Both food and ideas can get stale.

To prevent routine from creeping in, French food agitators Le Fooding created La Bazarette, a small food bazar, which will be present at 3 summer events in July in France.

They kick off the mini tour in Paris with music at Festival Days Off on July 1st.

They visit Arles on July 8, at Les Rencontres d'Arles where photography reigns supreme.

Third stop is Biarritz where they catch the surf and the groove at Big Festival on July 23, 2011.

A changing menu and local talent will be showcased at each stop.

Program in Arles is highlighted below:

APÉRITIF

LE MAURESQUIMAU
RICARD + ORGE + AMANDES + GLACE PILÉE

Par Magnus Nilsson, Fäviken Magasinet, Suède

AU MARCHÉ

LE PÊCHEUR

Nicolas Gauthier, Arles

LE MARAÎCHER

Claude Pernix, Le Sambuc, Arles

LE FROMAGER

Stéphane Lemercier, Mas du Trident, Vauvert

LE CONFISEUR

Pierre Lilamand, Arles

L'OLIVERON

André Meiffre, Arles

Registration for La Bazarette open on June 28, 2011 at 10 AM (Heure Francaise)

(* links to program for each city lead to French only pages...Links to festivals themselves are to English language versions)

Food niches and jargon have you confused and overwhelmed, get back to basics at Cooking for Well Being Conference in Broomfield, Colorado from July 15  to July 17, 2011.

Learn why soaking your beans is as much about getting all the nutrients out of them as it is to prevent a farts session.

Take stock of making Nutrient-Dense Stock, "Stock is one of the original super foods. It is nurturing, nourishing, grounding, comforting, and nutrient-dense. Stock is the foundation of good soup, stew, vegetables, and grains. Learn how to make stock the way your grandmother (or great-grandmother) did!"

The event is anchored by Monica Corrado and was brought to my attention by Nourished Kitchen...

After enjoying paella in restaurants, are you ready to try your hand at one of the many versions of this classic Spanish dish.

In Paella (Phaidon Press, July 2011), Alberto Herraiz shares 108 recipes that detail the art the paella.

He goes in detail over stocks, fumets, infused oils (whether it's with Sardines or Jamon Iberico), rice of course, techniques, cooking utensils and pans.

As to how to eat paella, the chef from Fogon in Paris suggests you should eat it "straight from the pan because the differences in texture are destroyed when the rice is spooned onto plates. Each diner should be given a wooden spoon to help themselves."

Here's a first taste of the book.

Arroz en Paella con Vino Y Cordoniz

Paella Rice with Red Wine and Quails

Preparation time: 35 minutes (excluding stock)

Cooking time: 17 minutes

Serves: 2

 It is important to make this rice dish in a stainless steel paella pan so that the ingredients retail their attractive violet color:

For an extra fine texture, use at 41-cm (16-inch) paella pan suitable for us on the stove and in the oven.

Ingredients:

500ml (1¾ cups) Quail Stock (Page 51)

50ml (¼ cup) Garlic Oil (page 60) or ordinary olive oil

2 quail, boned, filleted and legs removed (ask your butcher to give you the bones so you can make the stock)

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

200g (1/3 cup) turnip, diced

50g (scan ½ cup) carrots, cut into 2-mm (¼-inch) thick rounds

100g (scant 1 cup) red onions, thinly sliced

200ml (scant 1 cup) red wine

100ml (scant ½ cup) sherry vinegar

200g (1 cup) bomba or other short grain rice

6 peeled chestnuts

salt

Instructions:

Heat the Quail Stock but do not allow it to boil. Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas Mark 2.

Heat the Garlic Oil in the paella pan over moderate heat, add the quail meat (except the legs) and sauté for several minutes until browned all over. Take them out of the pan and set aside, covered with aluminum foil.

Add the garlic, quail legs, red cabbage, turnips, carrots and onions and sauté over moderate heat for several minutes until softened. Pour in the wine and the vinegar and allow to reduce until there is hardly any liquid left in the pan.

Add the rice and cook over low heat for a few minutes, stirring with a wooden spatula, until thoroughly coated and translucent; do not allow the rice to burn.

Add the chestnuts. Pour in the very hot Quail Stock, stir and bring to a boil. If you have a timer, set it to 17 minutes. Cook over very high heat for 5 minutes until the rice rises to the surface of the liquid. Taste and season with salt, if necessary, bearing in mind that the flavors will become more pronounced as the liquid evaporates. Put the paella in the preheated oven. After 9 minutes, arrange the quail meat over the top of the paella and return it to the oven.

After 3 minutes, remove the paella from the oven. Allow it to rest for 3 minutes, then serve.

(* Recipe reproduced by permission of Phaidon Press, all rights reserved)

Thanks to no rain on the parade Twitter note from Celebrate Brooklyn, I realized a few days late that the 2011 series have been going since June 10 at the Prospect Park Bandshell.

I wish i had not missed Hal Willner's Freedon Riders Project on June 16.

Featured no less than Geri Allen, Steve Bernstein, James Carter, Rosanne Cash, Toshi Reagon, Lou Reed, Todd Rundgren, Catherine Russell...

Amongst concerts still to take place, a few favs of mine are Roy Hargrove Quintet/ The Badwagon feat, Jason Moran (June 24), Los Lobos/ Hello Seahorse!/ Zigmat (July 8) and Oumou Sangaré/ Bassam Saba (July 29).

I was about to forget to add to the favorites list The Feelies/ Real Estate Times/ New Viking (July 23).

All these concerts are Free!

$3 donations at the door are suggested.

Director Koichi Omiya managed to make The Sketch of Mujo, a 75 minutes film on Tohoku in Tsunami's aftermath, in 50 days.

The tight schedule was motivated by his desire to keep memories of what happened fresh in people minds.

Kaori Shoji in First Tohoku documentary captures tsunami aftermath (Japan Times, June 24) notes that "53-year-old filmmaker who was born in Kuji in Tohoku's Iwate Prefecture and spent his childhood moving around in Iwate and Yamagata prefectures, says that this disaster struck him with particular force, partly because the northeast is the land of his birth and largely because his parents still live there."

Kaori Shoji explains 'Mujo' for us:

"Mujō is a Buddhist concept, meaning "transience" or "impermanence." From time immemorial, the Japanese have deployed it to explain tragedies great and small, to alleviate the sadness of separation and death and to remind themselves that after all, this world is but a stepping stone on the path to achieving nirvana."

The movie opened at Auditorium Shibuya in Tokyo on the date marking 100 days since tsunami.

The theater offers some screenings with English subtitles for non-Japanese speakers.

Memories of Tohoku for Tokyo Thursdays # 196

Previously: Adventure Calls, Japanese Albums by Felice Beato, Photographer on Eastern Road

(* some of the links are to mostly Japanese language sites)

Your dog might be peaceful like mine is yet you don't want its presence to be marked by an hair trail if he tags along for Take Your Dog to Work Day on June 24.

Time for a dog haircut and a little grooming.

You will feel more human by 'working with a dog' instead of working like a dog.

Giving new meaning to casual Friday.

Having already made stops in Miami and New York, the El Coto de Rioja Paella Parade (sponsored by Frederick Wildman and Sons) returns to Chicago on June 23, 2011.

10 local chefs will offer their take on paella.

You will be able to clean your palate between samplings with a number of wines from El Coto de Rioja.

Tickets are $35 (per person) and can be purchased online.

10% of the proceeds go to Action Against Hunger.

(* This is not a sponsored post. I have not even tried the wines yet)

A juicy plum can stain your best shirt in no time as do blueberries.

They can turn into a delectable tart as happens with mouth watering Plum, Blueberry and Almond Tart below. Recipe is in the Autumn section of Jam, Jelly & Relish (Kyle Books, August 2011, US Edition) by Ghillie James.

Plum, Blueberry, and Almond Tart

This is a really easy recipe and it looks stunning.

Serve it with chilled crème fraîche to balance the sweetness of the tart.

18oz (500g) block of frozen, all-butter puff pastry, defrosted

flour, for rolling pastry

milk, for brushing pastry

9oz (250g) block of white marzipan

3/4lb (400g) plums, halved and pitted

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup blueberries

4 tablespoons Plum and Blueberry Jam (see page 99)or another berry jam

2 tablespoons toasted almond flakes

  Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Roll out the pastry on a floured surface until it forms a rectangle measuring about 11in x 14in (29 x 37cm). Trim a 3/4in (2cm) wide strip from all the edges and reserve. Place the pastry rectangle onto a baking sheet. Brush the edges with milk, then stick the strips all around the outside of the rectangle, trimming as necessary. Prick the bottom of the pastry with a fork.

  Roll out the marzipan very thinly, then place it onto the pastry rectangle and, using both hands, pull it so that it sits inside the pastry, scrunching it up a little so that it looks like an unmade bed. Scatter the plum halves over the top, cut-side up, and dot them with the butter. Scatter with the blueberries. (If you wish, you can make the tart up to this stage and keep it in the fridge overnight).

  Warm the jam with 3 tablespoons water to make it a little runnier, then drizzle half over the fruit. Scatter with the almonds and brush the exposed pastry edges with a little milk. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

  Remove the tart from the oven, drizzle with the remaining jam, and return it to the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and the plums are tender. Serve warm or cold with crème fraîche.

 I can see this recipe on my table this summer as an afternoon treat.

(* Recipe from Jam, Jelly & Relish reproduced courtesy of Kyle Books, Photo by Laura Hynd...First published in the UK in May 2010)

Singapore has a rich food culture. Read my interview Talking Tiger in The Kitchen with Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan, Family, Food and Singapore if you need convincing.

The Singapore Tourist Board decided to share the city-state culinary delights with the world with Singapore Takeout which brings container full of Singaporean Eats to 9 cities around the world.

The concept in a nutshell:

"Housed in a custom-fabricated shipping container that unfolds into a working kitchen, Singapore Takeout unites Singapore’s top chefs with culinary stars from around the world. Craving for traditional dishes? Or keen on sampling modern cuisine? This little pop-up is serving up all kinds of culinary goodness that will leave you craving for more.

Each city will host a 3-day long feast that imports the flavours of Singapore."

WenLih Soh shares what was on the menu for London Kickoff in Lunch by Chefs Janice Wong and Peter Gordon at #SGTakeout London (June 22).

Next stop is Paris (30 Jun - 2 Jul 2011) with Chef André Chiang (Restaurant André).

I will have to wait until September (16-18) to have a chance to sample their treats in New York.

Between Paris and New York the traveling kitchen stops in Moscow  (July 15 - 17 2011) with Chef Ryan Clift (Tippling Club) and Chef Daniel Sia (The Disgruntled Chef) manning the stoves.

Let's be honest, i don't think I ever tasted the man's wines.

At Vinexpo 2011 in Bordeaux, Regis Chaigne proudly wears his Smart Tagged French Geek Winemaker t-shirt.

Usually when i go to events, my attendee badge gets scanned.

Regis turns the tables on that convention, offering to share his details.

His family property Chateau Ballan-Larquette is in the Entre-Deux Mers so he did not have to make a long trip to Vinexpo.

Thanks to Louise Hurren who's always in the right wine place at the right time for sharing this snapshot from Vinexpo.