Adventures in French Cooking

It was after we had enjoyed my first French cooking endeavor, Boeuf Bourguignon, that Mom declared she expected Chocolate Soufflé for Thanksgiving. She wasn't joking. Mom was so serious about it that she bought a soufflé dish and looked up soufflé recipes and taped an episode of Good Eats about soufflés(very helpful) that we watched together. She even ate a chocolate soufflé at a fancy-pants restaurant nearby so she would know what it was supposed to taste like. She called it research. Suuuure.

This was my first taste of chocolate soufflé but I am a big fan now. It was just so delicious.
We used Julia's recipe with one exception: I substituted hot cocoa for the strong coffee that it called for. We knew from this experience that the coffee flavor comes through too strongly for our discerning palettes.

We didn't get away without learning a couple of lessons. It was a first try after all. It wasn't perfect. We didn't have the right sized soufflé dish because we couldn't find one that was 2-2.5 quarts so we used a 1.5 quart dish which worked alright, but the dish was small enough that it needed extra time to cook in the middle while the outside got a touch too much heat. It made not a bit of difference to the taste. You can see a little of the black edges in this photo.

Isn't she beautiful?

That fancy-pants restaurant I mentioned earlier? We went there a few days later where I sampled the Grand Marnier Soufflé. OMG, Heaven! They serve their soufflés with warm sauce that gets poured over the top and into the center, chocolate for the chocolate and vanilla for the Grand Marnier. I will be doing that next time because Mom already declared that Soufflé is now a family tradition for the holidays. :)

The Sunday Salon

It's been a few weeks but I'm back to the Sunday Salon. Did you miss me?

Reading
I finished and reviewed Against the Odds, a short story collection by L.M. Montgomery. I am still working through Pay Attention, Say Thank You and House of Sand and Fog. I started reading a cute, funny little book to my kiddos called What-the-Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy. Our beloved kitty is named Dickens and I love fairy stories. I'm so glad it has turned out to be such great fun.

Non-Bookish News
Our homeschool has been successfully running for three weeks now. We learned all about Queen Elizabeth I this week. Shakespeare is next week. I'm so excited about reading some Shakespeare to my kiddos. We have also done some science experiments to learn about molecules. Our favorite experiment so far has been putting a balloon over the top of a soda bottle, then shaking it up. The balloon inflates from all the carbon dioxide.


We went on a weekend trip to the coast last weekend, meeting with my daughter's best friend who had moved away recently. We found the biggest sand crab I have ever seen. Usually they are the size of a fingernail. This one was much bigger.


FLYLady
Last time I mentioned my progress Debra asked me how long it took per day to keep up with FLYLady. I work on it a few minutes here and there throughout the day but in total it is probably an hour. The point is to declutter for 15 minutes(or 10 or 5, however much time you have) a day, then set up morning and evening routines. I also like working on the daily missions. I don't bother with shining my sink. I take what works for me and leave the rest. My one complaint is that you get 10-15 emails a day, most of which are called "testimonials" but are really advertisements for FLY shop cleaning supplies. Those get old fast. A lot of people are doubtful but it has really worked for me. I suggest trying it for a month and seeing if it makes a difference for you.

This week we are focusing on the master bedroom. This is where my sewing area is. I haven't sewn in months because this area is the catch all for all my junk. But 15 minutes a day will make a dent in it which is better than nothing.

French Cooking
I broke down and joined hundreds of trendy housewives. I bought Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child. Then I actually made a recipe from it the very next day. It took 4 1/2 hours but the Boeuf Bourguignon(beef stew with red wine) was sooooo delicious. Is anyone else doing any French cooking?