Un noël à la campagne 2: Two-salmon and avocado terrine.

We are at the amuse bouche of our Noël à la campagne menu…a two salmon and avocado terrine with a cream herb sauce. When hosting a dinner for guests or on special occasions like our Christmas dinner, I like to have an amuse bouche, a  little surprise awaiting at the table when my guests seat themselves. We usually enjoy our aperitif somewhere else..outside or in another room, or even around the kitchen table. Then we move to the dining room for the rest of the dinner. It looks very welcoming when guests enter the dining room with candles burning at the table and an amuse bouche  waiting on each plate.. When we are all seated and I leave the table to quickly get my entrée(starter) ready, the guests can enjoy the amuse bouche at their leasure and by the time they are finished, I am ready and there with my starter, without them noticing my absence, since the amuse bouche kept them quite busy! To present such an amuse bouche ready at the table, you will have to keep to something that can be prepared beforehand and can stand a few minutes without melting, drying out, falling over etc.

Une pincée de fleur de sel:

• Keep the amuse bouche small and decorated attractively.
• This salmon terrine can also be served as a starter or as a summer lunch with a salad on the side.
• Replace half of the poached salmon with shrimp meat.
• Add some crushed red pepper berries for a different taste.

Brocante à Bordeaux:

Bordeaux has 2 huge brocantes on the place Quinconce every year…end of autumn and beginning of spring. I missed the spring brocante, but one doesn’t make the same mistake twice! On Saterday morning very early we jumped into our four wheels and took the road to Bordeaux, about two hours drive from us. We arrived in the cold, in the mist, just as les exposants were opening up their stalls. It was still quiet and calm and after our coffee and croissant(of course!!), I shifted my bag properly over my blades, pulled back my shoulders, rubbed my hands together, took a deep breath and advanced with  that first step into this other world where I lose touch with reality and modern life and lose myself completely in the beauty of dust and rust..

Le coq de la France greets the visitor at Place Quinconce. I have a coq like that here at Coin Perdu..he thinks the whole of France belongs to him..attitude, attitude..!

Greeted by mist, but not at all disturbed by it!

Wouldn’t I love to have these drawers for my atelier! I hinted and hinted with puppy eyes lifted to mon chéri, but it is true what they say..no one as deaf as those who don’t want to hear… ah well…

Old postcards make my knees jello too, especially the ones with old towns and streets  life from years back: I imagine seeing myself roaming about, or maybe cycling about…everybody cycled those days..

And of course, chairs – we do need to sit, don’t we. Sitting on chair that tell a story…isn’t that special? I think I might come back for these chairs in spring…will mon chéri fall for these I wonder..?

And a cutie..no, don’t ask me what outomobile this is. I knew, but  forgot again..and mon chéri is in Paris, I can’t ask him…

It just keeps going on…and on…and on…, with something for everyone and every budget..

I also found mon bonheur…..a real trouvaille(bargain)! Mon chéri was happy too…I came home with only 11 small books and I have already finished reading  one!

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• So, while the amuse bouche was enjoyed, the entrée has been siummering away..yes… topinambours and chestnut velouté with wild musqhroom croutôns.
• Another holiday French movie: l’orange de Noël

Alors mes amis…

à demain

Ronelle