Audrey

here are no rules about French pâtés. Pork, chicken, rabbit or duck. Breast, cheek, belly or tripe. Squelched in a baguette sandwich with a few “cornichons”, baked “en croûte” in a flaky pastry crust or delicately seared and served atop a succulent filet mignon. In a ploughman’s lunch bag or on a Michelin star table. Sometimes rough, sometimes a delicacy, pâté has seduced, seduces and will seduce generations of French families for decades to come. And for how many ways there are to eat it, you can find a way …

he French are not usually fond of fried treats (unlike their Spanish or Portuguese neighbours). But these bite-size fritters are timeless goodies that have been feeding generations of French families.  French regions come up with their own twists on the recipe … made with choux pastry, yeast dough, potato flour (Savoy Region) or chestnut flour (Corsica)… fried in oil or lard … referred to as “nun’s farts” (Brittany Region), “beignets” (Paris) , and on and on. They are commonly served plain, with a light dusting of caster sugar, cinnamon or icing …

T]here they were, grazing in the meadow. Enjoying the evening breeze and the gentle sunlight, wrapping up this hot summer’s day. As we rolled by, a few popped their heads over the fence and stared at us with googly eyes and humane-like smiles.  The excitement spread quickly amongst the field, and soon enough, our car was followed by their jolly echoes of “baaahs”.    A happy bunch of lambs and rams, roaming freely and cheerfully greeting guests. The kind of welcoming crowd you wouldn’t expect when entering a meat farm. But …

Just a simple, honest, rustic Peach Galette recipe, with fresh yellow peaches and a buttery crust. A perfect home-style summer dessert.  each season is in full swing here in Niagara. All the roadside farmers’ stands are overflowing with sweet and juicy tree-ripened peaches – a real feast for the eyes, and our stomachs!  And I just can’t wait for the Niagara Peach Festival Celebrations happening in two weeks. The whole town will gather to celebrate the Peach Harvest and the local growers – the kind of event right up my alley.  The …

nder-the-radar, little Porto is having its moment. In case you missed it, rave reviews are sprouting up on the picture-perfect city that no longer has to envy it’s big sister – Lisbon. Well, we just had to check this out for ourselves. Porto, Europe’s New Hot Spot ? –  As we were spending a few weeks in my hometown in France, my husband and I decided to hop on a plane and treated ourselves with a 3 day stay in Porto. Did we expect to fall in love with Porto? I …