Thursday, May 15, 2014

Jacques,Alain and David Rocco~And ...



This is the  part one page  in my Madame Bovary book I love..
It has nothing to do with my post..Apart from now being part one really in our gardens..


I just love the reliure of this old book I have....etc..















There.  
No great book review here..
Just part one ..glorious part one..of les  jardins!
So...Part 1 ...is actually starting to finally happen in our gardens....

See the leaves in the trees????!!!!
That funny little fern emerging..by my Keeper of Secrets Fairy...is my Maidenhead Fern..wait till you see how amazing nature is!
She turns a beautiful green and canopies the fairy ..very soon..

The Violas are popping up..♥

All dicentras..(this is Canadensis I think..)from wild to more cultivated..they all have a beauty of their own..like all lilies.(Trout Lily above.. I believe)...wild or not~

The muscaris..the peonies..so much happens at once..I won't wait until they are in their full glory..I want to remember stages ♥
I am on a small humble adventure every day to see what has transpired~





The screened in porch is de winterized! The new cushion covers with ribbons for easy removal for cleaning:)

The porch baskets..

I Love the porch!

In 
Ssummer..Spring and Fall..in Winter..not at all.

Back to food:)
Actually hard for me to concentrate on food when nature emerges..

I like David Rocco's show..he's engaging..bubbly.. happy..and his food looks and tastes good..not to mention the fabulous vistas..
Swoon.

This is a twist on something he made in Sicily..



A few slices of some of the meats Jacques cured..
You simply put a dollop of Ricotta on the bresaola.. top w/ fresh arugula..fold up..sprinkle with lemon juice and a touch of olive oil if you wish..
It's really good..
And was a hit at Easter here..the whole large appetizer plate disappeared  in an instant..




I used his cured meats and some delicious tiny quail eggs..



For this salad..
So simple .arugula..hard boiled quail eggs..his meats.. slivered..toasted pine nuts.. a little tomato top to make the toadstool.......a little egg forms the rest of the toadstool..or try a mini bocconchini:-)
Vinaigrette of Walnut Oil,  you can use regular olive oil..Rice Wine Vinegar..flavored..a pinch of sugar..salt and pepper..edible geranium blossoms..




Feels so good to have salads more often..I like them in winter too..but it's so cold  you really just want warming foods..I get the shivers after a salad in winter.

Speaking of eggs..quail ..or otherwise..
Our son-in law did a super job on building such a cute coop for their backyard..
Looks like a Barn B&B..It's so well kept..well built..We are both enchanted with it..

He has five girls..the days we visited he still only had three..
I love chickens!
Wait till they start laying eggs:)




They are all different..so far the 3 we met..
are named:
                                                 Hens Solo
Princess Lay-A
and 
Chewbakka~

Our other son-in-law has designs on a coop in the future too.
Lots of summer projects!

Most of my gardens are done..just a few more things to do..and add..
It's the most wonderful time of the year.

There is always music amongst the trees in our gardens, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it..
Minnie Aumonier~

Bon Weekend~
It's a long weekend here..

God Bless Spring~

38 comments:

  1. I love all your pictures Monique, love the flowers and the chickens and this plate with little tomatoes:)

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    1. The chickens are so good too Gloria..in personality:)

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    2. Ha Monique Im sure!
      I grow up with chikens!
      My chilean grand mom had chickens and eggs!
      I love these eggs

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  2. Thank you for sharing the progress in your garden. Yes, to remember to enjoy its stages... So pretty. The salad looks gorgeous and delicious. Love the chix. Bon Weekend!

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  3. I'm so excited for you! There's a "spring" in your step! :) <3

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    1. A friend I met through blogging.. in an email this year..she told me she had a Spring in her step..and I loved her words..and here you are.
      I will accept that:) Thank you..my words must have a Spring in their step..Grateful Spring!

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  4. Delightful post, Monique. Your garden is brimming with beauty. Love the chicken coop and meeting the girls.
    Enjoy your long weekend……….S

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  5. I am so thrilled that Mother Nature is waking from her long sleep at your house...
    It is so beautiful here...all the new green...
    Your salad would be so welcome here...5 long weeks with no kitchen...
    Bisous xo

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    1. Soon soon soon you will be cooking up a storm..You've been a trooper!
      x

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  6. Spring is my favourite season too, loved seeing your garden coming to life after the long winter you have had. your photos are fantastic good enough to illustrate a book. I expect we will be seeing more of the activities of 'les poussins'.
    Great salad to try this summer.

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    1. Barbara I know you love Spring too..I hope there is relief for you?
      Your Spring is much earlier and BEAUTIFUL!

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  7. First of all I am in love with your bresaola appetizer. So artfully put together and those picks are adorable. And the quail eggs are so pretty. We can occasionally find pheasant eggs here, but they aren't nearly as pretty. It must bring you great pleasure to walk through your garden each day and see what is beginning to bloom. I'm so pleased that you took your camera along so we could enjoy the garden with you. I spend most of my time on the screened porch in the summer not even minding the heat. Enjoy the season Monique and I hope you have a fabulous weekend.
    Sam

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    1. Jacques is the chef for all things cured and risottos etc:)
      A porch is a 3 season gift isn't it?Always a little breeze or air ..views.. and just a little piece and quiet to our own..
      You too Sam..a great weekend.
      The little crackers I mentioned yesterday were not good.. my fault I am sure..BTW:)

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  8. A beautiful post Monique with so much to titillate all our senses, from the beauty in your garden to the salads to the chickens chatting. A great poulaillier too and happy hens who will give you many eggs. Your appetizers will definitely find their way to our summer apéro evenings. enjou your Mme bovary book...we will of course follow eagerly !
    Ronelle

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    1. When Alain decided he wanted chickens I thought of you of course!
      Le Printemps..here is received with open arms..!

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  9. Beautiful garden and such a wonderful post. I would love to be lunching with you over that salivating plate right now.
    Bon weekend and enjoy your chicken coupe!
    I'm off to get my hands on the book "Paris Letters"
    Shel xx

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    1. You will enjoy Paris Letters..:)
      Now I would like to read Diane Keaton's new book..I read her other and enjoyed it..mostly about her mom:) etc..
      But every movie I see with her becomes a fave..and the interviews..recently only leave me loving her more.
      She is amazing.And aging gloriously.

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  10. Nothing can compare to the arrival of spring in the garden. It is so wonderful to see everything emerge after a long hard winter. Your gardens were always so beautiful from gardenbuddies photos. Does the porch still have the blue clematis growing up it? I loved it! I tried to copy you and have it growing through the roses but was not successful. Maybe I need to try again. Your salad is a work of art. Chickens that you don't have to upkeep but will get some presents, how lucky. Bon weekend!

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    1. SADLY Clematis Blue Bird left me about 2 yrs ago..I kept hoping it was just having an off summer..but no..and I have yet to find another.
      What an empty spot it has left..I think what happened is that one of the Hydrangeas grew too big..It is the largest..it grew to 10 ft and I feel it did away with Bluebird..
      Just as some early Spring poppies..as the gardens grow..they suffocate those and they don't come back.
      It really is a most exciting time..
      Not sure if Blue Bird is the best for growing through roses..
      Arabella can scramble quite beautifully amongst carpet roses..but I do have one that is exceptinal amongst roses and lasts so long..let me see if I kept her name as it's on the tip of my tongue..but the name escapes me..Bell shaped..

      Not Betty as Betty grows to 10 ft and more..
      I'll come back ..:)
      Gardenbuddies was the beginning of everything really..for me..the internet..friends etc..
      I'll never forget that.:)

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    2. Oh too bad that you lost Blue Bird. It was beautiful with its dangling flowers. Let me know if you remember that clematis.

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    3. I think it's Pagoda.. but I am searching for y clematis book..I reorganized things and have misplaced my personal clematis book and Travel Scrabble:)
      I am 99.9 % sure it's Pagoda..the roses look like they have bells hanging from them..:)

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    4. Thanks Monique. That is a pretty one.

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  11. I love everything about Diane Keeton especially that movie "it's complicated" !!
    xx

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  12. Lovely post, Monique. Your beautiful garden is finally coming to life. I would love to have a chicken coop in my backyard but I don't think my HOA would be very happy with me. Having fresh eggs every day would be such a treat. Your beautiful salad is so pretty on your Lyon plate.

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  13. Good morning dear Monique,

    I love chickens also, they are so adorable-)) The garden looks very colorful, your flowers are beautiful!
    Thank you so much for your comment about the mushroom picking, please send me more info to yelena@strokin.info

    Hugs,

    Yelena

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  14. I had to laugh out loud at the hens names :-) What fun to watch them. They are becoming quite the popular thing to have these days. You will have fresh eggs in abundance, I'm sure - especially after F builds his Hen B&B :)

    Aren't these days the best in the garden? I love exploring each day to see what is happening out there. Yes, it's the process of stages that is the most fun to see. Anticipation. Your maidenhair fern is so pretty and unique as it unfurls.

    Lovely salad! So pretty on the French plate. Beautiful quail eggs - a work of art themselves. How lucky you are to have your own chef garde manger :)

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    1. I admire people who come up with cute names:)
      I can't for the life of me..I probably would have called them Chick 1..2 and 3..
      The boys love them Susan..you should have some:)
      Rain for our long weekend..POURED yesterday..and my Serviceberry is at it's peak.

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  15. I just love fresh new growth in the spring, the promise of lots of pretty things, yay:) your fairy is precious and those salads and the toadstool, made out of egg, perfect.

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    1. You will be painting toadstools this summer:)
      The promise of..I love that Jenni!

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  16. There is so much to love in this post Monique! The words, the beautiful photographs, the chickens! The food! That sweet little toadstool that I am wondering about now. SOOO CUTE! Did I tell you I love red and white toadstools? I do. I wish my husband was good at curing meats. All he is good at curing is broken hearts, but I am grateful for that! :-) Love you much. Yay Spring! xxoo

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    1. Of course I know you love toadstools and just knew you would like to make these..I think even mini bococcinis (sp?) could work!
      Perfect Marie fare!!

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  17. A force de voir quelques superbes clichés de vos fleurs je ne peux que me résoudre à l'idée que votre jardin est paradisiaque et magique :)

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  18. He suis en amour avec la nature....ma famille..et votre vocabulaire♥

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  19. I have the sea shell picks too :-) I need to plan my Key West party that I had hoped to have in March. LOL Love all the names :-) My two friends named theirs too. I think that is half the fun, don't you? My garden really popped this week....this is a wonderful time of the year. Lovely salad! You and J work well together :-)

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    1. Your party sounds like fun..anxious to hear and see about it..
      Yes I think naming them is half the fun too.
      I guess I would pick plant..book or chefs names..

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  20. Bonjour ma chère Nana,

    Une très agréable journée que tu partages avec nous avec ce délicieux billet !
    De merveilleuses photos qui honorent Demoiselle Printemps...
    Une salade tout aussi printanière que tes photos servie sur une assiette de ma région !! et pour couronner le tout une visite bien sympathique dans ce charmant poulailler. Ces demoiselles les poules semblent bien surprises !

    Je t'envoie plein de soleil
    Gros bisous ♡

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  21. Your posts are works of art, Monique! I inherited my love of Lily of the Valley from my mother and grandmother, but sadly they do't grow here in California. One more reason I need to move back East. Your salad is inspiring my lunch today!

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