How many day to CHRISTMAS? Menus & party plans - Friends made here - How to Fig tapenade

The Fall Petite Exhibition, growing & defining & staying the same.

Dessert Et Fromage Fresh chèvre with roasted cinnamon and pepper apples, toasted almonds, and Camy’s lavender in toffee praline.

Fall Petite Exhibition

I’m packing up my pieces for the Fall Petite Exhibition. It’s been a process putting this together as I’ve grown, matured—defining what I truly want. I suppose I’m always doing this, aren’t we all? Basically, I want everything to be expressive because there’s always more to say.

This Fall exhibition includes the addition of brocante-sourced frames. These unique frames make more than statements out of my little French chi-chi daydreams. The beauty of the French lifestyle is symbolized with an animated humour. The ideas glimmer with gold: embroidered court shoes, gilded chairs, and botanical-print comfy chairs are features. They're outlined with ink dip pen and filled with watercolour. It’s a curated memory of a brocante life.

I’m sharing it all with you soon. The Fall Petite Exhibition will run from 1st November to 15th December 2024.

You can book your Private Exhibition viewing on my site here.

Morning tea is also on the menu, and I’d love to see you there with my crinkled linen, silver flatware, and chipped, painted plates.

Morning tea

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COMMISSIONS

In addition to this exhibition, I also offer commissions and bespoke illustrations for menus and products, bringing a personal, handmade touch to any culinary or creative experience. My work captures the everyday charm of French aesthetics and can be tailored to suit your unique desires. Contact me here for more information.

How many days to Christmas?

Through a few Instagram messages, our Christmas is arranged. It will be another Provence table party, marketing and cooking with great friends. There's something about Provence that acts as the glue for friendships. Somehow, making friends here has been easier. Is it because I am more myself here? Are we finally meeting people who value the same things? Provence seems to knit people together with its social magic. Or maybe we’re just ready to be open to what life has for us here.

Something, besides the food, the market, the culture, and the terrain, brings us together. I don’t know what it is, but it’s a special thing. My dear friend Pamela says it is a like-mindedness that brings us together.

Planning this festive soirée has me reminiscing about my first Provence Christmas with Camy and John. Here’s the recap of that event, which has now set the tone for our lives here.

Is that the secret to happiness? Deciding how you want your table to look and feel sets the stage for how you want your life to be. If the table is achievable, the rest comes easily, non?

Vin De Canard & Figue Pink duck breast with wine reduction, fig & thyme tapenade, and truffle..

Our first Provence Christmas

Our first Christmas was such a delight at our dear friends Camy and John’s home. Everything was sourced from the local markets, and John had placed some special orders. Plus, they had a sensational pantry stocked with truffles, lavender, and all the usual Provence fare.

Before deciding what to cook for Christmas lunch, I did some research. I turned to the book I bought in 1987, filled with stories of provincial cooking. I wanted to stay true to the region and myself. The menu reflects traditional foods and my preference for contrast, texture, and lighter-styled dishes.

I started with a salad because it introduced fresh flavours from the market. It was super light, and my walnut confit is now famous.

John had ordered the duck breast from one of the eight butchers in Apt, and they were well-scored and seasoned by him. This produced a lovely, dry, caramelized skin.

The local wine was reduced to create a very clean, pure sauce with a touch of sugar and thyme.

The fig and lemon olive tapenade finished the dish with its salty-sweet savoury flavours.

We roasted cauliflower and romanesco with French green onion and sautéed the beans in butter, garlic, and sage.

I don’t go for very sweet desserts. The fresh goat’s curd with its salted edge played beautifully with the apples cooked in butter, cinnamon, and an unusually hot pepper. Camy’s lavender flowers were dropped into the toffee, creating a praline and brittle finish.

To finish at 5:30 pm, we had thin dark chocolate and confiture citron with freshly shaved ginger and mint leaves. A new sensation for the table. I love the fresh contrasts with the darkness of unsweetened chocolate.

By all measures, it was a success, as everyone enjoyed the preparation. Camy and John had the perfect table, and I admired their kitchen. Our guests from upstairs were fabulous. It was so great to talk about food and France with Jamie and Kevin. Eloise really enjoyed the food, which was wonderful to see.

I found a few saved photos from this Christmas way back in 2019. Because I was cooking, I didn’t take too many photos. These have been scraped from the archives.

I love writing menus.

Lavender toffee

Christmas Menu

Composer Le Marché

Fennel bulb, clementine & escarole salad with walnut & shallot confit and fennel blossom

Vin De Canard & Figue

Pink duck breast with wine reduction, fig & thyme tapenade, and truffle

Légume D'hiver

Roasted cauliflower and green beans with fried garlic and herbs of Provence

Dessert Et Fromage

Fresh chèvre with roasted cinnamon and pepper apples, toasted almonds, and Camy’s lavender in toffee praline

Salade Au Chocolat Noir

Apt confit fruit dark chocolate with ginger, sumac, and mint

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