Belle Ecorce Farms:Leauxcal Lundi

     We're geauxing leauxcal every Lundi/Monday!

Belle means beautiful and ecorce means bark, or rind. The goats seem to think the farm's bark is beautiful and tasty. Maybe that's what gives their cheese such great flavor?

     In lieu of a mot du jour Monday, I'm going to start some Leauxcal Lundi posting. Why their weird spelling of local? French names like Boudreau were changed to Boudreaux when Cajuns were asked to sign their names. Many were illiterate at the time, so x marked the spot. We use the spelling today in place of an "o" sound to let everyone know it's something Cajun/Louisiana related. So, there will be some French words and flavor thrown in to these posts because they're all about life in Southwest Louisiana: the amazing people, the food that makes you want to slap 'yo mama, and the interesting places you might find amid the cane and down the bayou.

     If you like goat cheese, Belle Ecorce Farms is a great stop on the way to see St. Martinville's main square and famous Evangeline Oak. The Tres Belle Chevre is what you want. St. Martinville is a 15 minute drive from New Iberia about a 30 minute commute from Lafayette. The town itself was one of the first established in the Attakapas District, an area laid aside by then French Louisiana for cattle, and the final stopping point for almost 200 Acadian refugees deported from Nova Scotia.

     St. Martinville's downtown has some French quarter-type architecture all surrounding the main square, it's jewel being the local Catholic church. The St. Martin de Tours church has a beautiful Lourdes-esque grotto and some of the prettiest Christmas lights. Behind the church, you can visit the oak tree where Longfellow's Evangeline purportedly landed and waited for word from her love. On the same street the Acadian Memorial and African American Museum, awaiting any visitors interested in learning more about the area's Cajun and Creole heritage.

     Back to the goat cheese, though. If you're driving to the farm, keep your eyes wide-open all the time because the road is easy to miss. I've taken poor Mike on many an adventure that led to wrong turns, dead ends, and sites that were closed for a multitude of reasons. I thought our visit to Belle Ecorce might be the same after a few wrong turns, but I spotted one goat and then almost 200. We found the pot of cheese gold at the end of the rainbow.

     This place doesn't just have goats. There are miniature horses, birds galore, and even a few hairless cats. Mike is standing in front of the farm's main house in the picture below, but the delicious goodness is in a little room next to the aviary. Watch out for the roosters!

     We went for the Tuscan Party Disc and some kind of chevre with strawberry/raspberry. You can almost eat the second one like yogurt, it's so creamy. The chevre would be great on pancakes with fresh raspberries and strawberries sliced over it. The Tuscan Party Disc spread onto a crostini with roasted peppers on top is scrumptious. If you're gluten free, nestle the cheese in an endive leaf, sprinkle with paprika, and enjoy! 

     If nobody's home, don't worry. You can still buy your cheese, just leave your money in the honor box. It's so ESA and so Davidson. I love it! Geaux leauxcal and make a trip out to the farm. If you feel like staying a little closer to home, or trying the cheese at a restaurant, Jolie's Bistro and Pour in Lafayette feature the Tres Belle Chevre on their menus. You could even pair the cheese with some Vouvray and imagine yourself in the Loire Valley, just with a Cajun flair.  

     WesMar Farms, near Alexandria, is another local goat cheesemonger. I haven't visited the farm yet, but you can find them at the Market at the Horse Farm in Lafayette every Saturday. Just in case you can't get enough goat.