Leftovers aka Les Restes (I think!)

I have always thought that French for leftovers was restes but I'm not sure now - no-one here seems to know what I am talking about; a common problem I find, though getting easier.

Whatever they are called on our last day in Roquebrune, Monday, we had lots of them to use up as we will not be self catering again this trip. 

On Sunday we visited a large street market between Frejus and St. Raphael where there was a guy selling 10 beignets for €1 so I asked for same and the git gave me 18 for €1 - my kind of git! We ate a couple of the crunchy sugary darlings there and then and few more with coffee later. I have absolutely no idea what that bottle of Armagnac is doing in the background.

For breakfast I heated the remainder in a hot pan till re-crisped and they were very good indeed drizzled with honey and taken with strong coffee. 

Before lunch we visited and said goodbye to some great people; Patricia et Marcel and Ingrid et Jaqui.  Champagne was served with nibbles and on our return I cobbled together a small lunch to tide us over till dinner; leek and potato soup with garlicky croûtes and sautéed julienne of ham; all leftovers.  Our French friends were surprised at the thought of eating soup for lunch but I can't quite grasp their point!

I was going to leave the soup chunky but found a mouli legumes in the cupboard so thought I'd have a play.

... et voila ...

Re-pin for later!

For dinner we had a simple omelette of leftover potatoes, onions and air dried sausage of some kind. 

Speaking of leftovers I have written an entire book about les restes ...

Great preview here!

In other news ...

I am very surprised to find that the South of France is rife with chihuahuas!  Here's a girl called Canelle who I became quite friendly with.

Fresh produce in France is amazing!

I wrote this a few days ago, but couldn't post it!

I have been staying in a gated community (I'm dead posh, me) at Roquebrune-sur-Argens in Provence with my friend Carol and we have had no internet (so not that posh), hence my recent lack of communication.

Roquebrune is a couple of miles from the coast but that's not far so we have visited a few villages and the Cote d'Azur and eaten and quaffed, as is only right in these situations.

Sometimes, however, we lunch or dine on the shady deck of our little house but still in the French fashion, of course.

There are so many fabulous cheeses to choose from; so far we have tried Tomme (yum), Comte (yum), various Chevres (all yum) Morbier (yum) and Chaumes (yuk - but then I never did like a washed rind cheese).

The saucissons here are resplendent and we have tested a variety of rock hard, dry, salty and strangely moreish versions. With good bread, extra virgin olive oil, fleur du sel, salad and, of course, the old vin rouge and sunshine this makes an excellent meal.

For dessert we have fruit or, a couple of times, a kind of cream cake called Galette Tropezienne (which is a very good light fatless, I think, sponge filled with crème patisserie and a lovely crunchy sugar topping) from St. Tropez.  I have been told that this is well kept secret recipe and shall be investigating on my return to the UK.  I'd like to make it as my real man would love it.

The produce here is amazing, for instance just look at this lettuce which, oddly enough, I have put my foot beside to give some perspective; it's all I had available at the time. If you buy a lettuce in France you'd better really be in the mood for lettuce!

And this bloody enormous tomato! This time I used my hand as we were in the supermarket.

In other news ...

The BT fiasco continues - see here - it is 7 weeks last Friday since they disconnected our line for some minor work then found we had one of Britain's rare slightly busy roads outside our house.  They had only switched the connection off at the exchange a few minutes before this discovery but for some inexplicable reason were unable to switch it on again. They did call me yesterday in France, despite my having given them an alternative number to call in my absence, to tell me that they will update me next week on when they might be able to do the work.  Is this bad "customer service" do you think, or am I just being picky?

How can this be possible?

Today we left lovely old Carcassonne and had lunch at a place called Marseillan. We only stopped because my friend has a  bit of a coffee habit, the place looked like a typical touristy family holiday resort sort of place but we noticed an interesting eatery in a road of eating places that was pretty and quirky and absolutely packed - a good sign.  We read the menu ...

Whilst pondering we each drank a Sangria, which was not as I think of Sangria at all but was rich and deep and port-like.

Then for €12.90 which at today's exchange rate is £10.88 I had ...

Soup de Poissons 

avec accoutrements!

Gambas Marinée

with several sauces and fragrant rice

Gauffre Chocolat & Espresso

Not bad, eh?  The meal came with a generous basket of bread and a bottle of iced water. The service was absolutely superb, the place well kept and the price included various taxes. How can they do this?

One more question ...

We saw the sea for the first time since getting off the boat at Roscoff (actually we didn't see it then - thick fog) and beside the beach was a sign telling you what you can't do on it.  I understood the first four but what is this one ...

... Face interdit?  

Gorgeous Carcassonne!

The above is a real picture taken by me out of the car window, all I've done is put a white frame round it.  I know it looks a bit weird but that's just how it looked!

I am sat sitting here in the heart of Carcassonne, French France and I can hear quite clearly someone playing, on a trumpet or similar, "Auld Lang Syne"  Quelle Surprise!  

It is also pissing with rain but I've had a great day and a bit of sitting on the bed blogging isn't a bad thing.

Last night we ate at an outdoor restaurant, the name of which sadly escapes me where for €14.50 I had ...

Gazpacho

Crusty yummy bread

oOo

Confit de Canard with Potatoes Roasted in Duck Fat

oOo

Crème Catalan

My dining companion had mussels au gratin with aioli and we shared a half litre of local red wine for just €6 so that's quite a lot of good eating and drinking for not much money. 

Today we first went to the market which was as I have always been led to believe French markets are - piles and piles of great produce! 

We didn't buy much as we have no fridge or kitchen at the moment; just a couple of white peaches and one each of these ...

If you can't decipher the writing they are oreillettes and you can read more about them here ... Oreillettes Recipe which is where I looked! They are like deep fried crèpes, crisp and sugary and very good with coffee.  I might try making some when I get home.

After we had wandered and marvelled for a while I went off on my own like the big girl I am to look at the medieval citadel or cité - very nice and not too full of people whilst I was there although they did seem to be piling in as I was leaving.

France ~ first impressions.

What does this picture remind you of?

Travelodge?  Little Chef?  Surprisingly not.

Our first overnight was at a place called Saintes which is some distance north of Bordeaux where we stayed in a Campanile in a small retail complex situated immediately after turning off the autoroute.  I think it is France's version of a Travelodge or similar but what a difference!  

The room was fine; basic but clean and comfy with unlimited free wifi (it's £5 for an hour at Travelodge). As we were knackered we decided to eat at the hotel which, as you probably know, would be a silly decision to make in a similar place in the UK.  It was brill!

We sat outside (warm and breezy) and had a glass of wine (above) whilst ordering and the lovely friendly waitress (yes - table service) brought us each a complimentary glass of gazpacho!  Honestly, she did!

I ordered a salmon "burger" which came on a delightfully crunchy toasted bread of some sort with tzatziki and green salad (dressed deliciously) and my companion ate steak and chips.  She did say the steak was a little on the tough side but loved the rest of the meal. 

On the way down to Saintes we had enjoyed several coffee stops (excellent real coffee too) but one stop in particular sticks in my mind.  Carol went to the "ladies" but it was closed for cleaning so she used the disabled lavvie.  She put her handbag down in the washbasin and was disappointed to see the tap turn on automatically and fill it up!  It did make us laugh, me even more than her!

The next morning we made an early start but first bought ourselves some bread and a seafood quiche to enjoy on the way.  I really am quite a snob about bread as you will know if you have read previous posts.  I love chewy, tasty, crusty stuff so was glad to find this ...

and this ...

... in the bakery over the road which was set between a hardware store like B & Q and a furniture shop.

We are now in Carcassonne for two days and I'm still impressed but more about that later.  Got to go exploring!

Jamie Oliver & Me!

Today I saw, for the first time, Jamie Oliver's new much discussed book "Save with Jamie". 

I can't afford to buy it but I did browse for a long while. The first recipe that caught my eye, and which seems to have attracted the attention of lots of other people, included in its ingredient list a side of salmon. (More about this in the future here!) 

On closer inspection, many of the recipes (which all look fine to me, by the way, and I have always thought Jamie's food appealing) include ingredients I would not expect people on a tight budget would have much truck with: fennel, lamb (so expensive these days) and prawns, for instance.

Having said that, and seeing that there has been such an outcry among foodies and bloggers as to how unrealistic this book is for "genuinely poor people", I would just like to say that, whilst I can see their points, I don't suppose the book's target market is people actually below the poverty line, (which officially I believe we are), but rather at middling sort of chaps (I wrote that on purpose to sound middle class!) who are now feeling the pinch but can still afford a book to pick up some new ideas.

Jack Monroe says people are constrained by lack of knowledge and I very much agree with her.  It has been said that my generation (fairly old!) were the last to "learn at their mother's knees "and I don't think cooking education at schools is of much use. Wasn't it Jamie Oliver, however, who started the Ministry of Food in Rotherham together with the Pass It on Campaign whereby a few people were taught some basic recipes with the hope that they would teach more people, they would pass on the info and so on.  

This was a good idea I think but if you don't know Jamie Oliver or anyone else who can teach you to cook there are lots of books available to read for free in pubic libraries, lots of stuff on the telly ("massive fucking" big or otherwise) and learning the basics is so very, very worthwhile.  Just imagine being able to make yourself something quick, easy, cheap, healthy and utterly, utterly yummy.

At the end of April Global Poverty Project challenged us to eat for under £1 a days but I didn't join in because as I really do know how to cook and how to use every scrap I often do this anyway by accident!  

I am sure Jamie Oliver knows his stuff but so do I!

My Credentials ...

~   I have been a professional chef for over 30 years not only in the UK but also in several other places where I have learned a lot more than if I had stayed at home. 

~   I have lived in a small, crappy caravan (not on holiday - lived in) with a broken oven and the only working space was if I put a chopping board over the sink.

~   I have also lived on various boats at sea, moored up, on the hard, passage making and for a couple of years stuck in the mud!  None of them were well equipped to say the least. 

~   For many years I cooked professionally on a Caribbean island where supplies were very erratic so I had to be not only very inventive but in an way that would impress rich people on holiday!  In short I know how to cook even in limited circumstances. 

The only sort of cooking I haven't done is on the telly! 

Now In my own humble way I have been trying to spread the word on how to cook and how to make the most of your food. 

I have been writing a series of books on very useful, flexible recipes which can be learnt by heart then tweaked and adapted to make your own wonderful creations.  This seems far more useful than just publishing separate recipes. See here for all my books.

I have also written a real, grown up properly published book which can be of real help in making the most of all your food. If you want a book that helps you prepare delicious nutritious meals using even the smallest amount of leftover food and a few things you could already have in your kitchen cupboard may I recommend (and not only because I wrote it!) ...  

Creative Ways to Use Up Leftovers: An Inspiring A – Z of Ingredients and Delicious Ideas 

Creative Ways to Use Up Leftovers has probably five times as many recipes ideas and suggestions as Jamie's book does and is just over a third of the price, although admittedly it is not a lovely brightly illustrated hardback.  It is, however, a useful pocket bible which will certainly help save money and avoid food waste.

Considering the subject of the above blog post I think it only fair that I should show you this Amazon review of Creative Ways to Use Up Leftovers.

Read more here.

Welcome Home Cornish Crackler!

A few weeks ago when we went to top up our supply of one of the most wonderful cheeses in the world, ever; Davidstow Cornish Crackler, we found, to our horror, that the price had gone up somewhat. 

"In the current financial climate" this was not good news and I am ashamed to say that we chickened out and bought a cheaper cheese.  We haven't eaten it though!

A couple of days ago feeling sad and cheese-less we invested in the real thing and am so glad to welcome it back to our home, our hearts and our palates.  Never again will I put petty considerations such as having no money before the morality of cheese.

What's so good about it you may ask, if you've never tried it.  Well ...

~   A good strong complex delicious real Cheddar flavour,
~   A wonderful crumbly texture which not only makes it ideal for cooking with, as it melts very well, but also comes with a bonus; you absolutely have to have a Cook's Treat of the crumbs whilst preparing a meal and may I suggest a Chef's Coffee with that?

~   It is not only British and English it is Cornish so for me it is also local produce too for which, as you know, one gets brownie points.

~   This is the best thing - throughout the cheese are tiny salty crunchy nuggets of what I believe to be protein crystals but whatever they are - gorgeous!

Very close up!

Anyhoo - if you like cheese you'll love this, Gromit.

I'm afraid I haven't done any cooking with Crackler recently, just nibbled on it and grinned. However see ... 

~   Here for Twice Baked Cheddar Souffle recipe, 

~   Here for Glamorgan Sausages,

~   Here for Cauliflower & Cornish Crackler Fritters,
and ...

~   Here for 64+ ideas for leftover cheese plus a joke!

Leftover dinner? Do this!

I'd like to suggest a simple cooking method which is ideal for using up leftovers; munging! 

Pin so you don't forget!

For instance a recent dinner comprised cod in a buttery leek and lemon sauce, new potatoes and veggies.  As is so often the case I couldn't eat the lot so put my leavings on a tea plate in the fridge in the hope inspiration would hit by lunchtime. 

It did - I'd mash it up together!  I just put everything except the lemon slice in a bowl and squashed it together with my hands till it was well merged 

I formed the result into a cake, coated it with panko crumbs (normal breadcrumbs would work too) and fried myself a lovely lunch which I much preferred, in fact, to the original meal!  

I think this "method" would be useful for all sorts of leftover dinners, so long as there is some potato involved and not too much gravy or sauce.  Give it a go!!!

Incidentally "munging" seems to have several new defintions ...

~   The deliberate alteration of an e-mail address on a Web page to hide the address from spambot programs that scour the Internet for e-mail addresses.

~   To transform data in an undefined or unexplained manner, changing data into another format.

~   A trademark for a canned meat product consisting primarily of chopped pork pressed into a loaf.

~   Something utterly disgusting, either generally or specifically.

~   To munch up, in common use in Scotland in the 1940s, and in Yorkshire in the 1950s.

It is the final definition I am referring to here.

My New Store-Cupboard Essential

I have added a new item to my list of "storecupboard essentials", which already includes quite a few items not normally considered basics. 

The new addition is chorizo.  Frequently whilst cooking recently I have thought "hmm, if only I had some chorizo" (must be my age!) and now I have.  It keeps very well indeed (the pack of sliced chorizo I just bought is good till 21^st September) and just a little is needed to give all sorts of dishes a boost.  

My leftovers of the day consisted of half a can of cannelini beans and a small piece of monkfish I know - posh leftover! 

~   I cooked some very finely chopped red onion in a little olive oil.

~   I added 3 slices of chorizo, shredded and let it melt and ooze a bit.

~   Then the beans and sliced monkfish were tossed in together with  some chopped tomatoes (from a carton of Tesco's chopped tomatoes with chilli) and a weeny bit of dry white wine.

~   To a simmer, turned down the heat and cooke gently till I had toasted a slice of Vicky's most marvellous bread.

~   I added a dollop of M & S roasted garlic mayonnaise (even posher!) and this was a fabulous lunch thanks in part to chorizo.

See here for lots of ideas for chorizo.

and

See here for lots and lots and lots of ideas for leftovers!

How to Have your Lettuce and Eat it Too!

Have you ever bought one of these?

And then after a few salad days it looks like this? 

Well if you stick it outside in the sun (if such a thing should occur) and water it occasionally (if it doesn't rains as much as usual) and have a friendly chat with it now and then it will, after a week or two, look like this ...

Which is quite a saving, n'est pas? 

My friend Carol who knows a bit about plants and stuff says it would better still if planted in the garden and as soon as/if ever our garden is sorted out I will do just that. 

Carol also gave me a couple of courgettes from her garden, just babies with the flowers still attached ...

... so I had a delicious impromptu lunch.

Tagliatelle with Courgettes, Lemon & Chilli for one

1 lovely fresh courgette from a friend

½ tbsp olive oil

½ tsp crushed garlic

finely grated zest of half a lemon

juice of half a lemon

a few chilli flakes to taste

90ml or so double cream

1 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese

a handful of cooked tagliatelle

~   Cut the courgette into julienne aka matchsticks.

~   Sauté in the olive oil together with the garlic and when touched with colour but still a bit crisp stir in the zest, chilli flakes and juice and scrape the result onto a clean plate whilst making the sauce (this means the courgette won't overcook in the meantime).

~   Add the cream to the recently vacated pan, bring to a simmer and stir in the parmesan, continue simmering for a few seconds longer till thick and then stir in the cooked pasta.

~   Once the pasta is hot add the cooked courgettes and their juices, season to taste and eat.

To garnish my lunch I whipped up a quick batter (just a tbsp of seasoned self raising flour and enough fizzy water to make a coating consistency), dipped the courgette flour into it and fried till crisp.  It was OK but really just a vehicle for crunchy batter, the flower itself was of no interest to me other than academic.