FRENCH APRICOT TARTLETS

My lovely friends and Feast sisters, Chris Ann and Kristin asked me to participate in the launching of their newly redesigned blog and shop LoveFeast Table and I gladly said yes. I have known these two generous, talented, passionate, unpretentious women for quite some time and have already written guest posts for their blog, so it was a matter of course to join their festivites. But what to write when they suggest the theme Feast. Looking at their new space and I knew a celebration was in order. And, of course, what naturally popped into my head was...

LIFE’S A FEAST


An abundance of sweet summer fruit spilling out of crisp brown paper bags across my kitchen table; the heady fragrance weaving through the air reminding me of the summers of my childhood. I stand in wonder at the reds fading from garnet to ruby to rose, the purples royal, the oranges tinged with the evening sun and I understand the magic of the summer bounty of stone fruits.

Life’s a feast. I often wonder how I fell upon this name for my blog and how it foreshadowed events, how my life and my writing converged, melting into one. Since the first day I sat down and began writing, I have experienced the sweet and the bitter, I have laughed out loud, savoring cinnamon and honey-scented sensations, candy-coated and sugar-dipped thrills, and I have tasted the salt of my tears heavy on my cheeks. My life has been a series of adventures, a wild ride, a world of discovery that, young girl, I never would have dreamed of living. I wake up each day not knowing what will arrive on my doorstep, unprepared for both the sweet and the bitter, facing each with a mixture of wide-eyed innocence and staunch determination to understand and conquer. I have indeed learned that Life is a Feast, offering up both the good and the bad, astonishing us with the unexpected, delighting us with accolades, bringing tears of both joy and sorrow. A chain of strange and unintentional events brought me to Europe and I fell into the arms of an astonishing man with a taste for adventure and the unusual. Together, with our sons, we traveled, tasting what we could, learning as much as possible, experiencing as much as time and our wallet could afford. We taught our sons that life is an adventure and the world is their oyster, excuse the mixed metaphors, and this, I hope, is all reflected in how I cook, how I write and how I live. Life is like the food that we place on the table before them: we encourage them to taste each dish, grab at each opportunity, for how else will they understand what it is or know if they like it or not?


Please hop over to LoveFeast Table to read the rest, share my thoughts on life, food and blogging and, of course, for the recipe for these tasty French Apricot Tartlets.

Just a few announcements:


Have you reserved your tickets for the International Food Blogger Conference in New Orleans, August 25 – 28 yet? If not, don't miss what promises to be a fabulous weekend and experience. I am proud to be joining an incredible group of speakers where I'll be talking about a subject very close to my heart: Food & Culture.


I am pleased to announce that I am now partnering with well-known, acclaimed nutrition and health expert Joy Bauer, cookbook author and respected health activist. I don't often promote brands or products (if ever) yet when Joy's team contacted me proposing a partnership I couldn't but say yes. Like Joy, I believe wholeheartedly in living a healthy life, enjoying a balanced diet and, for those who know me well, exercise is part and parcel of my daily routine. I'll be sharing more about Joy, her cookbooks and her advice in the future.