So many of the dishes we made during our stay at La Pitchoune were from famous French chefs and cookbook authors. This vegetarian dish, from Michel Richard, was amongst our favorites.

Another of my favorite things discovered on that first trip to France was the Santons that are so prevalent throughout Provence.  There are actually two styles of Santons, small painted clay figurines or larger clothed clay dolls, it was the dolls that were displayed in La Pitchoune that I fell in love with. Authentic French Santons are hand-crafted in Provence. They represent traditional Provencal characters that existed a few hundred years back in all villages in the South of France. They are made with clay and painted by hand one by one with real-life details.

The origin of the Santons goes back to the French revolution; Santon meaning “little saint” were traditionally used in churches at Christmas time around the “crèches” or nativity scene where they represented characters from the bible and as a result attracted large crowds mostly in the Provence region. In 1789, when the French government abruptly closed all churches, the parishioners were distraught and sought solace in recreating their own nativity scenes which included Santons in their homes. The characters grew from the traditional members of the nativity to the members of life throughout everyday Provincial life, from the baker to the bricklayer. The tradition was strong over the years and today Santons are a part of life in Provence.

The first picture farther above is of Julia and Kathie’s collection… and this second collection is mine. From left to right; tall male chef with a copper pot, a female baker with a huge basket of baguettes, a smiling bonneted woman carrying a duck in a basket, a male artist with a pallet and brunch along with his easel and painting, an angry-looking old bonneted woman shopping at the market, and finally a sweet vendor at the market with his vegetable cart carrying a scale.  Below is the last Santon photo, a more traditional set of the Magi that is always on display in our dining room but is set out to hold a more prominent place during Christmas.

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While our family was in Italy during the summer of 2008, I had Asparagus with Prosciutto di Parma, Parmegiano Reggiano, and Poached Eggs. The dish is a common sight on Italian menus.

I’ve taken quite a few liberties, basically Americanizing and bastardizing it at the same time! The inspiration to do so came after a cooking class on Monday night with Chef Chris Curtiss of Noca, who made these outstanding fried poached eggs and served them on top of a fabulous salad with pickled red onions, bacon, and red wine vinaigrette – truly amazing!

I often serve the asparagus as a side dish and it has already been featured on this site, but this is a wonderful light, refreshing, and satisfying main dish for any night of the week. Of course, it would also make a great brunch dish.

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Inspiration for recipes comes from many places, such as giving a standard recipe a healthy makeover or combining recipes to make something just right. Plucking fresh food from your garden or a farmer’s market, using other cuisines to spice up an old favorite, or in this case, out of complete and utter desperation!

Ever since last Friday, when I held a girl scout cooking class, my life and time management skills had been in a downward spiral. Some of that was due to my own bad planning, other parts were things out of my control, and the rest was just Murphy’s Law – “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.”

So the light at the end of the tunnel of this tornado that was my life came in the form of a party at my home. After racing from one thing to another and running on virtually no sleep, I had less than 5 hours to come up with a menu for the party, shop for the food and drinks, and make it all. Clean all the outdoor furniture (it’s been raining quite a bit here, so it was all a mess). And worst of all, clean a house that had not only been neglected but literally treated (by me!) as if it were a landfill, where I was actually just tossing things on the floor or any flat surface.

The picture below doesn’t really do justice to the hot mess the house was. The sun is shining so brightly against the more than a dozen glass bowls on the island that they are not really visible. But that was just one load of dishes spread out from unloading the dishwasher from the night before when I fell into bed right after putting in another (and the 3rd of the day) load.

So here is where this recipe begins. I had worked with Barb Fenzl at Les Gourmettes in the morning, where she taught a delicious class that included a Glazed and Grilled Asparagus. All the while I was thinking about what I could make, or pull from my freezer, or pick up at Trader Joe’s on my way home. There was leftover marinate from the asparagus, so I poured that into a jar and decided to make the asparagus as an appetizer instead of a side dish. I also had leftover sliced mozzarella, sliced black forest ham, and basil in my fridge from a food styling event I’d done the day before… voila, a recipe is born. OK, it may not be the most inspired, creative, or original thing I’ve ever come up with, but the point is, anyone can pull something together with what they have available to them by just giving it a little thought.

The asparagus portion of this recipe is thanks to Barb Fenzl and I thank her for not only that, but for the delectable frozen Blue Cheese Galette dough, she so generously sent home with me to use as well!

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After all the cooking last week and trying to get through all those leftovers, we’re overdue for something quick and fresh.

Herbes de Provence or Provençal herbs is a mixture of dried herbs from Provence invented in the 1970s. The mixture typically contains thyme, savory, fennel, basil, and lavender flowers. Thyme is the dominant flavor.  The asparagus can be easily substituted with blanched sugar snap peas, green beans, broccoli, or cauliflower.
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It’s a great Sunday at the Hopkins’ house – the Cardinals win! And it’s finally cooling off outside so I was able to garden this morning, I don’t think it even hit 100 degrees today!  Plus my Dad is over for dinner and after a few hands of cards, it’s time to give my husband and dad what they really want – meat and potatoes! Hope you enjoyed your weekend as too. 🙂

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asparagus bicycle tart

Savory tarts are a beautiful and delicious way to show off seasonal vegetables. In the Patisserie windows of France, not only are there gorgeous glazed fruit and nut tarts, chocolate éclairs, and croissants to drool over, but perfect vegetable tarts as well. In the fall and winter, they are filled with leeks, potatoes, and squash and in the spring and summer, the fillings are tomatoes, zucchini, peas, and asparagus. This fabulous tart is one that I have been making for years every Easter and for just about every brunch I’ve ever done. It is a variation of a recipe originally from Barbara Fenzl, owner of Les Gourmettes Cooking School, here in Phoenix. Trust me, your guests will be very impressed and will not guess how foolproof it is and how quickly it goes together.
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Roasted Asparagus and Haricot Vert Soup with Gremolata

Whenever I have too many vegetables hanging out in the fridge, I make soup. I love Costco and buy many of my fresh fruits and vegetables there because of the high quality and amazing prices. But there are usually just too many to get through before they begin to turn or spoil. Today I found half bags of asparagus and trimmed haricot verts (thinner and longer French green beans) in my produce drawer. With only two of us here for dinner now, I guarantee we’ll be having more soup, because I’m not ready or willing to give up my Costco runs!

The only fat present here is the 2 tablespoons of olive oil, so not only is this an economical and easy meal but healthy, to boot, with less than 5 grams of fat per serving! Roasting vegetables tossed with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper brings out their natural sweetness and intensifies the flavors. Additionally, it is topped with gremolata which is a minced herb condiment typically made of garlic, parsley, and lemon zest. Gremolata is the traditional accompaniment to the Italian braised veal shank, Ossobuco alla Milanese, and it makes a fresh light topping for a wide variety of other dishes, including this soup.
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My cute little kids… when they were little.. and they’re still cute!

I’ve spent the last two days, and I mean all day – never leaving the house; scanning old pictures onto my computer. It’s satisfying, but my neck and back are barking – loudly! I think a massage is in order for a Labor Day gift to myself.

This scanned picture is of my two little chefs back in 1994. Marissa is 6 and Connor is just 2 1/2 years old. One of their most loved vegetables is asparagus and this is their favorite way to have it prepared. The thing I like about it – is it’s quick and easy. If you end up having it as often as we do, be sure and double or triple the Parmesan-Butter mixture and either refrigerate or freeze. Another great thing, there is no need to blanch the asparagus first, it is perfectly tender-crisp when it comes out from under the broiler. Sorry, the pictures below are a bit out of focus and have so much glare, I think it’s the aluminum foil’s fault, but be sure to use the foil, otherwise, the pan is a huge pain to clean.

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