Summer sundowners

Just wanted to share with you a couple of snaps from a dinner we hosted in the garden the other day... I love the rustic look and adored using the hay bales and tree stumps as stools and benches.

The evening actually ended up being a great deal larger than planned as the neighbors heard the music and all came up to join us :)

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Pumpkin Update

This my friends is my second child!!! I love her as if she were my own... This is my champion pumpkin! 

Last year my mother and I had a competition to see who could win biggest pumpkin, I won but only because mum didn't get any... last years was a pathetic orange sized thing...

This year however I am on a roll!! Sadly out of six plants this is the only one which has fruited but non the less it has a fruit so I am doing everything in my power to make it a record breaker... (family anyway)

Vervain Tea

As a very big tea drinker, nothing makes me more happy than to be able to sit down with a cuppa and think to myself that I grew all in the cup with my own two hands. 

This week I have been harvesting some of my vervain bush as it has grown massive.

vervain tea has medicinal qualities, it is supposed to help with headaches, protect your liver from toxins and improve digestion. 

Ive air dried my leaves and keep them in an airtight tea container for use throughout the year when fresh are no longer available :)

Fishy BBQ

Last nights dinner was a fishy feast! Its so hot here at the moment and so going out during the daytime is really quite difficult. For that reason goig out in the evening is the only real way to enjoy the sunshine without it being too uncomfortable. 

We have been eating out in the garden every night and last night I was inspired to go for fish. The mackerel recipe I use is one of jamie olives and couldn't be more simple.

• After preparing and cleaning the fish, pat dry with kitchen towel and rub salt into the skin and cavity.
• Then stuff the cavity with fresh rosemary sprigs
• Place into a grill trap and cook over coals for 3 minutes each side

The little fish above are sardines fresh from the market. There is no recipe here just put then into a grilling trap and cook until done... not long at all. My french family then eat them whole but I am a little funny about bones so I try my best to get the tiny fillets off :)

Im a fan of the evening drink and as it was a special occasion as one of my closest friends had use arrived from New Zealand to see me we prepared italian bellinis. There are many versions on how to make this drink ad having travelled so much of Italy and the world, together we decided on how we liked it best

• Skin and mash some white peaches and mix with a little sugar
• add this to the bottom of a glass, about 2cms
• crush ice and fill the glass to the top
• Then fill again with cold prosecco or champagne and garnish with mint

yum :)

Recent happenings

Meet Bird Bean... I awoke the other morning with really loud cheeping in my ear so went to investigate thinking that my other half had left the door open and a bird had flown in... after half an hours search I was dumbfounded... eventually I realized the voice was coming from above me... so up a ladder i went and pulled down a light fitting and there peeking out was this little fellow... So cute... He's taking food well but he's very young so Im doubtful he will live but I will keep you informed :)

Another thing that we have been upto is collecting figs from the garden trees. We have so many this time of year that I never know what to do with them and i hate to think of them going to waste on the tree. Last year I made fig chutney and stores of that are now low so I will be making another batch of that as soon as I find time.

Baby hens have been released out into the garden now... Always a bit of a worrying time of the year as we have had little ones wondering off and not finding their way home. We live on the edge of a big forest and Im sure Mr Fox has been sniffing around even with our dog guarding 

And lastly I thought Id share with you a pic of me and Evie walking up in the mountains last weekend. We are so lucky to live on the coast and an hour from the Alpes. Best of both worlds really :)

Summers begun

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Its starting to really hot up here in Southern France and we are definitely starting to feel the heat. Ive been spending a lot of time at garden centers and to be honest I've managed to buy much more than my garden can handle I think. So when I came home to plant out all the new herbs I had purchased I was a little worried about where to put them. 

So Ive decided to try out something I have seen somewhere, perhaps a magazine or television program. Its a herb garden on my windowsill which is meant to stop mosquitos from coming through the window. I have to say that its been going a couple of weeks now and it really does seem to be working. Ive planted, chives, basil, thyme, sage and parsley 

Dorset Trip

Just wanted to share with you these few photos I took when I went to visit Dorset for a weekend.

It was the first time in my life I had seen first hand beach huts along the English coast and I fell in love. They are ridiculously expensive and considering the weather is always so bad in the UK I can't ever see myself wanting to purchase one but I still think they are really sweet and such a cute English tradition.

Bluebell Meadow