Oswin's First French Festival.

 

One's first French festival is always something to remember...unfortunately, (or maybe for us, fortunately), homegirl slept through the entire thing. Including the oompa band. The very loud and boisterous oompa band. As well as the techno music that followed. She is her father's daughter, that's for sure.

 

 

Luckily for Oswin, she'll be able to relive this event at a later date because Mama took pictures, as she is wont to do.

 

 

We hadn't planned for her first festival date to be on Saturday, as our big plans for the day involved testing the waters of her temperament for a coffee date with friends in nearby Sergy.

 

 

After coffee however, our friends informed us that there was a festival going on in town, a pumpkin (!!!) and apple (!!!) festival to be exact, and would we be up for a bit of it?

 

 

Oui, oui and hell oui.

 

 

We weren't prepared for how loud the band was going to be, but figured we needed to test Oswin's sleep tolerance at some point, right? This seemed like as good a time as any.

 

 

We didn't hang around long, but long enough for mama to have her first drink in a very long time, and to celebrate Oswin's arrival with good friends. We also brought home some homemade apple juice, took in some good ole' oompa music, and learned that our daughter (it's still weird to say that) can sleep through most anything, including a tuba. At just twelve days old she was a total rock star for the entire outing.

 

 

After a great few hours out with baby, we then decided to press our luck a little more by taking a family walk, as it was sunny and 70 degrees out. I've been feeling a little cooped up this week, and it felt unbelievably good to get out on my old walk and stretch my legs, but holy hell was I tired afterwards. The mind is willing but the body is still weak from the events of the last two weeks. Here's hoping that I can figure out how to use our baby sling today and can get out for a few more walks in this coming week.

 

How has your weekend been? Any tubas or pumpkins in your forecast?

 

A la prochaine friends...

 

Honey 

Test kitchen.

 

Pregnancy has made me an early riser. I haven't missed a sunrise in weeks, and lately I've considered waking up at 8 am as me "sleeping in." (Past Honey just gasped.)

 

Not only have I been rising earlier and earlier, but I've been actually motivated (gasps by Present Honey) to do things at this early hour.

 

Today I woke up with a ridiculous overwhelming urge to bake. ALL THE THINGS.

 

So, once Doc left for work, I started off making a double batch of Pumpkin Honey Cornbread, and in case you were wondering from my last post about this cornbread, a double batch does fits perfectly in a 12 inch tart pan. Also, in case you ever wondered if whisking with a whisk and whisking with a fork are different, I can assure you from some of the very salty bites of this mornings cornbread that they indeed are. Lesson learned. 

 

 

But it didn't stop there. I then took to my pinterest fall recipes board and poured over every image. The requirements? The recipe I chose had to be something with pumpkin in it. (You're surprised, right?)

 

Being that I'm almost 35 weeks pregnant, I didn't want to take on too big of an undertaking as I've lately had the habit of biting off more than I can chew when it comes to everyday tasks, so I decided that today would be the day that I would perfect the ultimate Pumpkin Spice Latte at home.

 

 

Present Honey would like to inform Past Honey that did not actually happen.

Le sigh.

 

 

None of the recipes I tried yielded what to me would be the perfect fix for a pumpkin spice latte craving. Maybe for others they would be, but none were right for me. I'm not giving up on this endeavor, but I am annoyed that the first one I tried didn't sprout little rainbows of fall happiness in my tummy. It wasn't bad, but there were no rainbows.  

 

 

And want to know something else? [Cue rant.] I get annoyed when a recipe calls for pumpkin pie spice. It's not that people use it that annoys me, it's the mere existence of it as a single spice. Is that silly? Are my pregnancy hormones going off in a pumpkin filled rage? I think that the cinnamon and other spices involved should be given the respect of having their quantities listed separately. I guess I'm just a purist at heart. Since I haven't seen pumpkin pie spice here in France I now need to make our own pumpkin pie spice mixture, and then figure out the right proportions for my dreamboat pumpkin spice latte. Nothing that a Google search won't solve, but annoying nonetheless. And don't worry, when I do I'll be sure to share it with you. Maybe you'll even get some rainbows. Fingers crossed. [End rant.]   

 

Any of you out in the blogosphere have a killer pumpkin spice latte recipe that you'd be willing to share? Any one else against the societal attachment to pumpkin pie spice as a single spice entity?

 

Ok maybe I had too much coffee today.

 

A la prochaine friends...

 

Honey 

Pumpkin Honey Cornbread.

 

 

I've had a mean hankering for cornbread as of late, so when I came across this Pumpkin Honey Cornbread recipe from The Comfort of Cooking, it was a no-brainer that I needed to make this. After all, Doc did just bake and puree up 29 lbs. of pumpkin this weekend...

 

 

This recipe is not only really good, but it is also so easy to make - which is good being that my current stores of energy at almost 34 weeks pregnant are running pretty low. This is one of those recipes where you'll have the dishes all washed before the cornbread is even done in the oven sort of deals (for those of us sans dishwasher).

 

 

This isn't an original recipe to me, as mentioned above, though I did adapt it slightly when it came to what flour I used. I love this recipe because I think it's a basic enough starting point to jump off and create your own original cornbread recipes, which is exactly what I plan on doing in the coming weeks. There are so many amazing sounding combinations that I want to try, it's just a matter of having enough cornmeal to try them with (I have yet to find cornmeal in SwitzerFrance).

 

 

One thing I will say is this: this recipe is pretty perfect in its own right. My goal for the afternoon is to make sure Doc gets at least a slice...I'm not kidding. It is just really stinking good. I did however have higher hopes for the level of pumpkin taste that would come out of it. For some of you this may be the perfect amount of pumpkin, but for me, I think I'm going to try to tweak this, possibly tomorrow, to let the pumpkin shine through more. I'm not sure that I would have known there was pumpkin in it had I not been the one to make it. But that might just be me - I like strong tastes, strong spices, and to be able to be able to really tell what is in a dish that I've made. So look for another pumpkin cornbread recipe coming up soon here on the blog, one that will probably lean towards heavier pumpkin and spices. That being said, I will absolutely make this particular pumpkin cornbread recipe again in the future as it really is THAT good.

 

 

One last point before diving into the recipe - when I make this again I will double the recipe. Doc and I are eaters, and this cornbread would not be enough for the two of us (actually I guess it's 3 of us at this point). I made a mistake and used a 12 inch tart pan instead of an 8 inch one (because we don't have an 8-inch one), so the cornbread was essentially only as thick as a fluffy pancake/about 1/2 inch thick. If I double the recipe and use the same pan, I still think it won't be incredibly thick, but will be better suited to how much we tend to eat. Just wanted to point that out in case you are one of a family of good eaters as well, or whether you're trying to decide how much other food you want to prepare to go with this cornbread.  

 

 

Pumpkin Honey Cornbread:

(as adapted from The Comfort of Cooking)

 

Ingredients:

 

1/4 cup (or 57 grams) of melted butter 

1/3 cup non-bleached cane sugar

1 Tbsp. of Honey (I used a Bruyere Honey)

1 large egg

1/4 tsp. organic baking soda

1/4 cup of buttermilk*

1/4 cup of pumpkin puree

1 tsp. of salt

1/2 cup of yellow cornmeal

1/2 cup of organic whole spelt flour

 

*Are you an expat who just winced when you saw buttermilk as an ingredient? For three years I ignored recipes with buttermilk in it, because I knew that buttermilk doesn't exist here in SwitzerFrance. Joy the Baker wrote an excellent post on three easy-peasy buttermilk substitute recipes, which you can find here. We were completely out of milk (I swear it's like I'm married to a 17 year old growing boy with the way Doc takes down milk!), almost completely foiling my best laid plans, until I remembered that I had bought buttermilk powder packets back in the states a few years ago. Low and behold they were still good! It was a Rosh Hashanah miracle! Granted this wasn't the way I wanted to come up with the buttermilk for my first cornbread experience in France, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Next time I'll use the milk and lemon method...

 

Directions:

 

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F/177 degrees C.

 

2. In a medium bowl, stir melted butter, sugar and honey together.

 

3. Whisk in egg.

 

4. Whisk in baking soda, buttermilk, and pumpkin puree.

 

5. Next add the salt, cornmeal and flour. Mix, but don't overmix. Once the flour disappears stop mixing.

 

6. Grease an 8-inch baking pan. Pour batter into pan and smooth out the batter with a spatula.

 

7. Bake for 25 minutes or until the top becomes golden brown. Stick a toothpick through the center - if it comes out clean it's done. If not, let bake for another 5 minutes or so. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before dishing it up.

 

 

If you try it, let me know how it goes! I'm curious what you think about the pumpkin-y-ness of the recipe as is. And keep an eye out for another pumpkin cornbread recipe (and let's be serious, pumpkin recipes in general) soon to come! I'm excited to use this recipe as a jumping off point for other cornbread possibilities.

 

 

A la prochaine friends...

 

Honey



Thai Pumpkin Soup (and a side of James T. Kirk).

 

 

Sometimes when you're pregnant, you get to eat dinner in bed while watching a marathon of vintage Star Trek episodes (the Shat is the Merde after all). Today we hit the 33 weeks pregnant mark, and what I've noticed lately is that I eat like a horse during the say (we're talking insatiable hunger ici), and then at night can only eat light foods like soup, because otherwise I get sick to my belly. With the crazy amount of pumpkin that we processed over the weekend, a pumpkin soup was only...logical. (HA!)

 

Is it cool enough in your part of the woods for a little pumpkin soup action? Then give this recipe a try. It's got a little bit of heat from the curry paste, and has a really nice myriad of flavors. Since this is a Thai dish, if I were in a stage of life where I could drink, I'd serve this with an Alsatian white or Riesling wine...at least that's what the kind gentleman at 2011's Salon des vins told me when I tipsy-ly bought a bottle (read: three) of his Alsatian wine. So please, for me, pour yourself a nice drink while eating this one.

 

Thai Pumpkin Soup

(adapted from BBC GoodFood)

 

Ingredients:

 

3 cups of pureed pumpkin

2 tsp. of olive oil

1 onion sliced

1 tbsp. of minced fresh ginger

1 lemongrass, bashed a little

3-4 tbsp. of Thai red curry paste (we used green this time)

400 ml can of coconut milk

4 cups of chicken stock

Juice of 1 lime for seasoning

1 red chili, sliced, upon serving for a tasty spicy garnish (optional)

 

Steps:

 

1. Doc used a 2 3/4 quart sized round Le Creuset cast iron dutch oven pot for this dish. Heat the dutch oven over medium heat and add oil, onion, ginger and lemongrass. Gently cook until softened, about 8-10 minutes. Once softened add the curry paste and stir for one minute. Then add the pumpkin puree, chicken stock, and all but 3 tbsp. of the coconut milk.

 

2. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. After cooking for 5 minutes, take out the lemongrass.

 

3. Turn off heat. Let cool for a few minutes and then blend until smooth with an immersion/hand blender, or use a regular blender.

 

4. Return the pot to the stovetop to heat the mixture all the way through, adding lime juice and salt and pepper to taste.

 

5. Serve with the remaining coconut milk drizzled on top, and with the red chili slices on top if desired. And don't forget a good Alsatian wine. And maybe some bread slices to dip in. And some Star Trek...ok I won't push my luck.

 

Bon ap!

 

A la prochaine friends...

 

Honey



Pumpkin spice pancakes (and a side of bacon).

 

 

Yesterday I awoke to probably the greatest words you can ever hear at 7 am on a Tuesday:

 

"Hey, do you want pumpkin pancakes for breakfast?"

 

Like the song of siren, am I right?

 

 

Processing a merde-ton of pumpkin this weekend was pretty much the best idea we've ever had, because now we have several cups of pumpkin puree just waiting to be cooked with in the fridge...

 

 

...which is really what made this Sunday breakfast on a Tuesday possible.

 

 

And in case you were wondering, no, it's not too early for pumpkin recipes.

 

 

We've tried many different pumpkin pancake recipes over the years, and this has hands down been our favorite. This recipe is not original to me, as I found it over on Annie's Eats. We did adapt it slightly however, by changing the type of flour used.

 

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

(as adapted from Annie's Eats)

 

Makes about 8 medium sized pancakes...

 

Ingredients:

 

1 1/4 cup of whole spelt flour

2 tbsp. of brown sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. of ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. of ground nutmeg

Dash of ground ginger

Dash of ground cloves

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup of pumpkin puree

1 large egg

2 tbsp. of melted butter

 

Additional options for serving on top of pancakes:

 

Butter or salt butter (I prefer salt butter)

Maple syrup or an herb infused maple syrup

Cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar or cinnamon-nutmeg sugar

Whatever your little heart desires on top of pancakes!

 

Steps:

 

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and stir with a fork or whisk to combine.

 

2. In a different medium sized bowl or large measuring cup (preferably something with a pour spout), mix together the wet ingredients. Stir to combine.

 

3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and sitr/whisk until combined. (It's ok if there are some lumps in the batter...)

 

4. Find an oven safe dish. Preheat oven to 200 degree F. (This is where you'll keep your done pancakes while the others cook, unless you're just serving them up as they cook...)

 

5. Grease a skillet or griddle with butter. Heat on a medium flame. Once the skillet or griddle is hot, add 1/3 of a cup of batter to the pan. Cook until bubbles form on the surface. Flip with a spatula, but not at the first sign of bubbles, give them a second to get going before flipping. Cook the other side until golden brown, or whatever your desired level of pancake doneness. Serve up the pancake to your hungry self or friends, or put in the oven safe dish in the oven to keep warm. Repeat this process until all of the batter has been transformed into delicious disks of pumpkin-y goodness, and regrease the pan as necessary.

 

Enjoy with a big steaming cup of coffee and some bacon, because life is just better with coffee and bacon.

 

A la prochaine friends...

 

Honey