I took this photo of olives we helped harvest for a friend living in the Var, right before it got pressed. In France, quality oils are some of the most unparalleled, absolutely to-die-for: olive oil, hazelnut oil, walnut oil, and grapeseed oil are amazing here; it’s healthful, superior and costs much less than outside of Europe. Walnut oil and hazelnut are not really cooking oils, but rather, go so nicely in salads and just adds a subtle nutty flavor to braised vegetables. It’s summer so there’s no shortage of haricots verts (green beans) and zucchini and gobs of tomatoes and herbs.

In the south of France, if you’re lucky enough to have your own olive trees, you can actually just pick your olives, bring them to a company that will then (initial) cold press them for you, and bottle the olive oil for you. Your very own quality home-grown olive oil!

I wonder if they do that for walnuts as well. We have so many huge walnut trees it would be so cool to have our own “vintage” walnut oil. I’ll have to check on that and report it later.