Located just a few kilometres from the French Riviera coast and the city of Frejus are the striking remains of the Malpasset Dam. This river barrier, completed in 1954, was a substantial post-war infrastructure project. However, the structure failed on the night of December 2, 1959, less than five years …

The lavender season may be over for another year in Provence, but the locally-grown citrus will be available shortly. Perhaps these Lemon-Lavender Hearts (Coeur à la Crème au Citron et Lavande) are the perfect dessert to bridge the gap between seasons in the South of France. The combination of sweet lemon curd and cream cheese blended into a delicious finish to any meal.

Dorothy, you’re not in Kansas Provence anymore. Getting out of the car in Antibes, I encountered a touch of humidity and crowds in the streets. Cliché perhaps, but I had driven just over two (2) hours to the Côte d’Azur. This town was a different part of Provence than the one …

Where Passions Meet Wine and words. The idea for Olive and Sweetpea (Olive + Sweetpea), a new e-magazine, was hatched over a few glasses of wine. When Paula Kane and I scheduled a springtime lunch, we half-heartedly joked about the possibility of enjoying a meal on a sunny patio. After …

Almost 30 years ago, Peter Mayle introduced many of us to the arrière-pays Provençal (rural countryside) for the first time with his internationally best-selling novel A Year in Provence.  The success of that book and his subsequent novels had many primed to book flights to the South of France. If …

Deborah Bine spent her childhood in Charlotte, North Carolina dreaming of “faraway places” (her words). Her early travels included visiting her Aunt Rose in exhilarating Manhattan. “Aunt Rose owned New York — or so this sixteen-year-old ingénue from the Carolinas assumed.” On this voyage, Deborah learned some travel lessons that …

Although we served this recipe as a starter, it could easily be the main course, if you increase the quantities. The trickiest part is stuffing the cannelloni shells with the mixture of mushrooms, spinach and cheese. Serve hot with a small side salad.

Artichokes Stuffed with Goat Cheese and Tapenade. The combination of fresh artichokes, goat cheese and tapenade translate into “Provence in a bite” to be enjoyed with some chilled rosé.

Over the years we have visited Provence just about every month, but until we bought the house we hadn’t visited in April, which to be honest looking back on it now, was rather an oversight. In April, the countryside simply explodes with colour as the wildflowers start to bloom, bringing …

Ashley Tinker is the photographer behind the beautiful (and popular) Curious Provence Instagram feed, she is also the creator and writer of the blog by the same name. Originally from Montreal, Canada, Ashley headed to Florence, Italy for fine art school. You can probably guess that for someone who is …