French lessons

You know what they say about all work and no play? Well, Peta Mathias is not a dull girl. When the show is over and the hard work done, she is inclined to throw off her pretty French sandals and kick up her heels – preferably with a group of close friends and preferably on a sun-baked terrace in the south of France. This particular terrace is in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France, near the medieval town of Uzès. It is part of Mas Bonnafoux, a beautifully restored 17th century farmhouse owned by Peta’s friends and business partners, New Zealander David Horsman and his wife Celia Lindsell. It is also the site of her cooking school, Fête Accomplie. This new venture has come on top of what has already been a busy few months for Peta. She has been filming for the television show NZ House & Garden and has launched a new book. Now she’s in France fulfilling a long-held ambition to run a cooking school in the country that has become her second home.

It really has been a lot of hard work getting it right, making it perfect. When you’re fronting a television programme there’s a producer, a director and a crew behind you. But this is all Peta’s show and it’s costing her sleep. “When you have a cooking school only you will remember the anchovies. So you wake in the night and think, ‘Where are the anchovies?’”

Well, that explains the anchovies – all five kilograms of them – and possibly the ten litres of olive oil too. It’s a staggering amount when you consider that all this is for a cooking class of ten. No matter, it was all soaked up by the end of the week and the school was a great success.

The star herself was in fine form. She sang, told stories, cut a swathe through
the market, laughed, cooked, entertained and charmed her way through the course in inimitable style.

Peta taught her students how to make regional specialities such as pissaladière and brandade de morue (a purée of salt cod). They learned how to knead good dough – “light and firm, like making love” – and how to choose and stone olives. And here’s a challenge: “Let’s see if you can pick them up off the floor with your teeth.” It’s the Peta Mathias sobriety test.
No wonder she’s exhausted. When it’s over, she says, “I’m going to lie on the floor and look at the ceiling … no, I’ll lie by the pool, drink rosé and roll in when it gets too hot.”

But now it is over. She has farewelled the last of her students with a kiss, kiss, kiss (three times in this part of France) and she has begun to prepare a meal for her friends. “It is so nice to cook for pleasure. No rushing about.”

This advocate of slow food has indeed being taking her time. She has been humming away in the kitchen all afternoon. Doing what exactly? Oh, you know, hulling the strawberries, picking over the cherries and splashing them with Pernod. Composing a salad, mixing spices and shaking the last of the olive oil over some baby haricots. There’s parsley to chop, chives to snip and now drinks to pour for her guests, who have just arrived.

Usually it’s Paul and Charmaine providing the hospitality (Peta lunched at their restaurant just the other day) but now it’s their turn to be entertained. They’ve brought two-year-old daughter Scarlet with them. Scarlet is a most important guest – she’s the small but crucial linchpin in the Kiwi connection. It was at her last birthday party that Peta met David who got talking about his new kitchen which just happened to be set up for a cooking school and that, you will remember, is why we’re all here.

Late lunch has turned into an early dinner but we are at last ready to turn up the music and uncork the wine. The cook has hung up her apron and she’s raising
a heartfelt toast of thanks to friends, a new venture and a job well done. A fait accompli? Not quite, because you know endings are also beginnings and we’ve seen only the start of this adventure. There’s work ahead, more classes to plan.

.100g ( cup) dried beans, soaked    overnight, or 400g can beans,    rinsed and drained 1 bay leaf and a sprig of thyme (if    using dried beans) 3 courgettes, finely sliced lengthways Olive oil (for frying)  preserved lemon 1 roasted capsicum (any colour) 200g cherry tomatoes, halved 50g pine nuts, toasted 100g black olives, pitted and chopped  cup chopped flat-leaf parsley Vinaigrette: 1⁄ cup lemon juice  teaspoon dijon mustard  teaspoon sea salt Freshly ground black pepper 2⁄ cup extra virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives If using dried beans, drain and boil in fresh water with bay leaf and thyme until tender. Add salt at the last minute; drain.

 Briefly fry courgettes in a little oil over high heat. Arrange on a platter. Discard white flesh from lemon and chop skin finely. Toss with all the remaining salad ingredients and vinaigrette. Pile on top of courgettes to serve. Serves 6

Preheat oven to 250°C and roast lamb for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 150°C and continue cooking for 3 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender, basting every 30 minutes with pan juices.

Serve with harissa and bowls of ground cumin and sea salt for seasoning. 

Serves 6

300g strawberries 300g cherries 2 tablespoons Pernod or    similar liqueur  teaspoon freshly ground    black pepper

Wash strawberries, leaving stems on. Slice large ones in half. Wash and destalk cherries.

Place berries and cherries in a bowl and add Pernod. Grind pepper over and toss gently. Leave to soak for 30 minutes before serving.  Serves 6                 

Peta Mathias is a co-presenter of NZ House & Garden on TV ONE at 7.30pm on Fridays, with the support of Mitsubishi Electric.

Story: Anna Tait-Jamieson Issue: September 2006 Photographs: BENEDICTE LONGECHAL