A Spring in My Step

Spring, the best season for long walks in the countryside, has officially arrived. Incidentally, spring is also the best season for Heli- Skiing in Alaska, which is where Nathan is at the moment, and will be for the next 2 weeks. Him and his mates, jumping off helicopters, swooshing down what they call "thousands of feet of vertical powder runs", drinking (a lot), playing cards and recounting the day's conquests. Just doing really sweaty, smelly, men stuff. Grrr.

Heli-skiing for them, Hell for me; 2 weeks of staring out the window at the Hakuba mountains, worrying about my husband getting lost in the Alaskan wilderness with a broken leg and missing skis, being rescued 3 days later by Sarah Palin dressed in knee-high boots and a skin-tight leotard. Oh well, best do what I often purport and not worry about things I have no control over. After all, things could be a lot worse- she could've been Vice-President of the United States.

So back to the first day of Spring in Hakuba. After a morning of pottering about the house with the Japanese Top 100 Countdown playing in the background, I became inspired by a particularly upbeat dance song (which came complete with a video of 10 androgynous young Japanese males, dressed all in black , sporting strange hairstyles, dancing, and singing the occasional indecipherable english line). Donning my walking shoes, I stepped out for pleasant walk about town .

Readers be warned- to a born and bred city girl (like myself), a seemingly innocuous walk in the countryside is actually fraught with unexpected dangers. Where there are farmers, there are farms and where there are farms, there are dogs. Big, scary ones with sharp teeth, barking loudly and tugging at their chains with frightening ferocity as you try to walk past as quickly as possible without actually making a run for it. Then recently, at a local dinner party, I was told something that helped take my mind off the dogs- there are bears in Hakuba.

See, the other thing that the beginning of spring is great for is waking up from hibernation, in search of food to feed a very hungry tummy. With that in mind, I walk briskly along with a practiced look of nonchalance (as if looking like I wasn't worried would throw the wild animals off), enjoying the cool, crisp wind in my hair and singing along to my Ipod. I returned home an hour later, safe and sound. Perhaps my excruciating rendition of Jay Chou ballads frightened the Hakuba Grizzly back to its cave. Or perhaps, I just made it really really annoyed, and it is lying in wait somewhere in the trees for the next beautiful spring day.

Here's what I rewarded myself with for my bravery (it smelt so good.. I wondered if bears liked cheese)

Ham and Mushroom Crepes

I got this Basic Crepe Recipe off the internet a long time ago. Recipes for fillings are my own. Doesn't get any easier than this!

125gm all-purpose flour

2 eggs

120ml milk

120ml water

dash of salt

30gm butter, melted (or vegetable oil)

Sift flour and salt, then mix in other ingredients, beat until smooth. Let sit in for at least an hour. To cook crepes, heat a griddle or non-stick frypan. I usually find it easiest to pour the mixture out of a jug, enough to form a thin layer over the base of the pan (turn the pan in the circular motion after pouring so the mixture spreads out). When the crepe seems cooked through, turn the crepe over and cook till slightly brown on both sides

Ham & Mushroom Filling

serves 4

500gm smoked ham, sliced

250gm mushrooms, sliced

1 brown onion, chopped

handful parsley, chopped

juice of 1 lemon

salt and pepper to taste

Heat some oil in a pan, fry onion, then add ham and mushrooms and cook through. Add parsley and lemon juice and season to taste. Set aside.

Roux

1 tspn butter

1 tblspn flour

1 cup milk

salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a saucepan, stir in flour (stir fast to prevent lumps), then stir in milk and heat through till sauce thickens. Season and combine with ham mixture. Place some of the mixture in the middle of a crepe, sprinkle some shredded cheese, fold the crepe on all four sides, stick in an over or toaster for about 5 min till cheese melts.

Here's another filling I've tried:

Paprika Chicken

serves 4

500gm chicken breast, sliced

1 brown onion, sliced

1 zucchini, sliced

1 tblspn paprika

1 tspn cumin

1 tspn coriander

salt and pepper to taste

4 lettuce leaves

Marinade chicken with paprikan, cumin and coriander. Heat oil in a pan, fry the onion, then brown chicken. Add zucchini and cook through. Season to taste. Combine with roux and build crepe as above.