Gastronomy as a Shared Art of Living

A gastronomy inspired by the mountains

Toulouse Pyrenees is, for its gastronomy, a land of plenty.

In Toulouse, goose is the reference and is eaten in stew, pâté or confit. It also serves as a base with the famous Toulouse sausage and the Tarbais bean or mounjete in Gascon with its melting flesh, in the Toulouse cassoulet. Duck is not left out. We are definitely in the southwest !

When it comes to confectionery or sweet treats, the pink city is also the symbol of the violet. Crystallized natural flowers, candies, syrup, ice creams, cakes but also mustard, vinegar... This delicate and fragrant flower can be consumed in a thousand and one ways.

Another Toulouse specialty: fenetra, a cake made from almonds, apricots and candied lemon peel, whose origins date back to the Romans.

In Ariège, croustade is the local specialty that is eaten with apples, pears, figs or prunes.

In the Pyrenees, the spit cake made with rum, walnuts and raisins is preferred. It is cooked on a spit in successive layers. As for sweets, the Cauterets berlingot can be enjoyed in all colours and flavours.

In the Pyrenees, gastronomy is inspired by the mountains: summer cheeses, black pork from Bigorre or Gascony, trout and salmon caught in the torrents of the gaves, AOC Barèges-Gavarnie mutton, fatty duck, black poultry from Astarac-Bigorre with pinkish-white flesh, chestnuts from the Pyrenees, carrots from Asté, sweet onions from Trébons, chanterelles, morels, ceps picked in the undergrowth, game... These local products are the basis for excellent recipes, passed down from generation to generation. Let's not forget, in these products with a Pyrenean identity, honey which has the taste and flavour of the flowers of the trees of the Gaves valley, the plains and the mountains.

From the Aspe and Osseau valleys comes a naturally sparkling water, to be drunk without moderation. In terms of vineyards, the Hautes-Pyrénées have two Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées: Madiran and Pacherenc du Vic Bilh.

The Madiran vineyard dates back to the 1st century. In the 11th century, the Benedictines founded an abbey and improved the wine. It is a vineyard of slopes and hillsides that has had its AOC since 1948. It is a powerful and full-bodied red wine . It goes perfectly with confits, game, mutton and cassoulet.

Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh is a dry or sweet white wine. Sweet Pacherenc gives off aromas of clear candied fruits (pear, apple, quince) and spices. It can be drunk as an aperitif. The dry wines have beautiful floral, citrus and dried fruit aromas. Ancizan, a village in the Aure Valley, is worth a visit, especially to taste its cider.