Reims, Dijon and A Box of Foodie Penpals Goodies

Phew - it has been a busy few weeks! My  fiancé and I got the legal bits of our marriage out of the way last week in preparation for the main event next weekend in La Manga Club, Spain. The small ceremony in Blackpool Registry Office was followed by a lovely few days in the Lake District.

Currently I am in a 4x4 packed to the tip top of its roof box leaving Dijon on day 2 of a 3-day journey down to Murcia, on the south-east coast of Spain. I say 3-day, but the journey usually takes only 2 days. This time, however, Mum and Dad have surprised me and Dave with a few unexpected stops along the way. Yesterday, our journey ended far earlier than expected in Reims (pronounced (ish) Rance) and a tour and tasting at the fantastic Mumms champagne cellars.

Today, our detour took us to Dijon, where my parents had arranged for a mustard-making class which included a mustard tasting with charcuterie, terroir, cheese, bread and, interestingly, gingerbread.

The mustard we made is not the kind we are used to, being much more bitter. We used a pestle and mortar to grind our mustard seeds, but the technique used to remove the bitterness (soaking for 24 hours in water and wine) would have made this impossible.

Happily, my mustard was not the only mustard on offer at the tasting at La Cuisine de Madeleine. There were a vast array, ranging from the traditional Dijon to hazelnut and vanilla mustard.

I learned that the original Dijon mustard did not use vinegar but instead used a green grape juice traditional to the area called verjus, made from grapes unsuitable for wine-making. This gives the traditional mustard from the area a less acidic taste and allows the mustard flavour to come through.

After WWII, Paris decided to capitalise on the popularity of the Dijon mustard by usurping its name. A court case followed that did a disservice to mustard lovers around the world. The Dijon aspect of the mustard was determined to be a recipe, not a geographical locator and (here is where the disservice is done) this recipe was broadly mustard seeds (from anywhere), salt and, not just verjus, but potentially wine, vinegar, or lemon juice.

We've now left Dijon and are on our way to Clermont-Ferrand. And, with everyone else but the driver asleep, this gives me the perfect opportunity to update you all on my travels and gush about the wonderful foodie penpals parcel I received from the lovely Elyse (http://www.sweetelyseblog.com).

Having rushed around in a mad panic, frantically trying to get everything ready for Blackpool and the Lakes, and facing 2 days of mad panic frantically getting everything ready for Spain, it really was fantastic to be greeted home by a package overflowing with goodies.

As you can see, my pack included popcorn, miso soup, olives, posh rice pudding, a bulgar wheat snack pot and a maple syrup recipe book!

Of course, I had to leave almost all of it behind to try upon my return in a fortnight, but I have taken the popcorn with me as a suitable pre-wedding travel snack. Hopefully, its claims of skinnyness will counteract the vast quantities of cheese, meat, bread and wine I have been consuming through France and undoubtedly will through Spain. I have literally no will-power when it comes to tasty food!

I would also like to say a special thank you to Elyse's little boy who insisted I must have something sweet, even if I am a savoury person. This meant the inclusion of a mixed bag of sweets, snack bars and drinks that Dave has his eye on!

I am very pleased with my package and I hope Julie is with the one I sent to her. While not as jam-packed as the one I received, I sent a few quality items, including an exceptional chorizo for which I also provided a recipe and some other serving suggestions.

With all the excitement of the wedding, I am abstaining from Foodie Penpals next month, but aim to bring back a whole bunch of tasty goodies for my penpal in October!

Marrow Marathon and Other Vegetarian Adventures

A few weeks ago, in attempt to be healthy, save money and further progress on the Challenge, I drew up a predominantly vegetarian menu, about which I intended to blog.  However, that weekend, events overtook themselves and I became the proud recipient of a generous supply of courgettes.

Thus, we entered Week 2 of predominantly vegetarian dinners.  It really is amazing how much you can do with a courgette - one of my all time favourite vegetables.  As I made so many dishes to blog about over the last fortnight, I am going to take a quick-look approach to this blog, with an array of pictures to peak your appetite.

Marrow Marathon

Mushroom & Courgette Risotto - Once you've got your head round a basic white risotto, you can really do anything you want to it.  I got my basic recipe from Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie's Italy'.  It involves making a sofrito of garlic, onions and celery, adding the rice and cooking dry for a few minutes.  Then add a glass of white wine and allow the risotto to absorb it while stirring.  Continue this process with ladlefuls of stock until the rice is cooked then chuck in some butter and parmesan.  For this risotto, I rehydrated some dried mushrooms (courtesy of my Lithuanian foodie penpal!) and used the liquid as stock for the risotto.

Top tip: keep your stock warm while you're waiting to add it.  This will ensure the process doesn't take longer than necessary.

Marinated Courgette with Mozzarella & Garlic Flatbread - The marinated courgette with mozzarella and flatbread recipes are from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's 'River Cottage Veg Every Day'.  This book is actually amazing.  So far this is the only book that I had bought and not got round to taking for a spin.  And boy was I missing out!  It took me hours to pick which recipes to cook because there were so many that I wanted to try.  I could do a whole year alone cooking from this book.

Tommaso's Penne with Zucchini - This recipe is from 'The New York Cook Book' by Molly O'Neill - hence the alternative vocabulary.  This is unique in that it is like a scrap book, full of stories and pictures.  The author, a food columnist for The New York Times Magazine, spent 5 years collecting and collating recipes from friends and restaurants all around New York, so is eclectic and cosmopolitan, much like the city of its birth.  I find it a touch difficult to use, but every now and then I flick through it and pick a recipe.  There's always something nice in cooking a dish and knowing a little bit of background to its creation or how others like to enjoy it.  With this recipe, there was a double page spread describing the bumper crop of zucchinis in the Italian communities in New York.  It painted a lovely picture and I forgave the prosciutto to include it in my veggie fortnight.

Pinto Bean Chilli - Another contribution from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's fabulous 'River Cottage Veg Every Day'.  I don't have any pics of this, but I can tell you that it was delicious!

Tahini-Dressed Courgette and Green Bean Salad - Yet another contribution from HFW.  I took this along to a BBQ and it went down a treat!

Meredith's Zucchini Bread - Think banana nut bread, but with courgettes instead.  This recipe is from Rachel Allen's 'Bake'.  You can eat it like cake, or toast it and spread it with butter.

Baby Courgettes and Chanterelles with Basil - A recipe that I adapted from Valentine Warner's 'What To Eat Now More Please!'.  Whereas his first 'What To Eat Now' book focused on Autumn recipes, his second book is packed full of Spring and Summer recipes.  His courgettes and chanterelles was meant as a simple supper for one, to be accompanied with a glass of wine.  I jazzed mine up with a bit of blue cheese, and bulked it up with a small amount of pasta, but kept the wine!

Other Vegetarian Adventures

Stuffed Squash with Leeks - A HFW recipe.  I couldn't find any little round squash like in the picture in his book, so stuffed half a butternut squash instead.

Warm Salad of Mushrooms and Roasted Squash - HFW again.

Roasted Baby Beetroot with Walnuts and Yoghurt Dressing - And my final HFW.  Although this was a veggie dish, I served it with a smattering of smoked trout, which goes really well with beetroot.

Thyme, Onion & Gruyere Tart - This recipe is from Simon Hopkinson's 'The Vegetarian Option'.  I was a bit deflated when this book arrived through the post.  The dishes seemed very simple and less aimed at vegetarians and more a celebration of a particular vegetable.  The book is divided into sections, such as 'Leek and Onions', 'Fennel and Celery' and 'Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme' (from which this recipe comes).  Upon further revisits, I feel that the book is growing on me.  It has some interesting little recipes that may just be that je-ne-sais-quoi element that you were looking for.

A point to note, the cooking times are dotted throughout the method.  I had a quick once over of the recipe earlier in the day and missed about 1 hour of cooking time.  We had a very late dinner!

Fresh Strawberry Champagne Cocktails - Pureed strawberries and mint.  Topped up with Champagne.  Simples!