Easy and Delicious

I promised something a little more cheerful today, didn't I?
I've been thinking back to my time in Nice last summer and one of the strongest memories is of the food (isn't that always the way?)

They do great things with tuna and olives in the South of France, so here is something simple and delicious.

Tuna Tapenade
1 clove garlic
one can tuna in olive oil

3 large garlicky green olives sliced and pits removed

2 Ts lemon juice

2 Ts olive oil

1 pinch thyme (or leaves of fresh thyme)

ground black pepper

drop garlic into food processor to mince. Add tuna etc and pulse until its a spread. Great as a heavy dip with strong crackers or with a fresh baguette.

Quiche me, my darling

Today I'm sharing my recipe for a perfect Sunday brunch, using the pate brisee recipe from yesterday. My husband is of the "real men don't eat quiche"  variety but he adores asparagus. In fact he'd eat them every night if I let him. So I serve this asparagus quiche and he doesn't complain!

You'll need one recipe of the pate brisee
1 pound asparagus washed and trimmed
1 tablespoon butter
1 medium onion peeled and diced
3 jumbo eggs
half cup heavy cream
three quarters cup swiss cheese.
salt and pepper to season.

First cook the pie shell blind  (baked with sheet of foil then filled with rice or dried beans)
cook asparagus in boiling water for 2 minutes. remove and pat dry.
saute onion in butter. When transparent add asparagus and continue sauteing until asparagus are soft to a prod from a fork.
In mixing bowl whisk eggs, cream and half cup grated cheese. Add asparagus mixture then pour into pie shell. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Place on cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees until golden brown and puffy (about 40 mins)
You could also substitute a frozen pie crust to speed things up, but it won't be as good!
I also add crumbled bacon to this sometimes. Any other suggestions?

This is Day 9 of my month of French fun... my countdown to Naughty in Nice on Sept 6th.
Add your comments for a chance to win a fun French prize!

A Divine French Recipe

My month of French treats, day 5, leading up to the publication of Naughty in Nice on Sept 6th.

Havings started to write about French food yesterday, I had a brilliant idea. I'm actually going to cook and eat French food every day until Sept 6th. And I'm starting with something basic to go with crusty baguettes. It's called Aioli and it's a basic garlic mayonnaise and will keep in the refridgerator.

8 garlic cloves, peeled

2 egg yoks
Juice of 1 lemon
1 cup olive oil
half cap safflower oil
salt and black pepper

Food procesessor with metal blade.

With machine on, drop garlic cloves down the tube until minced. Remove the lid and add egg yolks and lemon juice. Process until smooth.

With machine running pour in the oils in a slow and steady stream. Season to taste. Will keep for about a week. Do not freeze.

Do you have a favorite French recipe you'd like to share? For me they have to be simple. I'm never going to plunge sweetbreads into ice water and then remove the membrane. Ain't gonna happen.