Wordless Wednesday - Insalata caprese

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday morning muffin - Ginger Pear

There's something about a wet and windy Tuesday morning that has me reaching for my favourite muffin recipe book - "Muffins fast and fantastic" by Susan Reimer.
Mine is the second edition 1999, but you can still find it on Amazon if you click here.

The espaliered trees on the west facing garden wall are heavy with apples and pears.

Ginger Pear Muffins

Did you know that the second post I ever wrote was about a Tuesday morning muffin?
It received one comment!
I was such a newbie at blogging.
But quite good at making muffins!
Still am..............
Click here if you missed it and are not the person who commented.

Joining Bunny Jean for Wednesday's Bunny Hop the place to meet new bloggers every week.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for Ice Cream!

July, it seems, is Ice Cream Month and the 17th of July is National Peach Ice Cream Day according to my list of American Food Holidays!

Would you like to join me in the garden to celebrate?

Where would you like to sit?

My contribution to the Ice Cream Socials being hosted this weekend by

Suzy @ Kitchen Bouquet

and

 La @ A Musing Potpourri

Peach Melba Knickerbocker Glory - a Barney Desmazery Recipe from BBC Good Food.

It's so good and so easy and soooooooooo delicious

you're probably going to want to try it yourself!

This one is yours, grab a spoon and dive in!
You can even dip the madeleine into the sauce, I won't watch, promise.

Ingredients:

300g raspberries

50g caster sugar

200ml double cream

4 ripe peaches, halved - stones removed

8 scoops good quality vanilla ice cream

and a large handful of flaked almonds, lightly toasted.

This is so easy:

Blitz half the raspberries with half the sugar and a splash of water to make a raspberry sauce, then tip into a small bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk the cream with the remaining sugar until stiff and spoonable, then set aside. Thinly slice the peaches.

In tall sundae glasses, layer the peach slices, raspberries and raspberry sauce, finishing with scoops of ice cream, a generous spoonful of whipped cream and a scattering of flaked almonds.

Serve straight away with long spoons.

and, since this is a social event after all

I'll be linking this post to

Beverly's Pink Saturday gathering @ How Sweet The Sound just so that I can show off the gorgeous pink hydrangeas that are still blooming so beautifully,
The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sundays

and also

Mosaic Monday with Mary @ the little red house. one of my favourite blog parties.

Please pop in and say Bonjour to all of our delightful hostesses this week
by clicking on the links above or on their buttons on my sidebar..

Bon weekend a tout!

Bobbie Flay's Grilled Chicken Paillard with Lemon and Black Pepper and Arugula-Tomato Salad

Joining Lynn @ Happier Than A Pig In Mud for July's Celebrity Cook - Along with TV Chef Bobbie Flay.

Strange as it may sound but before this month I didn't know who Bobbie Flay was.

Seriously!

But through the wonders of the Internet, and trusty ole Google, I was soon able to put that right and found this easy chicken recipe on The Food Network.com.


The recipe was featured in the series Boy Meets Grill in an episode entitled French Bistro Grilling.

Fat Tree Semillon - Sauvignon Blanc, New South Wales, Australia
went well with the dish.

Although we do have a small Weber BBQ I decided not to use it that evening, opting to grill the paillards on a heavy bottomed, ridged grill pan, on stop of the stove.

Much easier and not so messy!

As I happened to have all the ingredients, except for red onions, it was the perfect dish for a Sunday evening dîner pour deux au jardin.

Grilled Chicken Paillard with Lemon and Black Pepper and Arugula-Tomato Salad.

·    1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

·   1 small shallot chopped

·   1/4 cup pure olive oil

Freshly picked rocket from the potager

• 1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground fresh black pepper
• 4 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, pounded thinly
• Salt
• 1/2 pound arugula (rocket/roquette)
• 2 ripe beefsteak tomatoes, diced
• 1 small red onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced ( used salad onions instead)
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar (I used balsamic just because we love the taste)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for garnish
• Lemon halves, for garnish
• Whisk together lemon juice, shallot, olive oil and black pepper in a large dish. Add the chicken, turn to coat then marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.

·    Preheat grill to high. Remove chicken from marinade, season with salt on both sides and grill for 2 to 3 minutes per side or until golden brown and just cooked through.

·   Combine arugula, tomatoes and onions in a large bowl, toss with the vinegar and oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

·   Place each piece of chicken on a large plate, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and top with some of the arugula-tomato salad.

·   Garnish with lemon halves and serve.

Délicieux

Don't forget to head over to Lynn's
and also to a new blog find
Beth Fish Reads for Weekend Cooking.

Click here for more Bobby Flay recipes.

Bon Appétit 

Chez Denise, a Parisian brasserie - with Anthony Bourdain.

Last year the Senior Partner and I spent a long weekend in the City of Lights and I blogged afterwards about a wonderful tea room that we discovered in the Marais, click here if you missed it.

One place I didn't tell you about then but am going to share with you now is Chez Denise (La Tour de Montlhéry), 5  rue prouvaires.
Close to the site of the old Les Halles, in the 1st Arrondissement, Chez Denise is one of the last surviving brasseries from the days before Les Halles was relocated.

We had seen an episode of Anthony Bourdains "No Reservations" on TV and thought it looked very interesting.
Well, it turns out that ordinary mortals who aren't TV chefs do have to have a reservation for dinner at Chez Denise, so I made a reservation for our last evening in Paris.
Click here to see a clip of AB @ Chez Denise on YouTube and you'll see why we had to dine here too.
For starters we shared the terrine du chef and frisee aux croutons, followed by gigot d'agneau des flageolets for the SP, I ordered the saumon braise sauce moutarde.

The waiters in traditional black and white uniforms were friendly and the service excellent, the food was wonderful.
The tables are set very closely together which means that even if you arrive as a couple for a  "diner a deux" by the end of the evening you will certainly have met your fellow diners sitting either side of you.

You may perhaps have tasted the food they ordered, may probably know them well enough to have exchanged recommendations of other places to dine, things to see in Paris and even swap business cards!
It's a very unique place, indeed.
Anthony Bourdains home base restaurant, in New York City, is the Brasserie Les Halles and is featured in the opening credits of "No Reservations".
Click here to visit their website.
I wonder if any of you already know either Chez Denise or the Brasseries Les Halles and have dined there?
Do let me know if you have, it would be great to compare notes.

Anita is hosting a "Paris - Simply Irresistible" party

 @ Castles, Crowns and Cottages

on Saturday 28th May.
She designed this cute button for the occasion, isn't it gorgeous?

Click on the link or on the sidebar button

 to discover many more reasons

 why we all think that

Paris is Simply Irresistible!

An English Cream Tea.

Whilst in the UK last week I was able to indulge and I really mean indulge (my ever expanding waistline can testify to that fact) in two of my very favourite English things to do.
My very favourite thing to do is take afternoon tea in quintessentially English teashops and my absolute favourite afternoon tea is to be found in the tearoom of a National Trust property.
There you will find the most wonderful English Cream Teas, such as the one pictured here which we enjoyed after touring Berrington Hall, near Leominster, Herefordshire.

Coming a close second, to a cream tea, is browsing through one of the "Charity" shops that line the high streets of every town we visited.
I think that Ross on Wye has the most!
What was I looking for I hear you ask?
As my dear friend Kate would answer "old pots".

Kate doesn't understand my fascination with antique/vintage china and faience, but she happily shopped with me and even found the bargain of the trip in the Sue Ryder shop in Ledbury.
More about that soon.
A little while ago I bought some mismatched china on ebay.co.uk and had them delivered to Kate's home.

When she brought me the box to open at Little Quebb it was like Christmas morning.
The cup and saucer are Royal Albert English Bone China, decor: Lavender Rose and the plate, which doesn't match but I feel with it's lavender ribbon detail complements them, is by Aynsley.

The Asiatic Pheasant red and white transferware creamer produced by Enoch Wedgwood was a French ebay purchase earlier this year, and is the perfect foil for a small posy of old fashioned roses from our garden.

This afternoon I couldn't resist creating an English Cream Tea vignette to share with you all and will be linking this post to the Tea parties listed below.

A home made scone slathered with
 thick double cream and red fruit jam.
Irresistable!

Lady Katherines Tea Time Tuesday

Tuesday Tea For Two @ The Plumed Pen
Teacup Tuesday with Martha & Terri
Teatime Tuesday @ Rose Chinz Cottage
and
Petite Hermine's Sunday Linky Party

I've not joined in with any of these before but they all seem like lovely ladies so why not pop in and have a cuppa with them too?

Just click on the links above.

Sunday Favourites with Chari.

For Chari's Sunday Favourites @ Happy To Design  today, a rerun of a  post from July 2009 which you might enjoy.

Sometimes the last thing my husband wants to do is trail around a flea market with me, but sometimes he humours me and comes along.
And so it was that yesterday, Bastille Day, we took a drive to Bricquebec on the Contenin Peninsula to a vide grenier (flea market) which I had seen advertised.

Well, guess what?

There wasn't one, I was wrong! and he was not a happy man -  until we spotted L'Epicerie Parisienne.

Those of you who know my other half know that he is a very good cook, quite a gourmand & wine connoisseur, so we spent a very pleasant 20 minutes or so wandering around this wonderful food store admiring the food and the eclectic decor.

Madame, la patronne, was a delight and when I enquired, of Monsieur, if it was o.k. for me to photograph his displays, he answered:
"S'il vous plaît, Madame, comme si vous étiez à chez vous".

Today, we enjoyed some of our purchases from L'Epicerie Parisienne for lunch.

I hope that you have enjoyed a second visit to l'epicerie today, bon dimanche a tout.

Baking Bread with Lorraine Pascale.

Since the beginning of the year Monday evenings have found me sitting comfortably on the sofa in front of the TV, glass of wine to hand, whilst the BBC's new chef glamourous, former model Lorraine Pascale demonstrates how easy baking really is.
 "Baking is fun, it's easy, it's therapeutic, it's relaxing, it's a joy really," she said.
Her ideal meal would start with roasted camembert and garlic followed by a beef fillet baked in the oven with pepper and cognac. It would be finished off with some fondant fancies or a passion and lemon meringue pie. (BBC website)

I enjoy baking very much but normally my repertoire consists of cakes, pies and sweet treats and until Lorraine showed me how easy it was, I had never considered baking my own bread.
Too much kneading, proving, more kneading, and waiting around for the dough to rise.

First of all I downloaded the recipe for the
 "Doris Grant Loaf  
a no - need - to - knead bread adapted from a 1940's recipe by healthy eating evangelist Doris Grant, who believed white flour - and its lack of nutrients - was the enemy".
Click here to get the recipe for yourself.
LP was right, it was very easy to make - indeed.

Delicious served with Mr B's homemade winter vegetable soup.

Click here for details of all six episodes of Baking Made Easy by Lorraine Pascale.

Flushed with success, after baking the Doris Grant loaf, I ordered the BME book of 100 recipes, released to coincide with the TV series, at Amazon. Click here to buy the book now at half price!
Yesterday, I baked soda bread.
Click here for the recipe.

Perfect for a simple ploughmans lunch served with a small salad, cornichons, English cheddar cheese and of course, Branston pickle.
A nostalgic taste of England in rural Normandy.

(Apologies for lack of ploughmans pix, DH was hungry!)

Linking this post to Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage.

Full Plate Thursday Background Story

When we were young and just starting out in life sometimes we did not have a lot of money.

 Most of our friends were having to stretch the dollars at the end of the month just like us. My girlfriends and I decided that we would pool our food for some of the evening meals right before payday... the last week of the month. I have some of the fondest memories from those days. We would all bring our food together and we had some great food and great fellowship. We would get the food on the table and everything ready, someone would bless the food and then the hostess would say "come fill your plate".

Why not head over there and see how Miz Helen filled her plate last week and what's on the menu today.

Also joining in with Show & Tell Friday with Cindy @ My Romantic Home

and with

 Sherry and Home Sweet Home Friday @ The Charm of Home.

Thanks for hosting, ladies.



I ♥ My Favorite Kitchen Gadget Party!

When Lynn @ Happier Than A Pig in Mud announced her I ♥ My Favorite Kitchen Gadget Party!  recently, I knew that there was truly only one piece of my kitchen kit which qualified for this award.

Where would I be without my KitchenAid mixer?
Click here to see what other blogging chefs can't live without.
Happy Valentines Day everyone!
Please join me also in visiting Mary's Mosaic Monday

Tea Time with my Valentine.



 So glad you came to tea today, sweetheart.

I've been looking forward to seeing you all week long.

I've taken Grandma B's wedding china out of the cabinet, and polished the silver.

I baked Red Velvet Cupcakes with Buttercream frosting.

One for you and one for me,
 and one to share?

A decadent roulade.
Light as a feather sponge cake

 wrapped around fresh cream and strawberries soaked in Marsala wine
and
 dusted with the finest of sugars.

Won't you be my Valentine?

(Image courtesy of The Graphics Fairy) 

Click on the links below to join the celebration

Miz Helen's Country Cottage Full Plate Thursday,
Valentines Party @ Bargain Hunting with Laurie

Courtney for Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage
Show and Tell Friday with Cindy @ My Romantic Home
Sherry @ The Charm of Home for her brand new Home Sweet Home Party
and
The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday