le chandeleur - this week we are eating crêpes suzette

If you would like to be very 'French' today, then make your family some crêpes for tea.  Today is le chandeleur, the catholic holiday of candlemas, and today we make crêpes or pancakes like there were no tomorrow!

My children love to make crêpes for themselves and for their friends, they are so easy to rustle up from scratch, and delicious with sugar, jam or nutella, although my favourite is sugar and lemon juice.

If you want a more grown up version you could try the delicious traditional French dessert crepes suzette, cooked in orange juice and flambéd au cointreau.

 Here is my favourite recipe,  I find it makes enough for 6 people.

ingredients

4oz  or just under 1 cup flour

pinch of salt

2 eggs

275ml/10fl oz milk 

50g/2oz butter

1 medium orange, grated zest only

1 tbsp caster sugar

150ml/5fl oz orange juice (from 3-4 medium oranges)

1 medium orange, grated zest only

1  small lemon, grated rind and juice

1 tbsp caster sugar

3 tbsp Grand Marnier, Cointreau or brandy

50g/2oz unsalted butter

a little extra Grand Marnier, for the fun bit

Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl, make a hollow in the centre and break the eggs into it.   Whisk the eggs well until all the flour is moistened.  Gradually add the milk, whisking all the time, until the batter is smooth and there is no more flour left around the edge of the bowl.  Now you can add the orange zest and sugar.

Melt the butter in the pan, and pour most of it into the batter mix.  Using a piece of kitchen paper, smear the remainding butter over the pan, you'll find it best to do this before each pancake.

To start cooking the pancakes, you'll need the pan to be very hot.  I always start with a mini pancake, one for the pan as my children say.  

Now ladle a small amount of batter into the pan, cook the first crêpe for less than a minute on each side.  You want them slightly tinged with golden brown, but not overcooked so they are too dry.  If you want to pick up speed it's easy to cook the crêpes in two pans simultaneously.  The crêpes should be very thin.  You should be able to make between 12 - 16 crepes.

It's better to keep the crêpes warm, I keep a plate on top of a saucepan of hot water and slide the pancakes onto the plate as each one is finished.  If you are making the crepes for a dinner, you can do this stage ahead of time, then just make the sauce at the last minute.

To make the sauce, mix the orange juice, lemon and orange zest, sugar and Grand Marnier.  Melt butter in the pan, then pour in the orange sauce to warm through.  Place the first crêpe into the butter and fold it in half then into quarters so it is a nice neat triangular shape.  You need a large pan for this step because you aim to end up with all the crepes folded in the sauce.

This is the moment to flambé the crêpes .  The easiest way is to pour some of the Grand Marnier or Cointreau into a metal ladle, and hold it for a short moment over a gas flame, when its really warm put a match to ignite it.  Pour the contents of the ladle over the crêpes and take the pan to the table to share between individual plates. 

Spectacular - if this one doesn't earn you a round of applause, nothing will!

PS  Don't forget , last day for the Diane James Home giveaway!!

thanks to Delia for the recipe

crisis in the chicken coop

There is trouble in the village and it all started when a fox stole Henriette's rooster.

 Let me explain.  Henriette is our neighbour, she would be the wife of the amazing dancing Henri.  She has always kept chickens and when we have a cake to bake or a soufflé to put together hers is the gate to knock at.   Her eggs are large, fresh, dated by hand and sell like hotcakes.

 

Her chickens were an even tempered bunch, laying happily until last Christmas Day when a fox snatched her rooster!  Henriette was sad, Henri grabbed his gun and went to look for the fox and her pretty hens went into mourning and stopped laying.

By coincidence, at the other end of the village, the young farmer Sebastien purchased some beautiful young chickens as a present for his wife.  I know, I know not everyone's idea of the perfect gift but here we have our country values to defend.

Sebastien's chickens turned out to be des poules extraordinaires and before long were laying so well that he was into  egg overflow situation.  Having heard that Henriette's chickens weren't doing their stuff he helpfully put up a sign outside the gate offering eggs for sale each Saturday morning from 9 to 12.

His eggs are large, fresh, dated by hand and are selling like hotcakes.

In the meantime Henriette has acquired a replacement rooster, her hens are happy and Henriette is back in business.  You can see where this is going.

What started as a simple chicken coop crisis has become a diplomatic situation.

As it is impossible to knock at either Henriette's or Sebastien's gate without being seen, the village folk find themselves with divided loyalties.  Do we remain faithful to Henriette in which case Sebastien's new found source of income will dry up as suddenly as it started, or do we continue as clients to Sebastien and risk the wrath of Henri?!

Who would have thought that the appetite of a winter fox could cause so much disruption?   In the village I hear whispered conversations discussing the merits of the opposing eggs.  The shop has decided to have no part in the egg war and has turned to a new outside supplier.  Sebastien seems to have some powerful lobbyists, but Henriette has the vote  of the older generation on her side. All part of French village life.

And me in all of this?   I now buy a dozen eggs from both gates! 

As if life weren't already complicated enough!

19th century French floor tiles

  In most of the old houses around here if you let your gaze drop to the ground, you'll find that you are standing on an old 19th century decorative tiled floor.   These tiles are tough enough to resist to most conditions, and  even when walls need re-plastering or the actual floor level has moved, the tiles can be retrieved and relaid straight.

Typically the decorative tiles were laid as a 'rug' to echo the shape of the room.  A border around the edge.  Today it is possible to find complete 'rugs' of tiles for sale in the most beautiful colours.

It is not unusual in the old houses like ours, to find a decorative pattern used in the entrance hall and the kitchen with wooden parquet, or brick red tomettes laid in the adjacent living and dining areas.

I love the subtle colours of the floors, they seem to bring warmth and whimsy to today's neutral tones.  In the  bathroom below 19th century tiles have been reworked as a the wall on a walk in shower.  Gorgeous yellow with the grey woodwork

Of course some tile patterns are more intricate than others, some designed to impress others to comfort (those things never change!), but to me it's a bonus to find an old house that still has this decorative floor pattern intact.

PS  If you haven't entered yet, don't forget the fantastic Diane James Home giveaway, 2 days to go!

light and space in an old French bastide

If I were to move back down to the South of France with it's beautiful light and gentle living, I would definitely love a house with proportions like these.  Tall ceilings, wide open windows, gently light colours.  Everything feels calm and uncluttered, the living looks easy.

 I love the long dresser in this picture, so great for displaying plates or even lining up dishes for a big family lunch!

The furniture is not overdone, mostly vintage or brocante pieces, the accent is on colour, patina and textures.  The bareness of the walls in the sitting room provide a striking set for the two huge orchard ladders.

Fittingly it is the bedroom that is given the most comfortable treatment, with a big soft armchair, and of course the wonderfully simple baldaquin over the bed.

How simple is this table?!  Two  bench supports and plank table top rounded at the corners.  What makes it spectacular is its size.

This is my favourite picture,; I love the grey of the lamp stand against the neutral stone wall.   The way the side table height has been raised, and those amazing little vases attached to the lamp - those I want!

Another example of French understatement, less is more.  Simple materials, neutral colours, comfort in textiles with looking for anything fancy.    The overall effect feels soothing to me - what do you think?

all pictures with thanks to campagne et doecoration