Bonjour les amis et bienvenue dans mon déjeuner inspiré de la Provence et d’avril 2003. My inspiration for this menu came from the April 2003 issue of Delicious Magazine. Initially, the topic was “So Frenchy So Chic” but as the menu evolved, so did my interpretation of it. Not for us the hustle and bustle of a Parisian bistro. Today we are taking it slow and enjoying the fresh air and rustic pleasures of lunch in the countryside.  With a tiny bit of Asian influence thrown in.  It is not totally unfounded either, after all, back in the day, the French has colonies in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and parts of Thailand.  

Let’s set the scene, shall we? Lunch is being served outside on a long table sheltered from the sun by the branches of the same olive trees that are providing your entree. The air is scented with lavender from a nearby farm and somewhere nearby a little brook is babbling away…

Maybe something a little like this!

Our April 2003 Menu

Eagle-Eyed readers will notice that for the first time ever in these 20 years ago today posts that we are not opening with some sort of beverage. Instead, we are closing out with one.  This is because the starter I chose, the Braised Olives and Almonds was the most purely “French” course whilst the only cocktail in the book was very Asian in its ingredients.  The two didn’t really work together so I thought moving the cocktail to the end of the meal would work better!

Braised Green Olives With Roasted Almonds

These were so more-ish!  And so easy to do!  I could happily munch on a bowl of these any day of the week!  And I know we are holding out for the Sakitni at the end of the meal…but a glass of lovely French cider (Maybe a pear cider to match with the dessert) or some Provence Rosé would make this perfect drinking food!

Braised Green Olives and Roasted Almonds Recipe:

Glazed Salmon with Lime Beurre Blanc and Tomato, Ginger and Basil Salsa

This was really delicious and I liked the method of cooking the salmon in foil.  I had not tried this before as normally I pan fry or grill my salmon.  This was a more delicate way of cooking it.  I also used salmon fillets which made this so much easier to cook as a weeknight meal.  I simply placed the lime leaves under the salmon, the lemongrass by its side, and the lime on top.  Whilst we’re at it…I used regular red sweet chilli sauce instead of the yellow one suggested in the recipe.  I don’t think I have ever even seen yellow sweet chilli sauce!  

Glazed Salmon with Lime Beurre Blanc and Tomato, Ginger and Basil Salsa Recipe:

Pear Tart with Ginger Custard

I did not make this one – the purpose of these Twenty Years Ago Today recipes is not for me to cook the whole menu, even though sometimes I wish I could!  It is about seeing if a particular magazine from the past can fulfill a brief.  I don’t love pears so this is not something I would make BUT, I felt the Pear Tart fit in nicely with the French Country theme and the ginger custard echoed the ginger in the salsa that went with the salmon

Pear Tart with Ginger Custard Recipe:

Sakitini

To close out our French country meal we have a very Asian-inspired martini – sake, a lychee instead of an olive, and ginger which has been present in the main and the dessert.  This is a sweeter style of martini rather than the dry style most people would drink so it ,is a nice if somewhat unusual, way to round out a meal.  

Sakitini recipe:

My Nigella Moment  – Chocolate Raspberry Pudding Cake

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious.  In the context of these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in either because I made it and it was really good, or I just didn’t have time to make it but it was the most appetising thing in the mag!

Again this month, this was a really tricky one.  There were two recipes that I wanted to cook.  In the end didn’t do either, possibly because I spent so long vacillating between the two that I ran out of time to do either!  

The first was a Brownie, Raspberry and Drambuie Trifle.  I mean…OMG…how good does that sound?  BUT the second was a Chocolate Raspberry Pudding cake from the lady herself!  And how could I resist not Nigella-ing Nigella?  Plus, I have made this recipe from How To Eat several times and it has never failed me.  It is my go-to recipe if I ever need to bake something that I know will turn out well!  

Chocolate Raspberry Pudding Cake Recipe

This was certainly the most challenging menu to pull together as there was nothing in the magazine that seemed specifically French.  I felt it came together pretty well even though I had to tweak the theme a little bit!  We’ll save So Frenchy So Chic for another day and leave this one as So Frenchy So Rustique!   Whatever we call it, April 2003 provided some delicious food which is what it’s all about!

Have a great week!