“Would you like some figs for dessert?” I was asked following a lovely meal one summer’s evening in Caromb. For someone who had only ever eaten figs in yoghurt this was an opportunity not to be missed! My fellow diners rose from the table and headed outside. This intrigued me …

One of the most common search terms which bring visitors to this blog is Bellet wine tours (or variants on the theme). It’s also the subject that I receive the most emails and messages about. It’s fantastic to see that so many people coming to Nice want to learn more …

In the city of Nice, swiss chard has long been a kitchen staple and its beautiful, green, sometimes pink-stemmed leaves are known in France as blettes. Both here and over the border in Liguria, greens of all descriptions are used extensively in tarts, soups, tians and for colouring Explore this …

Gilles Conchy says it was Provencal food and family ties that tugged him back to Provence after four years in California. Although, he admits that he could still be a “California boy.” The sandy, windswept beaches and seemingly endless sunny days of the southwest U.S. fit like a second skin …

Chateau la Coste beckoned! It has been at least two years since my last visit to the vineyard owned by Paddy McKillen, an Irishman with a love for Provence, wine and contemporary art and architecture. I made up for my lack of attendance with two lunchtime visits this summer.

The farmer who sells goat cheese at the Uzes Saturday Market is one of my favorite vendors. He’scertainly one of the most colorful. Last week he handed me an invitation to an event he stages each year at his farm. Explore this Post

It is time for the olive harvest in Provence, where most of the fruit is turned into healthy oil. However, some are left whole for snacking with a glass of local rosé. Here is a savoury recipe for quick bread made with olives.   This is an easy, quick bread …

A cousin of the Ligurian focaccia, which is also known as fugassa over there, fougasse is a provençal loaf easily recognised by the slashes cut through it prior to baking. Back in August, after a mooch round the beautiful Cours Saleya food and flower market in Vieux Nice, Explore this …

It’s full-on tomato season here in Dorset, and hugely satisfying to see so much ripe, red fruit both in the garden and the greenhouse. We might even be saved from the usual gallon of green tomato chutney this year. Over the summer we’ve munched our way through Explore this Post

It never ceases to amaze me how most people know exactly what pesto is yet when you mention the term pistou, it’s blank faces all round. This no-nut French cousin of pesto is just as delicious and even easier to make. No toasting of pine nuts required here. So, Explore …