One of the things I love serving at a dinner party is a platter of various delicious cold things with a bowl of dip. You can find some really good store-bought dips but it is not actually that hard to make your own and it is also much nicer.
I became familiar with the idea of dips while living in Australia as I discovered entire supermarket aisles dedicated to this. And then every party we went to there always had a huge selection: spinach, corn, caramelised onions, artichoke, cheese, humus, beetroot humus, guacamole etc. the list could go on an on.

I do love having dinner parties where the main course is just a giant platter of cheese and charcuterie. To balance it, I add a few crudités (selection of raw vegetables) and a dip or two. As much as there are many many dips to choose from, I prefer to stick to just a couple I really like: humus and whipped feta. Those are easy enough to make at home rather than buying ready-made.

Is it Spring time already? Why am I still wearing a Winter coat then... I guess it is a season that is only warming up slightly so I feel it is reasonable enough to continue sharing soup recipes over here.
After all, there is a French expression that says 'en avril ne te découvre pas d'un fil' (in April, don't remove a thread - of your clothing). So, my plan is to keep a few (a lot actually these days) layers on and make some delicious Spring vegetable soup such as the leek one I am sharing today. The thing about this soup is that it is not just plain leek. There is some added celery for flavour and potato for creaminess. And to make it even better I add a wonderful topping to it: whipped feta.

When it gets cold, all I want to do is eat cheese. But not just plain cheese! I am speaking about it melted into cheese heaven goodness such as in raclette, tartiflette or fondue. Served with all kinds of buttery boiled potatoes, charcuterie and cornichons (gherkins), melted over potato cubes and bacon bits or a variety melted with white wine into a pot where big chunks of bread are dipped in... Are you still with me or have you gone to cheese dreamland?
I obviously do not eat those dishes everyday because I would certainly lose the enjoyment and get bored. Also, imagine the state of my arteries if I only listened to my cheese dreams...

So, instead, I reserve those wonderful cheese dishes for every other weekend during Winter time. And if I have a sudden craving for melted cheese, I just stir a small handful of it grated into a hot soup. Depending on the vegetables, I vary the options with Comté, Gruyère, Manchego, Gorgonzola or Parmesan cheese.

Have you started taking all your warm clothes, Winter coats, long soft scarves and blankets out of the closet? I definitely have started my annual ritual of layering my clothes before leaving the house. Goodbye cold salads and ice creams, hello comforting hot dishes and soups!

I am stocking up on soup recipes for the colder months so we get to try various things: different types of vegetables, sometimes some fruit added, spices or not, cream or coconut milk, and many many types of toppings. When making a simple plain soup or velouté, it is always a good idea to prepare a few toppings to make it less boring: croutons, toasted nuts, crumbled or grated cheese, bacon bits, etc.

One of my favourite soups to make is butternut. I just love how creamy it is and its colour is so pleasing, it is like sunshine in a bowl!

I sometimes get strange food memories from my childhood in France. When I do, I end up wanting a taste of the specific dish, cake, biscuit etc. Most of the times, it is really difficult because I can either only get it in France or it does not exist anymore (insert my favourite Prosper soft gingerbread mini cakes that had apricot jam or chocolate in the centre, sigh...). And other times, I just find ways to make it myself.
One of those odd memories recently included beurre de sardine. Yes, sardine butter... It doesn't sound super exciting when you put it like this but it is actually quite delicious. I am not speaking about the lumpy one we had to eat at the school canteen but the one made at home with great care and the nicest canned sardines (I used to live on the Atlantic seaside where there were lots of local cannery factories then).
I guess at the time it was the school and our parents' own sneaky way of making us French kids eat oily fish by blending it into a fine paté style consistency.

Don't you just love the scent of tomatoes that have absorbed plenty of sunshine! With raspberries, this is possibly my favourite thing to smell in a garden during Summer time. My grandfather used to grow a few vine tomatoes many years ago when gardening all day long was his favourite activity (with age, he has had to make the garden a little smaller hence not growing certain things anymore). They were the nicest tomatoes I have ever eaten: juicy, sweet and the aroma, oh the aroma! To me, they just smelled of sunshine. I still dream of them to this day and I think the closest I have found in terms of similar flavour and sweetness was bush tomatoes in Australia.

What I love about a good tomato is that you can eat it as you would an apple or a peach. Pick it fresh from the garden and bite into it, no need for seasoning. And then use a few for your favourite Summer recipes. In my case, it would be a tomato and mozzarella salad, ratatouille or even better: des tomates farcies (stuffed tomatoes)! Just imagine the smell of baked tomatoes with a filling of meat and fresh herbs. It is so fragrant!