As Valentine's Day approaches, I want to share with you an old and silly Saint-Valentine's tradition from Lorraine, the region where I was born, named "la saudée".

On the 14th of February, the young men (just for fun!) made a list of all gentlemen of their village and, in front of each of those names, wrote down the name of a potential fiancée, without consulting her. The next day, the list was read out loud on the piazza.
When a woman was chosen by several men, each "aspirant" had to then plead his cause in front of a tribunal.
Needless to say, people had sometimes fun to, for instance, bring together two people who did not appreciate each other, especially since the pairs formed that day were designated as "couples" for the whole year!
Once the party started, the gentleman offered his "Valentine" flowers and gifts, most often illustrated cards, as well as bottles of wine, ideal to warm up the ambiance of this popular celebration!
















And here is the recipe of a chocolaty love potion to warm up your Valentine's heart:

Ingredients:
- 2 Vanilla beans
- 1 Liter of milk
- 2 TBSP of pure cocoa
- ¼ of a Liter of lukewarm water
- 2 TBSP of honey
- 2 TBSP of brown sugar
- ½ tsp of Cayenne pepper or Tabasco
- A pinch of salt
- A glass of Rum or Tequila


Vive l'amour!

Preparation:
1) Warm up the vanilla beans in the milk for 10 minutes.
2) Remove the vanilla beans from the milk. Press them over a separate pan to extract the sap and the little seeds.
3) Add the cocoa to those vanilla extracts and thin out with the lukewarm water.
4) Add the warm milk while stirring well; add the honey and the sugar.
5) Incorporate the Cayenne pepper or Tabasco, salt and Rum or Tequila while whisking.
6) Serve hot or cold in good company! ;-)