So... we've been a bit busy during February and we realise we haven't kept up to date on all the things we said we we're going to do. And we are sorry! Emily's been working on her final dissertation, which is due on 28th March (ARGH!) and Sarah has been focusing on getting ready to take her AS-Levels. This weekend we are both going to create beautiful revision charts (aka procrastinate even more than we already have done).
We are also in the process of moving to Wordpress. We have heard it is a lot better than Blogger, BUT we haven't got a clue how to use it. And I for one do not know the slightest thing about computer programming and codes etc etc. I feel I may need to consult my computer-whizz friend Rowena.
Anyway, we have decided that in March we will hit France! Now, a lot of people, when they think France, think lots of cream, cheese, and heavy food. But that doesn't have to be the case - and besides, everything in moderation!
Our personal French favourites include French baguettes (and any kind of artisan bread, to be honest!) delicious cheeses, particularly the fancy Gruyère, which melts a million times better than cheddar, and Roquefort which is a tangy and slightly salty blue, but also the famous Brie and Camembert soft cheeses. 
We also regularly use bouquet garni in stews (basically a lot of fresh and dried herbs tied together, or you can buy them in the supermarket in something resembling a tea bag! Remember to take it out before you serve your food!). Even more regularly used is the humble garlic. Garlic grown in the Pyrenees is considered some of the best in the world. All that red and white wine vinegar you use? That's French too!Puy lentils, which are really healthy for you, form the basis of a lot of French peasant cooking. They've got lots of fibre which means they stop your blood sugar from rising too high after your meal (basically, they're low GI). They also give a lot of B vitamins and protein which means if you're vegetarian, lentils are a real superfood! As a final factor, they've got really high levels of magnesium and folate which are great for your heart.
Our final French hero has got to be prunes! We love them - I know they've got a bit of a bad reputation but if you buy some and try them, they are totally delicious. They're like sweets. Agen prunes, which are from, funnily enough, Agen, near Cahors in France are considered the best. You'll pay a bit more for them but they are so good. They're great as a topper for porridge, as a snack, in cakes (chop them up and you'll make a wonderful moist fruit cake), or even in savoury stews for a bit of a change. Scrumptious.This week, we made a new recipe. Baked ratatouille crepes! This was a bit of a late pancake day for us. Our friend Tracey wrote an update on facebook that we didn't see until about 10pm on pancake day evening. And then we realised... no pancakes for us! So we did them a couple of days later!
Ratatouille, as shown in the picture to the right, (courtesy of BBC Good Food!) is an absolute star of a dish. We love it on pasta actually, but that's not so French! We made our recipe for ratatouille and then thought, why not put it in a crepe. How much more French can you get!?!
Bear in mind, our ratatouille recipe makes quite a lot, but you can make it up, use what you need and then put the rest in the freezer to have another day.
This would be great for a fancy lunch, or a light dinner. Or you could, instead of serving with bread and salad, serve with bread and the remaining ratatouille!
Enjoy today!!
rosinaviolets x
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| We've got to admit, this was not homemade. Go to Waitrose and pick up the Grand blanc baguette. Actually amazing. |
Ratatouille Crepes
For the Crepes
95g plain flour
1 egg
200ml milk
100ml water
Handful of chives, finely chopped
- Pour the milk into a measuring jug and top up with water.
- Put the flour into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Break your egg into it. Use an electric whisk, or if you don't have one a normal whisk, to mix the flour and egg together. Slowly add the liquid, whisking all the while until you've got a light fluffy batter that's not lumpy at all! Add the chives.
- Heat your frying pan over a medium-high heat. Make sure you're using a good non-stick one, and then you won't need too much oil. We always use spray oil to get the best coverage without using too much.
- Spray a couple of sprays of oil into the pan. Wait a couple of seconds for it to get hot, then ladle 1/4 of the mixture into the pan. You can try to make four crepes out of this, but if you end up with more, just make more wraps and split them up between the people you're serving!
- Wait until the edges become loose and the crepe has solidified, then turn it over. Cook the other side of the crepe, and then remove to a plate and continue with the rest of the crepes.
For the Ratatouille
1 tablespoon dried herbes de Provence
4 garlic cloves, peeled and smooshed in a pestle and mortar
2 onions chopped roughly
2 courgettes chopped into thick-ish rounds
1 aubergine chopped into rough cubes
2 peppers, whatever colours you like, chopped roughly
2 cans peeled plum tomatoes - drain them and keep the tomatoes but not the juice (unless you want to use it for something else)
1 tablespoon each of basil and parsley, chopped
- Heat a couple of sprays of olive oil in a pan. Add the garlic, dried herbes de Provence and the onions and cook until smelling really yummy.
- Add the rest of the vegetables and increase the heat a little. Season with salt and pepper.
- Put the whole thing in a big ovenproof dish and put it in the oven at 180C for about an hour until the veggies are soft. You can cover it up if you think it needs it.
- Before you serve it, or put it in the crepes! Stir in the chopped basil and parsley.
To assemble your crepes!
350g jar pasta sauce! (Sorry - we cheated!) Plain tomato and basil is fine.
Grated cheese, if liked.
- Lay out a crepe on a clean worksurface. Add some ratatouille to the middle of the crepe, then fold up the edges of the crepe like you're making a wrap.
- Put the crepes into an oven proof dish. Pour over the pasta sauce.
- Add pepper and a little grated cheese, if liked. We used a little parmesan, and then left some on the table so people could add more if they wanted to.
- Put into the oven at 180C for approximately 20 - 25 minutes, until hot through and bubbling.
- Serve with bread and salad, or the remaining ratatouille.
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