French cuisine and central France, including cherries grown for the liqueur "Guignolet" and the 'Belle Angevine' pears. The strawberries and melons are also of high quality. Fish are seen in the cuisine, often served with a beurre blanc sauce, as well as wild game, lamb, calves, Charolais cattle, "Géline" fowl, and goat cheeses. Young vegetables are used often in the cuisine, as are the specialty mushrooms of the region, "champignons de Paris". Vinegars from Orléans are a specialty ingredient used as well. Burgundy and Franche-Comté are known for their wines. Pike, perch, river crabs, snails, game, redcurrants, blackcurrants are from both Burgundy
French cuisine in spiced stews. French cuisine varies according to the season. In summer, salads and fruit dishes are popular because they are refreshing and produce is inexpensive and abundant. Greengrocers prefer to sell their fruit and vegetables at lower prices if needed, rather than see them rot in the heat. At the end of summer, mushrooms become plentiful and appear in stews throughout France. The hunting season begins in September and runs through February. Game of all kinds is eaten, often in elaborate dishes that celebrate the success of the hunt. Shellfish are at their peak when winter turns to spring,