My French Country Home Subscription Box and Magazine

If you are a Francophile like me, chances are you have friends, and loved ones who are too. Here is a short list in no particular order, of online websites and shopping for great gift ideas from France that I follow, frequent, and recommend. A few are new to me, which I thought you might like too.

1) French General, owner Karri Meng, has a fabulous old-fashioned general mercantile of French fabrics, trimmings, craft kits, notions, and brocante finds. She also hosts “French General GetAways” each summer in the Toulouse, France area.

2) My French Country Home Gift Box, Boutique, and Magazine. Owner, Sharon Santoni does a magnificent job of promoting France, french products, French artisans, and more to Francophiles.

3) The Simply Luxurious Life, Shannon Ables has a terrific blog and podcast on cultivating the extraordinary in your everyday. Check out her Simply Luxurious Life Francophile Finds

4) Chateau Sonoma, I call owner, Sarah Anderson, the unofficial ambassador of Sonoma County. She promotes flower farmers, antique dealers, artisan farmers, artists, chefs, etc. with her French flea markets, events, music concerts, and Friday Cocktail Instagram hour. Chateau Sonoma is a retail shop on Sonoma Plaza in Sonoma, California, as well as a great website specializing in French antiques and gifts. Chateau Sonoma just celebrated 20 years!

5) Rabbit Hill Lifestyle, owner, Cat Bude lives with her family on a beautiful farm in Normandy, France. She offers a fun and lively pop-up shop for 24 hours usually the first or second Saturday of the month. She specializes in copper pieces, as well as brocante and lifestyle treasures. Worth checking out.

6) Vivi et Margot, named after her two daughters, Charlotte Reiss offers “A French Life To Live” with her online store for Traditional French housewares. She and her family live in Southwest France, and soon will be moving to Provence. She is fun to follow on Instagram at vivietmargot.

7) The Cook’s Atelier, Expats Mother/Daughter duo, Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini are based in Burgundy, France with their fabulous cooking school and culinary boutique. I have experience their kitchen and shop, which is a stunning. Online they offer many antique, kitchen, and culinary boutique items which are very special.

8) Elsie Green, Elsie Green is a small family run business out of Northern California. The team travels the world to find special pieces. One visit to their website, and you will be inspired.

9) Francaise Shop, A new shop for me to explore, that I have heard about in Coronado, California that specializes in modern French contemporary for the home, kitchen, and boutique clothing. It is on my list to visit, and it is local.

10) Le Panier Français, Also new to me, an online French marketplace out of Illinois specializing in imported French food items. A great online website to find special French foods and ingredients. It is fun to browse all of their items available.

Please share your favorite websites for Francophiles too. I always love to hear! Happy Shopping!

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend….Bonnie

An Autumn Sunset To Be Grateful For

“Wear gratitude like a cloak, and it will feed every corner of your life” —Rumi

Pumpkins Basking in the Autumn Morning Sun

Quoting Author, Cook, Mimi Thorisson, “Every Season has something great about it.” She says “Autumn is reflection.” I agree with her. After the busyness of the year and excitement from summer, it is time to slow down before the coming holidays.

There is a profound shift happening. The weather cools. Our gardens take a rest. Days get shorter. Root vegetables come into season. The wonderful aromas of soups, stews, and gratins permeate our kitchens.

We can easily add autumn into our lives through color, ribbons, scents, mother nature, decorating, cooking, and celebrating. I have listed ten ways, but I could really list many, many more. It is my hope that maybe one or two that I mention will trigger your creative juices for your home this autumn.

1) Decorate with pumpkins, inside and outside your home. Pumpkins come in many different shapes, sizes, and colors. Create a tablescape, arrange little pumpkins under a glass cloche, or simply create a friendly arrangement of pumpkins as a welcome gesture at your front door. White pumpkins for fall, can carry on into the holidays. Gather branches, berries, rose hips, from your garden to further embellish your pumpkins.

2) Add a scented candle to your home such as Pumpkin Clove from Anthropologie.

3) Make Ina Garten’s Warm Fig and Arugula Salad from her Make It Ahead cookbook.

4) This is the season to add Fuyu persimmons, apples, pears, pomegranates, nuts, to your vinaigrette salads. Experiment with new recipes for squash soups, pumpkin desserts, and root vegetable gratins.

5) Buy bright orange marigold cut flowers at your favorite Farmers Market for your home. If you are really ambitious make a simple single marigold flower headband by threading together the center cut marigold heads with elastic string. Be bold and wear it to a dinner party.

6) Experience “Day of the Dead,” around the same time as Halloween. Where Halloween is about costumes, scary, and spooky, “Day of the Dead” is paying homage and respect celebrating the past life of loved ones with altars, face painting, and skeletons. Originated in Mexico, it is celebrated in Latin America and many countries around the world.

“Day of the Dead” Celebration at a Baja, Mexico Winery

7) Plan a trip or simply a hike to the great outdoors and experience the brisk air, autumn scents, crunching of leaves, and beautiful foliage colors.

8) Roast marshmallows and make s’mores over a fire pit with friends and family. Create a gourmet board of ingredients for your s’mores by using special chocolate, nuts, dried fruit, coconut, and cookies.

9) October starts the peak season for fresh mussels (moules) now to March. If your loved ones enjoy mussels, try Jane Webster ‘s recipe from her book, Château Life for Moules À La Normande. It is one of my favorite very “fall” ways to make mussels

Moules À La Normande

Serves 6

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

3 shallots diced

2 pounds mussels (moules)

1 cup apple cider

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp crème fracîche

1/2 bunch chives, coarsely chopped

1 baguette, sliced and grilled

Directions:

In a lidded cast-iron pot over high heat, melt the butter. Add the shallots and sauté until soft. Add the mussels, pour in the cider, cover, cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the mussels open. Transfer the mussels to a serving bowl.

Cook the cider over medium heat for 5 minutes to reduce, remove from heat, than add the mustard, and crème fraîchte. Whisk into a sauce.

Pour the hot sauce over the mussels, sprinkle on the chives, and serve with the grilled baguette.

10) Use orange, wine, gold, tawny, and olive colors in your tablecloths, napkins, seasonal pillows, scarves, dishware, and more. Beautiful hues for a beautiful season.

A Warm Welcome Autumn Greeting

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Yes, It is Me, Backpacking Through Europe, Circa 1976

The last couple of years with more time home due to the pandemic, for me it has been a time of organizing, sorting out, and simplifying. I organized by years and events all of my photos. More recently I scanned and digitized more than a thousand slides from my life, travels, and photography living and traveling in Europe in my twenties.

In a grand way it was an eye-opening perspective which actually surprised me. I looked at photos that I distinctly remember taking. People, places, and scenes that I vividly remember—that I hadn’t seen in decades. Wonderful memories, and kind of a gentle reminder of who I am today and why. One forgets, as life has hiccups and setbacks, and gets more complicated with responsibilities and everyday busyness.

I lived with my dear family in Europe outside of Brussels, Belgium and attended the International School of Brussels for my 10th, 11th, and 12th high school years. I also took a year off during college years, and traveled non-stop, funding my own way with babysitting and “au pair” jobs. An english-speaking responsible babysitter was “gold” in the day.

I traveled extensively with my family, school, friends, boyfriend, and even solo. I was an adventurer, savvy and smart about travel, yet somewhat fearless. Of course, Europe and the world, for that matter was quite different 40-50 years ago.

It was a very golden time for me, and it is still the very core of who I am, and what I write about in this blog and create on my website. I knew from high school days I was coming to California, because it was the closest to living in the Mediterranean and still be in the United States.

I have cultivated, with my beloved husband, a French country lifestyle here in Mediterranean North San Diego County, one day at a time. It is who I am, resonating from my passion, at my very core. My dream has materialized right in front of my very eyes, far bigger and brighter than I could have ever imagined. I am very grateful and thankful each and every day. I am very grateful when I hear from you.

Stopping Along the Rhine River During A German “Au Pair” Job

My hope, whether you are a long time follower or relatively new, is that you will enjoy and be enlightened by my writing, recipes, tips, musings, and information shared. That you will be encouraged to continue to follow your dreams. That you will reach back to your past to acknowledge what caught your passion and touched you to the core. Perhaps you know very well, but it is always nice to reflect wholeheartedly once again.

I hope that you will be inspired to embrace a “Taste of French Country Living,” which is really a philosophy you can live wherever you are of beauty, every day celebrating “little things,” living in the present, mindfulness, quality over quantity, seasonal living, simplicity and so much more! Merci!

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Harvested Cherry Tomatoes In Ironstone Bowl

Garden Tomatoes in a Baguette Basket

Garden Tomatoes in a Pedestal Fruit Bowl

Grow Lots of Tomato Varieties

Tomatoes in August are a real treat. Chances are you began your tomato plants from seed back in February, you planted tomato seedlings months ago, you had tomato volunteer plants appear in the spring, or you made a special trip to the farmers market to buy from your favorite tomato farmer recently. In other words, tomatoes can be an investment of time, but are the culinary gems of the summer potager. Earthy and ethereal, they shout and taste of Mother Earth perfection.

Tomatoes come in all different colors and shapes these days. The bold red tomatoes are show stoppers. When they are in season, one should display thine divine tomatoes.

Tomatoes displayed in vintage pieces, baskets, fruit bowls, etc. make beautiful table settings and summer color display in the kitchen. It is hard to improve on Mother Nature, and a great example of seasonal living. What a great way to showcase your tomatoes before you eat, cook, or preserve them.

A few things to remember when bringing your tomatoes into the kitchen.

Tomatoes should be washed before eating but not immediately after harvesting. Wipe off any dirt or dust, but when you are ready to eat your tomatoes clean and wash them well.

Tomatoes are best stored at room temperature, and not in your refrigerator. Sometimes tomatoes stored in the refrigerator develop a mealy texture and lose their flavor. An exception to refrigerate your tomato is if the skin is broken—cooling it will slow the potential for it to start molding.

Slightly unripe tomatoes will ripen further if placed near a sunny window, stem-side down. This will stop moisture escaping from your tomatoes.

Invest in a tomato knife. It will make your life easier, and a joy to further work with your tomatoes.

---

A few things tomatoes can teach you about seasonal living, and loving that red color in August.

Wear a bright red lipstick and smile with your summer tan.

Kick up your heels in red sandals or flats paired with white pants or capris.

Bring out your summer tablecloths and napkins with a touch of red.

Brighten your summer dishes with red tomatoes, fresh, sauteed, roasted or grilled. Roasting tomatoes at 400 F. degrees for 30 minutes creates a wonderful caramelization flavor.

Tomatoes like companions. Grow lots of basil for all of your tomato dishes.

Simplicity. Perhaps the best way to eat a sun-ripened tomato fresh from your garden is with a generous sprinkling of your favorite finishing salt to unlock the flavor.

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Julia Child’s Affectionate Top Two Floor Apartment, “Roo de Loo” at 81 Rue de L’Université

This Monday, August 15th, is Julia Child’s birthday. I have had it noted on my planner for some time. She means so much to me, as I am sure she means so much to all of you too. Her life and accomplishments are well documented and cemented in history, as well as her loving marriage to Paul Childs. What a duo!

Visiting Paris back in spring of 2015, I walked to the street, and sought out the apartment building, the two top floors where the Child’s resided in their post World War II days and Julia embarked on her culinary passion and adventures. It was really important for me to see their building in person, and my husband thankfully was very obliging in this walkabout. To my knowledge, there is no plaque mentioning Julia Child near the building for various reasons, the French bureaucracy, and Julia Child was much more revered in the United States, ironically than in France. Truthfully, I think Julia Child would have preferred it that way. One only has to use your imagination to scan your memory for all the book and movie details made on her glorious life. Knowing she was here, is enough for me.

Rue de L’Université in 7th Arrondissement in Paris, France

I love so many aspects of Julia Child, and her quotes on food and life always give me a chuckle. By the way, Julia Child who cooked everything, yet it is well known her favorite lunch at home was tuna fish salad on a toasted English muffin.

Wonderful Julia Child Quotes:

“People who love to eat are always the best people.”

“I believe in red meat. I’ve often said red meat and gin.”

“A cookbook is only as good as its poorest recipe.”

“It’s so beautifully arranged on the plate, you know someone’s fingers have been all over it.”

“The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook.”

“I am not interested in dishes that take 3 minutes and have no cholesterol.”

“This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook—try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless and above all have fun.”

“With enough butter, anything is good.”

“Cooking well doesn’t mean cooking fancy.”

“Life itself is the proper binge.”

“You’ll never know everything about anything, especially something you love.”

“If you are afraid of butter, use cream.”

“A party without a cake is just a meeting.”

“I enjoy cooking with wine, sometimes I even put it in the food…”

“The measure of achievement is not winning awards. It’s doing something that you appreciate, something you believe is worthwhile.”

This Monday, please make a special culinary nod to Julia Child in celebration of her birthday, and touching us all with her passion.

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

If you like this weekly lifestyle post, please share it with your friends and family. You can sign up for my posts/newsletters at bonniejomanion.com Merci!

Syrah Grape Clusters Basking in the Sun

Just like magic, our Syrah grape clusters have developed, are maturing, and grapevines are closing in on harvest. The sense is harvest is a tad bit earlier than usual. Fruit set looks abundant and lovely.

It really is something to see the grapevines go through their process each year. Some years are better than others, like life. Like life, there are some things within your control, and some that are not. Like life, one should focus on the present journey, rather than the destination, and the destination will take care of itself. “Life is a journey, not a destination.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

Grapevines Marching Onto Harvest

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie

Entrance to an art gallery in Snug Harbor, Bowen Island, British Columbia, Canada

Recently, while on vacation visiting a dear friend on Bowen Island, British Columbia, (a stone’s throw from Vancouver), I happened upon this wonderful art gallery in the little town of Snug Harbor. The entrance, colors, and chalkboard quote drew my attention. This is what I love about traveling, the unknown to explore and experience, coincidences that are not really coincidences but subtle messages, the culture and people to immerse yourself with, and new things in general to try and acquaint yourself with. Traveling expands your horizon, and it expands your life.

Bowen Island, by the way, is a “Places to Know” kind of place, but that is another post for another time. The sheer beauty of the water on Howe Sound, snow capped peaks, and a chance to do nothing but stare into the water and Douglas fir landscape mesmerized is an idyllic setting to listen to your thoughts. If you are lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of a soaring bald eagle, a bobbing seal, a water’s edge heron, or a few curious orca swimming with the current. Truly a very special and beautiful place, and a place to know.

Outside the art gallery on a chalkboard was this touching quote by an unknown person which really resonated with me. A perfect message for me now, and to remember. Perhaps this quote might touch you too. I happily share this quote with all of you. I wholeheartedly encourage you to give something a try that you have been wanting to do, dreaming of doing, aligns with your bliss, and listen to your heart.

Listen to Your Heart Quote

Past Related Posts

Brunch With A View

Oceanside’s The Seabird Resort

The Floral Palette

Bon Appétit et Bon Weekend…Bonnie