Off to France

At the library I took out my latest novel, “The French House” by Nick Alexander, with our soon to happen French holiday in mind. I knew nothing about the author, or the book, but I thought it might get me into a more Gallic mood.

So far, I’m not sure it’s doing much for me storywise, or even as a portrait of life in France, but it is certainly making me nostalgic as so many places we’ve visited on our holidays are mentioned.

The story starts at Nice airport, a place we remember only too well after a couple of long waits there. I may only have read the first 100 pages of the novel so far but I’ve already set off west then up into the hinterland high above Nice. We’ve had a day trip down to Juan les Pins & Cap d’Antibes, both places we’ve passed several times though not actually visited. Then we had a time in Nice itself, strolling along the Promenade des Anglais past the Hotel Negresco  (closed for refurbishment when we stayed in Nice),

Promenade des Anglais, Nice

Promenade des Anglais, Nice looking towards the Parc du Chateau on the hill behind

the Cours Saleya with its flower & veg markets (where we dined a couple of times), 

 

Cours Saleya

Cours Saleya

up to the Parc du Château with its magnificent views across the port of Nice as well as the city.

View down to port of Nice from the Chateau du Parc

 

View across the city of Nice from the Parc du Chateau

In another chapter of the novel, we went off to Grasse, the centre of the French perfume industry (we stayed in a gîte just outside Grasse) before going on to Gourdon (a village we visited on that trip).

Village of Gourdon

Village of Gourdon

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Chateau at Gourdon

 
 

View from the gardens of the chateau at Gourdon

The novel may not be whisking me off to Burgundy, the Côte d’Or, but I’m certainly off to the Côte d’Azur.

In praise of the humble egg

Yesterday I listened to “The Food Programme” (BBC Radio 4).  It was essentially about the wonder of eggs. Apparently they are once more a recommended food stuff, full of vitamins & proteins.

I couldn’t help thinking I’ve never been off eggs. To me they are an essential in the kitchen. I may not use as many as I used to, but that is because I no longer bother to make puddings.

It’s their sheer versatility that always appealed to me. Even served straightforwardly as an egg they taste & appear so different, depending on whether they’re fried, boiled, poached, scrambled, coddled or as an omelette. But there are so many other uses.

Even today I’ve just used a couple. We’re having Pork Rissoles for dinner, using up some leftover roast pork. One egg went into the rissoles mix to bind it all together; the other egg was used to glue the breadcrumbs on.

When I think of desserts I’m reminded of Bread & Butter Puddings, Rice Meringues (orange or lemon), sponge puds of all descriptions, Apple Amber, Queen of Puddings, Custard, Floating Islands... I also made cakes & scones for afters, also using eggs.

Eggs give an extra creaminess to mashed potatoes. They are essential for fabulous sauces such as hollandaise & mayonnaise. Or for an egg sauce to accompany leftover ham in savoury pancakes. Even pancakes themselves.

I suppose I have to admit, too, they are relatively inexpensive. And so when money was tight we lived on Savoury Soufflés, Floddies (a sort of small bacon fritter), rissoles, croquettes & pancakes to use up leftovers, Curried Eggs, Eggs in Onion Sauce, Tagliatelle alla Carbonara, quiches & flans, to name but a few.

No, we panic if there isn’t an egg in the house. It’s just such a staple for snacks as well as meals. I can’t imagine not using at least a few every week.

Into the garden

The sun is shining. Is this a sign of fair weather for Easter? Or just for the moment. After my wash, before breakfast, I ventured into the garden & did a bit of weeding. I’m telling myself if I do just a few minutes a day whenever it’s dry, I’ll get on top of it.

The recent rain has made the ground very wet, though no lakes as we had with the garden before its makeover. With this is mind I just did a bit of what I could reach without leaving the path.

There was plenty to do. The rain has encouraged the celandine to appear all over the place. So far the mare’s tail hasn’t emerged this year, but I’m sure it’s on its way.

So now, I once more have sore backs to my thighs. As for my back, I was hard-pushed to even straighten up for a while. I’m telling myself if I get into the routine, I should get a bit fitter & shouldn’t end up aching so much – though my knees will ache regardless. They do that permanently anyhow.

The Fox is hoping it will stay dry enough for him to have chance to give the lawns their first mow of the season. It seems quite long in parts, especially near the edges. However, I think it will need at least today to dry out a bit before he tries resting the mower on the grass, let alone cutting it.

While I was doing it, I heard once more a tapping sound. I looked back at the house. The gull is back. The window is covered with white marks where he tapped his beak. He moved off quickly enough when I shouted & waved my hands. I’ve noticed him every day since he last knocked. He seems to land on the shed roof, move over the garage roof, waddle along the pergola struts before going to the window sill. I just can’t understand his fascination with that one particular window. Any ideas? I dare say he’ll be back again tomorrow.