French Cooking and a Peony Hunt

With all of the peonies now in bloom, seeing them in EVERY single person's yard has made me a bit jealous. I admit to that. They are such a beautiful spring flower, and I wouldn't mind enjoying them for myself. So. Recently I discovered the art of flower stealing. As in, I walk the ally ways of my neighbourhood with my shears in hand and snip all the overhanging flowers that spill into the depths of the ally. I figure if no one will enjoy these, I might as well! This is how the peony hunt came about. I set out on a journey to find the perfect peony. After 5 long blocks and numerous temptations to sneak onto a yard, I found what I considered free for the taking...some on the other side of someone's fence. Success! And no one stopped me! They are now making my home smell beautiful.

Another recent interest of mine lately has been to try new recipes and flavours. I admit, I've become a bit of a foodie. Just a little bit...So I was ecstatic when I received this early birthday gift yesterday from the girls at my work. (Well...ex-workplace...yesterday was my last day! woohoo!) French Taste~Elegant Everday Eating. I'm excited to try this out!

And speaking of French cooking, we had my favourite breakfast of all this morning- French Toast. (In a close second comes another french favourite, crepes.) I am happy to share this delicious morning delight with you.

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons sugar
1 1/3 cups milk
4 eggs
2 teaspoons melted margarine or butter
nutmeg
cinnamon

Beat flour, sugar, salt, milk and eggs with hand beater until smooth. Soak bread in egg mixture until saturated.

Heat margarine in skillet until melted. Cook bread until golden brown, about 12 minutes on each side. Makes about 12 slices.

Blueberry Compote
2 cups blueberries
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and cook until thick over medium heat.