Dinner and Movie night yesterday was French-themed. We watched Flight of the Red Balloon accompanied by a French-inspired tasting platter. On the platter was: a baguette from Terra Breads, hot calabrese, local goat cheese, manchego, sweet pearl onions, olives and cornichons. The highlights of the platter were two spreads that we bought at a Farmer’s Market in Saint Rémy de Provence. We were saving them for a special occasion. A night at home can be as special as any occasion, so we opened them up. Why not? The dark spread is Crème d’Alhambra, which is similar to a tapenade but slightly creamier and less salty. The ingredients are olives, olive oil, anchovies and, unlike tapenades we’ve had, sheep cheese. The mustard colour spread is Carmin d’Artichauts with is 60% artichoke hearts, olive oil, dried tomatoes, pine nuts and garlic. Imagine those ingredients together. It tastes exactly like that. Nothing more, nothing less. Simple and delicious.
And how was the movie? As the backdrop to our meal, it was perfect. The film is filled with vignettes of Parisian life with lovely locations, styling, cinematography and beautiful people. The story is rather meandering and abstract, though. You won’t laugh, you won’t cry, you may not even know the movie ended but, served with dinner, you will enjoy your meal. Bon appétite.
