RECIPE - sage pesto, with a twist

Classic pesto is made with fresh basil; this is the variety everybody knows and loves, be it from their vacations in Italy or a visit to their favorite Italian restaurant. But how about trying something new? With the abundance of sage plants in our herb garden, grown from seed and growing in massive bushes, I one late spring afternoon decided to try this wonderful herb in a pesto. Et voilà, it not only tastes almost like basil, it tastes even better! And it tastes best when the leaves are young so in late spring, though it is possible to use the leaves all year round but the taste will become stronger and more pungent.

During our yoga & organic vegan cooking retreat last weekend Top Vegan Chef Paul decided to add some green olives and freshly squeezed lemon juice, and my o my, was this pesto a treat!

Sage is a very versatile plant, a quintessential Mediterranean herb used in cooking, as an essential oil, as a decorative plant in the garden with its pretty purple flowers. Salvia officinalis can  be used to make a delicious tea.

on croutons as an appetizer

Pesto is easy to make, considered a "raw food" as none of the ingredients are heated and can go on anything, from pasta bien sûr to sandwiches or tasty little croutons as appetizers with an apéritif or on pizza in place of or with tomato sauce

the ingredients:
* fresh sage leaves
* nutritional yeast
* toasted pine nuts
* depitted fleshy green olives
* freshly squeezed lemon juice
* garlic
* olive oil
* freshly ground sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper

All ingredients are approximate as this is really to everyone's personal taste. If you can get a hold of this season's fresh garlic use it sparingly and allow the fresh taste of sage to be the most prominent. Make a paste in your kitchen machine and season to taste. The great thing about pesto is that its all about personal preference.

on pizza as a base

Try something new today and remember to enjoy not only the result but also the process! Preparing food from scratch is a fantastic way to spend time, observing the making of something delicious, with one's own creativity, passion and hands!

bon appétit! 

EXTRA - yoga retreats May, June & July with organic vegan cooking

Inspired by the success in running our yoga retreats for several years now and on the positive comments we received from our guests dining with us at our table d'hôtes we decided to combine our two passions, yoga & cooking. We offer 3 dates for yoga & organic vegan cooking weekends with Claudia as the chef and Jim as the wine sommelier:

* 20. - 22. May (2 spaces left)
* 14. - 16. June
* 1. - 3. July (4 spaces left)

Cooking with Devotion: Good food requires more than top-notch ingredients and creative recipes - it's the compassion, intention, and energy of those in the kitchen that make a meal fulfilling. Cultivating a selfless intention, committing to recognizing the Divine in those you're feeding, and cooking joyfully without expectation of recognition will improve your awareness as well as your food. For the yogic cook, integrating mindfulness and love only deepens a cooking experience and, according to some, enhances the quality and flavor of the food itself.

Fridayarrival after 15h and installation in your rooms
16h workshop on healthy, clean, organic vegan cooking and introduction of the weekend's menu and activities plus the La Vudèle goodie bag
19h classic Provencal apéritif dinatoire: a relaxed sit-down dinner with several different dishes prepared by your hosts, to explore the flavors and aromas of Provence

Saturday
7.30 energizing morning yoga practice outside in nature, to get Prana flowing and stimulate digestion
9h our copious organic vegan breakfast with sourdough bread
10h visit of the local farmers' market in Riez with guide to our organic producers. We will purchase the ingredients for the delicious meal for dinner
afterwards free time to explore the area, the lavender fields, the gorge du Verdon and its lakes, etc
16h cooking course and preparation of our dinner:
Cooking with the fresh ingredients from our own vegetable garden and purchased at the market in the morning.
Practice of mindfulness, kindness & ahimsa, nonviolence, one of the yamas of yoga.
Awareness meditation: the love we place into the preparation is the love which nourishes us
19h gala dinner presenting the bounty of our cooking experience accompanied by wine tasting of local organic wines from Quinson, some cultivated right behind La Vudèle

Sunday
7.30 energizing morning yoga practice outside in nature
9h our copious organic vegan breakfast|
followed by a workshop on ideas for a healthy vegan breakfast and a certificate of your participation of this workshop
afterwards departure or possibility to extend your stay in our B&B

2 nights accommodation in our organic B&B or guest house including our copious organic vegan breakfast and 2 dinners € 580 for two

Bienvenue à La Vudèle & bon appétit!

RECIPES - quinoa risotto

February and March are the most difficult months of the year for the human body as nature has not awakened from its winter slumber and winter has stopped producing in order to prepare for spring and another growing season. Our trusted farmers Gerard and Francis at their stands at the weekly market in Riez provide us with what's in season, and so now is the time for the last winter greens and root vegetables

As such our choices are more limited yet there is still an abundance of joyful ingredients which we can use to prepare delicious meals. How about a quinoa risotto? Unlike risotto made with Arborio rice quinoa, when cooked, does not become creamy and sticky. But not worries, there are also advantages. 

RECIPES - delicious grilled tofu dinner

grilled tofu with its typical marks

At our organic vegetarian (and most of the time vegan) dinner table or table d'hôtes" we serve seasonal regional dishes with local produce and products, something we are very proud of and enjoy offering to our guests from allover the world.

Because exploring the many facets of vegetarianism (and more and more veganism) is so important to us we like preparing meals either with a twist and/or with ingredients most people have heard of but either never tried or never managed to create in their own kitchen. Enter tofu!

How many times we have heard that our guests had either tried making tofu themselves at home but didn't like it or had not tried it before for fear of its possible bland taste. And how many times did we hear, during or after the dinner, that they had never thought tofu could taste this good!

grilled tofu with couscous and seasonal vegetables

It all starts with the best ingredients, and in this case with the best tofu. Fresh is best. And because we are located away from shops and conurbation we prefer to source regionally as well. We found organic tofu at our favorite organic store in Manosque, La Nature et Vous, a truly local store run by Agnes and her very friendly, helpful and very knowledgeable staff of 5, from the local producer Tossolia in upper Provence, near Sault, about 1 hour from Manosque. This is the only kind - fresh tofu from the cooler section - which tastes nice, absorbs the flavors of a marinade, and can pass as tofu.

Here is the recipe for grilled tofu as served under the mulberry tree at La Vudèle or in our cozy farmhouse kitchen, always prepared on our rustic gas stove using a Le Creusset cast-iron grill pan:

1. drain the tofu thoroughly for at least half an hour
2. cut the tofu in even slices, to ensure even cooking
3. blend a marinade with organic toasted sesame oil, organic grapeseed oil and some organic soy sauce
4. coat tofu with the marinade and allow to infuse for at least 4 hours
5. frequently reapply marinade to ensure even coating
6. heat the grill pan and apply an even layer of organic grapeseed oil
7. once oil is hot place your tofu slices on the pan and cook on each side for at least 5 minutes 

The slices will come out with the typical grill marks sans the toxic aspects of a charcoal BBQ
Serve with freshly steamed couscous infused with fennel seeds, garnished with fresh mint

Sautée sliced onions and garlic, add fresh spinach or Swiss chard
Sprinkle freshly ground linseed for Omega-3 over the couscous

Prepare a sauce of homemade organic peanut butter, organic oat milk, organic sesame oil, a splash of your favorite red wine, rice vinegar, agave syrup and freshly sliced ginger

One of our guests wrote in our guest book: "thanks for the best tofu ever". Thank you Michal from Gdansk!

And please, you all, let us know how you go on with your own tofu cooking experience back home!

Wishing you bon appetit!

 

 

LIFE AT LA VUDELE - fall gardening: the lasagna bed

lasagna bed in fall

As we are easing into fall - also here in Provence - it is time to get our outdoor affairs in order. For us that means not only our garden with fig, plum and cheery trees but also, and possibly most importantly, our vegetable garden, le potager

For those of you interested in gardening you may have heard the term "lasagna bed" or "lasagna gardening" during your visit here at La Vudèle. A strong believer of natural living within the rhythm of time and nature we employ the methods of permaculture in our vegetable garden. Aided by rainwater harvesting in the bassin right next to our veggie patch using a small bucket on a rope and Claudia's muscle power; companion planting to use the benefits of each plant without disturbing the eco balance; and crop rotation planting. Plus leaving "weeds" in bloom for the many bees, wasps and other busy insects to nourish themselves from so that the eco system can live and thrive.

 

Provencal sky in October

So in October and November we have been busy preparing the vegetable beds by layering nitrogen, ie. brown leaves with carbon, like green leaves, and compost material which we add all winter long. This is a method we have been using for the third season now, with amazing results! And all under the blue sky of Provence - simply perfect!
 
With the aid of this layering method called "lasagna gardening" we have been able to greatly improve the soil of our vegetable garden, which had not seen any production since tante Louise, the great-great aunt of our neighbor and original owner of La Vudèle used it, many many decades ago.

 Whatever is in season we share with our guests during our meals or table d'hôtes, be it freshly harvested string beans, courgettes, various leafy greens, tiny tasty melons and lately various types of pumpkins. Very delicious!

Bon appetit!