Wednesday lunch was a real treat. One of the activities offered by our rental week at Bambou is an afternoon cooking with Jean-Claude Aubertin, a Michelin-starred chef. He runs Aubertin Restaurant, a small and simple place in nearby Villeneuve-lès-Avignon. The way the activity works is that Jean-Claude brings us to the market with him in the morning, then comes back to the house to cook us lunch. Wednesday is the big farmer's market day of the week in St. Remy.
My grandma, dad and I got up bright and early, and Jean-Claude showed up soon after. We drove over to town, and boy was the market in full swing. We'd seen the smaller market over the weekend, but on Wednesday the streets were absolutely filled with vendors of all kinds. We'd decided on a seafood lunch so we walked over to the fish section, where Jean-Claude surveyed the wares. The best part of the trip may have been watching Jean-Claude haggle with the fishmongers over the price of rouget. He kept comparing the prices with the vendor next door to get them down, and it worked. Very funny stuff.
Anyway, we got various other ingredients then headed back home to start. I think usually there are more avid chefs among the groups that do this program, but with us, we were more content watching Jean-Claude cook and eating the results. My dad and aunt did a little bit of stuff, but I was happy just watching the man work. Watching sure did make me hungry. 
steamed cod mousse wrapped with macaroni in a seafood bisque with shrimp and langoustine Jean-Claude kept trying to convince us about how easy this cod mousse macaroni thing is to make, and I guess it didn't look that hard. The soup, though, was a completely different story. Jean-Claude used trimmings, shells, and whatnot from the seafood we'd bought for the main dish to make an amazing base. As I watched him stick the 95348 or so different ingredients into the pot, I knew this was something I'd never try to make. The results were amazing. The cod mousse was light, airy and tasty, no doubt, but the soup... the soup had so much going on that the little picture of orange liquid doesn't do it justice. Delicious! 
aioli with dorade, monkfish, rouget, mussels, sea snails, leeks, fennel, cauliflower, carrots, haricots verts, courgettes For our main dish, Jean-Claude prepared this regional classic, a simple aioli with different seafood. He'd bought a specific olive oil to make the aioli, and the deep green color illustrates how much olive flavor the stuff had - much more than your typical mayo. It tasted like an intense olive cream. Among the fish, I'd say I liked the simple and flaky rouget the most. The escargot tasted strongly of the sea. The mussels were the only weak link - they were a bit small and unsubstantial. To be honest though, the aioli was so tasty I was just dipping everything left and right and it all tasted good. Even the veggies! :) 
Chef Aubertin at work As we finished up our mains, Jean-Claude put the finishing touches on our dessert. At this point I realized I didn't take a good photo of him, so here he is in all his glory, dusting powdered sugar. 
apricot tart with verbena It was apricot season as you may have guessed, so Jean-Claude went with this simple apricot tart with honey and verbena. He said he was hoping to find some fresh verbena at the market, but we had to settle for dried. This dish was just alright - the apricots were pretty sour, and the cookie crust and honey were very sweet, but if you mixed the two together it was okay.
This simple lunch turned out to be a great experience. Jean-Claude is a fun, good-humored guy, and it was a joy spending the afternoon with him. We didn't get a chance to go to his restaurant, but I'd make it a point to stop by the next time I'm in the area. Everyone go support him if you get a chance! :)