French food

The French do food really well. They especially do slow food exceptionally well. Take the Boeuf Bourguinon. Slow cooking not only makes your meat so very very tender, it also gives you the opportunity to try tastier (not to mention cheaper) cuts of meat. Yet the most important thing, is it gives you time. You prepare and let it cook, and cook, and cook. Whilst you do something else. Very French.

Waste is something I strive to avoid. And right up there is Broccoli Stems. It is just one of those things that when you have cooked the rest of the broccoli, you look at and go… And?!?!?Read More →

life is a basket of cherries and then you eat them at PumpjackPiddlewick

Life is a basket of cherries, and then you eat them. And make stuff out of them. Eat a few more, and make something more. Can you tell, it is cherry season here in France? Well, at least where we live. Our neighbours on either side have cherry trees. TheyRead More →

Why is French cheese fabulous we ask at PumpjackPiddlewick

France is known for many things, beautiful language, wonderful wine, and stinky cheeses to simply mention a few. But considering the latter, what is that makes French cheese special? It’s not just it’s odour. Honestly. Variety France makes around 1400 to 1600 different cheeses. No one can quite agree onRead More →

WIld Violets foraged for tea and syrup at PumpjackPiddlewick

I know spring is on its way when the yellows and purples start to show up in the garden. Daffodils start to show their sunny faces and purple wild violets peek up at me from the ground. Make Me Smile Flowers Violets are my favourite flower. Each year when IRead More →