Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 68

F L AV O R S

Text and photos by FRED & JILL SAUCEMAN

TASTING TENNESSEE IN FRANCE

A Salad Dressing
Comes Full Circle
Well, the exquisite concoction did originate in France, but Fred
and Jill Sauceman knew it first from an East Tennessee friend.

T

he taste was familiar. Deeply familiar, in
fact. But first let me set the scene. We were
in the small town of Sainte-Mère-Église,
with a population of about 2,500 people.
Located in Normandy, in northwestern
France, it was one of the first towns liberated during the D-Day Invasion, thanks to
soldiers like my father, who served with the 101st
Airborne Division during World War II.
We had come to Western Europe to follow in
his footsteps: the crossing of the English Channel
on D-Day, the route down Hell's Highway in the
Netherlands during Operation Market Garden, the
freezing siege of Bastogne, and the victorious trek
to Adolf Hitler's Eagle's Nest above Berchtesgaden
in Germany.

Micheline Williams' Homemade
Salad Dressing
1 small shallot
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 heaping teaspoon Maille mustard from France
3 tablespoons peanut oil
Salt and pepper to taste
A few fresh chives, snipped, or any other fresh
herb you like and have on hand

68

BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM

Mince the shallots and
place in a large bowl.
Add the red wine vinegar and mustard. Mix
well. Add the oil, salt,
and pepper and mix or
whisk well. Stir in the
chives or whatever fresh
herb you use. Tarragon,
oregano, or basil are
also good options.

Virtually every building in Sainte-Mère-Église
is adorned not only with a French flag but an
American one as well. For the citizens of this town,
World War II is not a distant memory. It's an everyday reality. A dummy paratrooper hangs from
the town church, commemorating paratrooper
John Steele's drop on D-Day when his parachute
caught on a church spire. Steele was shot in the
foot, played dead, and was eventually captured by
the Germans, only to escape and return to his unit
four days later. Today an inn is named after him.
A restaurant is named after him. Items on various
restaurant menus are named after him.
Respect for America and the Americans who liberated Sainte-Mère-Église has not diminished over
the ensuing 74 years. An Airborne Museum there
pays tribute to the heroism of the 82nd and 101st
Airborne Divisions. In it is a glider, exactly like the
ones my father rode in during the war.
Now back to that memorable flavor. Since we
were in one of the world's great apple-growing regions, it made sense to have lunch at a place called
Restaurant La Pomme d'Or, the "golden apple,"
where, by the way, the music of Elvis Presley plays
constantly. It also made sense to order a pork cutlet
covered with a sauce of mushrooms, cream, and
Calvados, the apple brandy of Normandy.
When the dish came out, it was accompanied
by a simple green salad. I took one bite, and I was
immediately transported back to East Tennessee.
"That's Micheline's dressing," I said. We would
find this dressing in two other towns in France:
Vierville-sur-Mer and Hagenau.
The late Micheline Grieu Williams was one of


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Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018

Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - Intro
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - Cover1
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - Cover2
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 3
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 5
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 6
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 7
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 8
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 9
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 10
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 11
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 12
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 13
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 14
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 15
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 16
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 17
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 18
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 19
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 20
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 21
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 22
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 23
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 24
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 25
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 26
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 27
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 28
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 29
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 30
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 31
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 32
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 33
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 34
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 35
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 36
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 37
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 38
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 39
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 40
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 41
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 42
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 43
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Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 53
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 54
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 55
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 56
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 57
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 58
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 59
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 60
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 61
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 62
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 63
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 64
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 65
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 66
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 67
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 68
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 69
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 70
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 71
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 72
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 73
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - 74
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2018 - Cover4
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