joie de vivre

I recently bought a book on Amazon called Joie de Vivre. It's written by author and chef Robert Arbor who grew up in France. In the book he describes the simple joys of life in rural France, and how to emulate the attitude of simplicity and find happiness in the mundane tasks of everyday life.

He describes visits to the market, the butcher, and the patisserie, and the small garden plots that many people in rural France use to grow flowers and small amounts of veggies and fruits for everyday use. He depicts traditional meals, idyllic dinner parties, and simple, delicious ingredients.

He also provides simple, delicious recipes, like this one for simple strawberry jam. It's only fruit and sugar, with a little bit of water added, simmered for a few hours to break down the berries.

I almost never eat jam, I find that it tastes strangely artificial, but this is delicious. It's a bit more liquid than most jams, but scooping it with a spoon onto a toasted baguette with a cup of fresh coffee, a very traditional French breakfast, was delicious.

I am excited to try this with other fruits, I think nectarine jam will be amazing.

Lovely, lazy day breakfast