Claudine, Oui c'est Francais

a day to remember

  So Memorial Day is a day to remember the fallen hero's. Since I have luckily not had anybody in my immediate family loose there life in a war I like to remember the family that are no longer with us.

My Great Grandpa Nick- my grandmothers father worked for years as a engineer in the first World War. He traveled all over the world and saw many things, from the pyramids of Egypt to beheadings in the Middle East. I was about 7 or 8 when he died, and thankfully being the oldest Great Grandchild I have memories of him. My fondest is when he gave me my Shetland pony Buttercup and a cart for her to pull that I could ride in.

My Great Grandmother- Micky as she was called. Really Adeline McCormick Pearson. She lived to the ripe old age of 103. She was cutest thing you have ever seen. She made the worlds best Macaroni & Cheese, Clam Chowder, Fried Chicken and the #1 cookie of all times. A cookie that in fact was so good my mother and I got in a fight over them and didn't talk for a few months. She was the funniest little thing and I miss her dearly.

and then there is my Grandfather. Papa as we called him. It has almost been 16 years since we lost him and it is still hard to write this. There is so much I could say about him but it comes down to this. He was the best grandfather a girl could ever have.

I miss you all!!!

Memorial Day sweet treats

I have been making this lovely little Flag tart from Martha since 2002. It originally appeared on the cover of her July 2001 issue. But inside it was made for a story on Bastille Day.... C'est bonne! I must make it. It is not for the faint of heart and takes many steps. The homemade Creme Fraiche needs to be started 48 hours out and then depending on the amount of people and the number of tart pans you have, it could be even more steps. I finally got 3 of the rectangular tart pans so that I can make many at once.  I saw that the video of Martha making them was on On Demand as well as iTunes. But in the video they don't do the chocolate layer in the bottom of the tart shell that the recipe calls for or the creme fraiche. You can buy creme fraiche but it is like Lemon Curd or Salad Dressing. They are so good homemade and easy, why not make it yourself!

Homemade Creme Fraiche

1 cup Heavy Cream

2 tablespoons Buttermilk

In a bowl, combine the cream and buttermilk. Cover with a clean kitchen cloth in a warm, draft-free place and let sit until thickened, but still a pourable consistency, 12 to 16 hours.
Stir and refrigerate until ready to use. (Can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.)

I will be making it again this year for both the 4th and Bastille day, I will share lots of pictures with you then.

Check out all of the other great Memorial day desserts Martha has as well:

Red, White and Blue Parfaits 

Red, White and Blue Stars

Crepe paper roses

***This is one of the most popular posts I have had on my blog, just today alone there has been over 75 hits just looking for the wondeful crepe paper roses. These are ones I made for Halloween a few years back but can be made in any color, perfect for Valentine's day and the best part, they will last forever.... enjoy

I have had this idea in my head for months and months and I finally got around to finishing them until I make more that is. I loved the Martha crepe paper flower kits and purchased quite a few of them and then when they went on sale I snatched up as many as I could find. But the problem was that I also wanted other colors of crepe paper so the search was on. I found a huge assortment at a really low price at MisterArt.com (I just noticed that they are on sale as well)

First part of my project was to use the same template that came in one of the Martha roses kit. I scanned it so I also had extra copies to make unlimited amount of roses. You can use these templates as well, just print them at 70%.

       

 ****right click and save these to print them out to the correct size.

To make the roses you will need 5 inner leaves and 12 of the large outer leaves. The Black Crepe paper came in a big sheet that was folded. At each crease it was the perfect size for the template. I stacked 8 sheets on top of each other and then laid the template on top and stapled it all together and then cut each petal out.

To make the leaves have a little life to them you hold one with both thumbs in the center and your forefinger on the revers side. Gently pull and stretch the paper with your thumbs sculpting into a petal shape. After that step use a toothpick to round the top edges of the petals in the opposite direction of the "cup" of the flower.

Now that you have them all stretched, rolled and ready to go. You will now need floral wire and floral tape. I found 18 inch 22 guage wire at Michaels and the Martha Stewart crafts has some great floral tape.

Wrap the wire with some floral tape and stretch it as you wrap it. That makes it sticky and will be easier to attach the petals too. Starting with the smaller inner leaves around the wire overlapping each petal over each other at the half way point. After the inner leaves wrap the base with tape and then start with the larger leaves doing the same thing, overlapping as you go. Wrap with floral tape after 3 or 4 petals to make sure things are tight.

Once all 12 outer petals are attached wrap them with the floral tape one last time, making sure to stretch it as you go and wrap along stem for 3 or 4 inches.

Next step when they are all done, I used a Martha glue pen, one of my favorite tools, and just rubbed a little glue on the edge of some of the petals. Not all of them, just 5 or 6 per flower.

Then I poured some of the best glitter you will ever find, Martha Stewart fine glitter in Ebony onto a sheet of paper and then just dipped and rolled the top of the flower lightly into the glitter 

I have made 17 so far, I think I want to make at least 15 more for a huge bouquet. And the best part, I will have them for years to come. And there you have it, just in time for Halloween Spooky Crepe Paper Roses.....

 

If you make some let me know how they turned out.

Forget the rodent, eat Crepes!

In the United States February 2nd is Groundhogs day, a day where people stand around and wait for a rodent to pop his head out of a hole and somehow this little guy is to predict the weather. It seems to me that he always predicts more winter and since we do this in February it really isn't a huge "aha" moment to me.

As with most things I like to celebrate the French way instead and in France February 2nd is La Chandeleur day or Candelmas is a Catholic holiday that dates back to Roman times and was a procession of followers carrying candles to celebrate the presentation of Jesus at the temple and the purification of the Virgin Mary. Now we celebrate with Crepes, with the Crepes being an offering, but lets not kid ourselves, they are a pretty tasty way to celebrate a holiday.  The ages old belief is that while you are making the crepes, if you can flip the crepe and toss it back into the pan with one hand, and holding a gold coin in your other hand you will become rich that year.

I adore Crepes and with the Tour de French Cuisine I have made a few different ones over the years. They are so versatile and can be made sweet as a dessert or savory for breakfast or dinner. For La Chandeleur I decided on a ham and cheese crepe with bechamel sauce and a Nutella crepe for dessert.  Crepe recipes for the most part are all the same, the main ingredients are flour, milk and eggs and sugar if sweet. The biggest thing to remember is that it has to rest in the refrigerate for at least 1 hour before making it. You can even do it overnight if making them for breakfast

From the Tour de French Cuisine 2008:

The Brittany area is know for its seafood and its Crepes, especially the Buckwheat crepes or Galettes Bretonnes.

^{These turned out great, I found that using a offset spatula used for icing a cake is the perfect tool to loosen the edges. I made a filling of Tomato, Spinach, sauteed Onions and goat cheese. It was so good, I may need to make more tomorrow. I am so happy I discovered these.}

^{This was the inside of the pretty little crepe before I rolled them up. They were so good, you all have to make them!}

^{And another Gallettes Brettones, this time filled with Chicken, mushrooms, onions and Camembert.....}

Here was my tools for making the crepes. It was important to have everything right next to you and ready to go.

and the finished crepe before I rolled it up. Nothing is better then a little French Fromage.

the cutest valentines idea ever

This is one of my favorite spring holiday crafts to make, conversation hearts for Valentines, pastel jelly beans for Easter and even red, white and blue ones for the 4th or better yet Bastille day. The conversation hearts take some time since I am so compulsive and need to have them lined up with the words facing out, it takes some time.  But you could also do little red hot hearts as well, that would be adorable. 

 

Step number 1: I used a tall vase and then found a glass that was straight sided and just a but smaller then the vase. I used an old fashioned glass upside down in the bottom and then filled the candies around it and then when I got up to the top of the first glass I added the tall glass.

 

Step 2: adding the second glass and then keep on filling. I used a butter knife to help move them around if they don't line up perfectly. Oh and also I am nuts and don't want to many of the same colors together either. Last year after Valentines I picked up a few bags when they were on clearance, since you don't eat them they work great

 

Step 3: all filled in and ready for the flowers. I used a measuring cup to fill the glass with water very carefully. If water gets on the candies it will begin to get pretty ugly.

 

Step 4: sit back and enjoy, I love the first sight of Tulips in the store in the late winter. It always reminds me that the spring is almost here.

Glittered roses

In the newest issue of Martha Stewart Living for February on newsstands now there are a ton of great ideas for Valentines day. Among the pages was a feature on adding glitter to roses. My love of glitter is not a secret and quite frankly I have been ridiculed because I love it so much, but who cares, I can not be torn apart from my one true sparkly love --glitter.

Last year around Valentines I was driving to work and  I was thinking about the flowers I would do for Valentines Day at work and was thinking how I could add a little glitter. After the gold spray painted roses I thought that adding some glitter would be just as lovely and very easy.

Martha's method was using a small spritzer with glue and water mixed and sprayed. The small spritzer I had sprayed in a solid stream. It was so sharp that it practically shot the petals off the roses. So I tried the Elmer's spray adhesive, it worked out great. Just spray with glue and then shake a little glitter and just like that it is a beautiful sparkly rose.  The guests coming for the dinner are going to love them and we already had people coming up and asking where I got them and tried to get some out of me.  The spray glue actually preserves the roses and they last longer as well.

I will need to make some of these for my niece since they remind me of the rose in Beauty & the Beast. 

Galette des Rois

Did you know that the 12th day of Christmas was actually yesterday December 5th? It is then marked by January 6th which is known as the Epiphany which celebrated the visit of the Magi or the three kinds to see Christ. And how is this celebrated in France and around the world? With a fine French pastry of course! La Galette des Rois translates to the "Kings Cake" or the Twelfth-Night cake and  can differ depending on where you are in France.   They date back to the 16th century, in the 17th century the priests of  Saint-Germain  tried to stop the practice of the cake saying it was part of a pagan ritual. It rose again in popularity until Louis XIV and the church considered it a pagan ritual again and an excuse to indulge and banned the practice. But the people can not be parted with the pastries for long, they decided to create la fete du bon voisinage or the neighborly relations day. And when the king or royalty sunk in popularity during the French Revolution is became the Gateau de L'Egality or the equality cake.

In the different regions of France you will find a different version of the Galette de Rois. In Paris and Northern France it is made of flaky puff pastry and filled with a dense layer of pastry creme with almond or frangiopan. In Southern France it is made from brioche and shaped like a crown. The Gateau des Rois de Bordeaux is also a yeast based dough with a hint of lemon rind  and the Gateau des rois de Limoux is much like the Bordeaux regions but decorated with candied citron.

Inside the cake there is a hidden lucky charm or une feve and was originally an actual bean, but with the popularity of the cake in the 18th century it was replaced to a small charm made of porcelain. It could be a tiny religious figure or baby Jesus or even a small Eiffel Tower that I stuck in mine. Whoever finds the charm gets to wear the crown and be King (or Queen) of the day. This reminds me of when I was a little girl and my great grandmother would always wrap up dimes and quarters in tin foil and hide them in any cake she made.

I took this as the perfect opportunity to make the wonderful French treat and while there are a few steps it comes together pretty easily, but you do have to plan ahead. Each thing can be made a day or so in advance so it makes it a easy to do weeknight item. I followed the Dorie Greenspan recipe in her book Paris Sweets and it turned out fantastic. The puff pastry is so light and delicate and the filling is rich and wonderful. Since there was just the two of us the charm was not found, but lets be honest. I think we know who the queen is everyday around here......

Bon Appetit

Buche de Noel

 
 
The classic Buche de Noel cake is a French Christmas classic! It first appeared in the late 19th century but it's origin and creator has never really been found. To Americans you might recognize it as a "Yule Log" but the French translation is Christmas log but it sounds so much better as Buche de Noel (but doesn't everything sound better in French)

Larouuse Gastronomique's definition is: "Christmas Yule Log. A log-shaped cake traditionally prepared for the Christmas festivities. It is usually made of rectangular slices of Genoese sponge, spread with butter cream and placed one on top of the other, and them shaped into a log; it is coated with chocolate butter cream, applied with a piping bag to simulate bark. The cake is decorated with holly leaves made from almond paste, meringue mushrooms and small figures. A Swiss roll (jelly roll) may be used instead of sliced Genoese cake. There are also ice cream logs, some made entirely of different flavored ice creams and some with the inside made of parfait or a bombe mixture. This cake is a fairly recent creation (after 1870) of the Parisian pastrycooks, inspired by the real logs which used to be burned in the hearth throughout Christmas Eve. Before then, the cakes of the season were generally brioches or fruit loaves."

Of course I needed to carve out a few hours to make one for Christmas Day, it is actually very easy and the cake comes together rather quickly. Because you cook the Genoise on a sheet pan it cooks in under 10 minutes. Remember to roll it while still warm or it will crack. The variation I made was from the epicurius.com website and the almond filling was amazing! The cake turned out fantastic, but it is rather rich so have a cup of coffee or big glass of milk at the ready.

Bûche de Noël with Marzipan Mushrooms Bon Appétit | December 2000

The traditional French "Christmas log" is accompanied by meringue mushrooms; the ones here—formed out of marzipan (a paste made from almonds, sugar and egg whites)—are much easier to do. Look for marzipan at specialty foods stores and in the baking products section of supermarkets. Yield: Makes 14 servings Filling 2/3 cup whole milk 2 large egg yolks 2 tablespoons sugar 3 tablespoons all purpose flour 1/2 cup marzipan, cut into 1/4-inch pieces 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces, room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon almond extract Cake 6 large eggs 3/4 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup all purpose flour 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 2 tablespoons powdered sugar Frosting 3/4 cup whipping cream 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 5 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped 4 ounces milk chocolate, chopped Marzipan Mushrooms For filling: Bring milk to boil in medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk yolks and sugar in small bowl until well blended; whisk in flour. Whisk hot milk into egg mixture. Return to same saucepan. Whisk over medium heat until custard thickens and boils, about 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer to processor; cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Add marzipan; process until smooth, about 1 minute. Blend in butter 1 piece at a time, then both extracts. Cover and refrigerate filling at least 4 hours or up to 2 days. For cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 11x10x1-inch jelly roll pan. Line bottom with parchment paper; butter and flour parchment. Whisk eggs, 3/4 cup sugar, vanilla and salt in large metal bowl. Set bowl over pot of simmering water. Whisk until just warm, about 2 minutes. Remove bowl from over water. Using electric mixer, beat mixture until tripled in volume, about 6 minutes. Sift flour over; fold in until just combined. Gently fold in butter (do not over-mix, or batter will deflate). Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Sift powdered sugar over towel. Run knife around edge of pan to loosen cake. Turn hot cake out onto towel. Peel off parchment. Starting at 1 long side and using towel as aid, gently roll up cake jelly-roll style. Cool. Unroll cake. Spread filling over. Reroll cake; place cake, seam side down, on platter. Refrigerate cake while preparing frosting. For frosting: Bring cream and butter to boil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring to melt butter. Remove from heat. Add both chocolates; whisk until melted. Transfer to medium bowl. Let cool at room temperature until thick enough to spread, about 1 hour. Starting 1 inch in from each end of cake, cut on diagonal to remove one 3-inch-long piece of cake from each end. Attach 1 cake piece at sides of cake near each end. Spread frosting over top and sides of cake and pieces. Using tines of fork, draw concentric circles on cake ends to resemble tree rings. Draw fork along length of cake to form bark design. Garnish with Marzipan Mushrooms.

Bonne Annee

Nothing says New Years Eve like Champagne, this is my very favorite. Lucien Albrecht from the Alsace region of France. It is French, bubbly and pink, pretty much my three favorite things. But it has to be served in a classic Champagne saucer. Oh so "Affair to Remember" I love these glasses. They belonged to my great great Aunt and are very thin crystal with a etched pattern. The classic saucer shape is said to be have been created in the shape of Marie Antoinette's breast. So risque.....

Hope you had a very happy New Years Eve and wish you the best in 2010

more christmas

It is my favorite time of year and mostly because of the idea of decorations for Christmas. Ever since I was l have loved to decorate for the holidays, but Christmas is bar far my favorite! How can you not love a holiday that lets you put up lights and sparkly baubles, I ask you?

The other night John asked about Christmas when I was a kid and I told him as far back as I can remember I always had my own tree in my room. It was a fake tree but I had one and so did my sister. I still have the plastic lifesaver garland, and I still love them. John said that this explains a lot......

Living in one of the Christmas tree capitals of the country I could not imagine having a Christmas without a real tree. So the largest tree in the house is always a real tree, but then there are the numerous other fake trees that go up all over the house, one for every room.  I am pretty sure I got this trait from my grandmother that is the original Christmas lover of the family, she too puts tons of trees all over the house each with their own theme.

here are some glimpses from around the house;

The Santa tree, next to the Santa collection table

Sterling silver tree with family ornaments handed down

   

part of the village known as Marthaville made up of Bedford Falls village from It's a Wonderful Life as well as Christmas buildings and a Fenway Park. It needs a bigger home than the sideboard next year

He is one of my very favorite things, he is just about as old as I am and my mom had it when we were little. John thinks that he should only come out for Christmas Eve, but I think he should be out all year. Maybe he needs to move into my craft room and live there for the year.

a picture of the "forest" a collection of 6 trees each with it's own theme.There is the Starbucks tree in the front and of course a little glitter on some of those trees as well

More of the Santa's, some I have had since I was a little girl, those are my favorite.

The other night John asked about Christmas when I was a kid and I told him as far back as I can remember I always had my own tree in my room. It was a fake tree but I had one and so did my sister. I still have the plastic lifesaver garland, and I still love them. John said that this explains a lot......

Living in one of the Christmas tree capitals of the country I could not imagine having a Christmas without a real tree. So the largest tree in the house is always a real tree, but then there are the numerous other fake trees that go up all over the house, one for every room.  I am pretty sure I got this trait from my grandmother that is the original Christmas lover of the family, she too puts tons of trees all over the house each with their own theme.

here are some glimpses from around the house;

The Santa tree, next to the Santa collection table

Sterling silver tree with family ornaments handed down

   

part of the village known as Marthaville made up of Bedford Falls village from It's a Wonderful Life as well as Christmas buildings and a Fenway Park. It needs a bigger home than the sideboard next year

He is one of my very favorite things, he is just about as old as I am and my mom had it when we were little. John thinks that he should only come out for Christmas Eve, but I think he should be out all year. Maybe he needs to move into my craft room and live there for the year.

a picture of the "forest" a collection of 6 trees each with it's own theme.There is the Starbucks tree in the front and of course a little glitter on some of those trees as well

More of the Santa's, some I have had since I was a little girl, those are my favorite.