Fish in a Jiff

Here is a tasty salmon dish that you can make in minutes! 

Serves 4

Ingredients: 

4 salmon fillets

1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/4 cup maple syrup

Marinate your fillets at least  half an hour before cooking in the ginger (sprinkled lightly over fillets)  and maple syrup. Make sure the  fish has come to room temperature before cooking.

Drizzle a little olive oil in a  heavy bottomed skillet. Place the fillets flesh side down into the pan on medium heat. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes then flip them to the other side. Now pour remaining maple syrup marinade into the pan, turn down heat a bit and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes (depending on how thick they are and also how you like your salmon) . If you find the syrup getting too thick you can add a little water to thin it out. Serve with Basmati rice  

We first tasted this dish at some Canadian friends of ours and my family fell in love with it. I was thrilled to have a  recipe for maple syrup that didn't involve me getting a new pants size!

Bon Appetit!

Plum Clafoutis

The traditional French dessert "Clafoutis" is, I find,  a bit bland, after all,  it's just a flan made with eggs, vanilla, milk and a little flour with some fruit thrown in, traditionally cherries. My version is still simple but making your plum compote in advance and letting the flavors intensify over a few days renders this clafoutis much more flavorful . Now that  fall is upon us, this dessert served warm fits the bill on a cool autumn night. Try and make this in two steps: compote first and a few days later the batter  but it is not essential. 

Ingredients:

700 grams of red plums, pitted and cut in quarters
60 grams of sugar for compote plus 50 grams of sugar for batter
1 vanilla pod 
Icing sugar for dusting
1 cinnamon stick
15 grams of butter
125 grams of flour
3 eggs
1 tsp of vanilla extract
300 ml of milk

Step 1:

Make compote

Preheat oven to 170°/ Gas mark 3.

 Put plums in shallow baking dish, add 60g of sugar and cinnamon stick. Split vanilla pod down the middle and empty seeds onto the plums and throw in whole pod,  mix together. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes depending on the ripeness of your plums. They should be soft with skin beginning to separate. Take out of oven and let cool. Cover and store in the refrigerator up to 5 days

Step 2:

Heat oven to 180°/Gas mark 4. If you've just made the compote, make sure that it is cool before you proceed. Start with a new baking dish and butter it thoroughly. Remove vanilla pod and cinnamon stick from compote and pour plums into dish, distribute evenly.

Put the flour and 50g of sugar into a bowl, mix and create a well in the center. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs; add the vanilla extract and milk to the eggs and whisk. Slowly pour the milk mixture into the flour beating constantly until you have a smooth batter. Pour over plum compote.

Bake for 40 minutes until batter is firm to touch and golden on top. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve just warm.

Strawberry Parfait-A 15 minute dessert

Here is a dessert I whipped up for my bookclub luncheon-it was light, delicious and beautiful. The best part-it took no longer than 15 minutes from start to finish.

Serves 6

Ingredients:


1 lb. Strawberries
1 1/2 cup Ricotta
1 1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
7 tablespoons sugar
1/2  teaspoon vanilla extract
3-4 Cookies (Speculoos)

Rince strawberries, pat dry, remove green parts then slice in half. Toss with  3 tablespoons of sugar and let stand in fridge until juicy (15 minutes). Meanwhile whisk ricotta and greek yogurt together with 4 tablespoons of sugar and the vanilla. Layer fruit mixture alternating with creamy mixture. You should have 2 berry layers; one on the bottom and on top with cream in the middle. Just before serving crumble 1/2 a cookie on each parfait-if you can't find speculoos then get something crunchy such as Jules de Trooper cookies. Garnish with a mint leaf.

Bon Appetit!

Vacationing with Relatives

I'm always reticent about vacationing with anyone other than my closest kin-at least with family I know that sooner or later we'll forgive each other for our  transgressions and get on with being family. This nugget of wisdom has not come to me easily and I exhale a long  sigh, thinking about some of the great friendships  I've  had go down the drain after spending more than 3 consecutive days together.

I wistfully remember taking our 5 year old son on a ski trip to the Alps with some friends who had rented a chalet. We got along famously with the other couple and our children played together well. What we didn't count on was the fact that the couple detested each other (news to us) and bickerd and gave each other the silent treatment practically our entire holiday. I knew we were in trouble when they started passing messages through us. It went something like this, "Tell her it'll be a cold day in...". Not a day in the park if you know what I mean. I was privy to so much animosity during that trip that my best friend had to promptly end our friendship upon our return to the city. This couple finally did get a divorce and I see my friend from time to time now but things never were quite the same after that.

Another trip that ended a friendship (which was probably already on the rocks) was when I invited a friend and her 2 kids to join me for week in Normandy. I paid for the rental of the house as I knew the owners and assumed my friend would pick up the tab for a few restaurants to even things out. What a huge mistake on my part. It was during this trip that I learned how important it is to be clear about money. My friend never offered to pay for a single thing. No wine, flowers or even the token gift! Things weren't helped by the fact that both of her children whined during the whole trip. All physical activities solicited complaints:  the bikes were too hard to pedal, the water was too cold, the beach was too far from the car. I felt so angry after that vacation that I had to go on another vacation shortly after that  (without them) just to get over it.

Sometimes circumstances are such that I don't actually choose to vacation with others.  My husband's family owns a beach house which all of the family has acess to. So you can well imagine my relunctance to knowingly go to the vacation house when I find out that finally my  sister-in-law will be there with her 3 small children. I actually like her just fine, but the idea of all the "unknowns" sends me into  waves of panic.

I am happy to report that after 6 days with my in-laws relationships are still intact. Maybe it was because the kids got along so well, or her fine cooking that forced me to loosen my belt, but I actually enjoyed her company. We share similar outlooks on childrearing and she's well travelled and tells some pretty good stories. Okay-okay, I don't really get her whole system of 20 bowls of  leftovers in the fridge or all the food she kept stocked away in the pantry. But who really cares? People are different, somewhat neurotic and when they make  decisions about things they are not thinking, "Will this make Nikki happy?" No, they are thinking about themselves and rightly so! Accepting people for who they are, reveling in the things you have in common  and accepting the differences creates the rich tapestry of human relations. I figure it's the best philosphy I can have at this point in life, after all what's  the other choice? I guess I could just go off by myself somewhere but then who would I complain about?

It's Only Once a Year

During one of my recent telephone chats with a  friend I mentioned that I was drinking a glass of eggnog (Borden's no less), and she gasped, "I never touch the stuff. It's so fattening!". I replied, "It's only once a year.". She continued, "True, but it goes right to my hips.".   I started thinking about my friend and her slim form and wondered how she has always maintained her weight. It could be due to the fact that she eats like a bird-her idea of a binge is a cookie-Yes one cookie! I tend to play yo-yo with my weight moving from holiday to holiday-indulging in all my seasonal favorites and depriving myself in-between. Let's see, there's foie gras, pecan pie and let's not forget Mexican wedding cookies at Christmas (oh yea, can't leave out the eggnog and the ice cream cake). Moving into January we have the Galette des Rois which my family and I eat throughout the month, it is a French tradition after all!  Next comes Easter with all those marshmallow bunnies known sweetly as "Peeps" that have that sugary coating that can make you sick real quick. Easter also includes chocolate...how many praline eggs can you eat in one sitting?

June and July bring us the warm weather and with it-barbecue. Living as an ex-pat in France pushes me to stay in touch with my Southern roots and besides, who ever heard a heaping plate of pulled pork that wasn't accompanied by some potato salad, cornbread and a glass of sweet tea? Last summer I made homemade ice cream non-stop. I was trying to do the Julie-Julia thing with David Leibowitz's Ice Cream cookbook and I had great fun. In September I took on figs and made so many fig dishes that my husband begged me not to serve them again. October is Halloween, which means those delicious candy corns are hanging around the house and as cold weather appears -stews and sauces are in - fruit and salads are out.

After thinking hard about all of this I realized that Only once a Year perhaps merited a little reflection. I recently read a very funny book called, "Somebody Will Be With You Shortly" by Lisa Kogan. This autobiography  is a real hoot and the author spouts some rather astute observations about life in general. Here's a little excerpt, "I have spent the best years of my life growing out bangs, searching for a good bra and wishing I were skinny. (Here's a tip for anybody who's looking to drop a few pounds: Wishing doesn't do it.)".

How true! If I really want to reclaim the body that I had 10 years ago (like Regine Dukan invites me to do regularly on e-mail) then wishing it just isn't going to cut it. Could I really practice moderation and have just one chip, one cookie,  one bite?  I doubt it,  but maybe I could up my exercise to counter my overindulgences. The health advisor for the Oprah Winfrey magazine says that we need to do at least 30 minutes of exercise everyday no matter what. That means if there's a snowstorm I still have to get out there and walk. The article also included any major catastrophe such as hurricane, earthquake etc...Are they kidding me? Why in October I was already backing off from my regular running routine as soon as the first brisk breeze hit me. Other excuses have included: Consoling a friend who was having marital problems, dusting, talking on the phone, reading, and there's also the time my ipod was on the blink...who can walk without music? As lame as these excuses sound,  the truth is ...I really don't like to exercise! The water is always too cold at the pool, my legs hurt every time I do those leg crunches and eating and  drinking coffee and chatting with my friends is so much more fun!  I mean it's the whole breaking bread with others thing (or not but breaking bread anyway!).

I do have to admit, however, that I ALWAYS feel better when I do it.You know what this is leading up don't you? Yes indeed those inevitable New Year's resolutions. While reaching the height of my spiritual growth and writing that book I've been meaning to get around to will not make the list this year- I do intend to get  my body out of  bed on a regular basis, leave my current book and computer behind,  and gear up for my thrice weekly run (ok, jog/walk). I will try not to buy the chips, candy and other temptations that I simply cannot resist, and I will do  this without regret. As I was walking into the local store this morning I said to myself, Nikki, you can grow older gracefully, with humour and try your best to be beautiful -or you can grow old with regret for the past (when I had more elasticity). Quite frankly I'd be a fool if I didn't go for the former.

As time goes by, we let go of some dreams along the way, I know that I will never play the guitar despite the book (Play Guitar in 10 Easy Lessons) and guitar in my attic.  But our bodies are the one thing we can never let fall by the wayside. In an effort to maintain mine  I decided to take up tennis 2 years ago and learned that I can still be passionate about something besides a potato chip. Self-image is crucial and I finally feel good in my skin. In this new year I shall choose to feel good about myself despite my weight or wrinkles. As Forest Gump's Mama always says, "Pretty is is pretty does." so I shall just do Pretty as well as I can! Happy New Year!

P.S. Check out the picture...it's my first homemade Galette des Rois!

"

Ding Dong

Ding Dong merrily on ...sigh, my ears are gently ringing. Ding Dong merrily on...sigh-my son  has just stopped screaming.
Gloria....Gloria...Gloria...

Only once a year-lots of build up but gone in a flash! Is it worth all the worry, stress, pondering, time and trips to the store? You bet.

Who would have known that my husband's favorite gift would be the alarm clock/gadget that changes colors and has nature sounds? I'm no fool-I knew as soon as I saw the instruction booklet that his beautiful leather briefcase would be stowed away in a corner whilst he perused the pages of the mystery clock which I will surely never be able to figure out. This is truly one of those "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" situations.

Merry, Merry, Merry Christmas....la, la, la, la, la, la,

I had a fight with a hanger and why it's my husbands fault

They say you have to pick your battles and out there in the real world I do okay with that. In general, I can let the things slide, not react to provocation and coast along pretty well with the bumps and grinds that life swings my way. At home it is another story...When I'm all alone (that's me, my personal jury which has an opinion about everything, and let's not forget my inner demons willing to jump at the chance to remind me that life is in fact, tortuous). Yesterday, I chose to wrestle with a coat hanger situated within my tangled web of a closet where everything I EVER want to wear is inaccessible to me. How could that be? Well- that is a good question to ask my 6ft4 husband who installs every cupboard, cabinet or shelf at least 6 inches too high for me to reach...Yes, I am thankful that he at least assembles the occasional purchase, but how is it that there are always leftover screws and a drawer that won't quite pull out without some serious muscle?

Once his mission is accomplished and the aforementioned cupboard/cabinet is put together he gives me very specific instructions which always imply that I'm a brute and break everything in the house. Now I am sorry but appliances can only live so long, especially the ones bought with my fidelity points at the grocery store and that were made in Russia! I remember the time we got a phone that way, it worked perfectly fine as long as you didn't need to telephone anyone whose number had a 9 in it!

Ironically despite the fact that every time I ask him to repair something he reminds me that he is a lawyer and not McGyver, he refuses to let me call a professional. As things stand now, the toilet is NOT running constantly but my dear hubby patrols the bathroom door checking everyone's flushing technique. Here's how he explains it:  "A gentle and quick tap on the button, but whatever you do-Don't hold it for longer than 30 seconds or the damn may flood!".

I should just be grateful for the crooked bookshelf and the extra exercise I get going to get a stool every time I need a dish or a dress-at least I don't have to do it...