Pommes Darphin: The Crispy Potato Masterpiece
Versatile and elegant, Pommes Darphin pairs beautifully as a side to a hearty roast or shines on its own when served with smoked ham and a fresh green salad. Its irresistibly crunchy exterior and velvety interior make it a celebration of simplicity at its finest.
A Perfect Late Winter Salad
I love shaved fennel and orange salad. It is the perfect late winter salad that your whole family will love. It combines the perfect crunch of raw fennel with a citrusy sweetness. One of the best qualities is that it is highly adaptable to whatever you have on hand. You can make it solely with oranges or add grapefruit, satsumas, tangerines, or whatever other citrus fruit you like. You can add cheese, olives, onions, nuts, and a host of other ingredients depending upon what you have on hand.
Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
Mediterranean Chickpea Salad is incredibly easy to make at home. I was craving vegetables when I photographed this version so I made it with a higher ratio of vegetables to chickpeas. Despite the recipe given below, it is best to follow your own passions and add whatever you like. Use my recipe solely as a springboard to your own creation.
Lolo’s Olive Bread
A few years ago our family visited my cousins Andre and Lolo at their beautiful home in Southern France. The highlight of the visit was when my cousin Lolo made her famous olive bread. It was the best olive bread I had ever eaten. This kind of olive bread is also called cake salé, or savory cakes. Think of a savory coffee cake.
A Zucchini Omelet Perfect for Lunch
Trouchia is a flat omelet similar to frittatas that your family will never tire of; especially when your garden is producing more zucchini than you can eat.
Provençale Tomato Tart
The best thing about tomato tarts is they are very forgiving and can be modified easily based on what you have on hand. I have baked this tart with slices of tangy goat cheese or even shredded gruyere cheese sprinkled over. Or even pulled the hot tart out of my oven and dropped a ball of creamy burrata right on top.
How To Make Fresh Green Pasta
The beauty of this dough is its versatility; you can shape it into small balls and cook like gnocchi, or roll it out into pasta sheets and make ravioli, cannelloni, or strands of pasta. If you don’t have ramp greens substitute more baby spinach. I like to serve the pasta alongside roasted chickens and stews as much as eaten by itself simply tossed in butter, salt, and grated parmesan.
Salade Lyonnaise with a Hot Bacon Dressing
Salade Lyonnaise is a classic bistro salad where either frisee (curly endive) or dandelion greens are tossed in a hot bacon dressing and topped with poached eggs and croutons. It originated in the city of Lyon, long considered the belly of France. You will find this salad on virtually every bistro in France. The good news is It is simple to make.
Easy Quiche Lorraine
Quiche Lorraine is perhaps the most famous of all quiches. Purists will tell you that only bacon, cream, and eggs are allowed. Though it is common to find other ingredients like Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, and even chives. The original quiche Lorraine may not include cheese, but I won’t tell anyone if you decide to add one cup of shredded Gruyere to the mix.
The Best Moules Marinières: Mussels Sailor Style
Learn how to make steamed mussels the French way. The best moules marinières or 'sailor-style mussels' ever. The mussels are simply steamed in white wine and herbs. From start to finish, moules marinières will take no longer than 10 to 15 minutes to prepare.
Artichoke Tart
A lot of people want to buy artichokes and don't know what to make with them. Today I want to show you the best way to eat and prepare artichokes. Learn how to make a simple Provencal artichoke and goat cheese tarte tatin.
Michel Guerard’s Lentil Salad
One of the great benefits of the last year has been to rediscover cookbooks I had forgotten about. Lately, I have been diving deep into Michel Guerard's classic Cuisine Gourmande. Two dishes I have made lately have been his Pot au Feu that he made famous in his 1960s Parisian restaurant also called 'Pot au Feu'. The second dish is this incredibly simple and delicious Lentil Salad with Anchoïade Croutons.
Roasted Red Peppers
A really simple dish that has all the classic flavors of Provence hidden in the layers. Roasted red peppers stuffed with creamy goat cheese and basil and topped with an anchoïade sauce. This makes a great meal served with nothing more than a big green salad and a glass of rose wine. Anchoiade is an interesting Provencal sauce. French people will revel at its wonderful briny flavors while most Americans recoil in terror at the mere mention of anchovies. I promise you will love this sauce.
How to Make Socca - Chickpea Flatbread
Socca is the ubiquitous street food found all over southeastern France, most notably in Nice and more specifically around the Cours Saleya market. When cooked perfectly, it is best straight from the pan and served very hot, replete with addictively crispy edges and lightly seasoned with flake sea salt, a touch of cumin, and perhaps a drizzle of olive oil. It makes the perfect merenda, or midday snack, with a bottle of rosé (who drinks just one glass?) to keep you active while searching for treasures in the narrow streets of Vieux Nice.