|| 7 March 2021

The Windsor Knot: an Elizabeth II Mystery

Doesn’t this sound like fun? A whodunit described as a cross between The Crown and Miss Marple. Harper Collins says of this SJ Bennett book:

It is the early spring of 2016 and Queen Elizabeth is at Windsor Castle in advance of her 90th birthday celebrations. But the preparations are interrupted when a guest is found dead in one of the Castle bedrooms. The scene suggests the young Russian pianist strangled himself, but a badly tied knot leads MI5 to suspect foul play was involved. The Queen leaves the investigation to the professionals—until their suspicions point them in the wrong direction. Unhappy at the mishandling of the case and concerned for her staff’s morale, the monarch decides to discreetly take matters into her own hands.

You can read an excerpt of The Windsor Knot.

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|| 1 March 2021

The TikTok Feta Pasta Sensation

Usually I pay little attention to fads — foods or other. But Betty in California sent an email with a link to a NY Times article about the TikTok feta pasta recipe sensation I had previously ignored. The article includes a quote from Betty's son the cheese maker Walshe Birney about the effect on the availability of feta the recipe sensation has had. More . . .

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|| 25 February 2021

Meatless In Lyon

I am sure that it was sometime before 2000 that the email arrived at the Chic & Slim website. I am sure because I remember at that time I was still living in Corpus Christi.

The email was from a young American woman, a college student who had spent two weeks the previous summer in France. She said that, as a vegetarian, she had found it difficult to find cafes or restaurants that served vegetarian meals. She said during her two weeks in France she ate primarily breads, cheeses and tomatoes she bought at boulangeries, fromageries, and local markets.

That was then. Now in 2021, you can find vegetarian meals in cafes and restaurants all over France. Many French schools offer a vegetarian menu choice. Nonetheless, there is an uproar currently in France because the Mayor of Lyon has decided to temporarily take meat off the menu in the city’s school canteens during the coronavirus pandemic.

You can read about the protests and the reaction of various groups and government officials. The Guardian article gives good insights into the French attitude toward meat.

Guardian article on Lyon protests

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|| 21 February 2021

Texas Freeze Austin: Report From Rocki

Here at Provence-sur-la-Prairie the worst of the Texas Freeze and its outages seems to be over. Unfortunately that is not true for other parts of Texas. Friday I had an email from Rocki in Austin about the continuing problems there. More . . .

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|| 14 February 2021

Sister Andrée’s 117th Birthday

Currently, the oldest person in Europe is Sister Andrée, a French nun who Thursday celebrated her 117th birthday — with a wonderful French meal and lots of media coverage.Karen in Rosemount’s diligent research turned up photos and more information about Sister Andrée’s birthday. More . . .

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|| 7 February 2021

Substitutions = Improvements. Sometimes

Of course your chances of having a recipe turning out well is far more likely if you have all the ingredients. But sometimes the substitution for one of the ingredients that you do not happen to have on hand can actual produce an improvement in taste. You like the dish better with the substitution. More . . .

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|| 31 January 2021

Murray's Cheese Order

Not long after Thanksgiving, when the weather began to cool making it safer for shipping food products, and Murray’s Cheese offered a 25% discount for Cyber Monday, I placed my first order for cheese from the Murray’s Cheese online store.

You likely remember the previous Nouvelles in which I shared with you the recommendation for Murray’s cheeses made by the longtime reader of Chic & Slim Betty whose son is a cheesemaker for Murray’s. More . . .