4 ounces Black mustard seeds
¾ cup Full bodied red wine
¾ cup Red wine vinegar
1 Shallot, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Thyme, marjoram, tarragon chopped to taste
Combine all the ingredients in a stainless-steel bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
Purée the mixture in a blender until it attains the desired thickness and texture. Store in the refrigerator in a jar with a tight-fitting lid.
On Self-Care:
“A few short years of twee self-care tips has convinced mentally-well people everywhere that depression is something you can just wash off in a bubble bath.
Tip: if a mentally ill person is talking about self-care, they probably mean brushing their teeth or making a sandwich. In my experience and from the stories of others, self-care is rarely a candlelit bubble bath with luxurious pampering.
If YOU personally are mentally ill and bubble baths help YOU, I’m not saying that YOU are doing it wrong. My complaint is that people who aren’t mentally ill believe “take a bubble bath!” is the cure for mental illness.
Part of the problem is that a lot of us who are mentally ill do not have the energy or the voice to write seventy thinkpieces a week about yoga and bubblebaths that “allies” do.
If a bubblebath is your mental health self-care, there’s nothing wrong with that and I’ve yet to say that there is. My issue is with the perception that self-care is always some sumptuous, instagram-worthy moment of beautifully staged decadence.”
~ Jenny Trout, Author
#MentalHealth #SelfCare #EndStigma
Steak-frites – It is considered by some to be the national dish of France. Historically, the rump steak was commonly used for this dish. More typically at the present time, the steak is an entrecôte also called rib eye, pan-fried rare (“saignant” – literally “bloody”), in a pan reduction sauce, although hollandaise or béarnaise sauce are not uncommon, served with deep-fried potatoes.
#SteakFrites #FrenchCooking
Did you know:
Did you know that the beloved character Paddington Bear was inspired by Jewish children who escaped the Holocaust on the Kindertransport? Creator Michael Bond (1926-2017) was motivated by his memories of children arriving at London’s Reading station during WWII. These young refugees each carried a small suitcase and wore labels around their necks to identify them. It’s no coincidence that in the book, the little bear is found sitting on his suitcase in Paddington Station in London with a note around his neck that reads, “Please take care of this bear. Thank you.” He is discovered and adopted by the Brown family, thus the name Paddington Bear. In the story, Paddington’s best friend is Mr. Samuel Gruber, an elderly Jew from Hungary who escaped the Nazis. ❤️
Photo: Geoff Pugh
Source: American Society for Yad Vashem
#PaddingtonBear #Kindertransport
Le Mont Saint Michel
The island has held strategic fortifications since ancient times and since the 8th century AD has been the seat of the monastery from which it draws its name. The structural composition of the town exemplifies the feudal society that constructed it: on top, God, the abbey and monastery; below, the great halls; then stores and housing; and at the bottom, outside the walls, houses for fishermen and farmers.
#France #Francophile #ViveLaFrance
Herbes de Provence
6 dried bay leaves, crumbled
2 tablespoons dried rosemary leaves
2 tablespoons dried thyme leaves
2 tablespoons dried oregano leaves
2 teaspoons crumbled dried lavender buds
In a small bowl, combine the bay, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and lavender and mix well. Transfer to a tightly capped jar or other airtight container and store in a cool, dark place. Use the blend within 3 to 4 months.
To use, pulverize the herbs in a mortar with a pestle, if you prefer a coarser texture, or in a spice grinder for a finely textured blend.
Garlic Olive Oil
4 cups pure olive oil
¾ cup garlic cloves, peeled
Pour the oil into a medium saucepan and add the garlic cloves. Place on the stove over medium heat. Bring up to 325°F on a candy or frying thermometer and then decrease the heat to low. Let simmer for 30 to 45 minutes. Remove from the heat, cool, strain through a fine-mesh sieve, and then put the oil into bottles for use.
1 cup peeled garlic cloves (45 cloves or so)
About 2 cups canola oil
Cut off and discard the root ends of the garlic cloves. Add the cloves to a small saucepan and add enough oil to cover them by about 1 inch.
Place the saucepan over medium-low heat. The cloves should cook gently: small bubbles will come up through the oil, but the bubbles should not break the surface. Adjust the heat as necessary and move the pan to one side if it is cooking too quickly. Cook the garlic for about 40 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so, until the cloves are completely tender. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the garlic to cool in the oil.
Refrigerate the garlic, submerged in the oil, for up to a month.
Anchovies are one of the most misunderstood ingredients out there. People literally fear these little morsels. They are vital though for a traditional Caesar Salad and they have a multitude of other uses besides being a despised pizza topping. This butter is a great accomplishment on a steak, chicken, tossed in pasta and even on some strong flavored fish such as salmon. You can soak the anchovies in white wine or milk to reduce the saltiness if desired
1 1.75-oz tin of anchovy fillets
1 Pound of butter, softened
2 shallots, finely chopped
½ cup chopped flat leaf parsley
½ cup pimentos, diced
In the bowl of a food processor with a steel blade, place all ingredients. Pulse until ingredients are uniformly distributed throughout the butter.
Lay a 16-in length of waxed paper on a clean work surface. Place all the anchovy butter ⅓ of the way up the paper. Fold the end nearest you up over the butter and roll to form a uniform 2 inch cylinder. Tightly wrap ends. Wrap again with plastic wrap and place in freezer.
Cut 1/2 inch off the cylinder and place on your grilled medium-rare steak or other uses.
French Fun Facts:
~ French Fun Fact: There is only one stop sign in the entire city of Paris
~ French Fun Fact II: French President Charles de Gaulle is included in the Guinness Book of World Records as surviving more assassination attempts—32—than anyone in the world.
~ French Fun Fact III: France was the first modern country to legalize same-sex sexual activity in 1791.
~ French Fun Fact IV: In France, you can legally marry a deceased person, although the process is complicated.
~ French Fun Fact V: The Durex Global Sex Study showed that the French are the people who have the most sex in a year.
Mark Bere Peterson’s Counterculture, Urban Legends, Paganism & Witchcraft 