When the cabinet calls
I have a problem, and it’s sitting in my kitchen cabinet. It crouches in the corner like a jack-in-the-box. It’s packed like gunpowder ready to explode. It’s a many-headed monster, cold and heavy, lying in wait. It, dear reader, is eleven jars of jam.So much sugared, syrupy fruit should have me ecstatic, I know, and I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to a certain amount of excitement each time I open
Tahini Sauce & Harissa
I read somewhere that tahini sauce (the "white" one on the left) is simply a 50:50 dilution of water and tahini (a paste made from sesame seeds that you BUY at the store! Don't be crazy enough like some people I know & try to make it yourself...it's just not worth the effort!). But a 50:50 dilution was missing something, so I made it kinda mayonnaise-y, jazzed it up a little with lime juice & made it richer with cream instead of water (yum!). The other sauce (red one) is harissa. Harissa is a spicy red pepper-based sauce with olive oil & seasonings & whatever heat factor rocks your boat. Absolutely to die for.They both are incredibly versatile sauces. Can go with just about anything. Of course, pairing tahini sauce & harissa with falafel is always a "oui", but they're also great as condiments on their own rights -- instead of ketchup on fries, why not harissa & tahini sauce?! Double "oui"! From now on, I think I’ll always have some stocked in my fridge!
Tahini Sauce (source: my own recipe)
130 g crème fraiche (liquide)
75 g tahini (sesame seed paste) – room temperature
20 g lime juice
20 g olive oil
5 g vinaigre de xeres
Salt & pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Store in your squeeze bottles....! (kidding). But seriously, store in the fridge in an airtight container.
Harissa Sauce (Source: Christine Manfield's book, Stir)
2 1/2 oz. (75 g) large dried Anaheim, or Dutch chilies, chopped
2 tsp. cumin seeds
1/4 tsp. caraway seeds
2 large cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tsp. sea salt
3 1/2 tbsp (50 mL) tomato puree
1/4 cup (60 mL) olive oil
Soak the chilies in very hot water for 2 hours. Drain, reserving the soaking water.
Dry-roast the cumin seeds over gentle heat until fragrant, then cool, and grind to a fine powder with the caraway seeds. (Use either a mortar & pestle or a spice or clean coffee grinder).
Once finished, blend chilies, garlic, and 1/3 cup (100 mLs) of the reserved soaking water in a food processor, then add spices, salt and tomato puree. With the motor running, slowly pour in oil and blend until paste is smooth. Spoon into a sterilized jar, cover with a film of oil, and seal. This will keep, refrigerated, for up to 1 month. Makes about 1 cup (250 mLs).
Note: It is definitely worth the effort to make your own harissa at home. Sure, you can easily buy it here in Paris and it’s not expensive. However, it’s not the same! This sauce is smooth, rich, elegant & has a depth of flavor you won’t find in a tube. AND, there are no preservatives and colorants added – it’s 100% natural, which I love. I added a final step, however, which contributes to its smoothness: I passed the sauce through a strainer (“chinoise étamine” en français) so that any remaining skins were left behind, leaving a very velvety texture.
The Cost of Living in France - Two Years Later
The cost of living in France is a subject that continues to be of interest to my readers, so I thought it was time to update my Cost of Living in France post and show you how we do it.
Living here is possible, even on a limited budget. We've been living in France full time for seven years and though we've had some difficult times with the $/€ exchange rate and almost packed it in and moved back to the States at one point, we managed to hang on by selling our garden and cutting back as much as we could.
We don't live extravagantly, never go out to the theater or to the movies, rarely eat out, and when our friends and family come to visit they offer to help with the added expense. So it works.
Food prices have gone up in the last couple of years, as they have everywhere, and our income went up for several months when I worked last summer, but what we have to depend on every month is my husband's pension and my advertising income from Chez Loulou (a small part of the total), which equals about $1600, or €1290 at today's conversion rate.
As I stated before, we live in a village in the south, not in a big city, so the prices might be totally different to those living in cities like Paris, Lyon or Marseille. Also, we own our little house outright so have no mortgage, nor do we have car payments or credit card debt.
EDF (electricity) €122
Phone and Internet €50
Heath Insurance (to cover the 30% that isn't covered by the state) €130
Car and Home Insurances €63
Taxes (habitation and foncières and TV) €50
Water €25
Fuel (to fill up the car twice) €90
Groceries (approx.) €350
Total €880
It leaves enough to live on. Simply.
The good news is that the US dollar has been slowly gaining strength against the Euro. Let's hope it continues!
We still do the majority of our fresh food shopping at the local markets. The prices aren't any higher than what it would cost in fuel to drive to Narbonne or Carcassonne (a little over an hour round trip) and shop at the enormous grocery stores such as Géant Casino or Intermarché. Those places drive me crazy and I would much rather support the small shops, local honey, wine and cheese producers, butchers, and fruit and vegetable growers in the area.
The one problem with living in rural France is finding a job. Two years ago I didn't have the right to work, so it wasn't an issue. Now it is an issue. The jobs are few and far between and are most commonly agricultural. If only I knew how to drive a tractor, or had training as a shepherd.
So I continue to look for work and we continue to enjoy life to its fullest. Proving that even with very little money, it can be done.
Our South of France, Part II
La Garrigue is the French term for the low scrub land found on limestone hills along the Mediterranean basin. We're surrounded by it.
Wild thyme, rosemary and juniper fill the air with their heady aromas and tall, slender cypress trees punctuate the landscape.
Symmetrical rows of vines. I think they're beautiful.
Visually, it is a stunning place to live. We never get tired of looking out over the views across the valley to the Pyrénées.
These stone walls are perfect hiding places for all kinds of lizards, snails and creepy little scorpions. The old houses are all made of stone and birds make nests where the mortar has crumbled away.
This is a good site about the Minervois, in both French and English.
It's pretty cold today, but the sky is brilliant blue and the sun is shining, so I'm signing off the computer and going out for a walk.
Food and Wine Courses at Château Ventenac
Julia Bristow, the owner of the spectacular Château Ventenac, situated on the Canal du Midi in Ventenac-en-Minervois, is offering two courses in the spring of 2009 for all you food and wine lovers out there.
May 3-7
A five day/four night Mediterranean Vegetarian Cookery Course which offers the opportunity to learn seasonal vegetarian cooking with Rachel Demuth, owner of the award winning Demuth's Vegetarian Restaurant in Bath, and Jo Ingleby, experienced chef and cookery tutor.
The vegetarian course includes four cookery sessions with a combination of hands on cookery and demonstration where we will create delicious Mediterranean meals together using the best seasonal vegetables, local oils and wines. We will visit a local market, visit local producers and have a special wine tasting with Juliet Bruce Jones, Master of Wine.May 18-21
Discover the diverse and award winning wines of the Languedoc over 4 days on a Wine Tasting Holiday with your expert wine guide, Juliet Bruce Jones, one of only 287 Masters of Wine worldwide.
Juliet is a friend of mine so I've had the pleasure of being a second (and much less educated) opinion on a few wine tasting outings with her. Her knowledge of wine is extensive and her enthusiasm for the wine of the Languedoc is contagious!
Contact Julia Bristow to sign up for either course or for information about the other courses on offer at Château Ventenac.
Photo du Jour - Immaculate
A freshly pruned and very tidy vineyard above our village.
One of the things I miss most this time of year is the color green. Winter in a Mediterranean climate zone can be a bit stark. And cold!
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