Panade is French peasant food. The simplest version, dry bread slowly cooked with water and salt, sometimes an egg stirred in at the end, squeezed one last meal from a stale loaf of bread. Some think that adding caramelized onions and cheese led to the iconic French onion soup.
The resemblance to traditional bread stuffing (or dressing, depending on your regional preference) makes panade perfect for a holiday feast. But as legendary cook and author Richard Olney noted, an onion panade makes a hearty winter meal. “A young dry white wine, a slightly chilled Beaujolais or an icy beer are all appropriate accompaniments,” he wrote in the New York Times almost 50 years ago, “Add a salad. Put a bowl of apples on the table. It is as simple as that.”
I like to increase the vegetable to bread ratio, so I caramelize leeks and onions, then add some green cabbage. The French prefer Gruyere in their panade, but I used the milder Ferndale caciotta, a local cow’s milk cheese, along with Parmigiano Reggiano.
A classic panade layers the bread and vegetables, but I mix them together. Everything goes into a baking pan or skillet, then I pour in broth until I can see it just below the top of the bread. Parchment paper and foil go on top, then it’s baked low and slow before pulling back the cover and letting the top get brown and a little crispy.
If you haven’t heard, non-alcoholic drinks have come a LONG way in the last few years (hold the sparkling apple juice please), and we’re excited to be partnering with Athletic Brewing, Wilderton, Ghia, and Betera to show you just how delicious an alcohol-free evening can be. Whether your drink of choice is an ice-cold IPA or a complex bitter aperitif, we’ll have you covered.
Are you ready to run?! Our recent evening jog across the river was such a success that we’re doing it again! Join us thisThursday December 2nd for a run hosted by Wy’East Wolfpack and Ben’s Friends, a sober community of folks that work in the service industries.
After the run, we’ll light up the bonfires and break out the bar for a dynamic tasting of our favorite NA beverages. And if you’re not a runner and are just curious about the drinks, that’s cool too: this event is for everybody!
So whether you’re running or just drinking (um, sheepishly raises hand), we hope to see you at the famous Wellspent Parking Lot this week. Cheers!
