Tuesday, March 20, 2012, at 12 noon School Cafeteria Paule d’Essling-Sis, 1 Avenue Salonina – Nice
Before the grand Festin dei Cougourdon, organized for the general public at the Cimiez Arenas and at the Liberation and Saleya markets on Saturday, March 24, and Sunday, March 25, it is the schoolchildren of Nice who will have the opportunity to celebrate this traditional Niçoise festival during lunch at the cafeteria.
Chef Ratatouille invites the students of Paule d’Essling School this Tuesday, March 20, to enjoy pumpkin soup and cheese ravioli with basil cream sauce and to partake in various activities and music from the County of Nice with the participation of Evelyne Colas, President of the “Lou Mandilhou” association, and Yves Rousguisto, a musicologist, who will explain how the “cougourdon” has been used through time: as a gourd, instrument, decorative element, etc.
The “Courgourdons” feast takes its name from the market that was held on the church square in front of the Cimiez Monastery. The “cougourdon” is the Niçoise name given to the fruit of a plant from the gourd family. This inedible vegetable, introduced to our region in the 16th century, was quickly adopted by the Niçoise for its own qualities. Waterproof after drying in the sun, it is often used as kitchen utensils. Its original shapes inspire craft artisans, both useful and decorative. Musicians also find a strong musical potential in this atypical vegetable. It continues to inspire Niçoise musicians and artists who perpetuate and reinvent the “cougourdon” tradition.
