La Cigale: Recipes and Stories From the Family Who Brought a Slice of France to New Zealand

Part recipe book, part food and travel memoir, part business story, this beautifully, prolifically illustrated, totally luscious book tells the story of a Kiwi family who brought a slice of France to New Zealand. 
La Cigale is a love story — a love affair with French food, fashion and style that stretches back to Elizabeth Lind’s childhood, when she first tasted frogs’ legs, flipped through the pages of Elizabeth David’s French Provincial Cooking, enjoyed exotic family holidays and was enchanted by Albert Lamorisse’s classic film The Red Balloon. 

Don't miss this one.It is a stunner!

La Cigale 
Elizabeth Lind
Random House - Hardback - $55
Publication 21 September

And here from the book is a recipe for you to try, once we have ripe figs!

Ebly Wheat Salad

Ebly is the brand name of a wholegrain pure durum wheat harvested from wheat grown in Central France. The brand is so well known in France that the word is now used generally for this wheat. It can be boiled, baked in casseroles, steamed or fried. Ebly has a nutty flavour and absorbs other flavours really well. I often use it in a salad or in place of rice or pasta. This salad has a Moroccan feel to it, but you can change it around as you like. You could include diced tomatoes, diced capsicum, spring onions or red onion. Pomegranate seeds work really well instead of the fresh figs (use 4 tbsp).

250 g Ebly wheat

40 ml extra virgin olive oil

40 ml lemon juice

3–5 tbsp Moroccan
rasel hanout spice mix

pinch of chilli flakes (optional)

2 handfuls of
roasted almonds

1 diced Lebanese cucumber

2 handfuls of raisins

2 tbsp each of chopped mint, parsley and coriander

2 tbsp of diced
preserved lemon (skin only)

4–5 fresh figs quartered
or cut into eighths
(depending on their size)

salt and pepper

Cook the Ebly in boiling salted water for 10–12 minutes till soft. Drain.

While warm, add the olive oil, lemon juice, rasel hanout and chilli flakes if you’re using them.

Gently but thoroughly mix in the rest of the ingredients. Taste and season.