A few weeks before going on the trip, my good friend Rebekah (of Honeysuckle Life) and I decided to plan a little weekend of designing, cooking, styling and photographing under the theme of a Japanese Fall Feast. I used the trip to Japan as my inspiration by tasting different dishes and flavours over there and coming up with four recipes. (See the links to Rebekah's beautifully designed creations and tutorials at the bottom of this post.)
Click HERE for the recipe As you probably saw on my last blog post, I went to visit Japan last month. It was an incredible trip and I cannot wait to go back (because I know I will, there is so much more to explore over there!).
A few weeks before going on the trip, my good friend Rebekah (of Honeysuckle Life) and I decided to plan a little weekend of designing, cooking, styling and photographing under the theme of a Japanese Fall Feast. I used the trip to Japan as my inspiration by tasting different dishes and flavours over there and coming up with four recipes. (See the links to Rebekah's beautifully designed creations and tutorials at the bottom of this post.)
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Click HERE for the recipe As Summer reaches its end properly this Sunday (yes, I stick to my French seasons calendar), I want to grab on its last moments of warmth until it is back in June next year. It may be grey and misty outside but I know I can put Summer on my plate one last time with some delicious courgettes, a bit of tomato and the aroma of oregano.
Next week, I will officially welcome delicious and seasonal Autumn ingredients back in the kitchen. Click HERE for the recipe The other day, as I walked among the fallen leaves on the wet ground, wrapped in warm clothes from head to toe, my scarf flying in the wind... oh wait! Am I really writing this when Summer is barely over? I guess I am. I feel a bit sad that I already have to pull out warm clothes from the wardrobe when the Summer ones have been barely touched.
But guess what? There's one thing I am not sad about. And that thing is the thought of delicious warm dishes that are more suitable to colder seasons. In my head, there are thoughts of heartwarming vegetable soups, wonderful stews, weekends of scrumptious and indulgent roasts (I already had one of those meals yesterday, thanks C.!), and lots of warm desserts. And then, one thought is stronger than the others: butter, cream, cheese! More butter, more cream, more cheese! Yes, in all my French-ness, colder months rhyme with indulgent months. And pulling out my favourite recipes of cheese fondues, tartiflettes, raclettes and anything and everything that involves cream and/or molten cheese covering the rest of the ingredients. Before anyone worries about the high level of fat content in what I just wrote (it does feel calorific just reading this, I know!), I do balance this with a healthy diet of vegetarian soups and meals, a lot of grain based dishes, roast vegetables and fruit. But more seriously (or not), let's go back to all that story of cream and let me tell you about a French classic and favourite of mine: the gratin dauphinois (also know as scalloped potatoes). Click HERE for the recipe I was recently reminded of family traditions that used to punctuate my childhood such as Sunday night dinners consisting of savoury galettes and sweet crêpes. Most of those traditions happened at the dinner table. And one of them in particular was the time spent together at dinner time every night of the week (until I started college and then it would be just Friday and Saturday nights when I was home). We would always wait for everybody to be home before sharing our meal together and chat about the day. Sometimes, there would be silence, often after a long tiresome day or through stressful times. But the important thing is we were eating together through chatter or silence.
Sharing a meal with family and friends is something I really love doing. The conviviality of it all is something I would never give up. I often end up cooking big dishes or baking lots of goods that can be handed over to friends and shared over a glass of wine or an afternoon cup of tea. This garden peas, spinach and cod fish lasagne I made recently is perfect for sharing with family members or friends. Click HERE for the recipes In my first installment of a Wood, Copper and White Christmas last week, I gave you an idea for a starter to serve to your vegetarian guests on Christmas day. This week, I give you no less than three recipes!
The first one is a lovely breakfast idea to start Christmas Day on the healthy path knowing the day will be full of delicious indulgence. This grilled grapefruit with honey and juniper berries is very refreshing. The tartness of juniper berries and bitterness of grapefruits is well balanced with the sweetness of the honey. If you feel like you need more than half a grapefruit to start the day and some energy to open your presents, you can also add those wonderful cranberry and white chocolate mini muffins I posted on the blog last year. Click HERE for the recipe I have been discreetly humming 'Deck the Halls' for quite a while now (it does come up any time of the year for me) but now that it is December and 19 days until Christmas (yay!), it sounds so much more appropriate.
And because it is Christmas soon and we all really love food (you would not be reading a food blog if that was not the case, right?), over the next couple of weeks I will give you a few recipes that are nice little additions to a Christmas meal. Last weekend, I headed off to Kilkenny to meet with my lovely friend Rebekah of Honeysuckle Life. We had been planning our little lifestyle and food session for a while now. Check out her blog over the next couple of weeks too to find some lovely ideas for food and decoration. We chose to work with the theme of wood, copper and white for this Christmas. The colours and materials are very complementary and warming. I start my list of delicious food for Christmas with a recipe for a simple vegetarian tartlet. Some of our Australian friends are spending Christmas with us this year and one of them is vegetarian. I feel it is very important to offer some lovely vegetarian options for our guest. This tartlet is great as a starter. Some mini versions of it would also do wonderful little appetisers. The leek is melted with white wine and cream, some carrot ribbons are added for a bit of crunch and colour. Choose a delicious vegetarian goats cheese to crumble on top and voilà! You have something very tasty to serve to your vegetarian friends. Small note: when you buy the cheese, make sure it is made with vegetarian rennet instead of animal rennet. There are some good options in shops. I personally chose an Irish one called Ryefield. |
Hello! I’m Yolene, a French blogger based in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Welcome to my blog Crème de Citron. This is where I share lifestyle, travel and food stories. Copyright © Yolene Dabreteau, unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved. CATEGORIES
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