Social icons

Words & Le Bon Mot

7.22.2013
Cafe in Arles France
Valbonne Provence France

se souvenir  [suh SOO vuh NEAR] : to remember

The hush of nearby voices, the scent of crisp country air, the warmth of golden light.
Photos take us back... and we remember  {et on se souvient }

***

I'll be away for a short while visiting family on the West Coast of the US. 
Come follow me on Instagram, I'm @catherine_goron... à bientôt (see you soon)


Tarte à la tomate

7.18.2013

One of my favorite summertime dishes is Tarte à la tomate, light French fare commonly prepared as an appetizer or part of a light meal. This recipe is from my husband's family - it's quick, simple and delicious. Bon appétit!

Ingredients:
- pie dough
- Dijon mustard, about 2 Tbsp 
- 3 tomatoes, medium sliced (too thin comes out dry and too thick produces too much juice) 
- Swiss cheese, shredded, about 1 cup
- salt, fresh pepper, herbes de Provence
- basil, chopped
- Fromage de chèvre (goat cheese), sliced - optional 

Prep:
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit
- lightly butter and flour the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate (or simply cover with wax paper)
- lay dough on top of pie dish and poke a few holes on the bottom with a fork 
- spread mustard on the bottom of the dough (a thin uniform layer)
- layer shredded Swiss cheese uniformly on the top of the mustard. Make sure to cover the entire surface of the bottom of your pie.
- layer tomatoes in a single layer, going from the edge inward with a slight overlap 
- season with salt and pepper
- optionally add a few thin slices of fromage de chèvre on top of the tomato bed
- add sprinkling of herbes de Provence and/or fresh basil (I only had frozen basil for the photo above)
- bake for 25-30 minutes - to avoid a soggy pie, continue to bake for a few extra minutes until the pie crust is dark and tomatoes look slightly dried out EVEN IF it looks done.

Serve with your favorite wine (a light dry red may work nicely)...


P52: Soft Shades of Summer...

7.15.2013
light and white
white daylight bedroom

creamy whites + afternoon light

***


Trois {3} on Thursday

7.11.2013

a mélange of finds + favorites
  1. Leather journal / sketchbook - this handmade journal would make a great companion on lazy days and summer road trips... it's from Etsy's Daniel Heywood
  2. Crème brûlée - with Bastille Day (France's National Holiday, le 14 juillet) coming up this weekend, Chronicle Books is having a giveaway to win a load of French-inspired goodies. All you have to do is pin (I pinned this crème brûlée - the recipe is from Rachel Khoo's The Little Paris Kitchen recipe book).
  3. Huile Prodigieuse - after reading about this lauded dry oil everywhere, I wanted to find out if it lived up to the hype so I picked up a bottle last summer in France. In short,... in does. It makes your skin feel soft and silky and smells divine, like a sunlit escape.

* These are not paid endorsements, just my own picks.
Photo credits: Daniel Heywood, Rachel Khoo, Nuxe

Washington DC: Architecture + Details

7.08.2013
IM Pei at National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art and National Building Museum facade
Sculture Garden - Oldenburg
Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden
Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden
National Gallery of Art interior

In 1978, the Chinese architect I.M. Pei's most acclaimed work was the triangular stone buildings and glass structures of Washington, DC's National Gallery of Art's East Building. It was on the basis of this design that former French President François Mitterrand commissioned Pei a few years later to construct the iconic glass and steel pyramid entrance of Paris' Musée du Louvre, which today is the most prominent (and likely most photographed) of Pei's designs.

I had the opportunity to take a photo walk around the National Mall in Washington, DC recently, with a focus on lines and curves and architecture. To look at the town where I had formerly lived and worked with fresh eyes. As a resident, I always appreciated the beauty of the historic buildings around me, but scarcely had the time to really study their details. It was a nice reminder that even the most familiar places can seem marvelously novel and interesting when looked at from a different perspective...


Bonjour Instagram!

7.04.2013
Instagram

I'm not sure why it took me so long to get on Instagram, but like so many of you, I'm now addicted! Let's follow each other... I'm at @catherine_goron.

Happy 4th stateside friends!


Printable Calendar: July | Juillet 2013

7.01.2013
printable calendar for July 2013

Have you been to the beach yet this summer? Me, I've yet to go... my collected shells stare and tease as the call of the ocean tugs heavy and I wait in wistful impatience...

For the July calendar, simply download by clicking on the link below, print and cut on the dotted line (there are two for you to use or share). I like to use plain card stock but any paper will work. Enjoy!



La Mémoire Vive © 2016 Catherine Goron. Powered by Blogger.