Un noël à la campagne 1: Marinated herring and litchi cups, and foie gras with mango toasts.

It is a crazy time, the end of the year. Whether winter or summer, it is Christmas, gifts, parties, holidays, celebrations…and food. thank goodness it only happens once a year. I have decided to propose a menu over the following 5 days. A series of posts covering “Un Noël à la campagne“. (And non, it is NOT our Christmas menu.) I’ve chosen light food, a little bit more creamy, warm, cold, great French cheese and a showstopper dessert. But don’t fret. Most of the dishes can be made ahead of time and others without fuss or long processes. I hope it inspires you to play around with ideas of your own. The secret to a Christmas dinner is always… keep it simple and small and DON’T WASTE!

******************************************************

..Apéritif :

..marinated herring and litchi cups and foie gras and mango bites..

..recette..

Pincée de fleur de sel:

• Use any other fish you prefer, even tartare de poisson(raw fish).
• Cut the litchis on the opposite sides of the stem to make for pretty “lids”.
• Use small kiwis instead of litchis and crab meat instead of fish.
• Eat with small demitasse spoons.
• Keep in fridge until served.
• Use ham or other preferred cold meat instead of foie gras.
• When using cold beef, add some mustard between the layers.
• Use other firm slices of fruit in season instead of mango.
• Work on five helpings of each per person to leave room for the rest of the dinner to follow.

******************************************************************************************

Noël window displays in Paris:

On a cold evening last week in Paris, I grabbed mon chéri and my camera at 23:00 to go snap some images of Lafayette and Printemps, famous for their Noël window displays. Here are somze images and just for that child in you, click on the following images to see the displays in action.. These displays always make me giggle with pleasure!

..vitrine Luis Vuiton..

..ball..Dior- Printemps..

..Dior – Printemps..

..my favorite vitrine!..ice skating – Printemps..it reminds me of myself..on the ice, wrong way up and wondering how to camouflage my embarrassment in the most elegant way!

..at the ball – Printemps..

..la Fayette house..

..table exhibits;.

..Lafayette house vitrine

*****************************************************************************

• The menu will continue tomorrow with the amuse bouche: Two salmon and avocado terrine.
• A nice French film for December – Tous les matins du monde with Gèrard Dépardieu ane Anne Brochet. It won the Louis Delluc prize for best film and the César for best music in 1992.
• Some links of the window displays:

à demain

Ronelle