Inspiring me this week

Adventures online have led me to discovering…..

Tatty Devines brand new Frida inspired collection….I want it all

Confetti System gorgeousness, I love checking out their new projects

I’m grateful to Etsy France for introducing me to French stylist and author Emilie Griottes blog….a word of warning, it will induce serious salivation.

Here is a sliver of antique silk from my families archives, I love this jewel colour scheme

 

The gorgeous, incredibly talented, real and sexy Adele, her U.S. Vogue shoot is so beautiful check all the images out here

Feeling the love

 

Since I opened my etsy shop in November, I have had some incredible support from artists and creatives across the world and it NEVER fails to make me beam when someone chooses one of my creations for their treasuries (my husband always laughs when he catches me smiling inanely at the computer screen…)

Just this week,Parisian artist Eve Moiselle created a wonderful treasury called Winter, I Love You But I Need Spring Now and it made the Etsy France homepage today….so I am giddily sharing the screengrab with you above.

Thanks to all who support me – it has been both exhilarating and extremely daunting putting my creations online for the world to see and judge and your positive comments really make my day!

Loved this – via Cup of Jo

Truffle for my Valentine

Our last truffle has been working overtime infusing fresh eggs in the fridge….unfortunately the heavy snow and cold of the last fortnight has ensured truffling ‘a la mouche’ is not an option so I have been hoarding this truffle for a special occasion.

Oh and you thought I meant Valentines day….no in our house the 14th Feb is my husbands birthday, the man was ‘born to love’.

Oeufs en Cocotte, adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child….and for the occasion I dusted off our Le Creuset heart ramekins which we received as a wedding present.

Truffle infused eggs, diced ham, cream, a drizzle of truffle oil and finished off by a few truffle shavings…..delish!

Oeufs en Cocotte

adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

For each serving:

1. Preheat oven to 375F(187C) degrees.

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) butter

1 ramekin 2-1/2 to 3 inches (6.3-7.6 cm) in diameter and about 1-1/2 inches (3.8 cm) high

2 tablespoons (30 mL)  cream

A pan containing 3/4-inch (1.9 cm) of simmering water

1 or 2 eggs

Butter the ramekin, saving a dot for later. Add 1 tablespoon (15 mL) of cream and set the ramekin in the simmering water over moderate heat. When the cream is hot, break into it one or two eggs. Pour the remaining spoonful of cream over the egg and top with a dot of butter.

Place in the middle level of the hot oven and bake for 7 to 10 minutes. The eggs are done when they are just set but still tremble slightly in the ramekins. They will set a little more when the ramekins are removed, so they should not be overcooked.*

Salt and pepper

Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Sounds soothing me this Monday

I am LOVING this beautiful tune from First Aid Kit …I just love their sound and it has been on repeat in our house.

Hope you enjoy it too!

This week….

It is still snowing and we’re very much homebound so this week I’m catching up on a few way overdue tasks including redesigning my blog (and finishing the web design course that I took with  Girls Guide to Web Design)

This week I’ve been….

Listening to Miss Moss’s wonderful music mixes which inspire me no end when I am working in my atelier

Loving new blog-find Note to Self

Received a surprise Amazon package from my sister with two books, French Children Don’t Throw Food and the all time classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking. THANK YOU SIS!

Baby fever has begun….

I’ve unpacked all of my original baby clothes which my mum kept safely, feels weird but exciting to be surrounded by little pink frilly things after only knowing Louis’s very boyish baby clothes.

Am swooning over the above handmade crib by Jocelyn Costis Ebenisterie

Having great fun reading through baby names on the site You Can’t Call it It!

Truffle season

Two days ago our good friend and neighbour Gaby, dropped over unexpectedly with treasures in his pockets. He had taken advantage of the sunshine (very important when looking for truffles a la mouche) and had set about rummaging under his oak trees in search of truffles… and so we found ourselves the very lucky owners of two beautiful, fresh and pungent black truffles gifted to us – just because that is what amazing neighbours we have!

Sealed within a bowl with some fresh eggs for 24 hours ….the egg infused with truffle goodness. After 24 – 48 hours you can take the truffles out of the dish and use them for many other delicious recipes including truffle tapenade/pesto or drop one in a bottle of olive oil and let it infuse the oil which is then amazing for cooking.

The two truffles in the photo above have only been washed lightly…. but before preparing them for inclusion in the omelette I scrubbed them with a special toothbrush we have in the kitchen for truffle cleaning (oh the luxury of needing a toothbrush for the abundance of truffles in our life!!) and then I sliced the truffle very finely. When I first discovered cooking with truffles I was amazed at how soft the truffle is and it literally melts under a knife like butter.

Last night we decided a truffle omelette was in order, with a side of boiled potatoes….simple but oh so indulgent and delicious! The trick is not to add the truffle until very near the end of cooking your omelette as it loses its flavour as it is cooked.

 

A few years ago we were invited for dinner in a famous local truffle farmers house, it was very simple homely food, no fancy flourishes and definitely no seating plan . On the menu, Green salad with large slices of truffle, Wild Boar stew with truffle and the above truffle omelette. For someone who had never tasted truffle before it was a heady night and the pungent aroma of truffle penetrated every pore of the house … incredible!

 

Here in Lacoste the truffle is not reserved for haute cuisine, if you are lucky to have a truffle dog or indeed have the ‘nose’ and patience to use the ‘a la mouche’ method you will be rewarded from December – February with these little jewels and the locals prefer to use it in simple rustic cooking… our village may be very very quiet and not warm enough for the regular tourists yet but us locals know how to reward ourselves for sticking it out through the cold till Spring arrives!

 

You can read more about Truffling ‘a la mouche’ and a truffle supper in my earlier post here

Let it Snow!

Brrrr….It started snowing in the middle of the night and literally has only just let up (and it’s 7pm)… Lacoste is covered in snow and I imagine everyone is snuggling close to an open fire as there isn’t a single car on the road (we tried to leave our drive but the car politily declined…)

So…what else is there to do but to make an enormous snowman…I think the last time I experienced as much snow was in the 80s. I let the boys do their thing as bending over with my rather-large-already baby-bump proved quite tricky

Apparently the temperatures are forecast to drop to -10° C this weekend and laughably (or perhaps not) they could even drop as low as -20° …..I thought we had moved to Provence not Siberia….