cookbook addict

This bread is gaining popularity online so I thought I'd give it a go too, as I try to bake my own bread once in a while. I never manage to get a good crust unless I bake in a cast iron pot, but we don't mind softer crusts either. While I do enjoy toasted English muffins and the German industry produces quite acceptable substitutes, I thought this muffin bread sounded fun to try. Note that it has to be toasted otherwise it doesn't taste so good, but that is also the case with actual muffins. It was nice and made quite a good toast, but to me it didn't taste like an English muffin, more like a cross between soda bread and milk loaf, which is no bad thing but the name is a bit misleading. I followed the recipe and made one very long loaf that lasted a few days without going stale. I will make it again using a little less soda and one rise in the tin. It's quite fast so is a good solution if you don't have a lot of time to bake but still crave homem...

I don't know what got over me, it's not as if I have any resolution for the new year. I do want to eat healthier food and less sugar but I can't seem to stop baking or craving something sweet. That will probably be the end of me, but oh, well, at least I don't smoke. And yet here I am trying new recipes using healthy ingredients like kale, virgin coconut oil, spelt and miso. My aim is to try and eat lighter, veg-packed dinners. Maybe it does sound like a resolution after all. Before I knew it I had made or adapted three recipes from Heidi Swanson's  Super Natural Every Day, all this week. I love the photography in this book, and it makes me dream of living in California. I have to make do with cooking from it, and everything I have tried has been super tasty. Remember the tortelloni salad ? The other day I tried kale chips and they were a success, except for the batches that I let burn because I was multitasking. This kale salad is a variation on kale chips, ...

La recette originale est celle de Heidi de 101 cookbooks , et inclut du pesto à la coriandre maison, des olives noires, des graines de courges grillées, des fleurs de thym et des pâtes (à l'origine des ravioli frais). J'avais ajouté sans regrets de la feta. Pour une réédition récente, j'ai mis du pesto de basilic, toujours maison, (en cas d'imprévu du pesto en pot), de l'avocat mûr, des graines de tournesol grillées, de la feta encore et toujours, et des pousses d'épinards. Pardonnez la photo Instagram assez floue. Il faut ajouter une partie du pesto (environ 3 cuillères à soupe) tant que les pâtes sont encore chaudes, puis le reste des ingrédients une fois les pâtes tiédies. Cette salade de pâtes, qui change de celle de Mémé, est une bonne alternative végétarienne pour les piques-niques et autres barbeucs de l'été, enfin, quand ce sera l'été pour de vrai, hein. Elle est vraiment délicieuse et nourrissante. Ce serait aussi pas mal avec des ...

I know that prunes and walnuts are not per se typically French, but I can't help thinking that this combination is evocative of the South of France, where both prunes and walnuts are being grown -though not always close to one another- and celebrated not just for their health properties but also for their tastes. This is a recipe I adapted from this blog (and their book). I have modified it a little after I made it once, long ago. This is a cake (pronounced kek , ha ha, French for loaf cake) that will be like a good friend to you, a rustic friend that will comfort with a cup of tea, that will be a perfect substitute for your usual breakfast, that is hearty without being rich and that will transport you to the heart of France, the land of fattened ducks and black truffles, where old men still walk around with bérets (and often a baguette too). Perhaps I have chosen to bake it today because I long to visit my parents' home again? This is made with the walnuts they always ...

Faits ces derniers jours : * salade de petit épeautre, menthe et courgette de Jamie in Jamie's America, superbe opus dédié aux Etats-Unis, une excellente salade avec l'épeautre croquant, la courgette un peu grillée, la menthe, les oignons verts et la féta Made these past few days : *Courgette, mint and farro salad from Jamie's America, a superb book dedicated to food and the US, an excellente salad with nutty, crunchy farro (I used petit épeautre from Provence but think it's the same, really), partly grilled courgette bits, fresh mint and spring onions, as well as feta *soupe de poivrons rouges (pas de photo), toujours de Jamie's America. J'avoue que je me penche en détail sur ce livre que j'ai un peu oublié grâce à Kelly-Jane , merci à elle *red pepper soup (no photo), also from Jamie's America. I admit I have been poring over it lately thanks to Kelly-Jane's post * cake au chocolat  excellente recette à conserver, de smitten kit...

This post is brought to you via the amazing restorative power of Mojito :D I spent the afternoon trying to look after both children on my own during a birthday party on a farm. Then I drove 20km back home on winding albeit scenic backroads because the motorway was closed. I don't usually drink on my own but suddenly, the Havana Club, the organic limes and the mint on the balcony beckoned and were calling my name. Coming home I was exhausted, but now that I have nearly finished my first Mojito I must say the evening is looking pretty dandy -and I am grateful for the party, which was fun. Enough of that, I had this post in the making earlier today so I'll skip to that now. I have been sewing up a storm, trying to finish gifts for lovely people I'm about to see when I'm on holidays next week instead of packing up boxes for our impending move . But not only. Look at this pretty dress for Maya. OK, it looks a bit classic with its dainty fabric covered in cherries and...

Je me suis sentie un peu plus créative ces derniers temps, aussi bien dans ma cuisine que derrière la MAC I've been feeling a bit more creative lately, both in the kitchen and at the sewing machine. The before picture Le mois prochain, nous allons déménager, alors en triant un peu ma garde-robe, j'ai pensé remodeler certaines pièces plutôt que de m'en débarasser. Cette marinière Petit Bateau m'a été offerte il y a des lustres. Je n'ai jamais trop aimé la coupe, un peu baggy, mais pas assez pour cacher les parties un peu trop arrondies de mon corps, juste suffisamment pour les faire ressortir. Also, we'll be moving next month so while I've been sorting out my wardrobe, I thought I'd refashion some of the items in there, starting with this red marinière from Petit Bateau, which I got as a present many moons ago. I never quite liked the fit, which was a bit loose, but not enough to hide the plumpy bits of my body, just enough to make them stick out...

George, aka Kitchen Goddess (see her fabulous blog here ), is in the middle of writing her first cookbook (see here for details). I know for a fact that it takes time and passion (more about that in a few weeks) to do that, especially if you have to manage a home, a dog, and a demanding job. But George has plenty of fantastic recipes, and lots of energy, and I'm sure she'll have huge success with her project. To show my support, but mostly because this recipe caught my eye and got my tastebuds salivating, I have cooked this recipe of hers. The title of her post was Rush Hour. Hers was a midweek dinner, mine was a Sunday lunchtime rush. I know that Sunday is fathers' day at the playground, but we like to go all together, even if I often end up sitting down with a book or a magazine while Maya and her Dad (notice the capital D here) go up and down slides and run about. So quite often, I end up in a frenzy in the kitchen cooking a quick meal of steamed veg and carbs and we a...