All-Season Comfort Food!

Although we typically associate comfort food with the winter months, there’s no reason we can’t eat it at any time of the year!

What exactly is comfort food? It’s a dish that consoles the diner for whatever reason—to counter stress, out of a sense of nostalgia, homesickness (if you’re living abroad) or simply to make up for a hard day or a long day enjoying the outdoors. It’s the happiness factor that works its magic!

Here are some examples of comfort food.

Traditional French Cuisine

For instance, let’s consider French food (the inspiration behind many of the dishes on the Bistro 4 Saisons menu). It’s tasty and rich. Cold cuts, cheese, wine and pastry contain ingredients—fat, salt, sugar—that satisfy the stomach and tempt the taste buds. The brain remembers the pleasurable effects of these flavourful foods and craves them over and over again.

Dishes from France that are considered to be comfort food include the popular tartiflette (a potato dish garnished with Reblochon cheese), onion soup au gratin, yummy cassoulet (a white bean and meat casserole dish flavoured with herbs), braised and marinated meats and tarte flambée Alsatian (a type of pizza from Alsace).

Stews or Soups

We think of stews or soups as comfort food. Not only do they warm you up, they make you feel great! Also, while they are simmering on the stove, the house fills up with tempting aromas that whet the appetite.

Childhood Favourites

What we think of as comfort food often goes back to our childhood. We recall favourites such as the spaghetti drowned in the yummy sauce your mother used to make. Or the tourtière (meat pie) prepared by your dad. Or maybe even Grandma’s mouth-watering apple pie…

Then there are the dishes linked to celebrations at certain times of the year—New Year’s Eve for example, or Easter. Seasonal food is associated with having a good time, not least because it’s usually shared with family and friends.

Sweet Versus Savoury

While poutine (french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy), burgers and pulled pork are considered to be comfort foods, conversely, to those with a sweet tooth, ice cream, chocolate and candy are what they turn to when they want to feel good…

Again, it’s likely because these sugary foods are associated with treats, like an outing to an ice cream parlour with grandpa and grandma or tucking into a traditional pouding chômeur (sponge cake dessert sweetened with maple syrup) at Christmas time. The resulting sugar rush certainly makes you feel better—at least for a short time!

Healthy, as Well as Comforting?

Some foods can indeed be both satisfying and nutritious—certain soups (such as chicken noodle soup), curries made from root vegetables, hot oatmeal sprinkled with nuts and fresh fruit and frozen yoghurt (to cite a few examples).

Feel like having a good comfort meal? Well then, why not treat yourself to a tasty meal by booking a table at Bistro 4 Saisons, right inside the hotel!