Happy Bastille Day
My mother was a first-generation French-American. Her parents both emigrated from France in the mid-1930’s to find better opportunities in the United States. This was a time in American history when immigrants were especially proud to be American and they did all they could to distance themselves from their native homelands and blend in and assimilate into American life. My mother grew up speaking only English, eating English food, and celebrating American holidays. I didn’t know this until I was in my early teens, when I was stunned to learn that my mother’s love of all thing French and her celebration of life as a Francophile was a learned skill rather than innate! Thank goodness, she passed it all along to me.
July 14th and the onset of mid-summer means two things to me – celebrating Bastille Day and devouring my mother’s “French Trifle.” Usually done simultaneously! I’ve since learned that the Trifle (AKA Tipsy Pudding) is an English tradition, but I still associate it with my mother and given the opportunity will always think of it as French!
I’ve been receiving wedding presents lately and some neighbors dropped off a lovely package from renowned Vermont glassblower Simon Pearce the other day. It was a gorgeous glass bowl – absolutely perfect for a summer trifle. I spent part of my morning today avoiding the filing and bill-paying I should have been doing and searching online for the perfect trifle recipe. I have a feeling my mother’s recipe is tucked away in a family recipe book, and I’ll have to search for it later. In the meantime, I’m going to christen our new Simon Pearce bowl with a delicious “French” trifle in honor of my mother and celebrating the 220th anniversary of the Storming of the Bastille in 1789. Cheers!
