iced parfaits, chilled chocolate or fruit mousses, entremets, mille-feuilles...

Tatin of cherry tomatoes

 

 

 

Autumn

 

Braised beef cheek

The scenery is changing, getting ready for winter, so are we. This is the return of the pot-roasts, the season of game. The whole region catches the "blue disease" (this is how they call the hunt for wild pigeons). It also is the time to pick mushrooms, and the "season" of the fat duck. When possible, will enjoy our evenings outside, gathered around the outdoor chimney.

We could go to the forest down the road to pick wild mushrooms or gather chestnuts, we could get our fat ducks from the farm and make our own confit, rillettes and cook the foie gras, we could make game pâté, onion jam, coq au vin, rabbit in prunes with home made fresh pasta, tarte Tatin, ...

Selection of squash at the market

 

 

 

Winter

 

Garbure

At this time of year, we need to come back to a cosy home, enjoy the warmth of the wood-burning stove, and give in to our appetite for rich soups, stews and other belly-warmers! It is also time to make good use of the confits made earlier in the year.

We could make the local garlic soup, the unmissable and hearty Cassoulet or Garbure, we could use Bazas beef for a beautiful Daube" we could make the famous "poule au pot" (one-pot-hen), the Gascon Tourtiere (apples, prunes and armagnac pastry)...

Cassoulet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TARIFFS 2012:

 

 

 

All our cooking holidays include:

 

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welcome drink and canapés

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accommodation (see "Guest House" page)

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linen and towels

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daily chamber maid service

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continental breakfast every day

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lunch every day

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home-made aperitif before dinner

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three-course dinner every night

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wine with lunch and dinner

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cooking workshop, all ingredients, equipment and apron.

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recipe book to take home

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water, tea, coffee and biscuits throughout the day

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outings, tastings and entrance fees

 

 

The holidays take place all year round, just inquire about the dates that suit you, and do not hesitate to contact us to find out when you can join an existing party.

Keep in mind that you can create your own customized holiday, and mix the activities (see our "short breaks" page). Why not try a wine-tasting and cooking holiday?

 

 

Mother & daughter

Helen and Julie

 

Jane & Janet putting the last touch

to their strawberry tart

 

Rosie & Frans working on

their Strawberry tartlets

Jane & Jarrah building a millefeuille

 

Sarien & Mirte doing

their happy dance

 

 

Click here to read our customer's comments, or just give us a call on 0033-553207535 to see how we can accommodate your own special requirements.  

 
VENUES

PART-BOOKED DATES 2012

(any other date possible, please inquire)

PRICE PER PARTICIPANT

(inclusive of all taxes)

On the basis of 2 people sharing a room

Seasonal cooking all year round (7 days/6 nights)

2 places to fill 18th to 24th March 2012

895 EUR
Short break Seasonal cooking all year round (4 days/3 nights)

 

2 places to fill 1st to 4th March 2012

3 places to fill 15th to 18th July 2012

 

450 EUR
Short break French Pastry all year round (4 days/3 nights)

 

3 places to fill 2nd to 5th May 2012

3 places to fill 19th to 22nd June 2012

 

450 EUR
Short break Fat duck all year round (3 nights)

-

450 EUR
Seasonal cooking for a party of 4 all year round (6 nights)

 N/A

850 EUR
Short break Seasonal cooking for a party of 4 all year round (3 nights)

Short break French Pastry for a party of 4 all year round (3 nights)

 N/A

425 EUR
Short break Fat duck for a party of 4 all year round (3 nights)

 N/A

425 EUR

 

 

 

Prices quoted above are per person. Maximum 2 occupants per room. 

Accompanying non-participants quoted as follows:  215 EUR for 3 nights and 420 EUR for 6 nights

For individual occupancy: 34 EUR/night extra.

 

The rooms will be allocated on a first come - first served basis, on confirmation and payment of your deposit.

 

A deposit of 25% is payable on booking, balance is due on check-in. The deposit is fully refundable up to 30 days before arrival.

 

 

 

 

ONE-DAY-COURSES:

 

 

If you are having a holiday in the area you can join us for a one-day-cooking course: 

 

We can plan together a whole day of cooking, for that little extra French experience in your holiday. We can concentrate on local cuisine, or on French pastries, or explore a broader range of classic French cuisine.

In the morning, you can choose to spend the morning at a market or a producer's, or to spend it cooking. We share lunch, then head back to the kitchen early afternoon for more cooking. You will take away the fruits of your labour to enjoy with your family, or you can choose to have it here at the guest table (supplement will apply).

 

Price of the one-day-course: 125 EUR/pers. including one day tuition, all ingredients, utensils and aprons, light lunch, take-away for 1 (pastries or meal based on what your chosen theme was), and hot/soft drinks throughout the day.

 

 

 

 

GIFT VOUCHERS:

 

 

 

Why not treat friends and family to a cooking course, for a very special and personal gift... we will be happy to send a personalised gift voucher and information pack to the person of your choice should you wish to book a cooking holiday or a one-day-course as a present.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Le Gargantua, "FILOU", 47700 Anzex, France

Telephone: +33 (0) 553 207 535

Fax: +33 (0) 553 207 535

Email: info@legargantua.com