Moving to France
Episode 7: The first signature
It’s crazy o’clock and here I am again, with my coffee, my thoughts and you, dear reader. Yesterday it finally happened. After years of dreaming and planning, we finally placed the first signature that will bring us a little closer to our future in France. In just a few weeks, our house will officially be on the market.
An epic rush of emotions has taken hold of me, and I go from wanting to shout from the rooftops that we’re moving to France (does putting out the French flag count?) to wondering what the heck has gotten into us.
This is going to be another unvarnished post – episode seven in the ‘Moving to France’ series – but before I pour out my heart again, I wanted to fill you in on a few things.
Firstly, you can now read my column in the August issue of Reader’s Digest UK, here. The September issue, with my column on getting the most out markets while on holiday, has just hit the newsstands.
Second, great news! We’ve been hard at work putting together the first of three mini-cookbooks which I’ll soon be publishing in a beautifully laid out PDF form. They will feature easy and delicious plant-based recipes inspired by the French and Italian kitchen. If you’re wondering why plant-based, it’s because eating this way for the past year has reversed my husband’s diabetes. One of the reasons we put our plans on hold last summer was because he received this confronting diagnosis. It scared the hell out of me. Diabetes has taken the lives of beloved family members, and it wasn’t about to turn my husband into a patient or guinea pig to the healthcare system. After a few months of eating this way (and extensive research as to why and how it could help), we flipped the bird to that diagnosis and restored his health, sans medication. And the best thing is that we haven’t missed out on a thing. We still eat with plenty of joie de vivre and celebrate life with good wine.
That’s a plant-based ‘steak’ with porcini & pepper cream sauce.
The cookbooks will not be preachy or full of well-meant advice. I am not a medical professional, and I encourage you to do your own research. My only mission is to share incredibly delicious food with you (peppered with gorgeous photos of beautiful places). You’ll find recipes for my rich fagioli all’uccelletto, an aromatic pissaladière, a grand aioli and even pastries such as fully plant-based tartelettes aux fraises.
Last weekend’s plant-based aioli.
The first of the three mini-cookbooks will soon go on sale, but to complement these recipes, I’ll also be shooting a series of cooking videos which will be published on this newsletter. Paid subscribers will not only receive the videos but also the mini-cookbooks, free! Here’s a short behind-the-scenes look (not the actual video) to give you an idea of how I’m testing these recipes. I can’t wait to bring out the first instalment!
So, back to the move …