Fresh French Inspired Lunch!!

Do you find that sometimes our winter food ends up being a bit stodgy? Or full of very strong flavours? Don't get me wrong ... I don't mind some stick-to-your-ribs stews and soups that have lovely deep flavours ... but sometimes in the middle of winter I kind of go into denial ... you KNOW how much I LOVE winter ... NOT!!! :0) ... and I want something a bit ... FRESH ... ZINGY ... LIGHT ... something that brings to mind sunshine and picnics and ... OK ... so I'm getting a little delusional now ... winter is getting to me! :0)

So ... today I decided to do a little bit of kitchen experimenting ... play with some flavours. And I was feeling a little FRENCH inspired. (Do you ever wonder what style of decorating French people aspire to? Or what inspires French people's cooking?? I do! But I digress! :0) ) Step one was to dig this out of the cupboard ...

When I think of French flavours, I think of olives, cheese, fresh herbs ... and yummy bread. So I decided ...

... to combine all three elements! :0) I got the ol' breadmaker whizzing with a wholemeal sourdough mix ... YUMMY! Then added some grated cheese and chopped olives ... DOUBLE YUMMY!! :0)

OK ... bread on. Hmmm ... who can I share this yummy bread with? I decided to "phone a friend". Just one problem ... the friend's tummy hasn't been enjoying bead. Uh! Oh! Thinking cap on ... I decided to experiment some more with a nice, light chicken soup. So I chopped up some onions, finely diced some chicken breast, bashed and crushed some garlic (makes me sound violent!!) and tossed them all in to get cooking. I then added some chicken stock. Hmmm ... good start ... but it needed "something".

Out to the garden I headed to harvest some fresh parsley and rosemary and pick a lemon off my overloaded little lemon tree. Finely chop the herbs, grate in the lemon rind, squeeze in the juice ... We're really cooking now! :0) My kitchen smelled HEAVENLY!! Although ... I forgot to take photos - too busy dreaming of promenading along the River Seine or gazing at the Eiffel Tower. :0) But after the bread machine beeped, the soup had bubbled away for a while, been lightly 'whizzed' with the barmix and my lovely stitching buddy, the Fabulous Fiona, arrived ... we were ready for a French-inspired lunch ...

Both experimental dishes were a SUCCESS!! The bread wasn't too heavy and had just a hint of cheese and little chunks of olive adding to the sourdough flavour. The soup was fresh and herb-y with a lemon-y zing to it. I REALLY liked the lemon flavour! :0) I can see that I will be making both of these French-inspired treats again. Maybe they will help me enjoy winter a bit more ... Hmmmm ... probably NOT! :0)

Thanks for coming for a spontaneous lunch/stitching playdate, Fiona and sharing my experimental soup! Always fun to hang out stitching and chatting with you! :0)

Do you experiment with different flavours in your kitchen? Are you inspired by the flavours that remind you of a special place? I'd love to hear if you have some more not-too-stodgy winter recipes to help me make it til spring. :0)

I'm linking up with the Sweetly Shabbilicious Kerryanne over at Shabby Art Boutique for ...

Pop over to give Kerryanne a big Bear Hug and peek at some other people who are being inspired by all things French, shabby and vintage ... make a cuppa first, cos you might be there a while ... there's a LOT to see! :0)

Hope the end of your week is about to herald a relaxing weekend for you. I'm playing catch up after last weekend's road trip and HOPEFULLY doing some stitching. Til next time ...

AU REVOIR!!

CHEERS!
KRIS