In My Kitchen: June 2025

I'm still here friends - turns out I still have the time and energy to revisit my food photos! May saw my return to work and it's been a dive in the deep end - can anyone imagine living in an English speaking country for 30 years, suddenly move to France, learn French and now go to work as an intensive care specialist in French? It's surreal to say the least. Anyway this is IMK not IMW so I'll keep it to my kitchen...  

Goodbye to the Fancy Fridays...

So Fancy Friday was a project I started in November last year after the specialist exams - I needed a project to do! So the last Friday before my return to work we had a special one to say goodbye to this chapter of life.  

Starting with an artichoke... (S and I ate artichokes together on my first visit to France)

Followed by an amazingly fresh wild bar from our local fishman (eye wateringly expensive but oh so good)

Followed by the best of the best strawberries, mara des bois

I wanted to do a fancy baking project for the last Fancy Friday so I made profiteroles according to the Recipetineats recipe 

Another Fancy Friday I found these special fruit called nèfle in French, or pipa in Chinese - there was a pipa tree in my childhood home but I have never eaten them in the West. Tasted just like my childhood..

When in France, one eats pastries...

Berries are in season! So many places are doing incredible berry desserts now and we are blessed to have so many patisseries near us. Here a simple raspberry tart from our local Cyril Lignac patisserie...

Another day another raspberry tart, this one also had a rhubarb flavour with poached rhubarb pieces and a heart of tart rhubarb jelly

This pistachio babka from the French Bastards was the pastry of the month for me - it was incredibly soft with a buttery brioche, the whole thing was green inside and absolutely covered in pistachios. SO good.

Other things in my kitchen...

Most days I have my own sourdough for breakfast but I'm trying to create a new Sunday crêpes tradition, here with lemon and maple syrup 

Barney since his resurrection last month has been going strong 

I love these giant bao, this one a vegetable one from Best Tofu in Belleville (if only I lived closer to there I'd go there every week for fresh tofu).. incidentally also on my favourite plate that I brought back from Australia this time 

We have been trying to stick to meal prep on weekends but occasionally grab something from our favourite frozen supermarket Picard. These beef noodles were actually pretty good flavour-wise and texture-wise amazing for something resurrected from frozen.

I kept on getting recommendations for rice paper spinoffs so here was the ultimate fusion food - a rice paper spanakopita that crunched up beautifully in the oven and actually worked out really well 

The last day of May this year was the dragonboat festival and I was ecstatic to find these traditional glutinous rice dumplings zongzi in Paris

This was an amazing high tea spread that we put on for my friend's baby shower. I made the scones (lemonade scone recipe) but found out that lemonade in France is not quite the same, so they were not as light as hoped, no one noticed anyway. 

Escapade to the seaside...

What a month, I even managed to get away for a short break while S and G away in Italy, it was the first time I had been alone alone since he was born! I went to Trouville-sur-mer, an easy train ride of just over 2 hours from Paris St-Lazare.  

Breakfast of pain au chocolat on the beach 

A classic fish soup at the very busy and popular fish market in Trouville 

The most amazing fresh prawns I've ever had along with the richest creamiest mayonnaise I've ever had

I leave you with a couple of curveballs 

I am so fortunate to be now working at a hospital near a forest. I often pass by there in the morning or at the end of the day for a dose of green recharge. It's incredibly peaceful and the birds help me to find peace amongst all the chaos of life. 

Here is my little monster enjoying his first pork rib. 

May we all tackle life with so much zest!

Thanks to Sherry for hosting as always and have a wonderful May everyone!