Pinks and Greens~Boys♥ and recipes~

After my lacking butter fiasco..I made a good little pound cake..a great little poundcake.Yum Yum.
I made half the recipe and used a Le Creuset loaf pan.
I read the reviews..:)

I only put a pinch of salt because my butter is salted and I baked mine at 315 F,70-80 mins.Check w/ a toothpick..I use a skewer.

You can find the recipe here~
Jacques makes his own crème fraiche now;)


I've been painting pinks and greens for lack of them here the week of April 15th..

Cheap cheap paper I bought at Hobby Lobby..in November..
Daniel Smith paints.

Hard to scan WHITE paper:(It's never white it seems..like in person.
I don't mind my fuschia buds..I HATE the full bloom one;)
Hate.

And a scraper from when I did ceramics..to scrape some paint off;)
Ho Hum ..this winter has overstayed it's welcome.
But as if a miracle..Spring has seemingly arrived..along w/ the perfunctory rain:)
I did some chores in the rain that involved going outside and I see how beneficial the rain has been.♥
Garlic up..all of it:)
Irises pointing..
Scillas starting,some Pulmonaria blooming..

2 of the Alphabet boys came over after school..their dad was away on business..mommy works..so they popped by here.
I only had daughters;)

Boys are so different:)And funny! We talked about the girls in their school..lol let's just say they are not into girls..yet;)

I can't begin to say how grateful I am that they are so sweet with us.
We watched a good movie after football..Hoovey..perfect movie  as they all 3 play basketball too.I cried 3 times lol.Football season starts Saturday.Next winter Max will do basketball ..Oli soccer.But all 4 play football.
They are sports nuts and I like that.Move move move:)It's social for them also..

He's the baby..8 ..he is the only one that has something from my dad's side of the family ..in all 4 of them..

Made these for them:) Good.Find the recipe here..They are so good a couple of hrs after and the next day..like Costco ones;)

I knew the rain was coming..so I prepped Terry's No-Knead easy easy bread.This tme..no walnuts..no cranberries..but a tbsp of Vital Wheat Gluten and a handful of cracked wheat..the rceipe originated from Sally's Baking Addiction and it's a keeper.
I have mentioned it to you before..but it's worth repeating.
If you have never made one..try it..it's no-fail..easy and you will love it~

Have a nice weekend..happy gardening..happy real Spring..

A French Grand~Maman's no fail recipe.

The mini lemon curd tarts..are a combo of meringue..mini torched w/ no butane left;)

Jane's Small Batch Vanilla Lemon Curd,found on IG and then her blog:)

And this girl's nana's delicious pate sablée recipe..over 100 comments and only a few fails.I decided to try it..plus I was magnetized to it.Found on IG.

This isn't a pate sucrée..i.e. Dorie Greenspan's..(I love that one  too)..this is flakier..more pie crust typish..Typish?:)

I made it exactly as she said..except only let it rest1 hr in the fridge.I did not roll it out..I presssed it into my vintage molds..
The molds are ordinary aluminium..no teflon ..nothing.I did nothing as far as prepping them..the perfect little tarts popped right out.
A gem of a recipe:)Keeper category.

La Recette:

2 tbsps sunflower oil..I used canola
2 tbsps milk
2 tbsps sugar

100 gr semi-salted very soft butter
1 egg yolk
200 gr flour

In a bowl beat first 3 ingredients
Add butter and egg yolk beat until homogenous
Add flour and mix until you get a soft dough

Wrap and chill 2 hrs(I did one)
The use as your creativity suggests:)

So..I blind baked..it blind bakes perfectly..
I blind bake the little tarts w/ parchment..but I frill the edges..

I did not roll it out..I pressed it in my tins..placed the frilled edge parchment on top..and then the weights.
So good ..so easy:)

Moving on to my first greenery..with still lots of snow here..this is invasive..it's everywhere almost in the back of the mini pond garden..but what a respite after all white.
Let me tell you..and I know this will sound bad..
but everything everywhere is so ugly right now.
Dirty roads ,dirty snowbanks,brown grass when visible,fences to be painted..birdhouses to be put back up,leaves to be raked(again)..the list goes on..driving home yesterday we both remarked how these last few days have been so unsightly.
Freezing rain..sleet..grey..and our monochrome landscapes.

This too shall pass..is that saying true? Is it?:)

See that pretty cake? Made in that infaillable Ikea mold that I love?
This was a going to be an Eagle Brand treat for Jacques..he just likes a sliver of this or that after dinner.
Well..the recipe and the cake looked fab..
I made it.
Inedible.
I found the recipe here..

Then I Googled and so many similar recipes abounded..BUT.. 1/2 cup of butter too.They left out an ingredient!!
I know we all make mistakes..I should have checked other recipes..but how can something so cute  be so bad LOL?

I made up for it w/ a most delish but plain pound cake..I'll share it next time..

When I worked..I collected a few things that took my fancy..like these little sets..you know..soup and sandwich or soup and salad..I think I have 10 clear sets and 6 or 7 floral china ones.
I wonder who will use these later?

So weird that I think of these things;)



Just finished Bon Appé~tempt..on my sidebar.A coming of age story I really enjoyed.:)
A small excerpt after their trip to Paris..(You may remember ours:)..

"But if life is"mostly lived by timid bodies at home"*** we are mostly doing great.At that part of life,I know we excel.And though this may not be as easy to share at dinner parties with strangers("What do you do?""Well I love cooking dinner for my husband and myself and then eating it while watching House Hunters International."I'm realizing that's ok.

*** from the book Paris to the Moon.

Don't read this book for the recipes..these were her favorites as she was learning to cook..and bake..we all have different tastes and different degrees of experience:)

The sun'l come out tomorrow..tomorrow:)

April~ Malcontent so far~but ♥ Yupo!

Above..transparent Yupo..
below..white..looks grey and washed out..sorry..brighter ,whiter and sharper in person..

Transparent.. alcohol inks..brush and straw:)

Talk about cold..snow squalls..  wind to écorner les boeufs:)..There is no translation for this fantastic description of gale  force winds..if there was..it would be..it is windy enough to remove the horns from cattle.

I can translate for you..in other terms..you can't take a breath outside because it's so cold and so windy~

So..I have been painting and drinking tea and decaf coffee ..lots of tea as you can see..

I have to tell you that I find Sloane Teas..the packaging .. superb.
I have one..Pink Lemonade from Nancy..a few years ago..still good:)
They have minis too!
That book ..Madame Bovary ..is a treasure for me..My mom's..look at the cover♥
The blue tea is light,herbal and so pretty..bought on Ebay from Thailand..Keeper!
Super nice seller too.

You blink..and the Christmas Cactus explodes~

My seedlings are coming along..

My chickens are wandering ..lol..
I bought these 2 iron chickens for my gardens..  the paths  that Jacques snowblows.....are bare..but on the left side.. still a foot of snow..
these 2 were in our garage waiting for our gardens..

I looked out Saturday..while prepping the vegetables for dinner..and saw the girls:)

See our nice lush green grass? And that's the path Jacques snowblows..  we still have at least 1 foot to the left..like I said..above;)..and I don't even want to talk about the front.

Jacques had spent time tidying in the freezing garage and found my purchases..he put them out..
I actually said to him when I saw them..:" That's adorable"~!♥

Doesn't take much for me;)But honestly.. .how cute?

I made a few new recipes..

but in the interim..

fell in love with..

YUPO Legion paper.

I am a huge fan of Legion..I love their Stonehendge aqua..you may remember this done on it..

I bought white  5x7 (10 sheets)..and translucent (15 sheets).2 pads.Synthetic paper.
They immediately said to me..:"Oh, I am yours":)

I tried making alcohol inks for the transluscent and that is fun:)

Then I tried watercolors..on the white..
and fell in love.
And tried watercolors on the translucent.
The translucent is very much like vellum.

I prefer the white.

And I am planning on bringing the Yupo on trips.
It makes amazing watercolor effects.♥
The next trip I take ..God willing...

I hope to make a YUPO journal..and bring my watercolors..
maybe a new journal w/ darker colored paper and gouache as recommended by Miss Mustard Seed..

MMS..this girl..I tell ya..On IG..her stories and her posts..she is so talented!!
These young girls..I just cannot get over them.

While I am on an art spiel..if you have time..go read this..all my painting buddies..even if you do not piant I think you will be moved!

Made new scalloped potatoes..not bad not bad:)

I made half..and honestly we have enough for 2 meals.
You can find the recipe here.I liked the addition of caramelized onions..and they are baked in broth..allow for much longer baking time IMHO..My slices were perhaps not 1/8..but defiitely not much much thicker.

Had to squeeze this post in to tell you about Yupo..I think I found out about it later in life;)
And I hope you try it and enjoy it.

For the first one I used DS paints and Prima Decadent Pies..
For the other..Sennelier.
Let's hope May is far lovelier~

Have a lovely week~

Aix~♥ Long~ La Finale~

Aix my dears..is fabulous.Magnificent..  mansions..  homes..streets..fountains..tress..flowers..people watching..if you are a sketcher..oh lala.

We had a cute appartment..clean..modern..BRIGHT!  Great views onto pool and courtyard..an Air BnB..bus came close by to take us right into town..a short walk..we met the nicest people..again.
I am not a modern girl..but all this suited us just fine..

The kitchen was spotless and fully equipped..and look at the sink..I could have washed dishes and dishes and dishes:)It was bright..  balconies..windows..patio doors...overlooking pool and gardens..super modern bathroom..and clean fresh bedroom.I liked it.
Nothing like my FAVORITE place..or the other 2..  but this was just great.
This? Or a Holiday Inn?
This.

So, Aix is a beautiful town.
Just beautiful.
From the moment you arrive..that Travel Bureau is fabulous.

All the old buildings that line  the Cours Mirabeau are stunning..it's also dotted with quite famous shops and restos.
Fountains..carousel..and Paul Cézanne.
Flower shops and stall..
A famous market..and OH what a market!
A brocante part..clothing part..food,local produce,jewelry..knives..everything you could imagine.
And a brocante part.My fave brocante was there..

We ate at the same resto twice and I was glad we did..this is the place the lovely waiter ..asked..:"La salade César encore aujourd'hui madame?"
"~Oui monsieur..merci beaucoup."

We ended our trip in this area because it is close to Marseille airport.
It was a high point to finish on.

For high end shoppers..a whole area has been turned into super high end shopping..all in old buildings..winding streets..stunning.

The Saturday..the streets became engorged with people..it is a very popular spot.The Friday seemed so calm..:)In comparison.

It is a University city so you see a lot of lovely young students..you see a lot of very well to do peeps at the market..locals..  the real leather purses and shoes..women in their 60s and 70's and 80's..dressed to the nines.
You won't see a local in a jogging suit..I never saw a woman my age in joggers and running shoes in Aix..it's elegant..just FYI:)
Very sophisticated.The tourists also ..are far less casual than many other places.
Jacques agrees.
I had to make sure it wasn't just me.
:)

The weather here has been frightful..so I went back to Provence in my photos..
April has never seemed so off to me..
Frigid..windy..
Just blech.
No Spring fever yet.
I am looking forward to that feeling.

Gardening notes..Tomato seedlings doing well..2 dahlias I saved..have sprouted.. 2 perennial Sweet Peas.. and pea shoots;)
Ordered another raised bed from Costco.



Have a great weekend..♥