Perfect French Country

Ros Byam Shaw also wrote my favourite interiors book of last year, Perfect English Cottage, so I knew I was in for gorgeousness unconfined in this new volume. The format is much the same, 13 beautiful homes photographed to the hilt, accompanied by engaging interviews with their creators, with lashings of detail. And the colours… I know that it’s sensible to paint everything neutral but I find it so uninspiring. Beige, greige and oatmeal, sand and stone and string and putty – what is this, a house or a builder’s yard? The colours inside these old limewashed French farmhouses – faded tangerine, inky blues and cerulean, greens that hover between sage, mint and dusty emerald, mottled lemon and terracotta – are balm to the soul. Outside are shabby stone courtyards, huge old shade trees, cheerful geraniums in terracotta pots and vivid banks of hydrangeas. Inside, they are all cool, shadowed grandeur; battered, pocked and smoothed by time. Unreal estate! Jane Hurley is a Wairarapa writer find instructions here and, although you’ll need time (we’re talking slow food after all), the methods are simplified where possible. A useful book for those with food sensitivities, it includes a guide to alternative grains, and gluten-free and dairy-free options are given. Galloway, who writes the Homegrown Kitchen blog, lives in Nelson on a property with heritage fruit trees and a vege garden, so she’s big on preserving (using less sugar than usual) as well as making fermented foods like sauerkraut, which are having a revival right now. I’ve already made the Plum and Tomato Sauce – delicious! The 150-page recipe section covers breakfast, lunch and dinner options, from Buckwheat Crêpes with Caramelised Apples for breakfast to Slow-cooked Pulled Pork Tacos with Red Slaw for dinner. Of course there are treats, but sugar is kept to a minimum. Pumpkin Caramel Slice is an intriguing twist on an old favourite. Rosemary Barraclough is NZ House & Garden’s associate editor