Haute cuisine and shaping "haute cuisine", but their roles in the cuisine were what differentiated it from regular French cuisine. "Haute cuisine" was characterized by French cuisine in elaborate preparations and presentations served in small and numerous courses that were produced by large and hierarchical staffs at the grand restaurants and hotels of Europe. The cuisine was very rich and opulent with decadent sauces made out of butter, cream, and flour, the basis for many typical French sauces that are still used today. The 17th century chef and writer La Varenne marked a change from cookery known in the Middle Ages, to
French cuisine and created new combinations and pairings. Some have speculated that a contributor to nouvelle cuisine was World War II when animal protein was in short supply during the German occupation. By the mid-1980s food writers stated that the style of cuisine had reached exhaustion and many chefs began returning to the haute cuisine style of cooking, although much of the lighter presentations and new techniques remained. There are many dishes that are considered part of French national cuisine today. A meal often consists of three courses, "hors d'œuvre" or "entrée" (introductory course, sometimes soup), "plat principal" (main course), "fromage" (cheese