Français Partout La Vie qui vive

It is weird to think how crazily different other cultures are compared to our own. For example, music. Nearly every sect of every cultural group across the world has some sort of unique music associated with just them. The French are no exception. Almost every Frenchman (or even a lot of Americans) know of the famous artist Stromae. Stromae is a very famous Belgian pop singer who has become a global sensation. His domain of popularity is very concentrated in France. But France has always produced some of the greatest music on the planet.
For centuries upon centuries France was regarded as the cultural capital of the world. A lot of this was because of its vast swaths of lands across the globe. Yet, defacto influences of cultures also played a great role in the spread of Francophonic influences. For example, the Norman invasion of Anglo-Saxon England caused the French language to become that of England’s nobility and upper class. Despite France no longer having political control over the British Aisles, French culture permanently made its mark on our language.
The influence of the French language also was proliferated by diplomacy. For centuries it was commonplace in Western civilizations that diplomatic relations between any two parties would be conducted entirely in French. This may be, because all the upper classes who were the ones conducting diplomacy. This is seen today as French is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. Also, the official language of the Olympics is in fact French. Although you do not hear it conducted fully in such, it is still technically the official language.
Prepare yourself for a rant… One of the greatest feats of French influence is so often forgotten my millions of Americans. I am speaking of none other than our glorious revolution. Yes, the kingdom of France did in fact provide us with countless amounts of money, men, food, and other war supplies during our revolution. In fact, many would argue that without the support of the French, the patriot cause would have lacked both the funding and the legitimacy required to start such a large new nation. The British would have found no resistance in completely cutting of the thirteen colonies and scrapping them for parts. This is precisely why the United States and France have remained such close ideological allies. Even though shortly after the revolution France would have their own bloody revolution, we still remained pals. Hey, just look that the assistance we gave them in World War One and World War Two alone. But going into Europe and protecting them from Germany (twice) was the least we could do for helping us gain our independence. So I encourage you to look at the way France has shaped society differently. Perhaps next time you are hearing some dull history lesson on the American revolution, or saying the word ‘enamored’, or even hearing a foreign sounding song on the radio, you will remember that France has and always will have a profound influence on many such things.

So now I will delve into the sublime. The mere mentioning of such a subject evokes raw emotion among even the gauntest of diets. This is none other than …. the crepe! These delectable French delights do not necessarily represent the highest of cuisine, but they never fail to please a crowd. But what is it about this simple fare that has always wowed consumers everywhere. First, lets start with none other than myself.
I have enjoyed crepes ever since I first I ever sunk my teeth into them my freshman year of high school. This fateful day was on a field trip with my school’s French club. We were visiting a local restaurant called Rachel’s Creperie and they served… you guessed it… crepes. I’ll never forget the savory ham and brie crepe. It was filled with pure delight and wonder. The second I was finished I knew I wanted another and a habit would be formed. So in discovering this new delight I found another reason to love all things French. But what was it about this odd little pancakes that captivate people everywhere? Some might say that it is their versatility. Just think about it, you can literally put anything your heart so desires into this little package. It does not have to be breakfast themed, dinner themed, or any theme at all! The crepe simply has to cater to whatever it is that you so desire. So many other great foods share this property. For instance, we all recognize the versatility of pizza. There is a pizza for nearly every topping under the sun, whether it is barbecue chicken, spaghetti, maccaroni and cheese or whatever you want! Controlling our food is perhaps one greatest ways to captivate consumers, and the crepe certainly succeeds at such a feat.
What most people do not realize is how much of an art cooking crepes really is. It is not the status quo method of making a pancake in which you just slap a few dollops of bisquick onto a griddle. The ingredients are very basic and mostly consist of standard eggs, flour, salt, butter, and other small additives. This is deceptively simple, but the true defining factor of making crepes comes in to your savoir-faire on the griddle. It is absolutely neccessary that you maintain the crepes thin stature as not to accidentally make an over glorified flapjack. Because the crepe is ultimately very thin, it is necessary to be able to flip it with ease. A simple mishap in this step will lead to a disastrous attempt at cooking never to be mentioned by anyone again. Once you have cooked the standard doughy part of the crepe, you now must top it. As mentioned earlier, people use everything. Some of the more popular toppings include: Nutella, chocolate, mixed fruits, whipped cream, and more. Now that you have topped your crepe you are now ready to enjoy this tiny slice of paradise. So next time that you do eat a crepe, perhaps you will appreciate it a little more.