I am staying in Quimper with my very own version of Julia Child.  C’est vrai.  Julia Child sans beurre – without butter, or at least butter in moderation.  If you know me, you’ll probably know that I have a thing for Julia Child. I grew up watching her on television and the movie Julie and Julia is still a favourite of mine. I even have the framed movie poster on the wall of my kitchen!

Julia Child was a famous American cook, who happened to spend quite a bit of time in France.  And she was also famous for her love of butter.  Julia is not my host’s real name, but if I were to mention her real name, we might end up with a huge line of people outside her door pleading to be adopted by her and she’s already very busy looking after many neighbours and friends far and wide, so I’d better not risk it.

Quimper is a commune in Brittany, France.  Madame Julia is American but has lived in Quimper for the past thirty years.  After spending her holidays here for ten years in a row, as well as a six-month sabbatical, she found herself wondering whether this just might be the place where she’d like to live permanently.  But being the sensible gal that she was, she decided to move here for two years on a trial basis.  After that time, she felt she would know whether this was indeed the place for her.

Nine months into her possibly permanent move she met a very handsome Frenchman.  I’ve seen a photo of them on their second date.  Julia’s glowing eyes and radiant smile say it all.  She had met her man, and she would be staying.  Julia and her Darling had twenty-eight wonderful years together, until a long-term illness took him away two years ago.  Julia cared for him throughout his illness, doing all the research she could to help make his last years the very best they could be.  She was with him to the very end, holding his hand as she had always done.

I had read a wee bit about Julia before I came to France and had mentioned to several people that I thought she would be a very interesting person to get to know.  Interesting is an understatement.  A highly intelligent, widely travelled, multi-talented woman, Julia is an incredible person to spend time with.  I have not much to offer her when it comes to conversations about politics or history (Clive would be so much better on those topics!), yet she is very happy to chat about anything and everything.   We chat as we eat breakfast together and do our morning quiz games, as we walk about her joyful garden and while watering the pot plants.  We chat as we drive to the grocery store and market, or while out and about seeing the sights.  And we chat as I watch her prepare her amazing dishes for our lunch and dinner.

Ah yes, her amazing dishes!  Madame Julia is a wonderful cook.  I truly am living with THE Julia Child of Quimper.  And not only do her dishes taste fantastic, but they are all incredibly healthy too.  After researching ways for her Darling to live better for longer, their already healthy diet stepped up a notch or two.  Now mostly plant-based, Julia’s meals are also free from gluten and any chemical additives.  This, combined with the French tradition of serving several courses for each meal, has meant that our midday and evening meals always feel like an adventure!  (I’m sticking to my Weetabix, yoghurt and fruit for breakfast however – my morning tum being not quite so adventurous.)

So was it worth a bit of a bumpy ride from London to Quimper? Absolutely!

There is more to say about Madame Julia and beautiful Quimper. But this is where I will leave it for the moment.

À bientôt . See you soon.