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Sun-soaked comfort from Avignon to Marseille

Menu de Provence

The light in Provence is different.

It glows warm and slow, even in late September — sliding over lavender fields and olive groves, bouncing off ochre walls and zinc-topped café tables. Here, food isn’t just eaten. It’s smelled in the market, stirred with a wooden spoon, soaked in wine, and served under the fig tree.

This week, we’re bringing you a three-course Provençal menu — simple, generous, and redolent of summer herbs. It begins, of course, with Soupe au Pistou, that jubilant vegetable soup finished with a garlicky basil paste. Then comes the Daube Provençale, a deep, fragrant beef stew cooked slowly with black olives, orange zest and thyme. And to finish? A Tarte aux Figues — buttery, sun-sweet, drizzled with warm honey and kissed with thyme.

This menu begs for something local. A Côtes du Rhône rosé will echo the fruit and freshness of the dishes, especially with the soup and tart. Prefer white? A floral Viognier or a chilled Côtes du Rhône blanc will wrap beautifully around the pistou and figs.

And for the Daube — if you want to lean into richness, open a red from Gigondas or Vacqueyras. They know what to do.

Set the table. Pour a glass of chilled rosé. And breathe in.

Starter

Starter: Soupe au Pistou

A garden in your bowl.

This soup is Provence in its purest form — humble, sun-fed, and full of soul. Think tender green beans, courgettes, tomatoes, white beans, and pasta in a light broth, brought to life with a generous swirl of pistou (basil, garlic and olive oil crushed to a paste).

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 2 courgettes (zucchini), diced

• 2 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped

• 150g (1 cup) green beans, chopped

• 1 potato, peeled and diced

• 400g (14 oz) cooked white beans (or canned, drained)

• 1 small pasta shape (macaroni or ditalini), 100g (¾ cup)

• 1.5 L (6 cups) vegetable broth

• Salt, pepper, olive oil

For the pistou:

• 1 bunch fresh basil

• 2 garlic cloves

• 4 tbsp olive oil

• Optional: 30g (¼ cup) grated Gruyère or Parmesan

Instructions:

Sauté the vegetables in olive oil for a few minutes. Add the broth, bring to a simmer, and cook gently until tender (about 20 minutes). Add pasta and cook until just soft. Meanwhile, pound the basil and garlic into a paste, add olive oil, and stir into the soup just before serving.

It’s messy, vibrant, and demands a torn piece of baguette to mop up the bowl.

Light, herbal, sun-kissed

This summery vegetable soup with basil pistou sings when paired with a crisp white wine that mirrors its freshness.

🍷 Wine suggestions:

• Côtes de Provence Blanc — a delicate white with citrus and white flower notes

• Cassidy Vermentino (Rolle) — light-bodied and slightly saline, beautiful with the garlic and basil

• Picpoul de Pinet — bone-dry, zingy, and refreshing — think of it as the white that smiles back at summer vegetables

Main Course

Daube Provençale

A stew with sunshine in its bones.

This is not your everyday beef stew. It’s marinated in red wine with aromatics overnight, then slowly cooked with orange zest, thyme, bay leaf, and plump black olives. The result is deep, dark and dreamily tender.

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 800g (1¾ lbs) stewing beef, cut into chunks

• 2 carrots, sliced

• 1 onion, chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, smashed

• Zest of 1 orange (in wide strips)

• 1 bouquet garni (thyme, bay, parsley)

• 100g (⅔ cup) black olives

• 500ml (2 cups) red wine (Côtes du Rhône works beautifully)

• 2 tbsp tomato paste

• Olive oil, salt, pepper

Instructions:

Marinate the beef, carrots, onion, garlic, zest and bouquet garni in the wine overnight. Next day, remove meat and vegetables, pat dry, and brown in olive oil. Add tomato paste, strain in the marinade, and cook very gently (low heat or oven at 150°C / 300°F) for 3 hours. Add olives near the end.

Serve with buttered noodles, crusty bread, or even a simple potato purée.

Deep, rich, slow-cooked

This rustic beef stew needs a red wine that’s as generous and layered as the dish itself — something that can stand up to olives, orange zest, and long cooking.

🍷 Wine suggestions:

• Côtes du Rhône Villages — fruity, herbal and structured — a classic match

• Gigondas — more full-bodied than a typical Rhône; spicy and robust

• Bandol Rouge — made with Mourvèdre; complex, earthy, and just right with slow-cooked meats

Bonus tip: Pour a splash of the same wine into the stew — it’s a secret handshake between the pot and the glass.

Dessert

Tarte aux Figues et Miel de Thym

The final golden kiss.

There is something indecently beautiful about ripe figs. And when you slice them into a buttery tart shell and drizzle them with thyme-scented honey — they become poetry.

Ingredients (serves 6):

• 1 shortcrust pastry (pâte brisée)

• 8–10 fresh figs, halved

• 2 tbsp ground almonds

• 1 egg

• 100 ml (⅓ cup + 1 tbsp) crème fraîche

• 2 tbsp honey (thyme honey if possible)

• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves

• Pinch of salt

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F. Line a tart tin with pastry and prick with a fork. Sprinkle base with ground almonds. Whisk egg, crème fraîche, 1 tbsp honey and salt; pour over. Arrange figs, cut side up. Bake for 30–35 minutes. Drizzle with remaining honey and scatter thyme leaves.

Serve warm, with a glass of sunshine.

Golden, luscious, fragrant

This dessert whispers sweetness, not a sugar shout. The thyme honey and ripe figs ask for a wine that is aromatic and just sweet enough.

🍷 Wine suggestions:

• Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise — golden, floral, gently honeyed

• Sauternes (chilled) — for those who want a more opulent note with dried fruit and a touch of botrytis

• Côteaux d’Aix Rosé Moelleux — off-dry rosé with fig-friendly notes of peach and wild herbs

If you serve the tart slightly warm, the Muscat will bloom in your mouth.

Recipe Articles

Pissaladière is Nice’s beloved savory tart — not quite a pizza, not a quiche, but wholly its own creation.

In the old town’s early hours, bakers craft this Mediterranean staple: a golden, olive oil-rich crust topped with caramelized onions, briny anchovies, and glossy olives.

Locals insist patience is key — onions melt slowly, developing deep sweetness that pairs perfectly with the subtle burst of the sea from anchovies.

Enjoyed warm or at room temperature, pissaladière is traditionally eaten by hand, savoring every bite’s contrast of softness and crispness.

Pair it with a chilled rosé from the hills of Bellet or a classic Côtes de Provence.

Whether standing barefoot in your kitchen or on a Nice bench with salt-kissed fingers, this dish brings the southern French coast to your table — no flight required.

When the tide retreats from the Normandy coast, it uncovers shimmering sands and sometimes the elegant scallop shells that inspire a cherished local dish.

Coquilles Saint-Jacques à la Normande flourishes in these cold Atlantic waters and embodies the spirit of Normandy’s seas and fertile pastures.

This classic, served from Granville to Honfleur, brings together plump scallops sautéed in butter, mushrooms, and a rich sauce of white wine, cider, and crème fraîche.

Topped with breadcrumbs and Gruyère, then baked until golden, it arrives at the table warm and fragrant, with an aroma of sea and cream.

For many locals, it’s a family tradition, gracing holiday tables and connecting generations.

Enjoy it with a crisp Muscadet, dry Norman cider, or Champagne for a festive touch.

And so…

In Provence, we don’t just eat. We linger.

And nothing makes us linger longer than good wine. 🍷

If you ever find yourself in Aix on a warm Tuesday, walk to Place Richelme just after nine. The market will smell like garlic, figs and crushed thyme — and a woman in a straw hat will be handing out ladles of soupe au pistou like blessings.

Bon appétit

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