Aubergines, lemons and pistachios

St Georges (Flags out chaps)

We started off with a beautiful clear sky this morning and I was up at 7 again thanks to Figaro. I don't really mind too much on a lovely morning, especially after all the rain, and I had a lunch to prepare for friends, so I managed to get an early start with my food preparation.

I try to keep a diary of what we have fed to our various guests when they come here. It can get quite complicated when we see the same people, in different combinations a few times a year. Today we decided to opt for a North African theme and, although I had made most of the dishes before, I wanted to try some new ones and so prepared them in advance in case they turned out disastrously.

The Baba Ganoush (aubergine and tahini dip), I started yesterday morning by baking the aubergines. Unfortunately we had to go out and I didn't peel the aubergines and mix them with the rest of the ingredients until late afternoon. This turned out to be a big mistake as the soft pulp of the aubergines picked up the bitterness from the skins and the dish was ruined. Jon was a saint and went shopping very early this morning so that I could have another go and today, the dip turned out deliciously (is that a valid word?). I also made a broad bean dip which, yesterday evening was a little bland, so after a night's rest in the fridge, I added some Tabasco sauce and lime juice - the result was perfect. We also had Fattoush, a tomato, cucumber and pepper salad with a spicy dressing, mint and parsley leaves, and a plate of crudites and North African bread completed the first course.

The main course is one that I had prepared before so I was quietly confident that it would turn out well. The chicken with olives and preserved lemons was really popular with our guests and we served it with a rice mixture including dates, dried apricots and toasted almond flakes.

For dessert we had an orange salad and with our coffee a nut and honey cake, which was all gooey and light.

It was the cake that caused Jon and I a bit of pain last night. The recipe called for 115 grams of peeled and ground pistachio nuts. The only pistachios I could buy were in their shells and salted so we duly sat and peeled the lot.

I can now confidently inform you that the average weight of a peeled pistachio nut is point three or four of a gram, and if you like pistachios, you will know how long it took us to shell the damned things. Our fingers were sore and our thumbnails shot to pieces.

So we were very glad that the guests really tucked in to the cake and enjoyed it.

Tomorrow is book club evening and some friends who attend come from a village 45 minutes drive from here. Being the nice, friendly people we are, we have invited them to stay for supper after the meeting, so we start all over again tomorrow with a different menu. But I can assure you that it will not include pistachio cake!

Oh, of course the sun didn't last. We managed an apero out on the veranda before the rain set in again, but it has been mizzling ever since. Roll on summer.