Wonderfully Ordinary

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Right now we are in early February which in Médoc means rain. The winter has been mild, not too many cold days and throughout December, not too many wet days either. December was simply glorious. I was beginning to think we’d get away with it, that the bursts of rain that often wash over us before the new year had gone somewhere else. They hadn’t. When it comes to nature everything has its price. Two days of sun and one grey day come at the cost of at least one rainy day. Three whole weeks of brilliant sunshine will be matched by at least a week of pure rain. It is worth it? Yes.

What if we could negotiate with the weather gods, reach a compromise. They stop the rain and cold, we give up the sun and the heat. Every day would be the same, grey, comfortable, unsurprising and intolerable. Let’s keep the sun … and the rain.

But how do you deal with all that rain? The first few nights are charming. I say to my husband in bed “isn’t it comforting to hear the rain and storm outside and we are all cuddled up inside safe and warm” (well apart from the fact that rain has a way of getting inside the house). Then it becomes slightly irritating and boring. Wet dogs are less fun than dry ones. Finally it becomes depressing. That’s where we’re now. Or let me rephrase that. That’s where we were. Now we are beyond that stage. Rain is no longer comforting, irritating or depressing. We are the rain now, it’s part of us “just keep it coming” we say, to quote U2 “There is nothing you can throw at us that we haven’t already seen”.

Besides, we know it will soon be over. January is already gone, February is still on stage. The dour duet. Of course the latter sometimes sings a sunny tune but whatever happens, the next act is March, and March never fails to shine. March in Médoc is always beautiful!

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This blog is now in its fourth year. It’s also the fourth time I find myself in exactly the same situation. The villages outside is quiet. Well it’s always quiet but now it feels like we woke up and everybody left. Some of them did actually. When we brave the rain and wind to go to the markets nothing spectacular is ever happening. No crates of cherries or stacks of fresh tomatoes. No man shouting that he’s got the best mushrooms. It’s just the usual suspects. Cabbage, beets, carrots etc. But somehow there is always something to get a little worked up over. One day it might be a shiny (shiny because it’s wet) bunch of spinach or swiss chard or even just particularly nice looking apples. This weekend we had the first artichokes. That was exciting. Apparently everything is early this year and even the magnolias are opening which is a terrible idea for them as they will just be struck down by wind and rain. It’s almost as if they’re sacrificing themselves to bring hope. Like they are saying “I should probably wait a while so you could enjoy me longer but I think you need me more now!”

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As I said it’s the fourth time I write to you at this time of year. Things don’t change much in Médoc. But this time something actually has. Not the rain. Not the banging of shutters against the walls of the house on stormy nights. But I’ve changed. I can wait for spring. I used to be more impatient. I know it will come and I know it will be wonderful. I can already see all the colors and the flowers. I can close my eyes and imagine the little puppies we are expecting in March playing with each other in the vineyards. I can see my girls in summer dresses and beyond that I can see a little boy in blue pyjamas that I already bought for him.

I can wait because on any given Sunday I can walk into my kitchen and take what’s available to me and cook a meal that makes me happy and makes my family happy.

I was going to say that thinking about good food, making it, eating it, is the perfect antidote to dreary winter months. But it’s actually the antidote to … everything.

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sausages

Cervelas de Lyon sausage with pistachios and warm potato salad.

Cervelas is a typical Lyonnaise pork sausage filled with pistachios. Everytime I go to Paris I pass by the charcutier Gilles Verot to pick up a few sausages to go!

1 large unsmoked pork sausage, traditionally the Lyonnaise use “Saucisson Pistache”– pistachio sausage)
900 g/ 2 pounds new potatoes
2 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons minced shallots
3 tablespoons roughly chopped shelled pistachios
Parsley, chopped
Olive oil
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Cook the sausage in boiling water for 15 minutes. Take the skin off and slice into 1 cm thick slices.

In a large saucepan, place the sausage and cover with cold water. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook about 20 minutes. Set aside and leave to cool. Peel the skin off and slice into 1 cm thick slices.

In a large saucepan, place the potatoes, in salted water and bring to a boil. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and leave to cool. Cut into thick slices.

In a large bowl, prepare a vinaigrette. Whisk olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper until smooth. Add the thinly sliced shallots and chopped parsley. Add the potatoes and toss everything together.

Heat a little olive oil in a pan on a medium heat and sauté the sausage slices until slightly browned on both sides, about a minute or two. Place the sausages on top of salad and sprinkle with chopped pistachios. Season if necessary.

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Beef cheeks pot pie with root vegetables

Serves 6-8 (depending on ramekin size)

This is a perfect dish for a Sunday lunch, so I usually prepare the stew the night before. Then all you’ll have to do the next day is scoop the delicious stew into little pots or ramekins and cover with puff pastry.

1 kg/ 2 pounds approx beef cheeks, or beef cuts for braising
3 tablespoons flour
300 g/ 2/3 pounds Bayonne ham
6 medium-sized pearl onions
6 carrots (2 oranges, 2 white , 2 purple )
2 turnips, peeled and diced
3-4 Jerusalem artichokes, peeled and diced
240 ml/1 cup Bordeaux red wine
3 tablespoons tomato concentrate paste
350 ml/ 1 & ½ cup beef or vegetable stock
1 bouquet garni
Extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea-salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the pastry

2 sheets of puff pastry
1 egg and 1 tablespoon of milk, for the eggwash

Preheat oven to 160°C/ 320°F. Cut the meat into 3 cm cubes and dredge them lightly in the flour.

Slice the Bayonne ham into chunky sticks. Peel the onions and vegetables. Dice the ​​carrots, Jerusalem artichokes and turnips into small cubes.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a cast iron pot on a medium heat and cook the Bayonne ham and onions for 3 minutes. Set aside.
Add another tablespoon of olive and brown the beef on all sides. Add the red wine and reduce for 2 minutes. Return the Bayonne ham and onions, add the vegetables, tomato paste, and bouquet garni. Season with salt and pepper. Add the stock, bring to a simmer and cover. Transfer the pot to the oven and cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally (add a bit of water if necessary).

To make the pot pies:

Heat oven to 180°C/ 350°F.

Spoon the stew into each ramekins.

Using a rolling-pin, roll puff pastry until 0.5 cm/1⁄8 inch thick and cut out 6-8 circles, large enough to cover the ramekins with extra hang. Using a pastry brush, brush the rim of each ramekin with egg wash and cover with a pastry circle. Press lightly around the edges and decorate with small pastry leaves (see photos). Brush again with egg wash all over. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Leave to cool 10 minutes before serving.

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Clémentine soufflé

A delightful old-fashioned recipe, this is the kind of dessert I often order in my favorite restaurants. I love the combination of prunes with clémentines, it’s hot and cold and turns your soufflé into a whirlwind of flavors.

Serves 6

6 large clémentines, juice squeezed
60 g/1/4 cup unsalted butter + extra for lining the ramekins
60 g/ 1/2 cup cornstarch
150 g/ 3/4 cup of sugar + extra for sprinkling
5 eggs, separated
1 tablespoon Cointreau
1 pinch of fine salt

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 400°F

Line the ramekins with butter and sprinkle with sugar all over. Place them in the freezer.

Squeeze the juice of the clémentines into a bowl and set aside.

In a medium-sized saucepan, heat the butter on a medium-to-low heat and add the cornstarch, whisking constantly.
Pour the clémentine juice immediately and continue to whisk. Add the sugar and Cointreau. Whisk until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon.
Off the heat, add the egg yolks to the mixture and whisk until smooth. Set aside and leave to cool.
Meanwhile, whisk the egg whites. When the whites start to foam, add a pinch of salt and continue to whisk until stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites gently into the clémentine mixture.

Take the ramekins out of the freezer and pour the mixture into the ramekins up to 1.5 cm to the rim.

Cook in the preheated oven 15 to 20 minutes, until golden and risen.

Serve immediately, adding a scoop of prune sorbet in the center.

Prune Sorbet

For one tub

500 g/ 1 pound + 2 ounces dried prunes, pitted
150 g/ ¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
60 ml/1/4 cup Pineau de Charentes (or a sweet dessert wine, like Vin Santo)
Juice of one lemon
820 ml/ 3 & ½ cup water

Combine all the ingredients except the lemon juice in a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a soft boil on a medium heat for 15 minutes.
Turn the heat off and add the lemon juice. Pass the mixture through a sieve into a large bowl.
Leave to cool completely and refrigerate. Churn ice-cream in ice-cream machine according to manufacturer’s directions.

mimifin

121 thoughts on “Wonderfully Ordinary

  1. I know how you feel it pours rain outside and although I love the rain I live in an old Stone house built 1790’s and after lots of rain it does come in!

      1. Rain ~ when i first arrived in Egypt i would dream it was raining, now i sometimes think i can hear it – i am from Fiji (yes, we have a lot of rain, but it is tropical) and living in Cairo is so rainless ha ha – i envy you the rain, enjoy it for us, The Rainless People 🙂 and thank you for the wonderful blog 🙂

  2. Beautiful post Mimi!! It’s so nice to have you back in my inbox. Everything looks beautiful and gorgeous and I couldn’t fight the envy over your rain. We’d like some over here if you can spare it. And I’d really like to know more about that leather apron…it’s perfection. xoxo

    1. Thank you Rebecca! Sending you some rain, in exchange for sun, OK? 🙂 I got the leather last spring from a hardware store in Marseille, unfortunately they have sold out so I have promised myself to launch a line of aprons this year! xx

      1. Can’t wait for the aprons!! And I hope you end up selling a few other great finds – which you always seem to be finding 🙂

  3. Oh my word I want to eat everything! I am feeling more patient this winter too. At least with the weather, since I’m currently at home with my newborn. Who notices snow when you are desperate for a nap? :p

  4. We feel the same way about gray weather and snow here in Canada right now. Although snow does have a certain magical charm 🙂 Oh how I wish we could get all butter puff pastry. Maybe if I check some of the European specialty stores. Ours is all made from hyrdrogenated soybean oil over here. Yuck.

    1. Bonjour Joséphine, Bad weather and comfort cooking go hand in hand! Regarding puff pastry, why don’t you try the one from my cookbook? It’s simple to make and very rewarding. Buttery heaven. 🙂 Mimi x

      1. I have read it a few times in your book, I’ve always been intimidated by making puff pastry. But if it freezes well and can be pulled out for quick uses it may be worth it I think!

  5. Winter was easier this year no?or is just me? or maybe it’s because I know it will be one of the last in Paris before we move to Provence 🙂
    As always, a very nice inspiration, and your girls with their plaid coats and dresses are just pure fantasy 😀

    Best,

    Pauline

    http://thevoyageur.net/

      1. Thank you!

        I never thought I’d want to leave Paris, but here I am, after 12 years, completely falling in love with the countryside and thinking the “land of possibilities” for me is more there than in Paris…

  6. Bonjour Mimi!

    What a lovely post, the recipes look delicious and I adore the pictures of your German short-haired pointer. What a wonderful breed!
    The ‘dour duet’ is the perfect description for this time of year. But yes, Spring will come so we may as well embrace the present.
    Thanks for sharing.

  7. Although this winter has been mild for us, this last stretch is feeling especially long with our first little one due in April. I have never been so ready for Spring!

  8. Beautiful post Mimi. Its summer where I live and February is always a worry because of bush-fires, but this year has been milder, still, bring on Autumn!
    What breed of puppies are you expecting? will you keep any? I have just lost my oldest dog. He was nearly 17. Will be putting my name down with a breeder for a new puppy soon. Cannot wait!
    Cheers Lynne

  9. We’ve had lots of wind and rain this year, i can’t wait for the spring, and some colour! Love the look of the beef pie, beautiful photo’s as usual and great to have a new blog post to read x

  10. I so understand this; the rain, it’s currently hammering against the Windows on the other side of the Gironde Estuary,here in the Charente Maritime. I am so ready for Spring, but perhaps we have to have the wind and the rain and winter in order for us to enjoy Spring and Summer?

    1. Bonjour, That rain! I keep getting SMS’s from the townhall with flood warnings, luckily there there hasn’t been any calamities! The wind is howling through our house, i am sort of enjoying the spooky side 🙂 Mimi x

  11. I completely understand! I am from and live in Seattle, another impossibly rainy place, weeks on end, sometimes a whole month of rain/mist/drizzle and cloud cover…. it does get to the spirit! My remedies are yours…good books, warm family evenings, nourishing food to look forward to each evening…and then spring is especially magical for us folks….

  12. That IS a lot of rain..but all I see are a beautiful you..beautiful children and food..
    it is funny ..I live in QC w/ most of the time very harsh winters..this winter is far more clement so far than any others..but it has been a few years now..that I can truthfully say..:”I can wait for our beautiful Spring”..It can take the time it needs..I am no longer in a rush.

  13. Bonsoir Mimi,

    Quel post totalement dans l’air du temps… c’est vrai que le meilleur antidote à la grisaille et au temps maussade passe beaucoup chez nous aussi par de bons petits plats, de jolies bougies, de belles flambées et les premiers signes du printemps qui me ravissent toujours autant.
    Ces jolies photos de la famille et de la maison sont la preuve que l’on peut être heureux même avec la pluie.
    Et nous avons vu Singing in the rain au Chatelet, on en ressort tellement plein d’énergie!
    Merci infiniment pour les recettes, toujours aussi succulentes que simples. Prends bien soin de toi et à bientôt! Je t’embrasse Cécile
    PS: I know why you love march… Me it’s june 🙂

    1. Bonjour Cécile,

      Nous sommes à Paris, c’est toujours un plaisir de faire un petit saut! Régalez-vous avec les recettes, j’adore le sorbet aux pruneaux d’Agen! Enjoy! Mimi x

  14. There was a saying in my old workplace – “boring’s just fine thanks!” which was an extremely comforting way of saying ‘we don’t need crisis management as part of our day’. Yes, I understand the comfort of ‘ordinary’.
    Magic recipes thank you – beef cheeks here (Aus) were, 15 years ago, reasonably rare but very cheap – now so popular price has quadrupled. that said, they’re still worth every cent – the wonderful rich, unctuous result from slow cooking is unparalleled. Clementines I’ll have to ‘hunt’ for. Best wishes for a safe and happy spring.

    1. Hi Jude, Can’t believe how the prices of beef cheeks have quadrupled! I love cooking beef cheeks in stews… just came back from Paris and had dinner in our favorite restaurant Allard, Oddur ordered beef cheeks stew with carrots, a great classic. It was exquisite. 🙂 Enjoy the recipes. Mimi x

      1. Yes, good old supply and demand! Even when Australia was far less wealthy, some cuts from the beast were not even considered, cheeks being one example – didn’t even rate as (the dreaded) offal! Amazing what exposure via the world wide web has bought to the plate, or platter so to speak. Margaret Fulton, now 91, is one of Australia’s original (European) food commentators. Took until the likes of Stephanie alexander (now 75) and Maggie Beer (now 71) came to the fore for parts like cheeks were even mentioned! Took the likes of Fergus Henderson’s “Nose To Tail” genre to ramp it up here – and in consequence, ramped up the prices. Ahhh, just leave economies out of the supplies for a kitchen!!!
        I/we appreciate so much those like Ms Mimi – re-presenting traditional French food. I have many books of “French Country Cooking” but I know in advance your tome will supplant many! I’m counting towards the date.

  15. FOUR YEARS…….seems like FOREVER TO ME!I think I found YOU in your second year…….??NO, has to be before that cause I sent the Christmas ornaments!!!Have I been READING for FOUR YEARS………?I think perhaps I have.OH, I know about the GLOOM of WINTER although not nearly as bad as you have it as I am in CALIFORNIA!The fruit trees started blooming YESTERDAY here at the VILLA………..HA!Well, my VILLA anyway!Those blossoms do bring a SMILE to ones face.AS do your PHOTOS…….and your children!DID you see we went to a sausage making class on the blog!SO, I can make your recipe NO PROBLEM as we have sausages for days!!!!!!!March will be an exciting month………did HUMPHREY have anything to do with the new litter??!!ANd I do believe you have a birthday in MARCH!!!It will be here soon………..I PROMISE!XOXO

  16. Mimi, this is amazing, especially the photos. I just love the overhead shot of the table with food and flowers and children. Just lovely.
    Hope you are feeling good. I’ll send sunshine your way!

  17. Hello Mimi!

    With the Spring will come the sun, flowers and…babies! Congratulations to you and your family for the one on the way and also the puppies to come!
    I will certainly meet them in April when I come for the workshop. Who knows I might hide one in my bag on my way home;)
    I look forward to meet you and cook great recipes!

    Take care

  18. This year Oregon’s winter has pleased me so! It has been mild, a light snow in January and now the crocus are blooming already. I appreciate the wetness when I remember how dry and dangerous last summer was here. I am looking froward to experiencing Europe’s summer, fall, winter and spring this year, traveling with my 9 year old! Thank you for sharing xo

  19. I grew up in the Landes region just south of Medoc along the ocean , I remember the endless winter rain and then the glory of sunny days in the pinetrees forrest !

  20. Hi Mimi, it is such a pleasure to read your blog! Love the content and the photos! Over here, it is cloudy and raining too. Soon, the sun will shine again. Wish you and your family a good Year of Monkey! Gong Xi Fat Choi !

  21. Oh Mimi! How much I treasure every single post…….you bring me to the joy of France every time! Blessings for many more years of your written words and your husbands visual accompaniments!

    I do have a quick question: for the “Cervelas de Lyon Sausage”, the first 2 directions mention cooking the sausage twice? Is this correct or am I mistaken?

    Merci, mon ami!

    1. Jude here Antonieta: I’m very sure you should ignore the first sentence – Mimi has rewritten the direction in more detail as the second paragraph and not deleted the first. A rare oversight from the world’s busiest woman!!!! Happy cooking!

  22. Dear Mimi, It’s always with a big pleasure I read your last post. It makes me feel so good when I’m homesick (I live in Saudi Arabia) and It reminds me that life goes by with the rythmn of sesaons elsewhere as where I live for the moment, it’s still almost sunny. Of course it’s great but I miss the rain, fall and winter …just to see the beauty of each season which Oddur knows so much how to catch in his pic..Your blog is still the best to depict intrisically not only what the french way of life is but also what beautifull in the daily ordinary is. Thank you Mimi. xx

  23. Hi mimi!
    First of all Congratulation for the baby!
    A question about the souffle, in general. do you use individual ramekins or a big one? And about the oven. At the moment my oven kitchen is broken and I am using a combo microwave one that has a convention oven function but the heat is not static so I am wondering if it will be worth it a try to use for the souffle or you need the heat coming for below.
    I hate waste food so I hope you can give me a recommendation for this dish. Thanks!
    Have a great day,
    Daniela

  24. We’ve had a pretty mild Winter here in the Lisbon area this year. Far too mild, actually, for my likings. Because it either means a stupidly unbearable hot Summer or an annoyingly cold and grey Summer. There will be no in between. Still, I am not really impatient for Spring, not yet. February has been drizzly and rainy so far, and I know the wet, damp, and miserable weather will go on far into March – my least favourite month of the year, truth be said! – and by the middle of it I will be quite done with rain and cloudy skies, and I will be miserable and longing for Spring to arrive, and I will know it will be just around the corner. And much like you, I will find comfort in my kitchen and in cooking up really good food for my family and sitting down to eat dinner together at the kitchen table talking about all the recipes we would like to try and those conversations will bring sunshine into my hear during those long rainy days of March and will fuel me into cooking up a batch and make sunshine for us all!!
    http://bloglairdutemps.blogspot.pt/

  25. Hello Mimi,
    I can not believe they have already spent four years! How wonderful brightness in the photos Oddur, despite the rainy days. The menu is … fantastic, fancy giving it soon. (Let you know that there is a small error in thickness of the wafer, instead of 0.5 mm think are 0.5 cm). Many hugs and thank you very much to the whole family give us so many wonderful moments.

  26. Dear Mimi,
    I am currently experiencing my first winter in London (I used to live in Paris), and I completely share your feelings about rain! As you wrote, at first, I found ways to appreciate it. But when there isn’t a single true shiny day to find solace, it becomes harder to bear it.
    Furthermore, I should like to pick up on a point from your previous post, where you evoked an unfulfilled wish to redesign your blog.
    I am a digital designer and great admirer of your work. I mainly work with fashion & luxury, including Alain Ducasse as I really like working with worlds of gastronomy.
    Do you still have that project in mind? If so, I would be pleased to help in any way I can!
    Best,
    Kim

  27. Hi Mimi,
    I am writing from sunny Southern CA where it is record heat this week, 91 today. I think we need more rain here but my flowers are all blooming such as roses, paper whites, Iris…
    I just love your posts and pictures and recipes. I try them out on my husband and he loves them. Thank you! Patti x

  28. Oh Mimi j’admire que vous puissiez vivre les pieds dans l’eau si souvent en hiver. Je peux imaginer la monotonie et l’ennui des jours pluvieux. J’ai toujours remarqué sur les photos les bottes en caoutchouc, indispensables pour “survivre” ! Mon professeur de Tai Ji me disait qu’il faut des pins pour puiser sa force, quand il y a trop d’eau. Un petit pin bonsaï peut-être pour les jours trop déprimants … Audrey devient si ravissante ! Et puis nous passons en année du Singe de feu, ce qui promet beaucoup d’énergie et tout sauf de l’ennui ! Je vous souhaite un coeur ensoleillé et je vais me lancer pour la première fois de ma vie dans la confection d’un soufflé ! Grâce à vous et à la …pluie !

  29. Bonjour Mimi,

    Merci for all the magical photos of life. I would like to quietly request where you purchase the lovely carreaux rouges de cuisine?
    Merci

  30. Très belles photos et des recettes irrésistibles ! J’adore les saisons et je me dit, comme toi, qu’en attendant que les fleurs envahissent nos parcs, je peut profiter de préparer des délicieux repas à ma famille ! Avec un temps de pluie et vent, un bon repas en famille c’est que de bonheur et le repas que tu nous propose il est formidable ! xx

  31. Thank you for your wonderful posts! I travel often, I only ‘miss’ France. As I love following your posts of your families adventures and amazing recipes, I have enjoyed watching your photographer’s work mature. As a lifetime amateur photographer I have noticed that the layout of his photos is negating their value. 13 Dbls to 3 singles is too off kilter, including more single photos would make the collection more powerful. The photos are so lovely and help to tell such a lovely story, thank you.

  32. Grâce à vous je vois ce temps de bien différente façon! Je ne suis pas loin de chez vous et l’ eau est la même mdr j aime particulièrement votre recette de boeuf en croûte, qui réunit à lui seul la douceur, le suave, la force de ce dont on a besoin par ce temps. Vous nous faites encore une fois partager des moments d exception, soyez en remerciée.
    Surtout ménagez vous, vous avez une bien jolie petite recette en cours! et c est ce baby boy qui doit passer en premier! merveilleuses semaines à venir pour vous et votre famille.

  33. Having only moved here in July, I am still enjoying the rain much to the puzzlement of my neighbours. I must admit I cannot wait for the market to be normal though as it is very quiet and my favorite saucisson and olive sellers are not back until March,

  34. I had a few of those days in January which kind of hit with a slump this year but fought through them, blogging, writing & using time as productively as possible so as not to sacrifice any of life to the deadness that can easily overtake in the dead of winter. The sausage looks wonderful. As for beef cheeks, the best beef cheek terrine I ever had was at Bar Boulud across from Lincoln Center. It was amazing, when I was eating it, I thought “I could have this every day of my life”. Here’s wishing u enjoy these slow, regenerative days of winter which has its time and place and purpose, as does everything. Thank u for the blog, wonderful pics & bien sur, la bon nourriture.

  35. Hi Mimi!
    What a glorius morning, sun, pan au chocolate, cappuccino and a new post on your blog! Thank you so much for that.
    I got your book for Christmas but haven’t had a chance to open it up until last night and what a great feast it was to look at all absolutely beautiful pictures and read all the recipes! I live in a country that doesn’t let you enjoy all four seasons, we have a choice between boiling hot and humidity or mild temperatures with occasional sand storms so cooking accordingly to seasonal food can be challenging though I still try not to have “tomatoes in December” like a very charming man once said!! All the best and thank you for everything! XXX

  36. Such lovely photos and lovely writing. My kitchen will look a bit like yours when the renovation is done. Looking at your pictures helps me dream of what it will be like after the dust literally settles.
    Here in Carcassonne, it’s cold and rainy, too, a sharp change from the balmy, open-all-the-windows sunshine of just two days ago.

  37. Oh those pictures Mimi! We wish one day we’ll be able to transfer to our audience the everyday moments the way you do.
    The weather has been mild here is Greece as well. We had a little snow, just for a couple of weekends and that was all. So looking at your beautiful pictures was like looking at our own pics from the previous days:)
    Your sausage recipe and your soufflé are the favs from this wonderful post:) Definitely going to try those!
    Again, thank you for another amazing trip to Medoc.
    Keep inspiring!
    Panos and Mirella
    xoxoxo

  38. Dear Mimi,
    Thank you for the wonderfully ordinary…for the U2 quote…and for the Cervelas de Lyon! In the Paris version of pouring rain your post inspired me to go to rue de Rennes, buy the sausages and we had it last night with your potato salad and some cornichon, Huge and very comforting succes with my family! O.

  39. Jude again Mimi – have just checked your Instagram – Paris & “spring has sprung” ….. my mother, now deceased had many ‘Louie jokes and rhymes’, one of which was the full version of
    “Spring has sprung,
    the grass is riz,..
    I wonder where the birdy is?,
    ‘the bird is on the wing’ they say,
    ..but that’s absurd,…
    the wing’s of course is on the bird!”
    I’m interested to know if there is a similar, full version in French?
    My brother and I still recite it on the first day of spring.
    On a different note, it’s St Valentine’s Day on Sunday – but still Summer here – the flowers are different. I share a shop space with a Florist – some absolutely spectacular floral specimens arrived this morning – I should have taken photos!

  40. Lovely photos and writing! Wonderful girls dresses ! Healthy orgaanic veggies!
    I wish you many more inspired blog years with your beautiful family.
    Katy

  41. Hi Mimi,
    I always love reading your blog posts and have tried quite a few of your recipes. Thank you!
    I’m wondering if you may tell me where your leather apron is from? Or any recommendations as to where I might find one for myself?

    Cheers.

  42. This passage is beautiful because you artfully describe the passage of time and the presence of beauty in every moment of our lives. In the winter… in the spring (my favorite). There is beauty to be had if one opens their eyes to see it. It is forever present in our hearts. Your words are inspiring. Your patience inspires my patience. Like a brand new brush stroke, each day presents a multitude of possibilities as we live it one beautiful bite at a time. Thank you for your recipes. We are all looking forward to Spring and more awesome posts from you and your family and your sweet little boy! I am also looking forward to cooking that salad and that pie. I may do this this weekend for Valentines’s Day! ^_^ Merci for your inspiration Mimi. Don’t forget to dance in the rain!

  43. Mimi, I loved this post. (of course, I love all of them) I made the clementine souffle this evening — even using my onion soup bowls like yours–and it was terrific. It’s just the kind of food I love and can’t find in many (any?) of Bay Area French restaurants. I know the blog posts take a lot of time but they are such a gift to your fans.

  44. Hello Mimi –

    It’s raining here in the Netherlands as well – winter weather – but the hellebores are blooming, in several colors, and will keep it up right into June.

    Do you have time to read your g-mail? I sent a note about coming to the later October workshop, but no response – do you have a place for one still?

    Warm regards,
    Barbara

  45. Dear Mimi, thank you for being so generous and open in sharing your love of food and thoughts about life and family😊 In your lovely Médoc .
    So happy i came across your blog by chance, so inspirational, poetic and beautiful, the stories, recipies and photos. I havent tried the recipies yet, will very soon make something for my little son 15 months and me.
    Looking forward to read some old posts as well. Wishing you sunny and rainy days ahead so the rainbow will appear😊
    Kind regards from Alice and Alf Einar ( my son) from Norway.

  46. Dearest Mimi,
    Thank you for sharing your talents and family adventures with the world. Of course 99% of us would trade places with you regardless of the rain. I too live in the same climate as yours and understand rain here on our small island south of Seattle, Washington USA…..The sun shines everyday but the lid is on our terrium at this time of the year and as I say, if you have a sunny outlook on life you will do fine here or Medoc. I am so happy for your sunny outlook and wish you a happy New Year of the Monkey!

  47. Love this post! Stunning photos and I can totally relate to your feelings toward the rain. It’s raining right now where I am, too (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)! I am trying to be patient with the weather…but find myself anxious for the Spring.

  48. Olá Mimi
    Que maravilha poder ver um novo post… As coisas simples da vida. Por aqui no Brasil é verão, tem feito muito sol e muito, muito calor, mas passamos uns dias nas férias de chuvas sem fim e realmente, cansam…
    Lindas fotos, como sempre, das crianças, dos cães das comidas e de você. Oddur, parabéns!

  49. Hi Mimi, my favourite post of yours ever, as it struck so many chords, the rain, the feelings, the joy of cooking for family. Thank you, I needed this tonight.
    I’m here in Ireland and February has been the same, relentless rain! I hope to get over to the medoc THIS year… I say that every year…don’t I xoxo

  50. Hello, I just disovered your blog by browsing. Such an inspiration ! I love the decoration of your house and the vibrant colours…especially the blue room. What paint did you use ?
    And I have to confess that at 45 years old, I might be buying a cookbook for the first time ever. Evrything looks so delicious !

  51. Happy four years!!! 🙂 As I write this, it’s raining outside and Kevin is lying beside me asleep! 🙂 We are welcoming the rain as right now it’s relaxing to us both. The images in this post are so beautiful you would think the rainy days have all been just magical …& I’m sure they were…even when you tired of them! We are so excited to meet the newest little one and to see you all again later this year! I’m determined to speak better French this time and Kevin is trying to figure out ways for us to live there! LoL Maybe one day…who knows? 😉 In the meantime, I’ll soon fall asleep to the rain and hopefully dream about something wonderful! 🙂 xo, Dana

  52. Thank you so much for your wonderful website. I moved to France just over a year ago (to the Lot); and found myself fascinated and in love with all the fresh produce, but a little confused with what to ‘do’ with it – quite unlike anything I’ve seen before. But your website (recently found) has given me a whole new happiness when heading round the markets (even in winter). Trying the endive tartlets today with lunch, can’t wait. Thank you so much!!!

  53. Congratulations on the baby news. Does this mean you will be too busy/tired for your ‘pop up’ restaurant this year ? Totally understandable, but we so enjoyed lunch at your house last year and were looking forward to repeating the experience. Hope you can still find the time to keep up your wonderful blog.

    1. Hello! Lovely to hear from you! Yes, this summer I am taking time off, so no pop ups this year! I might be planning one in October to celebrate the launch of my new cookbook, so stay tuned! Mimi x

  54. Bonsoir Mimi,
    Je suis en pleine réalisation de votre recette de coq en vin et j’ai deux questions. Pour le bouillon, vous notez deux clous de girofle dans les ingrédients mais deux gousses d’ail dans la recette… j’ai mis deux gousses d’ail du coup…
    Quels sont les légumes dont vous parlez dans la suite de la recette qu’il faut mettre à dorer après le poulet ? Est-ce bien l’oignon et l’ail de la marinade ?
    Nous adorons tous vos recettes à la maison. Un vrai régal à chaque fois !
    Une dernière question concernant les langoustine flambée à l’armagnac ? Que faites vous du jus que vous réservez dans un bol ? Merci beaucoup pour votre retour et belle soirée. Fanny

  55. It is possible that the first 2 paragraphs of the beef cheek recipe have been duplicated? Just a bit confused

  56. Beautiful words, Mimi. I am so grateful that I could experience Medoc and your family, even if just for 2 incredible days. Hugs to all!

  57. Bonjour Mimi,
    votre site est superbe, j’adore vos recettes mais …. je ne suis pas si douée que ça en anglais est ce que vos recettes sont en français sur le site?
    merci beaucoup de m’éclairer

  58. My father has a house in the Medoc on the Atlantic coast and I only used to visit in the summer months for the sun and beach. Now I love visiting at any time as each month brings its own delight here. Your recipes and beautiful photographs have inspired me to explore more of the Medocaine way of life-thank you.

  59. Wonderful post, as always, dear Mimi!

    This is what I most love about France too – the artisans. Love getting my baguette at the boulanger, my stake at the boucher and my tomatoes and carrots at the maraîcher. Of course, the rain is the most annoying part in this (almost) perfect story, but I guess we have no other choice than to live with it…

    Thank you for the beautiful photos and excellent recipes! Will try some of them soon 🙂

    PS: You look great!

  60. Bonjour Mimi, cela fait un petit bout que je te suis depuis le Cameroun et j’adore ton blog. Les photos me rappellent beaucoup la France, les traditions, la cuisine simple et facile et pourtant si savoureuse. Enfin bref, je veux essayer pour la 1ere fois ton soufflée aux clémentines. J’espère qu’il sera bon 🙂 tu es encore enceinte???félicitatioonnnss

  61. Dear Mimi,

    You have a truly beautiful blog. I was wondering whether you plan on having any more little fox terriers arriving in the next year?

    We are in love with them having met a particularly charismatic ‘Mafalda’ in Trasierra last February, and would be very interested if you do!

    Could I also ask where your beautiful little copper pans are from?

    Thank you so much

    Florinda

  62. Dear Mimi, miss you and the Médoc so much. Will come back from China for Christmas to be there with my Papa and Karlheinz. Hope to see you than. Warm greetings to all, Bergitta

  63. Dear Mimi, I have already also your new book and I would like to simply thank you – as the whole book and also the recipes are perfect and beautiful. i had already tried couple of them and i always prepare the meal according your recipes with more joy! Good luck and all the best!:-)
    dana

  64. Mimi,
    Made your Braised Shanghainese Hong Shao Pork. The flavor was rich and complex but the sauce in your photo was so much darker. Did I do something wrong. Also, can you explain the purpose of blanching the meat. First time I have every done that

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