My mother's salted citrus fruits salad ! (la salade d'agrumes de ma mère)

My mother is the fastest cook in the World.

Yep.

No one open a can as fast as her !

She's also the most inventive cook I know.

Who could imagine to cook a steak using micro wave ?

Only my mom ! Thanks God.

She is a very attentive cook.

When she find a recipe we all loved, she uses to cook it almost everyday ! This way, it took me several months before I accepted to watch Disney's cartoon "Ratatouille", thanks to the 256 765 432 ratatouilles my mother cooked and obligated us to eat, for one short and endless (on the same time) year.

And most of all, she can recreate traditional and long recipes with frozen products in a few minutes.

And they are good.

Let me introduce you my Mother's salted citrus fruits salad. The fastest salad in the world, which can be called the Speedy Gonzales Salad !

Herrrrrrrrre what you'll need, friends :

• 1 cucumber 
• 700 grams of frozen oranges and pink grapefruits
• 2 tablespoon of honey
• 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoon f olive oil 
• Salt and pepper.

Of course, if you don't have frozen fruits, I suppose you can use fresh too. But don't forget my mother's mantra :"I'm not born to be a cleaning lady or a cook !".

Step 1 : 

Let your fruits defrost in a large bowl. Their water will help for the juice. Then cut your cucumber in small pieces. Or large. As you want, no problem.

Step 2 :

Pour honey, oil and vinegar. To be more practical, use oil before honey. This way, honey won't stick in your spoon. Yeah baby ! So much ideas in such a small brain !

Step 3 :

Salt and pepper and leave to rest for one 30 minutes or more. It will give a kind of juicy soup, so refreshing and tasty.

Believe me, in this heat period, it's so good !

Ten times better than a steak in a micro-wave (sorry, mum).

Recapitulative :

• 1 cucumber 
• 700 grams of frozen oranges and pink grapefruits
• 2 tablespoon of honey
• 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoon f olive oil 
• Salt and pepper.

Let your fruits defrost in a large bowl. Then cut your cucumber in small pieces. 

Pour honey, oil and vinegar. 

Salt and pepper and leave to rest for one 30 minutes or more. 

Scrambled eggs and tomatos (brouillade à la tomate)

Eggs, tomato... Some wedding are assured to work well.

I'm sharing with you today a traditional provencal recipe : Scrambled eggs and tomato, known in French as "Brouillade à la tomate".

Here what you'll need for 4 small eaters :

• 2 eggs per person
• 2 tomatoes per person
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 100 grams of grated cheese as gruyère
• 1 slice of sandwich bread.
• 1 tablespoon of thyme
• 1 cup of olive oil ... I know, it seems to be a lot ... It's not.

Step 1 :

Cut your tomatoes in small pieces. At this point, if you've got time and patience, blanch them. It will help you to take off their peel and it will be better.

Step 2 : 

Make brown those tomatoes into olive oil, on a medium fire, until their water has almost disappear. 

Step 3 :

In the meantime, whisk eggs and cheese. Add salt and pepper, of course.

Step 4 : 

After 10-15 minutes, add exploded garlic and thyme. 

And your sandwich bread. It will help to absorb liquid surplus.

Step 5 :

After some minutes, pour eggs beaten and cook it as for scrambled eggs.

Step 6 :

This is when you'll be at this point that you'll regret to be as me, a damned lazy person !

If you blanched tomatoes, you're just perfect. 

If not, as I did, I recommend you to take off all the #@&/!! tiny pieces of peel with a cooking pliers without killing anybody around you.

After some others minutes, that's ready.

A very perfumed and tasty and simple dish :)

Recapitulative for 4 small eaters :

• 2 eggs per person
• 2 tomatoes per person
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 100 grams of grated cheese as gruyère
• 1 slice of sandwich bread.
• 1 tablespoon of thyme
• 1 cup of olive oil ... I know ...

Cut your tomatoes in small pieces. You can blanch them. 

Make brown those tomatoes into olive oil, on a medium fire, until their water has ALMOST disappear. 

In the meantime, whisk eggs and cheese. Add salt and pepper, of course. 

After 10-15 minutes, add exploded garlic and thyme and your sandwich bread. 

After some minutes, pour eggs beaten and cook it as for scrambled eggs.

Feta and eggplant salted pie (tarte à l'aubergine et à la feta)

I hear you : Once gain a pie ? Yes, but believe me when I say this pie is unbelievably simple and excellent.

Eggplants are good, ok, but for me and my gnomes, they don't replace french fries or pizza or pasta.

That's said.

And most of all, I had the feeling I made all the kind of recipes possible with them.

I was wrong.

Now, when I'll think "eggplant", I'll think to this pie.

No, it's untrue. I'll think to my friend's fabulous Eggplants alla Parmegiana.

Because they were exceptional. But they require time and patience and enough money to bribe your children, to make them clean the kitchen after.

This pie is perfect for fast meal. You don't have time to lose and eggplants in your fridge ? Do this. Please.

Here what you'll need :

• 2 eggplants or 1 enormous, but enOOrmous.
• 2 eggs
• 200 grams of feta (sheep's cheese)
• 3 tablespoon of milk
• 1 pie crust
• Some basil

Your oven must be preheated at 180°C (350°F / th 6)

Step 1 : 

Cut eggplants in small pieces and make them cook for 15 minutes in olive oil (A lot. We know Eggplants drink olive oil as E.A Poe drunk alcohol ... But they are less inventive, I admit) on a low fire. They must be tender. 

Step 2 : 

During this time, whisk eggs and incorporate cheese and basil cut too.

Step 3 : 

Then add milk. 

Step 4 : 

When your eggplants are cooked ...

... pour them into the unrolled pie and cover with the eggs/cheese preparation. 

Let it cook for 30-40 minutes. That's it. 

Recapitulative : 

• 2 small eggplants or 1 enormous
• 2 eggs
• 200 grams of feta (sheep's cheese)
• 3 tablespoon of milk
• 1 pie crust
• Some basil

Your oven must be preheated at 180°C (350°F / th 6)

Cut eggplants in small pieces and make them cook for 15 minutes in olive oil, on a low fire. They must be tender. 

During this time, whisk eggs and incorporate cheese and basil cut too.

Then add milk. 

When your eggplants are cooked, pour them into the unrolled pie and cover with the eggs/cheese preparation. 

Let it cook for 30-40 minutes. 

Red onions pie from my cupboard (tarte à l'oignon rouge, sortie de mon placard).

One day, I'll post the pissaladière recipe. It's a very traditional provencal onion pie.

Today, I'm going to share with you a fast onion pie recipe. Very easy.

Here what you'll need :

• 5 big red onions
• 1 pastry pie
• Some unsalted butter
• Some olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of herbs de Provence
• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• And some black olives.

Preheat your oven at 180°C (350°F / Th6)

Step 1 : 

Cut your onion (and cry ...sometimes, it helps !) in slices and pour them into butter and oliver oil. 

Step 2 : 

Add sugar and let them brown for 10 minutes, until they become translucent. 

Step 3 :

Unroll your pastry and pour onions into. Then, sprinkle herbs and arrange some olives. 

In the oven for 20 minutes. Bon  appétit, my friends ! 

Recapitulative : 

• 5 big red onions
• 1 pastry pie
• Some unsalted butter
• Some olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of herbs de Provence
• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• And some black olives.

Preheat your oven at 180°C (350°F / Th6)

Cut your onion in slices and pour them into butter and oliver oil. 

Add sugar and let them brown for 10 minutes, until they become translucent. 

Unroll your pastry and pour onions into. Then, sprinkle herbs and arrange some olives. 

In the oven for 20 minutes. 

Famous Carlton's dance ! Enjoy !

Thank you, Donna, to remind me Carlton and his famous way of dancing !

OH my God, how much I loved this television series ! For me, maybe the best one of this period, with Cosby show.

Alfonso Ribeiro is just Magic ! I did not know he was the child, dancing with Michael Jackson on Pepsi' advertiser ! 

I'm sure I've been Black in a previous life !

PS : just in case ... WILL (SMITH), if you read this blog one day, my sister and I are crazy about you ! You're a Legend ! :)

14th of july, National French Day.

In France, law is very strict regarding image rights.

We're not allowed to show face's persons without their authorization. And this is even more strict with children.

That's one of the reason we're destabilized with Facebook, for example.

My best friend ex-wife posted one day, a pic of me on her Facebook profile without my authorization.

She was very proud to show me in her "best friends".

This picture was took in summer, at her home, close to the swimming pool. I was in swimsuit, without any make up on my face, I did my hairs as Robert Smith and totally unready to be photographed !

To be honest, I suppose if I looked like Monica Bellucci on this pic, maybe, I wouldn't have been so upset !

BUT I WAS NOT ! Believe me.

She did not understand why I was so angry. I told her she should ask me before. And it made me realise that our image is not aboslutly ours, in this communication world.

Today, your children or yourself play with others, took pics or movies and send it all over the world. Your image do not belong to you anymore.

How many examples do we know now with young people drunk or nudes or filmed by "friends" and totally humiliated thank to internet.

So, it's true, frenchmen are a little bit paranoiac with their images and the ones of their children.

We're an old people.

All this speech, to let you know I took a lot of beautiful portraits, during this 14th of july. Then I realized  I couldn't post them on my blog.

So I'm just going to post pictures where people are in landscape, in crowd on onlookers or not recognizable. Some faces have been hided.

I hope you'll like ambient pictures the same and understand why I do this.

Beginning by the beach. People use to come to eat here, waiting for fireworks.

Baby-foot is really popular in France. During my high school diploma's year, I became a real Champion at this game.

"I'm going to see if water is cold...

- Yeah ! ... And tell me if she is salted !

- ... I won't even waste my saliva to reply !"

French fries and french saucisson sandwich... The best meal for them.

This is a dog's sample. If you like it, after, you can have a real one.

Let leave the beach and go to city.

During the two month of summer, each evening, until one in the morning, there's a night market, where people come to sell what they make by themselves. Well, they are supposed to make. Some are honest. Others less ...

The Potter ( And I finally understood what meant "Harry POTTER").

This man is incredibly famous and talented. He comes back each year and he's a show all by himself. People stop to watch him for long minutes. My children can't even imagine to come to the market without going to visit him.

To make the difference with sellers who don't really make their products, some build them in front of visitors.

I can post a picture of this guy because he's an artist and he knows people will photograph him.

Do you want a piece of pizza ?

I can post a picture of those two young men because they wanted to !

"Hey, madame ! Here we are, two real young Sanary's teen !"

"Mum, take a picture of our ice cream !

- But you already ate them !

- Exactly ! Be fast !"

Night is coming ...

Crowd is coming on the pier to watch fireworks.

"Baby, you're a fiiiiiiiiirework ! Come on, show 'em what yoooooou're worth !..."

People is going to dance to the end of the night, baby !

Have a nice day, friends !