Being a Vegan and French

Dietary changes have subtly and gradually seeped into the Luiggi household over the last few years.

Our daughter Nina has battled with a love-hate relationship with cheese since a young age. She loved fromage, but sadly it was unrequited, and cheese spelled out in no uncertain terms that it did not love her.

Some of our wonderful French cheeses available in our Deli Corner

The moment all dairy was stripped from her diet, all health issues miraculously disappeared.

And since this cheesy removal, so many people have lamented over how difficult it must be to no longer be able to have smelly camembert at the table, how sad... even suggesting this must be a disaster for a half-French family!

Well no. Its been a natural move towards other delicious seasonal ingredients, replacing cow’s milk with Almond, Oat or Coconut, using a wonderful array of oils from sesame, walnut and olive for cooking and baking, and replacing cow’s milk butter with almond butter. Once you have these items in the kitchen cupboard, it is so simple to just remove the cow and replace with the plant /nut based alternative.

One of our vegan dishes: Rougaille Haricot & Courge

Stéphane would never admit to this, but he is progressing towards becoming a végétalien - that’s the French word for vegan.

My deepening immersion into a yogi lifestyle has introduced him to alternative ways of taking care of the body, including Ayurveda, which is why he now drinks his morning coffee with oat milk and eats an almost exclusive plant-based diet. That’s because he’s a Kapha! (join us on our next Corsican yoga retreat to find out what this is!!!)

OK, we do still enjoy a little fromage de chèvre from the French Living Deli, particularly when Nina is not around, but its all about moderation and balance. And this is what the French have always been very good at. They typically eat in moderation, and, instead of depriving themselves, enjoy small portions of things like butter, chocolate and crème.

I absolutely love our Autumn vegan dish with squash, and tingling spices to awaken the tastebuds. This is French creativity at its best, blending the seasonal with the right amount of seasoning and spice to bring you vegan splendour.

Don’t forget to take a look at our Christmas Vegan Menu, available from the end of November through the festive December season.