Prepping Garlic Confit

I learned this recipe from Cat Bude, an American who married a Frenchman, started a family, and uprooted to Normandy, France about 15 years ago. Their dreams came true when they found a run down farm, they later came to lovingly name Rabbit Hill Farm. With a lot of hard work, trial and error, and pure grit, they transformed this property into a thriving, vibrant Normandy gem, and created a business along the way as well.

What kind of business? An incredible online shop called, Rabbit Hill Lifestyle, which features their loving and expertly restored copperware, French kitchen items, flea market treasures, and much more. Cat has recently authored her first cookbook, French Kitchen Lessons, Recipes & Stories from Normandy’s Rabbit Hill Farm.

I have taken her “Cooking with Copper” workshop a couple of years ago, and last month her first online Rabbit Hill Cooking Class, featuring many of the recipes, skills, and techniques from her new cookbook.

I really like her new cookbook (and hope she is able to write more). She is a natural photographer and food stylist, as she shares with you the rich Normandy seasons and life at Rabbit Hill Farm. Her recipes are easy to make, imaginative, and delicious. She has a warmth and authenticity that shines through each recipe.

As Cat Bude explains in her cookbook, the French love to use confit in their cooking which is a method of cooking food in fat or oil at low temperature for a long time. An easy way to elevate your cooking, especially French cooking, is to have garlic confit on hand. It can be used in any recipe calling for garlic cloves, and or olive oil. Think salad dressings, soups, sauces, etc. Once removed from the oven, cooled, and put in an airtight container, it should be used within two weeks.

For this recipe, and many more, please check out French Kitchen Lessons, and Rabbit Hill Lifestyle, you will be glad you did.

Finished Garlic Confit Out of the Oven

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Jim Dodge Chocolate Pecan Cake

Jim Dodge’s Bourbon Chocolate-Pecan Cake is one of my very favorite chocolate desserts. I usually make it around the holidays or for Valentine’s Day. It is relatively easy to make, tastes divine, and is so beautiful to serve your family and friends.

I first posted this recipe back in 2010, and in honor of Valentine’s Day, my gift to you, I am sharing it with you once again. Enjoy!

---

I'm a big fan of French author Mireille Guiliano who burst onto the publishing scene in 2005 with her book, French Women Don't Get Fat. She has gone on to write several more books, including French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes, & Pleasure (Vintage) Mireille Guiliano (and as I also aspire to) lives her life by the seasons. In French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes, & Pleasure (Vintage), she writes chocolate isn't strictly seasonal, so it can be certainly be enjoyed year-round, but she emphasizes that chocolate lends itself much better to the fall and winter seasons. I agree, and therefore must share with you one of my favorite winter desserts, Jim Dodge's Bourbon Chocolate-Pecan Cake.

Jim Dodge's Bourbon Chocolate-Pecan Cake

I was given this rich dessert recipe from my dear friend, Janet Leutel, nearly a decade ago. Janet annually compiles a short softcover cookbook of her favorite recipes over the past year, and gives it as a special gift around the holidays.

This is a very rich, dense flour-less cake. Use good chocolate and cocoa powder. The "bourbon" ingredient is optional in this recipe. I generally make it without. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups pecan halves

3/4 pound unsalted butter (divided)

12 oz. bitter or semi-sweet chocolate (divided)

1 and 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

6 eggs

1/3 cup bourbon (optional)

Method:

Spread pecan halves on a baking sheet and toast in 350 degree oven until fragrant, about 10 minutes. Set aside and cool. Separate out 1/2 cup for decorating top of cake layer. Grind until coarse, 1 and 1/2 cups pecans in food processor, which will be added to the cake mixture later.

Cut circle of parchment to fit bottom of 9" spring form pan. Butter pan well, and line with parchment circle.

Melt 1/2 pound butter and 8 oz. chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water. Stir until very smooth and set aside to cool.

Mix sugar, cocoa, and eggs just until well combined. Add melted chocolate, stirring to combine. Add coarsely chopped 1 and 1/2 cups pecans, and stir in. Add bourbon if you are using it, as this point.

Pour batter into prepared spring form pan and place this pan into a larger pan with simmering water. Water level should come to 1/2 of spring form cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees in oven until cake is firm to the touch, about 50 minutes.

Cool cake on wire rack, and remove side of the pan. Leave parchment paper on and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (I like to refrigerate cake in spring form pan overnight).

Remove cake from refrigerator, and place upside down on wire rack, or serving dish. Peel off parchment paper and drizzle with glaze. Drizzle the sides, and then the top. Smooth with a spreader. Decorate the top of cake with remaining pecans.

Glaze Recipe:

4 oz bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate

1/4 pound unsalted butter

Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler over simmering water. Stir until completely smooth. Cool about 5 minutes, before spreading on cake.

Please share if you have a traditional dessert you make for Valentine’s Day. Please share if you are known for a signature gift you make for others each holiday.

Our Sweet Little Anabelle Who We Rescued, and She Rescued Us Back

This Valentine’s Day especially, and every day, surround yourself with love, be it romantic love, family love, friendship love, pet love, things you are passionate about! Love is all around us. Be aware and grateful for all the love that surrounds you like a soothing, comforting hug.

Happy Valentine’s Day and Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Our Original Living Room, 25 Years Ago

Yes, it is hard to believe, but this was our living room when John and I first moved into our new home and property we now affectionately call Domaine de Manion. It looks quite different now, and many of you know the story and the transition over time of how our home and property evolved.

I want to call your attention to the clear stain glass windows above the windows in the photo above. There were a total of three in this room. I don’t know a thing about these stained glass windows. Who made them? The story behind them? How long they had been in the house?

With our home remodel in 2010, these stained glass windows didn’t fit with the house anymore. We carefully stored them away for 15 years down in our little basement. Last summer I advertised I was selling these stain glass windows for $75.00 each in my newsletter. There were in wonderful condition, and too good for the dump.

Two of the Three Stained Glass Windows Shown For Sale

There were no takers. Classic Consignment wouldn’t take them. We advertised on Craig’s List three separate times, and still no takers. We couldn’t believe someone couldn’t be creative with these three stain glass windows.

Finally, out of the blue, a gentleman called and said he wanted to buy the windows. He had seen the ad. He was going to make a greenhouse/potting shed for his lucky wife. We were surprised. He said he was pretty handy with tools and construction. He said he would send a photo when he was finished. He did, and look how amazingly he transformed these windows for a second life, beautiful, functional, and re-purposed!

A New Life Re-Purposed For These Stained Glass Windows, One Lucky Wife, One Lucky Gardener

We were so amazed when we saw his photo above. I confess, I was a little jealous I hadn’t thought of something like this. It pays to be very creative, and think outside of the box. What one person discards, it can become another person’s treasure. Before you throw away or discard something, take a moment to think how it might be re-purposed, or who might be able to use it in some other way.

Related Posts:

Remembering Miss Dior

Celebrating 25 Years

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Walking Towards Blue Skies and Blue Water on the Garden Path

I am always hopeful for the new year ahead, and what unknown opportunities, good fortune, and adventures are ahead. Sure, there may be bumps, hiccups, and wrong turns to cope with along the way, but we determine how we soldier through with our thoughts, experience, and intuition. And of course, with the help of those that are close to us.

As I am sure many of you do too, I write out my vision for the year, and what I hope to accomplish. It is a road map, sort of speak, to refer back to frequently to keep me on course. This helps me determine where best to spend my time, what makes me the happiest, and how to create my best everyday, as my every days unfold quickly into a year. I am planning to do this year.

1) Savor and appreciate even more the little and big things.

2) Celebrate little things, as well as big things.

3) Keep my awareness in the present.

4) Set the intention of resilience, for the long term outcome to manifest.

5) Think confidently, and outside of the box.

6) Plan to do different things.

7) Not sweat the small stuff.

8) Keep an open mind and a full heart.

9) Plan my work, and work my plan.

10) Be ready when the luck happens, borrowed from Ina Garten.

Wishing all of you the very best in this year ahead…Bonnie

From Our Home To Yours, Happy Thanksgiving!

I thought I might share with you a few things I have done to get ready for Thanksgiving this year. I started planning my decorations, table, and menu, and it occurred to me that I was using many of my guiding principles. Want what you have, and use what you have. Simplicity is elegant, and incorporating “less is often more.” Mother Nature is astonishing and enduring beauty. Gratitude often follows thinking outside the box in surprising ways.

Vintage European Copper Milk Cans Are A Nice Welcome At The Front Door

Pretty Vineyard Leaves

I can’t remember a time when our vineyard and vineyard leaves have been prettier than this. The vineyard is a soothing golden hue overall, with a few grapevines displaying this reddish garnet color with subtle green veins. They were begging for a place at our Thanksgiving table.

I immersed and soaked them in water. Dried them, and flattened them with books to press them flat.

I wanted the leaves to stand out, so I used an ivory tablecloth, ivory napkins, and our ivory wedding china.

Picking up the subtle green veins in the leaves I repeated the subtle green color in my candlesticks. I used my beautifully etched wine glasses with vines and grape clusters, that further emphasize the grapevine theme and color. These wine glasses have been waiting up in the cupboard for just this occasion. The jeweled napkin holder matches the garnet color of the leaves and gold trim repeats the gold in the silverware and gold rim on the china. Small ivory votives add a touch of light and sparkle to the table.

My antique table is long and narrow, and it is always challenging to place candles, votives, flowers, plate settings and glassware together comfortable spaced. The grapevine leaves add amazing color and contrast and maybe a bit of surprise. I might add a few more on each end of the table.

Yes, the vineyard table is ready for Thanksgiving, but don’t forget how the Thanksgiving menu is really the star, and will be deliciously enjoyed in this setting.

A Vineyard Table Ready For Thanksgiving

I know you all are so talented in your decorating, menus, and tablescapes. I would love to hear from you what you have done for your Thanksgiving day!

Wishing you all a Thanksgiving full of love, gratitude, and deliciousness…Bonnie

A Sunny Lunch at Le Plongeoir, Nice

We flew into Nice, France, and stayed a few days. Recent articles on Nice had mentioned that Nice was experiencing a renaissance since covid. It has been about 15 years since we were here last, and the time was right for another visit. We stayed in Vieux Nice, home for 20,000 people, and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We ate well, strolled the famed Promenade des Anglais along the water, and took in the Monday brocante (flea) market.

A few days later we drove and stayed at the picturesque port and small town of Cassis, along the Côte d’Azur. Enough time for an evening dinner along the port, and to take in the Wednesday market there. A quick stop at Domaine du Paternel for wine tasting. This area is known for gorgeous white wines.

Above Cassis is the start of the Route des Crètes, one of the most scenic routes along the highest cliffs in France which allows to you view the coastline and out to the Mediterranean sea. Breathtaking!

Picturesque Cassis Port

Market Day at Place Richelme in Aix-en-Provence

On to Aix-en-Provence for a day and night. A vibrant university town with magnificent architecture and a grand wide boulevard called Cours Mirabeau. We had one of our most memorable and delicious lunches at Les Vielles Canailles at this tiny little restaurant, know for the talented chef and extensive wine list.

Hiking at the Gardon du Gorges, A UNESCO Biosphere

After almost a week in France, we rolled into our village around Uzès. So happy to be here again, to further explore our area, work on our little mas, and search for decorating treasures from brocantes and flea markets.

It is not all work, we have taken time out for market days, long lunches, and one day we hiked part of the Gardon du Gorges. It is an incredible gorge carved over time by the Gardon River. Steep cliffs, rushing river water, and natural landscape have earned this protected pristine gorge a UNESCO World Heritage Biosphere site.

My New Wall Sconce, Upper Left, for the Living Room

Sharing with you the vintage sconce I found for our salon, living room, stone wall. Small, delicate, a perfect size. It is French, and pre-World War II. It cleaned up beautifully, and adds a touch of elegance to our rustic room.

Our Neighbor’s Beautiful Stone House

It is beautiful here in the autumn. My neighbor’s vine-covered stone house is a site to relish in the fall.

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend from France…Bonnie

Pumpkin Streusel Spice Cake Evokes Autumn In Every Bite

Pumpkin Streusel Spice Cake

Seen Online And Lovingly Adapted from MarketGrow, Anonymous Author

This is one of those versatile recipes that can easily be served for breakfast, an afternoon treat, or a surprise dessert. It is lightly spiced, moist, and reminds you of autumn in every delicious bite. Yields 9-12 servings, depending on how you cut your serving pieces. Enjoy!

Ingredients For The Cake:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt

For The Streusel Topping:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed

3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven: Preheat your oven to 350 F. degrees. Grease and flour an 8 x 8-inch baking pan or line it with parchment paper.

Mix the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar: In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar using an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla extract and pumkin puree. Mix until well combined.

Add the dry ingredients: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the sour cream or Greek yogurt, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined—be careful not to overmix.

Prepare the streusel topping: In a small bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add the cold, cubed butter and use a pastry cutter or your fingers to mix until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the chopped nuts (if using).

Assemble the cake: Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, spreading it evenly. Sprinkle the streusel topping generously over the cake batter.

Bake: Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. It the top starts to brown too quickly, cover the cake loosely with foil during the last 10 minutes of baking.

Cool and serve: Allow the coffee cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before slicing or serving.

Enjoy this cake with your favorite cup of coffee or tea, or better yet serve it warm as a dessert accompanied by Trader Joe’s seasonal Pumpkin Ice Cream!

For Dessert, Serve Your Pumpkin Streusel Spice Cake With Pumpkin Ice Cream

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend From France…Bonnie

Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake Ready To Please

Perfect for fall menus, and perhaps a new dessert for your Thanksgiving gathering, this recipe combines the best of pumpkin pie and silky cheesecake in one delicious dessert. An added bonus is a tangy sour cream topping which suits perfectly the ginger, cinnamon, cardamon, and turmeric spices in the filling. Make it ahead and refrigerate it up to 3 days.

Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake

Lovingly Adapted from Genevieve Ko, Published in The New York Times

Makes: 8-12 Servings

Ingredients for the Crust:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more for the pan

2-1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 15 crackers)

3 Tbsp. granulated sugar

1 tsp. fine sea salt or table salt

Ingredients for the Filling:

1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1-1/2 tsp. ground ginger

3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground cardamon

1/2 tsp. fine sea salt or table salt

1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin

2 tsp. brandy (optional)

2 large eggs, at room temperature

Ingredients for the Topping:

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp. ground turmeric

1-1/2 cups sour cream

Candied ginger, cut into thin slivers or pieces for garnish (optional)

Step 1

Make the crust: Heat the oven to 350 F. degrees. Butter a 9- or 9-1/2 inch deep-dish pie plate. Mix the crumbs, sugar, and salt in a large bowl (or pulse in a food processor if you have ground your own crumbs). Add the butter and mix (or pulse) until the mixture is well blended and feels like wet sand.

Step 2

Dump all of the crumbs into the pie plate and spread in an even layer. Firmly press against the sides, but not over the rim if there is one, to form a 1/4-inch thick edge. Firmly press the rest of the loose crumbs against the bottom. Bake until darker brown and dry and firm to the touch, 12 -15 minutes. Turn the oven heat down to 325 F. degrees.

Step 3

While the crust bakes, make the filling: Beat the cream cheese with an electric stand or hand mixer until there are no tiny cream-cheese lumps. Add the sugar, ginger, cinnamon, cardamon, and salt, and beat until very smooth, scraping the bowl if needed. Add the pumpkin and brandy (if using), and beat until fully incorporated, then beat in the eggs just until combined. You don’t want to beat the mixture too much once the eggs are added or your filling will balloon and then sink rather than bake evenly.

Step 4

Pour the filling into the crust (it’s OK if it is hot, warm, or cooled) and spread in an even layer. Bake until the edges are set, the entire top looks dry and the very center is just a bit jiggly, 45 to 50 minutes.

Step 5

After the cheesecake goes into the oven, make the topping: Mix the sugar and turmeric in a medium bowl, breaking up any clumps. Add the sour cream and stir gently until evenly tinted gold. Let sit at room temperature until ready to use.

Step 6

Carefully spread the topping over the hot baked filling in an even layer. Return to the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate uncovered until cold, at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. (Cover loosely with plastic wrap after 2 hours if you plan to chill it longer.)

Step 7

When ready to serve, decorate the top with candied ginger (optional). Chilled cheesecake is easier to slice with a warm knife run under hot water, and cleaned with a paper towel or kitchen towel after each piece. Enjoy!

Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake for Everyone

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie