A weekend to discover the Gascon cook at the Domaine départemental de Sceaux

It is one of the most awaited events of the departmental domain of Sceaux: the Grandes Heures de Sceaux, which allows to relive great historical moments, proposed by the Department of Hauts-de-Seine.

Dedicated to the Gascon cook, named after the gastronomy manual signed by Louis Auguste de Bourbon, son of the Duke and Duchess of Maine, the weekend of March 31 to April 2 will take you on a gourmet and educational escapade! For a weekend, discover with your family the new cuisine of the 18th century by reviving the memory of this exceptional prince and his precious book presented at the museum for the occasion.

Prince and cook! Louis Auguste de Bourbon, Prince of Dombes, son of the Duke and Duchess of Maine, had an impetuous temperament, but knew how to calm his ardor and concentrate on the stove. His qualities were such that he cooked for King Louis XV and undertook to share his art and his secrets through a work considered today as the most important manual of French gastronomy of the ^18th century: Le Cuisinier gascon.

On the program of the weekend :

• Conference tasting at the Orangery, Friday, March 31
  "During the Enlightenment, culinary writings proliferated and attested to the interest in cooking. Dishes were rapidly renewed, and scholars took up the culinary fact and made it an object of reflection and discussion. The whole of society became passionate and debated on the subject. The invention of the restaurant is part of this evolution in a Paris in full culinary and gastronomic effervescence", with Patrick Rambourg, historian of culinary and food practices and table manners.
  
  
• From the rediscovery of the Gascon cook to the tasting, Friday March 31
  Camille Lelièvre, a professional pastry chef specializing in the history of pastry from the ^14th to the early ^20th century, has been practicing this profession for thirteen years. Many pastry recipes were invented in the ^17th and ^18th centuries. Profound changes took place in the combination of flavors and techniques. This presentation will be followed by a tasting of dishes prepared according to the recipes of the Gascon Cook, of which Camille Lelièvre will reveal some of the secrets.
  
  Camille Lelièvre(Fleur des délices), historical pastry chef
  
  
• Sale and tasting at the Château, Saturday, April^1st and Sunday, April 2nd from 10:00 am to 6:30 pm
  Visiting the Château this weekend promises a journey back in time to meet the tasty delicacies of the Maison de la Varenne and the Fleur des délices. Heir to the famous food officer François Pierre de La Varenne, the Maison de la Varenne is THE undisputed reference in confectionery and high-end cookies.
  
  Camille Lelièvre, for her part, will make you discover her two mixed passions, pastry and history, of which she will offer you to taste some of the fruits. A gourmet opportunity to discover the first recipes of meringue, marrons glacés and other sweets invented in the ^17th and ^18th centuries.
  
  
• Banquet show at the Orangery with the company Danses au (Pas)sé, Saturday from 8 to 11 pm
  The guests take their seats while the kitchen is busy. The visitors of 2023 come with their food and hear about recipes that Louis XV would have appreciated. The viola da gamba is played to keep them waiting and the most daring of the spectators admire their outfits. Suddenly the Duchess of Maine appears! She is the mistress of the place.
  
  Better still: her soul, her breath, the inspiration behind everything that is imagined and performed on the Domaine. Thanks to her and her son, the Prince of Dombes, you will be able to admire the dancers' gavottes and their famous "Ballet des Sens", listen to the flute tunes or the latest news from Sceaux or Paris. And maybe even dance, at the end of the dinner and the dream!... But who is this strange "Gascon cook" whose recipe book dazzles the Court? When we talk about him in front of the Prince, he smiles mysteriously...

Important : this evening consists of a banquet-picnic with a show.
The participants will have to come with their baskets, food and dishes, according to their tastes, and will be installed around tables of ten guests: a very good opportunity to meet new people...

Pastillage workshop for families, Sunday from 10am to 12pm

^18th century confectionery books describe the art of pastillage, decorations made of colored or uncolored sugar paste, modeled or molded, which were used to decorate dessert tables, sometimes in very impressive compositions. The workshop offers you to discover and experiment with the recipe of sugar paste, tinted with food coloring, and to practice this art. Your cakes will be even more beautiful!

• Young audience show: La Bouche pleine by the Compost company, Sunday at 2:30 pm and 4:30 pm
  
  You can't eat your children, even if they are often "chewy"!
  But stories allow us to tell what happens when we do what is not done.
  
  A man and a woman discover by chance that human flesh tastes good, especially that of children, so tender. So they devour their own, then the little neighbors and soon all the children they can meet. They enjoy themselves. Children in the womb discover a mysterious world. While cooking in front of you, the artists reveal a story drawn from several traditional tales and more contemporary images to speak about an absolute pleasure: the greed.
  
  Compagnie le Compost :Cécile Morelle and Julien Tauber

Reservations on line