(European Wasp)
KEGELN IN BERLIN
Nine-pin bowling.
Happy New Year ~ Prints now available online!
Dear readers,
HAPPY NEW YEAR! I am very excited about 2012, and today have made available online prints from some work that I undertook in Paris in 2011. I will be returning to Europe this year to continue this series, and to embark on other exciting projects.
Click here to view this evolving series ~ 75000
In 2012, remember your infinite potential ~ I hope this year brings many new beginnings, transformations, adventures and love!
Roast pumpkin hommus
I am so excited by this recipe that I decided to blog about it… My personal take on roast pumpkin hommus.
INGREDIENTS
1/2 butternut pumpkin
2 tbs tahini
1 can organic chickpeas
100g fetta cheese (Dodoni or similar)
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive oil
Water
Salt & freshly cracked pepper
Chilli flakes
Sumac (to serve)
1. Remove skin from pumpkin and chop into chunks. Drizzle with olive oil, a pinch of salt, cracked pepper and chilli flakes to taste. Roast until tender and edges begin to brown.
2. Using a blender or hand blender, puree pumpkin and then add 1/2 the chickpeas. Add a little water to make blending easier.
3. Add the rest of the chickpeas, 2 tbs tahini and the juice of 1 lemon and blend again until smooth. Add 1-2 tbs of olive oil and more water if necessary, until you reach a smooth consistency.
4. Break the fetta into chunks and add, blending again until smooth. Slowly add more water and/or olive oil if necessary.
5. Season with pepper and blend once more.
6. Spoon some hommus on to a large plate and with the back of the spoon smooth the dip to the edges of the plate. Drizzle with olive oil and a little sumac to serve.
With these quantities I covered a dinner plate and still had a bit left over.
I’m not exactly sure how much water and olive oil I used – the trick is to add it slowly so that you don’t overdo either one. The pumpkin gives it a beautiful smooth texture. We ate this dip with a lentil salad, roast capsicum & yoghurt dip and some delicious crusty bread.
La gastronomie de Bretagne (Partie 3)
The most memorable day of my French adventure started with un café et un pain au chocolat, before a drive to the local grocer to buy a few bits and pieces to take with us on the boat. While we waited for the tide to come in far enough to allow our boat to float, my friends took me to see a gorgeous windmill a few minutes out of town.
Finally around 11am our oceanic adventure began. We were blessed with a magnificent day, warm enough to swim in the chilly water.
Once we had reached deeper waters we dropped two lines from the back of the boat, in search of our lunch. As we bobbed along, and I studied the horizon (a great trick to avoid sea sickness!) we caught three mackerel, and then continued on our way towards my friends’ favourite spot, and dropped anchor. Out of the tiny kitchen on the boat, appeared lightly pan fried mackerel (officially the freshest fish I have ever eaten), which we ate along with salad of tomato and egg, plus the obligatory bread and a little pork terrine that we had picked up at Saveur D’Auge, Pont L’Évêque during our day in Normandie.
After our dip in the ocean, the water had completely receded and we began to search for our dinner. We raked the sand in search of les coquillages (clams) until our bucket was full. We shucked oysters off the rocks (yes, again!) and collected tiny little sea snails and les crevettes grises – tiny common shrimp found in the waters around Bretagne.
As the wind picked up and the boat once again began to bob, les crevettes grises were pan fried and served with our mandatory apératif of pastis.
To follow, les coquillages were boiled, opened and cooked with rice, onions and crème fraiche. Easily one of the most amazing meals of my life!
As you can probably imagine, I can’t wait to go back!
Posted in adventures, food, france, travel
Tagged bretagne, brittany, europe, france, gastronomic adventures, oysters
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Marché aux Puces St-Ouen de Clignancourt
Posted in adventures, france, kiev 60, paris, travel
Tagged flea market, marché aux puces, paris
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La gastronomie de Normandie et Bretagne (Partie 2)
Following my stay in the pretty town of Bougy, we traveled to a small seaside village in Bretagne, in north-western France which served as our base for the next two days of gastronomical adventure. We began in the town of Cancale, where we bought les huîtres (oysters) and l’homard (lobster) which would be our dinner that evening. I was so excited to see all the amazing crustacea for sale – much of which I’d never seen before. This was to be my first experience eating real lobster, as opposed to the crayfish you find in Australia.
After purchasing our dinner we drove further along the coast and stopped at a small inlet. As the tide was out, the sand was littered with boats. It really is a very quaint sight. We made our way over the sand, towards the rocks, where I was to sample my first ever oyster shucked freshly off the rocks. As a food lover, it’s one of those moments you never forget!
Next we traveled to the historical town of Saint-Malo and wandered the perimetre of the old town. It’s a really gorgeous place and I highly recommend a visit if you’re in the region. It was really stunning in the afternoon sun.
After working up quite a hunger it was time to return home to my friend’s nautically decorated sea side holiday house. I was quite curious as to how the lobster would be cooked, and it turned out that I was in for more of a treat than I ever imagined. The lobster was served in two ways – half of it was oven roasted, and the other half was placed on a grill over hot coals in the fireplace.
For entrée we had a selection of two kinds of oysters – flat oysters (for which Cancale is renowned), and the not so flat kind.
…. And the lobster ….
My gastronomical adventure through Normandie concludes with a day of food caught almost entirely by us – stay tuned for the final installment.
Tanya
Posted in adventures, food, france, travel
Tagged bretagne, brittany, cancale, l'homarde, les huîtres, lobster, normandie, normandy, oysters, saint-malo
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