Some Monday fun

Forty clove garlic chicken,
chanterelle, barley pilaf. I should have photographed the actual dish, but we were hungry, and i forgot. This dish was easy and wonderful. You can't go wrong with chanterelles, and leeks.
All cooked and ready to consume!

Saturday, I went skipping off to Le Creuset, and bought this oh so pretty oval dutch oven. I was on the fence with the color for a few days. I went back and forth on getting the ivory colored one, or the turquoise, but this one kept calling my name, in all it's purple glory. I love the name of the color: "Cassis."We visited Cassis in the south of France a couple of years ago, and I decided that when I cook with this lovely pot, all the memories of that beautiful area will come back, so I just had to get it! :) Besides, I thought getting the ivory one would be a safe choice, so I went the opposite way. I don't buy very many kitchen items anymore, since I have a very well stocked kitchen, but the only oval dutch oven I had was a pyrex one, that I rarely used, because I thought I couldn't achieve the results that the Le Creuset one gives. I packed up the glass one, and made room for the newest member of the kitchen. It was fun to cook with it I must say.
This is Nicole and Pierre's good friend Jo. She is visiting from London, and we had the pleasure of her company for dinner last night. We all had some good laughs and great stories to share. I love having dinner parties like this, on a night you normally would not.



There are no words for how good this cake turned out! It is on the cover of the newest issue of "Fine Cooking." Buy the issue and make it! It is called ,"Brown Butter Pumpkin Layer Cake." The topping: Pecans, crystalized ginger,pepitas (pumpkin seeds). They are glazed in brown sugar. The frosting is cream cheese, with brown butter. YUM!