Vanessa Zhâ & Olivier Poels 7:16 a.m., February 17, 2024
Gastronomy, leisure... Every weekend at 6:50 a.m., Olivier Poels and Vanessa Zha present a product, a producer and all the good tips for re(discovering) a region.
Holidays in Budapest
This morning we take off for Hungary
And we obviously land in Budapest, with its great classics and recently the Hungarian House of Music. A jewel. It is already an architectural pearl, which we owe to the Japanese Sou Fujimoto. He is the father of the White Tree of Montpellier. And with this house of music, we are in its DNA: the primitive future: an ultra modern, extravagant building in the heart of the city's woods. No right angles, the roof is pierced with holes to let trees pass through, and skylights all the way to the bottom of the structure. It is both an ode to nature and to music. The history of music is traced interactively from great composers to contemporary festivals. Fans, don't forget the Sziget festival in August, like every year.
So after this novelty, you wanted to take us out of Budapest
Yes to discover its surroundings… the Grand Budapest. A must do by following the loops of the Danube by electric bike. To the east, 30 km away is the town of Gödöllö with its royal castle, the largest baroque castle in Hungary, built in the 18th century and given as a wedding gift to Francis Joseph and Sissi. It was one of his favorite vacation spots, in spring and fall. Take your time, there are 31 rooms, including one on the ground floor crowded with dresses and jewelry.
Another spot to recommend to us in this great Budapest?
About twenty km to the north, Szentendre: one of the oldest AND most beautiful medieval towns in Hungary: cobbled streets, small squares, small churches, colorful houses, art galleries and artisans, it is the town of artists. And then more touristy, but interesting, Skanzen: a museum village that takes you on a journey through all the Hungarian regions, their culture, their architecture and their traditions! Take its little tourist train, it is the longest railway line installed within the grounds of a museum in Europe.
Accommodation ?
The D8 hotel in Budapest: 70 euros and central, near the basilica. For the low cost wizz air flight: https://d8hotel.hu/en/d8-hotel-2/
Brussels sprouts
Do you know what endives and Brussels sprouts have in common????
They are derived from much larger cabbages originating from Italy, Milan cabbages. This Belgian version was born in a district of the Brussels capital, Saint-Gilles in the 17th century (i.e. before the creation of Belgium). It involved growing cabbages vertically (to save space). It was introduced into France in 1815.
What does it look like ? Imagine a thick stem coming out of the ground and dotted with these little green sprouts, about 5 cm in diameter and topped with large leaves.
Its season, from September to the end of March, because it fears extreme heat.
For many of us, they are associated with bad memories of the canteen because they were poorly cooked (left in their cooking water)
Cooking advice: add a spoonful of bicarbonate to the water (to soften them and reduce the collateral effects of fermentation during digestion)
Recipe: cream puff ragout, white wine and mustard
Ingredients
- 500 gr of Brussels sprouts
- 10 cl of white wine
- 20 cl of vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp tarragon mustard
- 15 cl of crème fraîche
- Salt pepper
Preparation
- Wash the cabbages and remove the first leaf if it is damaged
- blanch the cabbages for 5 minutes in a large volume of salted water with bicarbonate
- drain them then cook them for 25 minutes covered in white wine and broth
- add the mustard and cream and reduce over low heat, coating the cabbages well
- salt and pepper