In France’s Provençal region, the holidays bring about an ancient tradition known as le gros super et les treize desserts– or “The Great Supper and Thirteen desserts.” This holiday feast takes place on December 24, beginning with seven non-meat dishes and ending with thirteen desserts symbolically meant to ensure health and prosperity for the coming year. Join author of “A Woman’s Guide to France” and Wanderlust Tours owner, Shawnie Kelley as she demonstrates three sweet recipes and discusses Provence’s holiday food traditions, deep-rooted symbolisms, table settings, and customs. Get into the spirit while sampling a selection of handmade sweets and sipping a hot holiday toddy.

Shawnie first demonstrates how to make the meal’s piece de resistance known as fougasse. The fragrant focaccia-like bread laced with orange and aniseed serves as the centerpiece of the dessert table and the celebration. The recipe for this heady showstopper hails directly from a Provençal kitchen, as does the one for chewy nougat served on the dessert table.

You also learn to make candied citrus peel that stands alone as a snack or provides a sugary pop of flavor when incorporated into other desserts. And what would Christmas be without a traditional cookie? The third demonstration is for a boat-shaped biscuit known as Navettes served alongside a fruity homemade holiday jam.  Additionally; Shawnie shares recipes for a few desserts that are not demonstrated, but sampled, as well as a slideshow of images from Wanderlust Tours’ “Christmas in Provence” trip.

This class is inspired by an article Shawnie wrote about Provence’s 13 desserts for the Winter 2012 issue of Edible Columbus.