Holing up in a remote country cottage

These are the ingredients I need for a week of peace and recharging:  

A remote cottage in peaceful countryside

Some lovely country walks from my doorstep

A log fire to come back to and a husband to stoke it for me 

A country pub that does good hearty lunches

A box of books I've been meaning to read for ages

Films to watch cuddled up to at night

A large comfy sofa with blankets to snuggle in

A crate of red wine

Candlelight, preferably deliciously scented

Last week in Devon I had all that and more (a fabulous bakery, a waterfall to admire on my walk, bowls of pasta, fresh soups, local cheeses and a special homemade onion bread, a big deep bath and huge soft bed). 

In 1855 George Sand said  "The important thing is not to travel, but rather to depart; who among us does not have some pain they wish to escape from, or some bondage they wish to break out of?"  Her words are just as true today and we all need to get away from the carnival from time to time.  It works too because when you know you can't do anything about all those things that are worrying you, since you're not at home to deal with them anyway, your mind relaxes and so it's not just your body that gets a rest, fresh air and exercise of a more gentle variety.  By the time you get back home everything seems more manageable and less critical, after all its waited a week already!    

So don't dismiss Britain as a place for a winter break, because not only are the cottages cheaper but the places are quieter, and if the weather is bad it gives you a great excuse just to stay by the fire.

Taste some tropical fruit!

Now that Winter is well and truly on the horizon all those lovely fresh fruits of summer are disappearing. Although I usually try and buy fruit that is grown locally, in Winter you sometimes have to cast your net further to much hotter climes like South America and Africa, because even in Spain where the orange and lemon trees are in full fruit, it is too bitter and only suitable for cooking.

I love those boxes of easy peel Satsumas currently in the shops (my daughter used to be able to peel them in her pocket during lessons with one hand) and fresh figs are sometimes available but its a good opportunity to try something a bit different.  Of course some fruits are no longer so exotic.  Mango is one of my favourites but I'm not sure it can be considered unusual these days, the same with Pineapples, Kiwis and probably Pomegrantes.  I remember trying the awful smelling Durian Fruit in Singapore once, it tasted OK but for some reason never took off over here!  A friend gave me some Sharon Fruit the other day, a fruit she used to love to eat growing up in Algeria (top on the photos).  Here we know it as Persimmon too and its easy to cut as it has no hard core.  I thought it tasted a little like a mild pear and it offset the tangy mango quite well on my fruit plate.  I also tried Papaya or Pawpaw (the yellow one in the top photo) which has a lot of black pips to scoop out first (you can eat them but they are quite bitter and peppery).  It is much used in Thai cooking but raw it doesn't smell very appetising close up although the taste is quite mild.  Together they made a delicious healthy finish to a meal, full of antioxidants and vitamins.  My favourite though will always be the mango.

Mind you exotic is a matter of opinion, my father-in-law recalls seeing a banana for the first time as a child after the war and biting into it skin and all which he thought disgusting and wondered why there was such a fuss about them being back in the shops!