Author Archives: jameyp

My recipe for the famous “crêpes”

I am pretty picky when it comes to French food and I have yet to find a “French bakery” in the USA worthy of this name… Yes, there are some pretty good bakeries around but really it is far from the quality you find in France. I don’t want to sound snobby but if you have already experienced French food in France, you know what I am talking about!

Crêpes can be found salty (galettes) or sweet (crêpe sucrée/crêpe au froment). They can be savoured in Crêperies or on the street, as a grab and go snack. Pa

Galettes are harder to make you need a special kind of flour called farine de Sarrasin. But here is my recipe for the Crêpes sucrées:

  • 1 liter of whole milk
  • 6 whole eggs
  • 500 g of flour
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup of your favorite beer (Guinness works great)
  • one pinch of salt

Mix with a mixer until it is a very smooth liquid. Pour into a salad bowl, cover it with a clean kitchen rag and let it rest all night in the fridge.

In the morning, make sure you use an adequate pan (poêle à crêpes) and make sure you oil the pan well and let it heat. poor half a ladle into the pan and cook it until it detaches on its own. Then turn it over and cook it for a minute or so. Add your favorite topping: the secret is simplicity. Do not over do it. Try sprinkling some sugar and a little bit of fresh squeezed lemon juice, add a tiny bit of cinnamon if you’d like. My favorite topping is simply just a little bit of strawberry jam. Of course, nutella is always a winner. My husband loves his with maple syrup. Again, don’t overdo it on the topping (NO WHIP CREAM PLEASE :-))

Enjoy! Bon Appétit!

If you would like to learn more about my French cooking tips and recipes (I ofen tweak a recipe to make it fit me better), don’t hesitate to send me an email and to share my website!

Overlooking Old Quebec City with the Chateau de Frontenac in the back

French from France versus French Canadian

Image caption: Overlooking Old Quebec City with the Chateau de Frontenac in the back. Photo: S. Blancher-Parks

How much is French Canadian different from French from France?

“Spoken French Canadian has some differences in vocabulary used and expressions. For a couple of examples, check my blog posts about my trips to Canada. However, it is very easy to adapt and assimilate these new expressions, And don’t forget that there are some expressions and vocabulary specific to regions in France as well

Canadians tend to be more casual when they speak. They use the “tu” more easily where French people would use the “vous”

I noticed that written French is pretty much alike for an educated native French from France or from Canada. While less educated folks would make some mistakes no matter what, it seems like Canadian will be more inclined to write things phonetically, make up words that don’t exist or miss some grammar points. Less educated native French from France or people learning French as a second language will mostly make grammatical and syntax errors.

This is my experience, everybody has a different one, you may agree or not. Please don’t hesitate to share yours”.

Is French from France more proper? 

“Generally speaking, I don’t believe there is a “proper French” it is a living language. Yes, there are rules and such but new words and expressions are incorporated into the language every day. If you are used to native French from France, it might be your reference, but if you were used to French Canadian that would become your reference”.

 

Free French Resources

This post is dedicated to Free French resources and French material that may help you find the information you were looking for concerning french translations and French learning, grammar and vocabulary. I am referencing Free French resources, websites, books, movies, etc… I use to always improve my skills and to help my students learn and understand French better and faster. Completely or partially free French material. At the bottom of the page, you can find some of the resources I created, showing some aspects of the culture in France. 

For adults 

Apprendre le Francais avec TV5 monde (Learn French with TV5 monde). This is a good website for short videos and exercises to check how well you understood and deepen your knowledge. Lots of material but beware that sometimes the predetermined levels are off, don’t hesitate to ask me or your tutor to see which videos fit your level! What I really like about this site is that is shows clips from real French movies, shows or news. Most of my students really like clips from this resource.

Le Journal en Français Facile (Easy news report in French). Simplified news in French. This is pretty good for advanced students, students who are currently living in a French speaking country or students who need to keep up with the news for their jobs or other functions. The reporters speak pretty fast but I really like that they publish the transcript (although not always 100% accurate) along with the soundtrack . It is a good resource, again, best is to review it with a tutor. What I love about these reports is that it gives the students an idea on how proper nouns like names of places and people are pronounced. It gets students ears used to the differences which enhances their knowledge and ability to understand the report at a deeper level.

Français Facile (Easy French) is a great website for French grammar lessons and exercises for all levels. Lots of examples and explanation. One downside with this website is that it is easy to get lost, ask me or your tutors for exercises of your level. Also, anyone can create an exercise and content is not always reviewed, so it can get confusing. What I do like about this website is that once you are done with your exercise, you can check your answers right away.

Exercices d’écoute : French Listening comprehension. This website is great to listen to short clips and TV shows. It has exercises and transcripts for learning heuristically.

For Kids and Teenagers

1jour1actu News website simplified for kids and teenagers learning French. This is definitely my favorite site for 9-18+ yo. Relevant news topics are explained to kids using simple sentences, videos, drawings and pictures. What I especially like about this site is that it is very well done and the subjects are diverse.

Monde des Titounis Cartoons and exercises for kids who are learning French. This is for very little kids. Great images, songs, and exercises. I watch it with my almost 3 yo daughter and she loves it! I like this website because the videos clips are short and the exercises are engaging.

For parents looking for tutors close to them

http://www.universitytutor.com/. Link to my profile 

My own resources

Cultural Session 1 Power point I created showing different meals in France and some cultural aspects around French cuisine and food in France.

French UNESCO Heritage sites session 2 Power point I created showing the UNESCO French UNESCO Heritage

Sports and Hobbies in France Power point I created giving an overview of different sports and hobbies in France, from Olympic performances to backyard fun!

Welcome to my new Blog!

I accidentally deleted my old blog 🙁 too bad, but the silver lining is that I am trying to create a more professional one. Stay tuned!

Categories :

  1. French Vocab & Grammar
  2. French Literature : books etc…
  3. Free French Resources
  4. Free Examples of my work
  5. French Culture & Francophonie
  6. Miscellaneous