The Art of Flowers

Taking the time to arrange a vase or two of flowers can lift your spirits and make a room sing with the explosion of beauty. There is nothing quite like the arrangement of flowers to have a sensory high! The touch, smell,taste ( use fresh herbs as well from your garden), sound of flowers rustling together as you form your work of art.
Here are the flowers in bloom in Autumn in Australia that I love to use inside the house... Garden roses, Gardenia, Hydrangea, Jonquil, Lavender, Sweet Pea and Camellia.

Raspberry And Coconut Butter Cake

Raspberry And Coconut Butter Cake

 RECIPE FROM FRENCH TIES BY JANE WEBSTER, RASPBERRY AND COCONUT BUTTER CAKE, PAGE 284.

Millie and I came up with the idea for this cake one morning when we had excess raspberries to use. The berries are scrumptious with the coconut.

Ingredients
125 g butter, plus extra for greasing
275 g sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, lightly beaten
125 ml milk
185 g self-raising wholemeal flour
70 g desiccated coconut
200 g fresh raspberries
icing sugar, to serve
clotted cream, to serve

Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C and butter and line a 23 cm springform cake tin.

Place the butter, sugar and vanilla in a bowl and cream until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and milk, then fold in the flour, coconut and raspberries. Pour into the cake tin and bake for 50–55 minutes. The centre of the cake should feel firm, not liquidy, to the touch; if it is not ready, replace in the oven until cooked.

Sprinkle with sifted icing sugar and serve at room temperature with clotted cream.

The French Table 2013 dates

The French Table

2013 Dates
Last places available

April 19-26: The French Table at Chateau Bosgouet(2 places)

May 22-29: The French Table Burgundy (3 places available)

June 1-9: The French Table Bordeaux FULL

June 15-22: The French Table at Chateau Bosgouet FULL

July 11-18: "In the footsteps of Julia Child" (2 places available)

July 25-August 1: The French Table at Bosgouet FULL

August 6-13: Chateau Bosgouet FULL

August 15-22: (2places available) Note: Due to demand now a French Table at Chateau Bosgouet

September 5-12: The French Table at Bosgouet FULL

September 18-25: "Champagne Adventure" 

Please email jane@thefrenchtable.com.au for itineraries and pricing.

Chicken Confit

Ingredients
4 chicken marylands
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs thyme
200 g sea salt
2 kg duck fat, melted
6 kipfler potatoes, peeled and quartered
4 cloves garlic, peeled
12 Swiss brown mushrooms, halved
12 vine-ripened cherry tomatoes
200 g baby spinach

Method
Choose a ceramic dish that will fit the chicken snugly (a lasagne dish is ideal). Place the chicken in the dish, tuck the bay leaves and thyme sprigs around it, and sprinkle the sea salt all over. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Preheat the oven to 100°C.

Remove the chicken from the dish and wash and dry it thoroughly. Discard the salt and herbs, wipe out the dish, then place the chicken back in and pour over the melted duck fat. Cook in the oven for 7 hours.

Carefully remove the chicken from the dish using a slotted spoon (the meat will be literally falling off the bones) and transfer to a large dish to keep warm while you cook the vegetables.

Heat a couple of spoonfuls of the duck fat from the oven in a large frying pan. Add the potato and whole garlic cloves and cook over medium heat until the potato is tender and browned all over (about 10 minutes). Add the mushrooms and brown them for about 5 minutes, then add the tomatoes and cook for 3–4 minutes. Finally, fold through the spinach.

To serve, spoon a mound of vegetables onto each plate and tuck a chicken maryland next to it. I like to provide guests with a large jar of mustard, and warm crusty bread.

Serves 4

"French Ties"

    'French Ties' BOOK LAUNCH     After Years of painstaking work renovating an old Chateau in Normandy, Jane Webster has found her bearings, running The French Table over the summers and juggling family life across two countries year round.   Help us welcome Jane Webster and celebrate her gorgeous sequel to the bestselling 'At My French Table' with her new book 'French Ties' Join us for a special evening with light entertainment and a complimentary glass of champagne upon arrival.   When: Wednesday 21st March Time: From 6:30 pm Where: Berkelouw Books 1044 High St. Armadale VIC. 3143 RSVP: armadale@berkelouw.com.au

The Paris Wife

What I'm reading: The Paris Wife by Paula McLain It seems that the heady days of "the lost generation" is all in vogue! I purchased this book at Galignani Bookshop on rue de Rivoli, Paris. ... Just nights after I first saw the movie "Midnight in Paris". In this gorgeous story by Paula McLain, told from the perspective of Hadley Richardson ((Hemingways first wife) We are taken back to 1920's Paris to an era of poor artists and painters where Ernest and Hedleys lives are filled with trips to the horse races, writing holidays in Spain and skiing in Austria. They befriend the likes of Gertrude Stein and Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald ... And the voices Paula McLain gives these characters are truly realistic. In this genre of biographical fiction we are given a true insiders view of the famous faces and places of the Paris Jazz era.

Gingerbread Chateau

Gingerbread Chateau for Christmas

It's around this time of the year that we begin to think about all things Christmas and in our house that means baking and creating a gingerbread house for the festive season. During our time in France the children made this superb replica of Chateau Bosgouet! It took them weeks to complete as they started with making a paper pattern, moved on to the design features of their edible chateau and finally baked and decorated the magnificent structure that is pictured here!
Below is a step by step recipe and project guide to make your own Gingerbread house..... a truly wonderful activity to share with your children this Christmas season.
We used the following recipe which we found at www.allrecipes.com. We made a few changes to the original recipe and made our own template for construction of a chateau rather than a gabled house.




Gingerbread House Recipe and Instructions!

• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup butter
  
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 cup golden syrup
  
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups plain flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground allspice
• 6 egg whites

1. First cut out in thin cardboard: a side wall, 4 1/2 x 8 inches; an end wall, 4 1/2x5 inches; a triangular gable, 4 1/2x3x3 inches; and a roof rectangle, 4 1/2x9 inches. Tape the rectangular end wall piece to the triangular gable piece: match the long side of the triangle, 4 1/2 inches, to one of the 4 1/2 inch sides of the end wall.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, and molasses. Gradually beat in 2 eggs. Sift the flour, baking powder, and spices together; stir into creamed mixture. Wrap dough in parchment paper, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into 6 portions, 2 slightly larger than the others. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the 4 smaller pieces to approximately the size of the side wall and the end wall with gable templates; cut out two of each. Roll out remaining dough, and cut into two rectangular roof pieces. Transfer gingerbread onto greased baking trays.
4. In a preheated 375 degree F (190 degrees C) oven, bake gingerbread for 10 minutes, or until crisp. When removing from the oven, leave the gingerbread on the baking trays for a few minutes to set, then transfer to wire racks. Leave out overnight to harden.
5. In a large bowl, lightly whisk 2 egg whites. Gradually beat in approximately 5 cups confectioners' sugar. The icing should be smooth and stand in firm peaks. Spread or pipe a 9 inch line of icing onto a cake board, and press in one of the side walls so that it sticks firmly and stands upright. If necessary, spread or pipe a little extra icing along either side to help support it. Take an end wall and ice both the side edges. Spread or pipe a line of icing on the board at a right angle to the first wall, and press the end wall into position. Repeat this process with the other two walls until they are all in position. Leave the walls to harden together for at least two hours before putting on the roof. Spread or pipe a thick layer of icing on top of all the walls, and fix the roof pieces in position; the roof should overlap the walls to make the eaves. Pipe or spread a little icing along the crest of the roof to hold the two pieces firmly together. Leave overnight to set firmly.
6. When ready to decorate, make the remaining icing. In a large bowl, lightly whisk 4 egg whites, and mix in remaining confectioners' sugar as before. Use this to make snow on the roof, and to stick various candies for decoration. Finish with a fine dusting of sifted confectioners' sugar.