BUSY, BUSY.

I have been really busy since my last post and much of it, one way or another has involved baking.

My friend Rachel asked me if I could make a birthday cake for her granddaughter's fourth birthday.  I remembered that somewhere amongst all my cook books was one which included several designs for children's birthday cakes so I sent her some pictures and she chose this one.  The family live in France so a fairy tale French château seemed perfect.

The only problem is that I have never ever made anything like it before!

I did a little mock-up of the design using cake tins I already had and ice cream cones for the turret roofs.

 On the internet I found several pages of similar designs to what I was aiming for.

Luckily Nick was back in the UK for a week and was able to bring back cake decorations and other stuff which I had no idea if I could buy here in France.

I baked the sponges for the cake and between Rachel, myself and Nick (and a few glasses of wine) we decorated it.  It took two whole hours.

The birthday girl was thrilled with it.

A WEEK IN BRITTANY

 

We stayed very much inland most of the time during this last holiday in Brittany, exploring its towns and villages, and discovered that there is much more to Brittany than fishing boats and beaches.

One thing we noticed was that even the smallest of villages will have a huge, elaborately built church.  This one is in the village of Plouaret.

Most of the houses are built from granite and another thing I noticed was that the chimney stacks are formed from the end walls of the building, which means that the fireplaces are at each end of the building.

We saw very few derelict or empty houses wherever we went, far fewer than in the villages and towns around us in Touraine.

We had mixed weather, often dull and rainy, which had the effect of making the grey granite look very dour.  Much of the property didn't look as old as in Touraine and seemed to be very well built and solid.  It was all very neat and tidy.

Houses were often crammed into small spaces with the front door right on the street, built in the days when normal transport was a horse and cart, or maybe a bicycle. 

We ate out as many times as we ate in but never made it to this restaurant.

Next time, perhaps.

The gite was a long distance from anywhere which meant that going out specifically to eat was a major exercise.

BRITTANY

We are on holiday in Brittany, some distance from the coast.  The gite is very rural and remote, down a long single lane grassy track, equipped reasonably well and clean, with excellent wifi, comfortable beds and plenty of hot water.

It’s a very pretty area and not as crowded as the seaside places.  There is more to Brittany than boats and beaches yet none of that is very far away.  It’s rather like how we see our home in the Loire.  We’re away from the touristy places but they’re not too far away if we fancy a day out (with visitors for example).

The other evening we went out for dinner to a restaurant we had spotted earlier in the day.  As we left the house and rounded the first bend our way was blocked just a few feet ahead by an enormous stag.  A fine full grown animal complete with antlers.  He blinked at us as if to say "what are YOU doing here?"  Then after a few moments just leapt through the hedge and disappeared.  Although we are surrounded by forest at home and see deer (and boar) regularly, I’ve never been close enough before to appreciate how big and magnificent they are.

The gite was once a farm and there is a barn full of ancient tractors and machinery jumbled amongst old furniture and other stuff.  It’s a brocanteur's paradise with loads of stuff that would "do up" nicely and fetch a small fortune.

At a brocante a few weeks ago we lashed out 8€ for an electric barbecue with our holiday in mind.  Often the barbecue provided can be rather unappealing so we brought our bargain with us but without high expectations.  It works really well, who would have thought it?!

Today we headed off to the coast, hoping for lunch, and were not disappointed.  We had misgivings as there is a lot of disruption caused by the strikes and protests going on all over France.  We spotted the occasional road block but were otherwise unaffected.

The weather is wet today and with that came a drop in temperature so the restaurant had its fire lit.

Hugo is getting used to accompanying us to lunch or dinner as we don’t like to leave him in the gite by himself.  He's well behaved but easily distracted.  He's learning and so are we.

 Lastly, as other bloggers that I read have reported, my page view count has suddenly gone through the roof.  Presumably due to AI activity of some sort but it’s hard to see how there would be anything to gain from it.  It’s all a mystery to me!

LUNCH IN A BROCANTE

A few weeks ago we went for the first time to a restaurant in Pleumartin.

Everything in there is for sale, including the china, tables and chairs.

A friend tells how she went for lunch and came away with a wardrobe.

It's like eating in an indoor brocante.

I couldn't resist the little dish which is the perfect size for peanuts or nibbles.

I picked it up and put it on our table.

Then I spotted the candlestick which was in the same colours.

The prices were very reasonable.

While I was away from the table browsing the exterior, which is also full of brocante, the little pot that matches the dish appeared mysteriously on our table.

Nobody noticed who put it there but it was probably the owner.

10/10 for salesmanship! 

A PAIR OF PAIRS, A STACK OF PLATES, A MISHAP AND A FREE DISH (old stuff)

One of the things I look for at brocantes and vide greniers (French "flea markets") is mugs. Earlier this year I picked up a really nice mug with a cat design on it for 2€.  When I got it home I looked up the name on the bottom of it, "Rosina Wachtmeister", and discovered a whole new world of cats.  This lady designs striking figurines as well as mugs and delightful calendars, see here.  

Once I discovered how much these mugs usually cost I stopped putting it in the dishwasher, now wash it lovingly by hand, and then found another modestly priced one in a different design online in the UK to make a pair (after all, there are two of us!).  (I may put a calendar on my Christmas wish list!)

I brought the second mug back to France in my well stuffed check-in bag last month.

These two mugs were on sale in a UK charity shop for £1.50 each.  We get a lot of swallows around us in France and enjoy their twittering and gymnastics as they perform for us each evening.  Being surrounded by otherwise unattractive pylons and overhead cables has its advantages for observing the antics of birdlife.  This is now our favourite pair of mugs for our morning cuppa.

I also brought them back to France last month, safely stowed in my overstuffed check-in bag.

These cheese plates were in a box in a UK charity shop for £4.  The box was scruffy but the plates pristine.  I managed to find another set online for a sensible price that also appeared unused and, with no room left in my check-in bag, managed to squeeze both boxes into my "under the seat in front" small cabin bag to bring them back to France. 

A set of eight matching dedicated cheese plates will come in very handy.  Cheese is served before dessert in France and I sometimes find myself having to wash up plates in the middle of a meal if a starter and dessert also need small plates.  Having friends round for lunch or dinner is a total joy but washing up in the middle takes the shine off!

However, my heart sank when I saw my "small bag" being diverted to the inspection lane at the airport.  Last time it was the rhubarb, this time the two boxes of plates which I admit could have looked like land mines on the scanner.  The young woman doing the inspection handled them very tentatively and then clearly thought I was smuggling English Camembert into France until I pointed out that they were boxed sets of cheese plates, not actual cheese.  She gave me one of those withering looks such people reserve for mad passengers.

It reminds me of the stories told by a friend who used to work on the check-in desk at an airport (before the days of fancy scanners) where people used to try to check in live chickens, and gas cookers, amongst other things, on the flights to India.

This mug is without its pair.  I accidentally knocked one out of the cupboard when putting things away.  It bounced twice on the worktop but landed on the tiled floor and was of course doomed.  It’s a shame because it was a favourite pair of mugs from Sainsbury's and they no longer stock the design.  I'm hoping that one day I might spot a replacement in a charity shop somewhere.

This Pyrex dish is a freebie from the "help yourself" table at the local déchèterie (recycling centre, or tip).  It’s in excellent condition and is the perfect size for a clafoutis!

A BIRTHDAY BASH

Yesterday a whole bunch of friends gathered to celebrate a friend's 70th birthday. 

The picnic shelter in a nearby village was transformed to hold the party.

Those who are musically talented performed songs throughout the afternoon.

I did a little sketch entitled "An Ode to Turning Seventy", helped by my two glamorous assistants and a lot of visual aids.

Years of enjoying the work of Victoria Wood and Pam Ayres came in handy for inspiration.

 For more pictures and a review of the event see Jim's post here.

That a tiny village here in the middle of France should have such a great venue available to all for free is amazing but even more so is that we have made such a wonderful number of friends here.

GOING BACKWARDS

Going back to my most recent trip to the UK I met up with my brother at a National Trust property called Calke Abbey at Ticknall in Derbyshire.

 

On acquiring the house in the 1980's National Trust decided not to restore it to how it was in its glory days, but to preserve it in the state of dilapidation in which they found it. 

Its peeling paintwork and dusty objects set it apart from the glamour of other National Trust properties.  They often tend to merge into one after a while - it's hard to remember in which fine stately home a particular piece of fine furniture was seen.

Calke is unforgettable.

I had been before, but not for a long time.

Since then a number of extra rooms have been opened to the public, and some interesting tunnels joining various bits of the house to other parts in the grounds.

 I enjoyed the visit very much.

Apart from the tea rooms which were mainly staffed by young people who didn't seem to have much of a clue.  I also had to get five teacups from the shelf before I found two clean ones.

Which just goes to show, perfection is hard to achieve and you can't have everything!