Sock Juice and Pie

 I love American coffee.  The French normally drink espresso.  Ohhh fancy right, not really.  The stereotype is that French people find American coffee repugnant, calling it sock juice and all such names, however I have found this to be relative.  In fact I was surprised to see several drip coffee makers in French homes, but more common is an individual espresso maker like nespresso.  The difference is café au lait vs. coffee.  Drip coffee would be considered café au lait, normally it is put into a small bowl with some milk for breakfast at home.  Espresso is the strong stuff put into a demi-tasse that has a handle that your pinky finger can't even fit into, normally the French have one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Now some espresso etiquette; when you would like some espresso around here they will ask short or long (court ou longue).  I ask for it long,which is more like American coffee, and so do many people; long is basically a really strong small cup of Starbucks coffee with some foam.  What has happened is that the "long" allows the water to pass through the espresso twice instead of just once as is the case for a short.  Short is your real deal espresso shot in those cute little espresso cups.  There are about three things you can ask for with your coffee; a cube of sugar, a little dark chocolate and some water to thin your coffee out a tad.  

Talking about chocolate with coffee reminds me of another interesting French-ism.  They eat dessert for breakfast.  Yes, there is a place where you can have chocolate wrapped in a croissant, an apple pie, or a piece of cake all for breakfast.  You might say apple pie in France?!  Yes, it is called a chausson de pommes.  Imagine a pie folded in half like a taco but flaky and buttery like a croissant, it just so happens to be one of my favorite morning time dessert breakfast foods.  It also just so happens that the pattiserie near me, the au naturel, makes some of the best in the region, I've tried out my fair share.  A delicious addition to your day : ).  That being said the French don't eat large breakfasts so be happy with your apple pie and coffee because that's all you're getting until lunch at 1:30.