Home » Archive for March, 2006

Egg Baked in Herb Crêpes
Sam’s and I read:
Happy Pancake Day!
What?
Pancake day? When? T.O.D.A.Y? Are you sure? Nobody told me!!!
I pulled another window and surfed to another blog by a fellow foodie, Jam Faced and I read:
Pancake Day?
Again!
Did I miss something? What planet do I live on?
This past vacation really made me forget about the [...]

Friday it is and Andrew from Spittoon Extra announced Sugar High Friday #17. For the event, I had a desire to make something simple, clean and milky! And since I am a major chocolate fan, I had to find something to satisfy both the event and me! But more importantly me!
When it comes to chocolate, [...]

Since I involved myself in food-blogging, I developed a very peculiar trend (and I am only going to present the non-embarrassing ones here, since it is my blog, I can decide, eh?)
The first one is the new buying patterns I tend to follow. For a reason probably good study matter for sociologs (I don’t [...]

I love Art in general and even better when it can be appreciated outside (this is the country girl in me, put me in a field and I am happy!)
We went to visit the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park yesterday with my cousin’s daughter who was here for a visit.
A great Sunday and oh yes, [...]

Did you understand already while seeing the title how much I am in love with making dough, tarts, tartlets of all kinds? Sweet, savoury, or both together, I just love them. I just cannot explain why I have this attraction with les tartes (better to say this in French!).
It might come from the following. [...]

Timbale au basilic et asperges vertes et ses crevettes flambées au cognac - Cognac Flambéed Shrimps with Basil and Asparagus Timbale
What a long long title for a recipe! I suppose there are people that just have the skills to find the appropriate title, and obviously not moi! Pitiful!
To participate in the Paper Chef #16 organized [...]

I do impulse buys. Many times. It is not yet a handicap (I mean, I know about it) but all the same, it is sometimes what is the word?, overwhelming and burdening. I could feel sorry for that thing I just bought, promise it will not happen again, burn it so that I don’t see [...]

Paprika Nuts Mix

Abel Tasman National Park
During our 3 day hiking/kayak trip at Abel Tasman National Park in the South Island of New Zealand, one of the true pleasures beside the walks and water activities was the dinners prepared for us at the end of the day! Did I already say that I like this? Nothing [...]

What is your opinion on this: are we given permission to continue to cook wintery meals? I mean, what kind of season is this? Spring (definitely here yesterday) or still winter (like today)? The problem is that we do not know OR knowing how the weather can play devilish tricks, we should all be careful. [...]

The Kayak Cookie
I promise that I am not getting dividends from the New Zealand tourist industry.
So, if it happens that you are getting tired of my New Zealand stories, you can probably skip this post. Ah no wait! There is a recipe as well, so maybe you want to wait?
Do you remember following me [...]

If you are like me, you just enjoy making individual portions of food. By this I mean making mini versions of big things. Rather than baking a tart, I usually prefer to make tartlets. Maybe because I find them cuter (and girls like cute, don’t they?) or because it reminds me of our visits to [...]

Plums cooked in sugar with Cointreau Orange syrup
Rowena’s beautiful blog, Rubber Slippers in Italy, says “[...] one thing remains true. You can take the girl out of the island but you can’t take the island out of the girl.”
So true isn’t it? You are what you are and no matter where you live and what [...]

I do not know anybody who does not like parties. There are parties and parties of course and one party does not necessarily equal another. Depending on the kind of party, you have fun, a lot of fun,…ok and sometimes you just wonder what on earth you were thinking before deciding to accept an invitation. [...]

Surreal Green Vegetable Tart
Leftovers or the Art to Extend the Use of Dough
I am not a baker. I am way too grumpy in early morning for that, not even to mention the clumsiness factor. But there is definitely something about baking strongly anchored in me. Remember? I once was elected “Miss Panini” while working in [...]

In one week it is officially Spring. Not that I will have raspberries to pick yet, but why not virtually warm up!
And for those who wonder, no it is not an ant who landed on a rapsberry. I think I just need to get my eyes checked and get reading glasses! Charming!

What about a nice easy-to-make apple tart to enlighten your Saturday….
If you liked my green vegetable tart, or simply enjoy to see when the pastry goes “pouf” in the oven, I have another delicious tart for you. I think you had been warned, in Béa’s land, there are many tarts.
In the series, “how to use [...]

Plum Cake and Orange Sauce
The 2 Rs: Rustic or Refined, that is the question
I do not know about you but I cannot assert that I am solely a lover of elegant, refined, perfect-looking desserts. They obviously attract the visual that I am, but I cannot help loving rustic looking sweets, which in many ways reminds [...]

When it comes to bright summery colours, I am an easy target for marketers. As I am writing this however, I realize that I say that about colder colours too, such as blue and green. Well,well! What does it mean exactly? It just means that I like things coloured. Not a few but many coloured [...]

How about layers of colours and texture to celebrate Spring.
Did you remember today is officially Spring? I hope you did because in my family, things like this would never be missed! How could we? There were so many calendars at home, between le calendrier de la poste (the Post Office Calendar), le calendrier des [...]

On KaraKare Beach, New Zealand Feb 2006
The lovely Anne from Station Gourmande (if you look at the name of her blog, we are almost twins ;-)) tagged me from a Meme around the world.
What a good way to travel through the world foodosphere. Let’s go (On y va!)
1- Please list three (four, I cheated) [...]

Why making things small when they could be big?
Here is another of those times when I am having fun with finger food! The paradox is the following. I think that one of the reasons why I like to make everything small is because I have always known myself as “big“. Not in the sense of [...]

La frustration de la langue - Language Frustration

Language can be frustrating.
Speaking a foreign language can be even more frustrating. And by the same token, speaking your own language in a foreign country brings its own set of challenges.
Take P. for example. Do you think that he would actually correct my English when I [...]

Vive les radis!
Recipe selection, you, not you!
I came to question what makes me choose to make certain dishes over others. What is it exactly that makes me go mad and drive across town, call around every possible local market, in order to get a special ingredient to make a dish. Yes I do those kinds [...]

Chocolate Mousse
Le chocolat, mon péché mignon
I have always tried to find the exact English translation for this French expression, yet I never came close to what it really means in French. Péché is a sin, and mignon means cute. Yes yes, that exact same word you use if you said of a girl, a baby, [...]

When I used to work in an office - and I don’t anymore (imagine a smile here) - I was known for my tupperware lunches. Did I eat plastic? Of course not, que vous êtes bêtesje suis bête! (silly me!) But every day, I would bring in the office my lunch! And what [...]

Smoked Salmon and the story of the Grand Canyon: are they related?
When the salmon is coming fresh right from Ireland, I have all the good reasons to think about more fancy ways to eat smoked salmon. In many ways I find it ironic to realize that I really now eat smoked salmon on a [...]