Celebrating a second birthday in confinement

At his desk, on his birthday

We are now three weeks into our four-week confinement and according to the Prime Minister, Jean Castex, who spoke last Thursday, all being well by 3^rd May our ten-kilometre restrictions will be lifted, although our 19h curfew will remain. This was just the good news Adrian needed to hear as he ‘celebrated’ his second birthday in lockdown. 

 

A birthday bike ride

Last year, when lockdown meant lockdown and life and work were on hold, his 50^th birthday involved a virtual cycle challenge, a few friends shouting greetings through the garden gate and a sparkly candle from the boulangerie, my feeble attempt to hide the disastrous topping on the carrot cake I’d baked. Thankfully things were a bit different this year, and although we had to squeeze our real bike ride in between work and curfew, we weren’t restricted to only being out for one hour, one kilometre from home, and the sun shone down on our 23km ride through the vineyards. 

Birthday cakes and drinks in the sun

 

This year, I wisely left Ed in charge of the birthday cake and his chocolate fondant cake was delicious, plus there was enough left to share with friends the following day. If reaching 51 was not enough of a reason to open a bottle of bubbles, the fact that our post-Brexit residence permits also arrived on his birthday, certainly was. 

 

On this day last year, we had reached day forty of confinement, a significant number held in esteem in many cultures and religions as a period of trial, transformation or purification. I certainly wasn’t expecting to still be coping with Covid-19 confinement one year on, but with just this final week to go, and the peace of mind from having our new residence permits in our possession, I’m hopeful we can look forward to brighter days ahead. 

 

Book review of The Little Swiss Ski Chalet by Julie Caplin

The Little Swiss Ski Chalet by Julie Caplin

The Little Swiss Ski Chalet

It’s time to pack your bags and head to the breathtaking, snow-covered peaks of the Swiss Alps for velvety hot chocolates, delicious cheeses and a gorgeous love story…

Food technician Mina has always believed that chocolate will solve everything – and it’s just what she needs when her latest relationship mishap goes viral!

So with her bags packed and a new determination to sort her life out, Mina decides to drown her sorrows with the best hot chocolate in the world at her godmother’s cosy Swiss chalet. Chocolate: yes. Romance: no. Until she has a run in on an Alpine train with a mysterious but oh-so-gorgeous stranger…

 

The Little Swiss Ski Chalet Julie Caplin

My Review

I almost turned this book down, as its location is the wrong side of the Alps, but the mention of chocolate in the description tempted me too much. Wow! All I can say is this is one of those times when I’m glad I gave way to temptation. It is a deliciously heart-warming book that I devoured like a box of my favourite chocolates. It comforted and cossetted me, sending waves of pleasure, just like when you take that first bite of soft-centred chocolate and the different flavours and textures create fireworks from your mouth to your brain and beyond.

Mina had my heart from the disastrous party, that saw her pack her bags for her godmother’s chalet in Switzerland, leaving sleazy Simon for dust. She hopes a few weeks staying with Amelie will help her decide what she wants to do with her future. What she discovers fills her heart, as she witnesses Amelie’s attention to detail with her guests, but also fills her head with ideas of her own. 

Luke was adorable, with many hidden surprises, but although he believes in the serendipity that caused their paths to cross, he has plans that might not fit with Mina’s newfound passion and direction. The chemistry between Mina and Luke melted every part of me and for someone who vowed never to return to the ski slopes, this book almost had me yearning for a cross-country ski adventure of my own. 

What a treat for all the senses this book was. A stunning location, characters who felt like friends, love, chocolate and lots of cake, what more do you need to pull you out of the winter blues?

 

Purchase Links 

http://amzn.to/3jU2lKy 🌎 http://mybook.to/SwissSkiChalet

 

Julie Caplin

Author Bio 

Julie Caplin, formerly a PR director, swanned around Europe for many years taking top food and drink writers on press trips (junkets) sampling the gastronomic delights of various cities in Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, Copenhagen and Switzerland. It was a tough job but someone had to do it. 

These trips have provided the inspiration and settings for her Romantic Escapes series which have been translated into fifteen different languages.

The first book in the seven strong series, The Little Café in Copenhagen, was shortlisted for a Romantic Novel of the Year Award.

 

Social Media Links 

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Book reviews French Village Diaries

Book review of Simone LaFray and the Chocolatiers' Ball by S.P. O'Farrell

Simone LaFray and the Chocolatiers' Ball
by S.P. O'Farrell

Simone LaFray and the Chocolatiers’ Ball

This book, set in a patisserie in Paris, is aimed at 10 to 11-year old’s, but that didn’t stop me from thoroughly enjoying it, in fact, with a main character who is a little bit different, plenty of mystery and lots of chocolate; I would have loved to have read this as a child.

Simone LaFray is not your average 12-year-old girl. She prefers to blend into the crowd, to see everything, but not to be seen; for Simone is an undercover agent and a pretty good one at that. Following in her mother’s footsteps (she is a top international spy) and with the backing and assistance of the ministry, there are always plenty of mysteries for Simone to solve, as well as looking after her little sister Mia and helping her Father in his patisserie. Who is the Red Fox and why is he back in Paris? Who stole the ancient recipe books from her Father’s patisserie? What has suddenly made her Father lose his culinary perfection?

Things come to a head at the Chocolatiers’ Ball, a prestigious event that this year will be showcasing her Father’s work, but with sabotage and theft hanging over them, what must Simone do to save the day?

I loved Simone’s character and enjoyed her daily life in Paris, from strolls in the park to helping out in the patisserie, to working undercover in the art galleries. Her attention to detail, the way her eyes expertly sweep a room and mentally take everything in; calculating how many people, who is acting suspiciously and who is genuine, was matched only by the attention to detail in the author’s descriptions. There is a lot that makes Simone unusual and different, including her love of routine and precision, but these were the things I enjoyed most about her. As a children’s novel, her quirky perfection will I’m sure strike a chord with those kids who maybe don’t feel they fit in with the norm.

This first book sets the scene perfectly and left me wanting more from the extraordinary life of Simone LaFray.

Simone LaFray and the Chocolatiers’ Ball by S.P. O’Farrell will be published by Brandylane Publishers on Monday 13th May, available in hardback, paperback and ebook versions. Links to Amazon can be found below. I was kindly sent a review copy by the author.

Nutty Chocolate Cake Recipe

Nutty Chocolate Cake

Last weekend my neighbour gave me some hazelnut flour and oil from a local producer and as I have been experimenting with reduced flour cakes, these were the perfect ingredients for this nutty chocolate cake I have been working on. This recipe is a mutation from the Hazelnut Chocolate Cake found in Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage Light and Easy: Healthy Recipes for Every Day cookbook, which is delicious with ground hazelnuts or almonds, but with a large number of butternut squash to use this winter, I had to have a play.

I think the grated butternut squash (courgette or carrot could be used instead) add moisture and the hazelnut flour and oil add flavour, ensuring this nutty chocolate cake is moist, rich, full of flavour and has a good firm texture. I can assure you it is not just me who thinks it is delicious as it has also been a hit with Adrian and Ed.

Huilerie Lepine hazelnut oil and flour

Ingredients

200g ground almonds

1 heaped tablespoon cornflour

1 heaped tablespoon cocoa powder

1 heaped tablespoon hazelnut flour

Baking powder (I used one 11g sachet of French levure chimique)

50g brown sugar

1 tablespoon honey

2 eggs

100g grated butternut squash

50ml of oil (I used 40ml of sunflower mixed with 10 ml of hazelnut)

Line a round baking tin with greaseproof paper and pre-heat the oven to gas 4.

Mix all the dry ingredients together and set aside.

Beat the sugar, honey and eggs until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Add in the grated butternut squash and beat.

Add in the dry mix and beat and then slowly drizzle in the oil while continuing to beat.

Pour into baking tin and bake in a moderate oven (I use gas mark 4) for about half an hour until springy to touch. Leave to cool in tin for ten minutes and then remove.

It can be eaten alone for afternoon tea or served with a dollop of natural yoghurt for dessert, but you could also add a buttercream topping if you fancied.

My patissiere challenge, the religieuse

My patisserie challenge, religieuse

Welcome back to my patisserie challenge. It has been many weeks I know, but going away and indulging in a daily patisserie, followed by a busy and somewhat stressful time coordinating Ed’s Brevet studies/exams (he passed), Adrian’s work (five weeks back to back commuting from rural France to Cambridge), stuff going awry at home (see here) and a very poorly cat, plus a well earned break for our village boulanger has meant time and tastings have slipped somewhat. My plan at the beginning of the year was to enjoy eating something different from our village boulangerie every Sunday, but I was getting dangerously close to having sampled all there was to offer, however yesterday I was delighted to find something I had yet to try.

The patisserie in the spotlight today is the religieuse a double-decker choux pastry bun that might just hold the secret to the perfect patisserie portion. The religieuse, which can be chocolate or coffee flavoured (I chose chocolate as I’m a chocoholic), is so called as it apparently looks like a Nun, or at least I’m guessing that in 1850’s Paris when it was invented, Nuns looked squat and rounded rather than chocolate covered. The two buns are stuffed full of either chocolate or coffee flavoured crème patissière and coated in a glossy ganache that again is flavour coordinated. It is then decorated (and held together) with delicately piped buttercream. It is very pretty to look at and truly delicious to eat, I especially liked the dark chocolate ganache topping as it was slightly bitter and cut through the sweetness of the chocolate filling. Having eaten and very much enjoyed the rich and chocolaty larger bun, I was delighted that the experience wasn’t yet over and although two big buns would have been too much, a second smaller one was just perfect.

I have yet to try making my own choux pastry, but as there is a great step by step guide and recipe in Teatime in Paris by Jill Colonna, maybe this summer I might.

Here are my previous patisserie challenge posts, in case you missed them:

buchette de noel,

éclair au chocolat,

forêt noire,

galette de St Jacqueline,

tartelette aux pommes,

Paris-Brest,

tartelette aux fruits

capitole framboise

choux-vanille

gland Grand Marnier

la cornuelle

Easter special

tartelette aux framboise

flan

Royale chocolat

Capitole abricot

Tartelette aux fraises

My patisserie challenge, Royale chocolat

My patisserie challenge royale chocolat

Welcome to my patisserie challenge. This year I have decided to buy something different from our village boulangerie every Sunday and to enjoy the simple pleasure of treating myself each week. Today is the day that saw thousands of people take part in a real challenge, the 35^th London Marathon. Despite my love of cycling I’m no runner and I’m not sure my body would complete a 4km run let alone 40km, but I take my hat off to all those who took part today. They certainly inspired me. This year, instead of just watching the TV coverage (I do love a small slice of London every so often) I completed my own ironing marathon, after all I had to do something physical to justify eating cake while so many were running so far, for so many good causes. Please click here to read about one runner’s story.

My ironing marathon

My choice today is the royale chocolat a serious contender for the ultimate in comfort food combined with delicate patisserie. A crisp top layer that cracked under my fork, two soft moist chocolate sponge layers with a rich and creamy mousse sandwiched in the middle that was a delicious experience and the perfect reward for scaling the ironing mountain.

Don’t forget to join me next week to see my next choice from Bernadette at the boulangerie. 

Here are my previous patisserie challenge posts, in case you missed them:

buchette de noel,

éclair au chocolat,

forêt noire,

galette de St Jacqueline,

tartelette aux pommes,

Paris-Brest,

tartelette aux fruits

capitole framboise

choux-vanille
gland Grand Marnier
la cornuelle
Easter special
tartelette aux framboise
flan

My patisserie challenge, Easter special

My patisserie challenge Easter special

Happy Easter to you all and welcome to my patisserie challenge. This year I have decided to buy something different from our village boulangerie every Sunday and to enjoy the simple pleasure of treating myself each week. Easter is a time of year when sweet treats are aplenty and in a village boulangerie/patisserie that also makes it’s own chocolate I was spoiled for choice today. Thankfully Easter also marks the time of year when the garden is awakening and there is plenty to do outside, so my excess calories from the Nid de Pâques (Easter nest) and the dark chocolate bell, filled with more chocolates, were nicely balanced out by a day of hard work, including a good few hours walking with the lawnmower. Mmm, patisseries, chocolate and gardening - that really is my idea of a perfect day.

The Nid de Pâques is a small circular cake with two layers of light, moist Genoese sponge, filled and topped with an airy chocolate mousse (I could have chosen coffee or praline flavour, but chocolate rules in my book) and decorated with toasted almonds on the side and sweet eggs on top. It was lovely. The almonds gave a tasty crunch and I really couldn’t fault the light texture of the sponge or the deliciousness of the creamy chocolate mousse. It’s a shame Easter only comes around once a year.

Easter bells

In France, although there are plenty of bunnies to be seen at Easter, tradition has it that the church bells are the ones to give out the chocolate eggs to the children. The bells fall silent on Maundy Thursday as they fly to Rome, returning on Easter Sunday with eggs for all. I’m not sure our old church bell takes part anymore as I definitely heard it dinging it’s slightly flat Angelus on Saturday.

Don’t forget to join me next week to see my next choice from Bernadette at the boulangerie.

Here are my previous patisserie challenge posts, in case you missed them:

buchette de noel,

éclair au chocolat,

forêt noire,

galette de St Jacqueline,

tartelette aux pommes,

Paris-Brest,

tartelette aux fruits

capitole framboise

gland Grand Marnier,

choux-vanille

la cornuelle.

Lazy bake chocolate cake

Lazy bake chocolate cakes

I love cake and a day without homemade cake is a day that is lacking in all that is good with the world, but baking takes time and organisation. Having returned from a recent trip to the UK I found myself without some of the ingredients needed for my favourite Fat Free Cherry cake and Chocolate and Courgette brownies, but needing a contribution to a shared lunch the following day. Much as I love both of the above recipes they have rather time consuming methods so I needed a quick make and bake with the ingredients I had. I am delighted to share with you my new Lazy Bake Chocolate Cake recipe, ideal for those days when you need chocolate cake and need it now!

There is no need to remember to get the butter to room temperature before creaming it with the sugar. There is no five-minute beating of the eggs and sugar to form a frothy pale mousse-like consistency. There is no grating of vegetables to give a moist texture. There is the real ability to have a warm chocolate cake in your hand, ready to eat within half an hour of weighing out the first ingredient.

Makes 12 cup cakes

70g caster sugar

70ml sunflower oil

110g plain flour

40g cocoa powder

1 tsp of baking powder

2 eggs

1 or 2 tbsp of espresso coffee or milk

If you want to finish them off with a buttercream topping don’t forget to take butter out of fridge as you start making the cakes.

Mix the sugar and vegetable oil in a mixing bowl, sieve the dry ingredients and add to the bowl. Lightly beat the eggs and combine them with the other ingredients. The batter should be quite wet, so if necessary add 1 or 2 tablespoons of coffee or milk (I added sloe gin to one batch and it was very nice!). Divide the batter evenly between the 12 cup cake cases and bake at Gas mark 4 until risen and springy to the touch, about 15 minutes. Leave to cool before adding the buttercream topping.

I won't admit to how many batches of these cakes I have made in the last month, but I can assure you this recipe has been thoroughly tried and tested.

Spicy Pumpkin and Chocolate Cake

This morning was spent chatting, cake eating, coffee drinking and laughing with old and new friends, all in a good cause to raise money (228€) for cancer support. I had a really lovely time, thanks I think to the friendly selection of people there, as despite sharing my life here on the blog I am actually rather shy in person. My contribution to the overloaded cake table was a Spicy Pumpkin and Chocolate cake. This is a variation on my chocolate veggie brownie, but with a couple of eggs to make it more cakey. Here is the recipe if you fancy a tasty autumn treat.

Spicy Pumpkin and Chocolate Cake

125ml vegetable oil and 1 tbsp walnut oil (walnut oil is optional)

150g brown sugar

250g plain flour

40g cocoa powder

1 ½ tsp baking powder

250g finely grated peeled pumpkin

2 eggs beaten

1 tsp of mixed spice

Preheat oven to 180c/Gas 4

Grease and flour a 22x33cm baking tin

In a large bowl, mix together oils and sugar until well blended. Combine flour, cocoa powder, spice and baking powder; stir into sugar mixture. Fold in pumpkin and egg. Spread evenly in prepared tin. Bake for 25 to 30 mins, until it springs back when gently touched. Allow to cool before topping with buttercream icing (100g softened butter, 150g icing sugar and 50g melted dark chocolate).

Silent Sunday

Happy Easter to those of you celebrating today and for those of you whose clocks sprung forward Happy Summertime too and may the sun shine down on you. Here are some photos of our week.

My favourite Easter bunny and Easter egg picture

From our village boulangerie

Spring daffodils in the garden

Our spring wild flowers

Courgette seedlings

Easter mousse au chocolat and a foret noire from the boulangerie

Spring in the countryside

Chocolate Veggie Brownies

Here is my favourite brownie recipe, traditionally made in summer when the courgettes are taking over the kitchen and I find myself adding them to everything I make. However with the gloom of wet February days I needed a chocolate fix so made a few changes using carrot with orange zest for an equally delicious moist treat and then carrot with zingy fresh ginger – well it has been really wet here!

Chocolate and Courgette Brownies

Chocolate and Courgette Brownies

125ml vegetable oil and 1 tbsp walnut oil (walnut oil is optional)

200g brown sugar

2tsp vanilla extract

250g plain flour

40g cocoa powder

1 ½ tsp bicarbonate soda

1/2tsp salt

250g finely grated courgette (zucchini) (leave skins on)

1tbsp walnut wine or similar (Amaretto, Rum, Ginger wine)

60g chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 180c/Gas 4

Grease and flour a 22x33cm baking tin

In a large bowl, mix together oils, sugar and vanilla until well blended. Combine flour, cocoa powder, bicarb and salt; stir into sugar mixture. Fold in courgettes, walnuts and wine.  Note it is a rather dry mixture. Spread evenly in prepared tin. Bake for 25 to 30 mins, until it springs back when gently touched. Allow to cool before cutting into squares.

Options for when you don’t have courgettes to hand, all these will still make a delicious moist cake that I fool myself into thinking is healthy as it contains vegetables:

250g grated carrots (peeled)

Thumb sized piece of fresh ginger peeled and grated

Or

250g grated carrots (peeled)

Zest and juice of an orange

Or

250g grated cooked and peeled beetroot