Simple summery pasta

This is one of my favourite pasta sauces. It is very simple, tasty and healthy. Perfect for those days when you have no time to slave in the kitchen (some people find it therapeutic...).

You will need cherry tomatoes (ripe, juicy, good quality ones - ours are from the garden), a clove of garlic, good quality olive oil and some basil (from the garden as well - my attempt at being a domestic goddess!). 

Heat the olive oil in the pan, add tomatoes, salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes over the medium heat, then add garlic and simmer for another 5-10 minutes. 

Chop some basil

And serve

It goes nicely with ice cold rose and warm summer's afternoon (summer is not over just yet). Bon Appetit!

Lebanese Festival and What We Wore

How would you describe your perfect weekend? How about delicious Lebanese food (even if you are not hungry, the smell will make you want to eat), cold Lebanese beer (have you tried?), lively Lebanese music (cannot help but dance) and sunshine (not just any sunshine, but very warm with not a cloud in the sky), lovely company and the fact that this is all happening in London (no need for travelling), and I think that would pretty much sum up my ideal weekend. So that's exactly what we did last weekend as Lebanese Festival was taking place. It's a fabulous day out for family and friends (yes, sunshine does help). I like the idea of taking your whole family out (from grandparents to tiny little babies) for a picnic in the park, eating food, meeting friends and dancing (yes, families were actually dancing and it wasn't some random drunk dancing...). At one stage I actually felt like I am abroad on holiday. Cannot add anything else. It was perfect. Here are some (a lot) photos.

The Hubby insisted on buying pretty much everything on the stalls (what is it about men buying food in large quantities?). And who ate majority of it? Me, of course!

Queue for kebabs was very long but very much worth it!

I wore:

Playsuit (or is it a jumpsuit?) from Asos

Bag from Longchamp
Sandals from a little boutique in Greece (which were later slightly damaged as Little Miss S knocked over the whole glass of strawberry cider over me...all forgiven, but I think I should get a new pair...)

Little Miss S wore:
Shorts: M&S
Top: Zara
Booties: Bobux
Hat: Vertbaudet

Cherry clafoutis

My darling brother is visiting, so after a long walk and a hearty lunch in a Pub (photos below), we made this for dessert (heavenly delicious).

You will need:

400g of either frozen or fresh cherries
200g of sugar
3 eggs
70g of flour
150ml of milk
100ml of double cream
Grated lime peel
A pinch of salt

Heat the oven to around 190C and rub the baking dish with some butter. Whisk eggs with sugar, then add flour, milk and cream. Once the mixture for the dough is ready, leave it for 20 minutes. Afterwards, put the quarter of the mixture into a baking dish and leave in the oven for 5 minutes to bake. Add cherries, sprinkle sugar and then put the rest of the dough mixture. Bake for 40 - 50 minutes ( try this - prick a wooden stick into a cake and if it comes out dry - your cake is ready).

To serve - you can sprinkle sugar powder. Also, cherries can be replaced with plums, raspberries or any other berries.

Some healthy ideas for your little ones

I haven't written about food and cooking for a little while. All this shopping business has taken over, but those who have been following my blog will know that I am passionate about food. I am not at a MasterCheft standard just yet, but I like to eat and I like to make sure my Little Miss S eats as healthy as possible. Toddlers, however, are famous ( or shall I say infamous) for being fussy eaters, but us, parents, are ingenious creatures and we always find ways around this 'problem' (like hiding fruit and veg in our children's plates).

So here is what we have been eating (and not).

Tomatoes are a big 'no no' at the moment. Even finely chopped and hidden in a scrambled egg, they will always be identified and spat out. Shame, as I am a great tomato lover and they are full goodness (Vitamin A,C, K and many more). However, I found a solution. Beetroot, celery and fresh tomatoes sautéed in some unsalted butter and then blitzed into a puree. This can then be mixed into mashed potatoes and served with fish, chicken or even form a part of healthy spaghetti Bolognese sauce. It is such a tasty combination that really goes well together and it tastes a little sweet because of the beetroot which toddlers, of course, love. Moreover, it is bursting with vitamins.

Quinoa. She loves it. I have been eating these lovely little grains since I was her age and, apart from being a great source of iron and fibre, it is actually very tasty too. I serve it either as a garnish with her fish or meat, or as breakfast - simmer quinoa in milk and add your child's favourite fruit and yogurt.

Broccoli or kale (broccoli's more healthier brother). No toddler would eat broccoli on its own, but if you mash it up with sweet potato, unsalted butter and crème fraiche, it really does taste delicious. I serve it with salmon poached in milk. So far, so good.

Raw food juices are great, in my opinion, for making sure that your child gets his/her daily dose of vitamins. Carrot, apple and beetroot juice tastes great and Little Miss S loves it . Yes, the juicer is a pain in the bum to clean, but all for good cause!

Let me know about your clever little ways of making sure your bundle of joy gets 5 a day.

Thoughts ... and Apple Tart 'Maman Blanc'

Where is my supper, mummy?

I was browsing through a couple of Lithuanian magazines that mum brought with her (for me) when she was visiting, one interesting quote caught my eye. The protagonist of the article was saying how important her children are to her and how much she tried to protect them from pain during the divorce. When times got really difficult she went to see a psychologist. She expressed her desire to help her children and he said, "Have a look at the instructions on the plane during the emergency landing - put on your oxygen mask first before helping your child". Genius! I just thought this was such a brilliant comparison. I see it like this. Before trying to help or guide your child you need to be in a fit state to do so. This doesn't just have to be applied in extreme situations like divorce. It could be used in everyday life. In the whole core notion of upbringing. I think that, unconsciously, that is what all parents are trying to do anyway. Trying to be the best at everything. Trying to improve themselves. Trying to set examples. You cannot teach another person something that you know nothing about.

Very simple comparison (nothing too deep) - cooking. As a child I always relied on my mum's cooking. She is an outstanding cook. As got got older, I developed fond memories of our meal times. I always knew and know now that mum can prepare something out of nothing. My childhood experiences shaped  a belief that mum is a person who will always feed you (forget feminism, sexism or anything like that here ... it's all about precious childhood memories).

In pre-baby days I was not the greatest cook. I always used to leave it to either My Hubby or Mr Chef at whatever restaurant we were eating out. Once Little Miss S was born, I had to become the one that my daughter could rely upon for feeding. I was frightened. I wanted to do everything just right. More so, I wanted to be perfect at cooking just like my mum. I cook everything from scratch so it has been a bit of a learning curve, but I think I did fine (minus a few burnt carrots at the beginning).

Over a year on and I developed a huge passion for cooking (sometimes I still have to pinch myself...is this really me?). And it's not just cooking for Little Miss S. It's cooking for everyone. Oh, and baking! Baking, in my eyes, was reserved for perfect 'grown-up' women with immaculate houses who had everything under perfect control (country cottage, Aga and Cath Kidston apron basically). My baking, in pre-baby days, was done by a good friends called Waitrose and Patisserie Valerie. Not anymore.

Here is one I made earlier. My mum phoned and said that she has this amazing recipe for super delicious tart and that I should try it. My mum is my greatest adviser on food. She has impeccable taste in food and yet she has been same size Tiny all her life. So she must be making all the right choices!

I absolutely love tarte tatin, but Apple tart 'Maman Blan' (Raymond Blanc) is a new competitor. It's like a skinnier and more elegant version of tarte tatin. It literary melts in your mouth. Oh, and it is actually very easy to prepare even though you cannot cheat and have to make your own pastry (my 'old self' would have given up by now).

You will find the full recipe here. I used Braeburn apples and didn't use calvados as Little Miss S also tried this it (and loved it!).

tarte tatin

Date night

I am not a great fan of the phrase 'date night', but I suppose once you are a parent that's what it is when you and your partner venture out for dinner. In pre baby days it was just 'dining out'. We used to eat out so much that I think it actually stopped being something special and became a norm. Something special was probably dinner in! Now it's the opposite. We cook a lot in the evenings (with a bottle of wine - as I type this, Hubby is preparing steak) which I absolutely enjoy (nothing better than eating a lovely dinner in your tracksuit bottoms) but, from time to time, it's nice to be 'in a nice place, surrounded by nice looking people, whilst looking pretty nice yourself'. I find that our best ideas about the future are born on these 'date nights' . I suppose once you have no distractions of BBC News (or worse - One Born Every Minute) you really start talking. Hubby and I have been together for over 10 years and yet we tend to talk non-stop! Remembering, planning, laughing, commenting. Extra bonus this time - my mum was visiting, which meant we could completely relax in the knowledge that Little Miss S was absolutely fine (well, actually more than fine - completely spoilt).

Initially the plan was to book either The Ivy or Nobu ... somewhat of an obvious choice for 'date night'. However, we left it too late and obviously couldn't get a table. So we ventured out without any reservations. To be honest, spontaneous choices are always the best ones ... Barrafina, which currently is one of the best tapas bars in town operates no reservations policy, but two hour wait whilst watching others eat (even with a glass or two in hand) was just too long (leave this one for a weekday rather than weekend). So off we went wondering round Soho and eventually ended up in Randall and Aubin - French Seafood and Oyster bar. We have been meaning to go there many times, but the long queue outside (yet again no reservations policy unless it is lunch) has always put us off. This time there was only a small queue (although it got very big once we were happily eating away at our table), so we decided to wait. In fact, waiting for half an hour whilst sipping rose and watching chefs cook is not really such a hard work! The atmosphere is really buzzing. They play house music - not too loud so you can have a perfectly normal conversation and a laugh without other dinners hearing you. This is great because I really dislike places that are so quiet that you have to really watch what you are saying.

This place is compact and packed but yet it still feels like you have your own personal space. We managed to get a small bay area by the wall which was very cosy. Also, despite the no reservation policy, you are not being rushed. We stayed there for around 3 hours (nothing worse than watching the clock).

Oh, and the food, of course! It's perfect if you are a seafood lover like me. We had grilled Oysters with spicy tomato sauce (I suddenly develop this enormous hunger as I type this), grilled Lobster, grilled baby Scallops with pancetta, Crab salad, roasted Langoustine ...  All washed down with a crisp cold Rose wine (lots of it) and finished off with Flambéed Vanilla Crème Brulee. Heaven on earth.

          

Cake, cake and more cake ... and cocktails

 

So this Saturday I attended a Blogger Bake Sale at The Bumpkin which was organised by lovely Rosie from The Londoner. Baking and eating cakes for a great cause whilst getting to know fellow bloggers - sounds like a pretty good afternoon to me.

I chose to make my favourite Apple Tarte Tatin (my mum's recipe). 1) It is extremely delicious. 2) Extremely easy to make which is important when you have a very lively toddler to look after (no time for haute cuisine here)...Well, actually, I was quite lucky this time as my mum just happened to be visiting (not a regular occurrence as she lives abroad so obviously very exciting), which meant that I was able to make my cake in peace. No washing up! And have a long long shower! And paint my nails whilst sipping coffee and getting updates from the latest Vogue issue (my mum is a fashion designer amongst many things). Pure luxury these days!

For a medium size cake (approx. 23cm) you will need

5 sweet apples (I use golden delicious)
Puff pastry (bought mine ready made ...)
Half a glass of caster sugar
1 tea spoon of butter (I use unsalted)

Roll out your pastry so it's about 5mm thin.
Make a caramel syrup by melting butter, sugar and 3 tbsp of water in a pan. Once the syrup is brown, add peeled and sliced apples into the syrup and simmer for about 10min until apples soak up the syrup. Afterwards, place the apples into a baking tray and cover with the pastry, tucking the edges down inside the tin to encase the filling. If there is a gap between your pastry and the tray just fill in the edges with some extra pastry.

Prick the top of the tarte with a fork and put it into a preheated oven (about 180C -200C depending on your oven) and cook for around 15-20min until the pastry is golden.
Once the tarte in cooked, gently invert onto a serving plate. Make sure that the serving plate is larger than the baking tray.

Here is my creation in all its glory



The English Garden cocktail - super delicious

With lovely Adeline from prettyordinaryaddy

And, of course, lovely Rosie from The Londoner

 

The whole event went brilliantly. The conversations, cakes and cocktails were flowing and the money was generously donated for charities.

Although today I just cannot look at anything sweet ... hopefully, for my own benefit, I will stay away from all things cake and sugar ... at least until tomorrow!

Blogger Bake Sale

Lovely Rosie from The Londoner has organised this fabulous event! It's a great excuse to eat (and bake of course) some delicious cakes and meet fellow bloggers whilst contributing to a great cause.

Hopefully, I will see you all there. I'm thinking Tarte Tatin...fingers crossed it will come out looking and tasting decent...On the other hand, thank Goodness, my dear Mother is flying in tomorrow for a visit. Perfect timing. Might need some help;)

Bon Voyage




Nothing revitalises me more than travelling. Even if it is just a short trip abroad. If you haven't been away during Easter and feel immense urge to get away for a couple of days then I might know just the right place. Massage followed by the most gorgeous wine from the local vineyards and delicious French cuisine? Sounds like my kind of gateway.



Is it wine o'clock yet?

I first came across La Source Des Fees a few years ago when Hubby and I were travelling to South of France. We were driving and I booked this place as a stopover for the night. It is situated in Southern Burgundy so around half-way to Cote d'Azur. After spending a day and a night there, I forgot all about the delights of Cannes and St Tropez, and just wanted to stay there forever. This is such an idyllic place and, more importantly, surrounded by vineyards!

The owners, Thierry and Philippe painstakingly renovated their 16th century guest house. It is everything you would expect from the rural French interior. And more! Simple, rustic, charming. Basically, French.

Owners are very welcoming. After unpacking, you are invited to choose a bottle (or two) from their wine cellar, which you then sip in a pretty courtyard overlooking ... the vineyards of course! This is where I discovered Pouilly-Fuisse and it has been my favourite tipple ever since. Afterwards they can book you a table at one of many local restaurants, depending on your gourmet preferences. I wanted to go to all of them, but as this is pretty much the epicentre of gastronomy, the choice is just too big. And that's just one of the many reasons why we will be coming back again!



Breakfast time!



View from our bedroom

 

One of many many many restaurants

What is more, this place is child friendly and dog friendly. You never know, Escargots a la Bourguignonne might become your toddler's new favourite dish!