The Côte d'Azur,
as part of Provence, shares its culinary fundamentals of olive oil,
garlic and the herbs that flourish in dry soil, its gorgeous vegetables
and fruits, plus Menton's lemons, the goat's cheeses and, of course, the predominance of fish.
The fish soups of bouillabaisse, famous in Marseille, and bourride, served with a garlic and chilli-flavoured mayonnaise known as rouille, are served all along the coast, as are fish covered with Provençal herbs and grilled over an open flame. Seafood - from spider crabs to clams, sea urchins to crayfish, crabs, lobster, mussels and oysters - are piled onto huge plateaux de mer, which don't necessarily represent Mediterranean harvest, more the luxury associated with this coast.
The Italian influence is even stronger on the coast than it is inland, particularly in Nice, with delicate ravioli stuffed with asparagus, prawns, wild mushrooms or pestou,
pizzas with wafer-thin bases and every sort of pasta as a vehicle for
anchovies, olives, garlic and tomatoes. Nice has its own specialities,
such as socca, a chickpea flour pancake, pissaladière, a tart of fried onions with anchovies and black olives, salade niçoise
and pan bagnat , which combines egg, olives, salad, tuna and olive oil,
and mesclum , a salad of bitter leaves including dandelion. Petits farcies - stuffed aubergines, peppers or tomatoes - are a standard feature on Côte d'Azur menus, as well as in inland
Provence.
The Italian dessert tiramisu, made of mascapone cheese, chocolate and cream, appears in Nice, while St-Tropez
has its own sweet speciality in the tarte Tropezienne . The sweet
chestnuts that grow in the Massif des Maures are candied or turned into
purée. Outlets for ice cream and sorbets are ubiquitous.
As for wine, the rosés of Provence
might not have great status in the viniculture hierarchy, but for
baking summer days they are hard to beat. The best of the Côte wines
come from Bandol: Cassis too has its own appellation , and around Nice
the Bellet wines are worth
discovering. Fancy cocktails are a Côte speciality, and pastis is the
preferred thirst quencher at any time of the day.
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