4 more days to go and I fly to New-Zealand.
3 days alone at home to finish painting our bedroom.
2 weeks of sun to recover from 8 weeks of carbs & no morning runs.
1 last post about the Living Etc Competition.
1/2 day at work and we close for the holidays and that's it...et bien non!
I got a little comment from Nicole and because I'm interested in people who leave comments, I checked her out and what did I find?! More goodies to share!!
Nicole Franzen is a food, lifestyle, travel Photographer who participated to the amazing food photography book Katie Quinn Davies put together and it's just too good to not show it to you before the holidays!!
And can someone get the girl a book deal please! This is too good to be online only! I want to read this book on my sofa with a cup of tea and take my time flickering through each page...

So here are a few of Nicole's amazing photos and you can see more here

4 jours de plus et je m'envole pour la Nouvelle-Zelande

3 jours seule a la maison pour finir de peindre notre chambre.

2 semaines de soleil pour me remettre de 8 semaines de feculents et pas de morning footing

1 dernier article pour annoncer le jeu concours de Living Etc .

1/2 journee de travail et puis on ferme pour les vacances or the holidays et voila c'est fini...et bien non!

Ce soir, Nicole a laisse un petit commentaire et comme les gens qui laissent des commentaires m'interessent, j'ai regarde ce qu'elle faisait et qu'est ce que j'ai trouve?! Plein de tresors a partager!!

Nicole Franzen est une photographe qui se specialise dans les photos culinaires, lifestyle et de voyage. Elle a participe au livre sublimissime de Katie Quinn Davies et c'est juste trop beau pour que je ne vous le montre pas avant les vacances !!
Et est ce que quelqu'un peut filer a cette fille un book deal please! Son livre est trop bon pour qu'il ne soit dispo que sur le net! Je veux lire ce bouquin tranquillou sur mon canape avec une tasse de the et prendre mon temps pour admirer chaque page..
Donc voila les superbes photos de Nicole et vous pouvez en voir plus ici

Last Tuesday I organized a surprise diner party to celebrate Steve's Birthday*. I got him three vintage gas stations pricing signs from Three Potato Four (no 3, 6 and 5 to tell him that I love him every day of the year), this map from New-Zealand and these fabulous speakers which he loved! The fourth gift (in my book!) was a whole meal cooked by myself which, luckily, was a success...
Mila and I made chocolate pecan brownies for desert and here is the recipe...prepare yourself to die and go to heaven.
*mostly to make up for the fact that in the past 2 years, too busy here with Xmas orders, I totally forgot the first year and wished him a day too late the second year :-(

★★★★

Maman: "Mila..move"

Mila: "no"
Maman: "Mila move!.... I need to add the pecan nuts"
Mila licking the spoon: "No!...this is SO good.."

★★★★

Mardi dernier, j'ai organise un diner suprise pour l'anniversaire de Steve*. Je lui ai offert trois vieux signes de stations d'essence achete a Three Potato Four (no 3, 6 et 5 pour lui dire que je l'aime tous les jours de l'annee), cette carte de Nouvelle-Zealande et ces fabuleuses enceintes qu'il a adore! Le 4eme cadeau (selon moi) etait un repas entier cuisine par bibi et qui en plus etait super bon...

Mila et moi avons fait des brownies au chocolat et noix de pecans pour le dessert et voici la recette:
Vous aurez besoin de: 300g de beurre, 350g de chocolat noir, 6 oeufs, 450g de sucre brun, 1 csp d'extrait de vanille, 225g de farine, 150g de noix de pecan, du sel, du chocolat en poudre ou du sucre glace. Vous aurez egalement besoin d'un plat d'environ 20 x 30 x 6 cm et d'un cookie cutter en forme d'etoile.
Beurrez le plat et ajoutez du papier sulfurise au fond du plat, faite fondre le beurre et le chocolat au bain-marie. Battez les oeufs, melangez les avec le sucre et la vanille et ajoutez le tout au melange de chocolat.
Ajoutez la farine au tamis et ensuite melangez les noix de pecan et une large pincee de sel. Mettez le tout dans le plat et enfournez pendant 30 a 35 min a env. 180degres/thermostat 4. Testez avec un fin couteau. Personnellement, je les prefere quand ils sont un peu moux mais si ils coulent trop, laissez-les 5 min de plus. Laissez refroidir dans le plat, puis decoupez le chocolat en petits carres et decorez-les avec le cookie cutter et du sucre glace. Voila!! Vous allez mourir tellement c'est bon et allez straight to heaven!

*et aussi parce que cela fait deux ans de suite que j'ai tellement de boulot avec les commandes de Noel ici que j'ai completement oublie de lui souhaiter la premiere annee et je lui ai souhaite le jour d'apres la seconde annee :-(

(C) Beautiful image from What Katie ate

When Mila went back to school, we made pizza together to celebrate her first day. Now...I'm not trying to become the Queen of pizzas but if I could crack their recipe, it would mean endless yummy pizzas at home on a tap and what did Sunday Suppers did recently!? Pizza classes...pffuu I really wish I was living in Brooklyn right now...so here we go...

Grilled Pizza Dough

1- envelope dry yeast
1- cup water – room temperature or warm
1 teaspoon honey
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup fine ground flax meal- corn mean can also be used- I even sometimes substitute semolina flour
3 1/2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tablespoons good quality virgin olive oil
3 cups all purpose flour

1- in a large bowl add the water, yeast and honey
2- after all is dissolved slowly stir in the flax meal, whole wheat flour, salt and olive oil
3- slowly stir in the flour until a firm dough has formed
4- remove all contents from bowl and continue to knead on a floured surface until a smooth dough has formed adding additional flour to prevent the dough from sticking.
5- after you have achieved a smooth sough clean of any lumps transfer to a large bowl that has been lightly coated with olive oil. add oil to the top make sure a skin does not form while rising. cover the bowl and let rise for about 2 hours. remove dough and knead again.
6- let the dough rise again for about 30 minutes.

(C) Photography: Karen Mordechai

I love the term 'grown-up' don't you? My little girl Mila often uses it to talk about our friends and us and when she says it, it sounds super cool, like we can do everything we want, like we are on an amazing adventure where we can stay up late, be on the computer for hours, eat chocolate whenever we want, get money from the cashpoint....just like that!

So since I've became a grown-up, I have became an advocate of the 'less is more' concept at home. It's not always easy but then when I think about my mum who has two garages full of stuff she has been gathering from her numerous trips to the local flea markets and junk shops, I kind of find the motivation. She is at the point in her life where she now wants a airy, spacious home but sorting out her stuff is killing her, let alone knowing where to start.
So no.... it's not easy to get rid of the things we like but at the same time, sometimes it is a bit necessary.
French author Gustave Flaubert once wrote: "Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be original and violent in your work"
Although my home is far from being uncluttered (difficult to achieve the minimalist look with a 5 years old who has decided that a beautiful room is just not enough for her to spread her toys!), I find simplicity a very relaxing thing and somehow allows you to connect with the things that matter to you.

I think this simple table setting just get it right....an old wooden table, white china, vintage silver cutlery, linen table runner, some simple ceramic tea-lights, beautiful flowers and all you need is great food and great company....

We have friends coming over for a Sunday roast...so will give it to a go to achieve this beautiful table setting shot by Karen Mordechai

Following this good address in Brooklyn, my friend Charlotte (who I'm hoping will soon be our NYC Contributor) sent me the website of this gorgeous bakery in Brooklyn

Bakeri's interiors is a mix of flea market finds with Parisian patisserie vibes...the kind of secret address you love to find like the ones featured in this book....The kind of place that is home from home, comfy, cosy where you would spend hours reading again a novel from Salinger, chatting with girlfriends and munching on yummy things except that unlike home, they have gorgeous pastries beautifully displayed on old and mistmatched china in pastel hues.

Pics from Nicolette Mason

If you have friends over for a brunch this morning, you could make them fromage blanc served with berries....

32 ounces fromage blanc
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup good honey
4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
Vanilla seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean
Stir the fromage blanc, cream, honey, vanilla extract, lemon zest, and vanilla seeds together in a medium bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Fill the bottoms of clean jars with honey (your favorite will do), and covered it with the fromage blanc.
Refrigerate until event.
Recipe courtesy of the Ina Garten. Via Sunday Suppers

The jars on the photo above are unfortunately discontinued but you may be interested in these pretty personalised jars

I've been blogging for almost a year now, and for some reason, I've never posted a recipe of something I cooked myself. Ok, I do know the reason why. I like cooking and consider myself decent at it, but I'm certainly no wunderkind in the kitchen. I forget crucial steps, mess up measurements, and often add chunks of butter at the last minute because my "healthy" approach has left the dish tasting like kitchen counter.

So when I make something that is not only good, but revelatory, it means I have one damn good, idiot-proof recipe. I adapted this recipe from Martha Stewart Living, and it is hands down one of the tastiest things I've ever made. It's best to make in late summer, when you can get colorful and super-ripe heirloom tomatoes from a local market, but even now, in the dead of winter, it leaves me with a glorious summery feeling. Bon Appetit!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

* 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
* 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes (depending on how much heat you like)
* 1 bunch asparagus, cut into penne-size pieces, spears removed
* 3/4 to 1 pound cherry tomatoes, halved
* 3/4 cup fresh basil
* Sea salt to taste
* 1 pound dried penne (rigatoni works too)
* 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. Cook oil, garlic, and red-pepper flakes in a small skillet over low heat. After 3 minutes, add chopped asparagus and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Let cool.
2. Place tomatoes, 1/2 cup basil, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Stir in asparagus-garlic mixture. Cover, and refrigerate for 2 hours, tossing occasionally.
3. Cook pasta according to package directions in salted water, and drain. Meanwhile, mix mascarpone and pepper in a small bowl. Add pasta to asparagus mixture. Stir in remaining basil, and serve with peppered mascarpone on the side or mixed in.

If you live in the UK and you have bought a copy of Easy Living (the November issue which was actually out in October)... you may have seen me 'doing a Nigella' (Marta for US readers ou 'faire la Nadine' for French readers) where I share my bonfire tips and my SU-BLI-ME chocolate cake recipe.....
And if you have been spending some time on this lovely blog for a while and read 'the bowls that stopped from going to jail' piece, you will know by now that cooking is not my best point....

However in the name of love/for the sake of a happy relationship I had to learn a few recipes and this chocolate cake is one of my signature dishes...Well actually the only desert I make unless you count 'fresh organic strawberries with organic custard from Tesco prepared organically by me' as a second signature desert.
Yesterday, my four-year old and my TBC-year old mum spent the afternoon making little chocolate cakes from a French Weight Watchers recipe and pffuu.... they were amazing!

Now I can't tell you how much calories these little chocolaty treasures had but 3 of those were worth only 3.5 points on the Weight Watchers planet.
I don't know what you think but 3.5 points doesn't seem a lot of calories, DOES IT!?
And 3.5 points is for 3 of these little babies so it's really 1 point something per cookie which really feels like nothing...

So yes we used heart-shaped moulds (bought in France but probably available from John Lewis) and yes I recommend using them because they make any cakes looking like you know what you're doing in the kitchen and no it wasn't Mila's birthday but we still had to go through the whole thing.....taking photos for Dad who was still in Hong Kong, lighting the candles, switching off the light and sing Happy Birthday to you Mila!
But since I'm breeding a little Chef which gives me hope not in my genes but in my skills as a mother, I could only oblige to make my little girl happy.

So here is the recipe (all copyrights go to Weight Watchers etc)

For 3 cookies - Preparation: 5 min, Cooking: 4 min
15 g butter less than 40% fat
60 g dark chocolate
1 egg
10g sugar
10 g flour
Pre-heat the oven at 240 degres Celsius. Put the butter in a dish that can go into a micro-wave. Break the chocolate in pieces, add them to the butter and put everything in the micro-onde for 40 sec. Mix. The beat the egg with the sugar. Add the melted chocolate and flour to the egg & sugar and mix everything then pour the mixture in your mould. Leave it in the over for 4 min...and then come back and tell me how much you love me!

(C) photos: me
(C) recipe: Weight Watcher: Le Plaisir de maigrir, Editions Livre de Poche, page 39