Healthy, French, Home-cooking, always fresh, (almost) no cream required!
This is about simple cooking for my kids away from home, family and friends and friends of friends. Not quite recipes, just inspiration.Often, no exact quantities, certainly no scientific potions, but a bit of magic and lots of love! and you could always ask for more details.
Share my love of cooking, enjoy the Pacific West Coast bounty and help me pass along the French Heritage from my Grand-mothers and my Dad who taught me.Salt and Pepper
Even when I don't say so, use Baleine sea-salt and fresh ground pepper from your Peugeot pepper mill, goes without saying!
Monthly Archives: May 2010
Colorful dishtowels from France:Jacquard Français,Garnier-Thiebaut, Gerardmer
Made in France by Jacquard Français and Garnier-Thiebaut, old traditional manufacturers of table linens. I picked those dish towels for their amazing vibrant colors. It was an idea from my friend Jennifer and they make my kitchen look like it … Continue reading
Posted in Stuff
Tagged cooking, culture, dish towel, food, garnier thiebaut, jacquard francais, kitchen, recipe, recipes, travel
2 Comments
Beet and potato salad
This salad makes a really nice lunch and may be prepared in advance. It does take a long time to cook beets though, even in the pressure cooker, so I would advise selecting small beets of even size rather than … Continue reading
Posted in Lunch, Starter
Tagged beet salad, beets, cooking, food, french, lunch, nutritious, recipe, recipes, tuna
3 Comments
Cauliflower au gratin (gratin de chou-fleur)
This is to me the ultimate French vegetable cliché, as it is so often on the menu of French restaurants abroad along with coq au vin and escargots. I used to serve it at Restaurant Chez Solange in London where … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables
Tagged calcium, cauliflower, food, gratin, Le Creuset, recipes, sauce blanche, Vegetables, verygoodrecipe
6 Comments
Braised endives au jambon
This is a traditional light dinner entrée in France, not always that popular with children, but a nice combination of flavors in a pretty dish which is very easy to make. Clean two endives per person and remove the ends, … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables
Tagged endives, food, gruyere, jambon, Le creuset gratin, recipe, recipes
1 Comment
Gateau de Foie, a chicken liver soufflé
This is a great appetizer for a family occasion, as it looks very festive but is in fact pretty light. The recipe is a combination from my grand-mother with a few tips from Paul Bocuse to refine it. Veronica and … Continue reading
Belgian Endive Salad à la Grenobloise
This is a nice change for a salad, it is easy to make in advance and bring along as a potluck contribution. All the ingredients are gathered in a large salad bowl and the dressing is added at the last … Continue reading
Posted in Lunch, Starter
Tagged belgian endive, food, gruyere, recipe, recipes, walnut
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Blanquette de veau de ma grand-mère
This is from a very old book called : “La Véritable Cuisine de Famille par Tante Marie” published in 1926 that belonged to my Grand-Mother. My 81-year-old mother made this for me yesterday using about a pound of veal brisket, … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged Blanquette, Blanquette de veau, food, French cooking, recipe, recipes, veal shank
1 Comment
Tarte aux Pommes
This recipe comes from my Aunt Janine Lombard and has been the family’s official version of Apple tart. It is a country tart, not the kind that you would buy at the “Patisserie”. I will explain… Soon, I will translate … Continue reading
Posted in Dessert, Uncategorized
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Simple Roasted Chicken (Poulet roti)
This is something that we seem to eat once a week because nobody ever gets tired of it and it is such a simple dish to make. You usually also get, if not leftovers, at least some bones for a … Continue reading
Tomates Provençales
I am picking this recipe for today to get in the mood of France; the tomatoes have to be hand-picked as they must be both ripe but still firm, and if possible roughly the same size for even cooking. Cut … Continue reading
Petits radis roses au sel
Easier than a dip, can be made in advance and will not destroy your appetite! The radishes have to be washed well under cold water, cut the greens leaving just enough to hold the radish with your fingers, and cut … Continue reading
Slow roasted beef
The meat can’t be too lean, otherwise the roast will be dry, you can select a pot roast type meat such as blade or even a top sirloin. Both cuts are inexpensive and the “slow-roasted beef” is a good option … Continue reading
Braised Celery
Celery is under-rated as a vegetable in North America, and that is too bad. It tastes really good, it is available anywhere, anytime and it is easy to prepare. So let’s do like in Europe and actually use it as … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables
Tagged braised, butter, celery, cocotte, gruyere, Le Creuset, Peugeot pepper grinder, vegetable
1 Comment
Warm lentil salad
Green lentils or Lentilles du Puy work well for this salad. This dish is very nourishing and can be served to athletes regularly because it is rich in iron, and especially when carbo-loading as an alternate to pasta. The recipe … Continue reading
Posted in Starter
Tagged athlete, carbo-loading, cider vinegar, Dijon Mustard, lentil, lentil salad, maille, recipes
2 Comments
SableFish on sorrel (black cod)
Sorrel is hard to find and very expensive in North America, so unless you grow your own, you can cheat by combining the sorrel with beet greens. Blanch the greens of a bunch of beets and a bunch of sorrel … Continue reading
White turnip soup
White turnips are not bitter like other turnips, they are very tasty and have a wonderful smooth texture once cooked. They make a very elegant soup as the color is a soft creamy white. What you do: First cut off … Continue reading
Posted in Soup
Tagged baby white turnip, food, recipe, soupe navet, turnip soup, veloute turnip, white turnip
1 Comment
Ratatouille
The best thing about Ratatouille is that the whole house will smell as if you are in Nice. Therefore, make it sort of at the last minute so that when the dinner guests arrive, they will become instantly ravenous. Most … Continue reading
Posted in Vegetables
Tagged cocotte, eggplant, Le Creuset, peppers, Provence, ratatouille, recipes, verygoodrecipe, zuchini
3 Comments
Green Bean salad
This is a nice side to lamb chops or a lamb roast and brings color to the plate. It also goes well with Gratin Dauphinois. Fresh green beans are best. Remove the ends. Boil a lot of very salted … Continue reading
Posted in Side, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged balsamic, Dijon, food, green bean salad, green beans, recipes, salad, yellow beans
1 Comment
Gratin Dauphinois, the original
This is a very easy dish to serve when you have guests as it requires no work at the last minute. It also goes well as a side to most meats. Of course, it is a kind of scalloped potatoes … Continue reading
Posted in Side, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged food, gratin, gratin dauphinois, Le Creuset, Peugeot pepper grinder, recipe, recipes
2 Comments
Lamb chops on the Grill
Any kind of lamb chops will work well, so long as they have about the same thickness. Remove most of the fat strips on the sides. One hour before cooking, prepare a paste with half a cup Maille Dijon mustard, … Continue reading
Posted in Main Course
Tagged bbq lamb, dinner, grill, lamb, lamb chops, Maille Dijon prepared mustard, que, recipes, rosemary
2 Comments
Carrot Salad, summer “crudité”
First thing to do is to prepare the dressing directly in the serving bowl, so that the carrots can be stirred in the bowl as soon as they are grated. 1tbsp Dijon mustard, 2 tbsp wine vinegar, juice of one … Continue reading
Beef Tongue with Capers
Buy the beef or veal tongue from a good place, it should be very fresh and from a young cow. Only keep the tongue muscle part proper, by cutting off what does not look smooth. Depending on the size of … Continue reading
Wild Stinging Nettle Soup
First of course is getting to the country to pick your own nettles*. They don’t appear at the market although they are a great “100 mile radius” wild food for most of us. Beware not to pick road side where … Continue reading
Posted in Soup
Tagged nettles, pressure cooker, soup, stinging nettles, wild nettles
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Cadboro Bay Crab Cakes
The crabs are trapped in Cadboro Bay about 500 meters from home, year round. The bait is fresh fish. You only keep male Dungeness crabs bigger than 6 1/2 inches across the Chest (?). I hope that you are wearing … Continue reading
Potato Salad
Some really nice Yukon Gold potatoes or new potatoes are available right now, they are best for potato salad. Use potatoes of the same size, peel them or not, rinse in ice-cold water then, cook them whole on medium heat … Continue reading
Salade de Pissenlits (dandelions)
So again, you have to go pick your own, probably in the country unless your garden is herbicide free. Only pick very small young plants, the kind with smooth shiny dark green leaves, and only in early spring. Use an … Continue reading
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