Some lovely ads this month, full of late 60s, early 70s, colour; including a surprisingly subtle advert from Pirelli…

Really like the colour combination in the Lucas furniture advert and the saucer inspired designs for pod-like architecture and living spaces.

Would really like this kitchen!

Finally an article on Britain’s first sports-wagon caught my eye; cast yours over the wonder that is the Reliant Scimitar GTE.

Pictures at the bottom of the post…

When my very own genuinely French ‘little sparrow’ is not creating her own Anglo-French recipes, I sometimes lift the odd culinary finger and get inspired.

This time it was by way of an apology that I decided to create something special in the run-up to Easter, or Pâques, as it is called in France. One afternoon I decided to leaf through my Nigel Slater recipe book. Now, I like Nigel’s food and he manages to make it all look so simple when he is on television, but when it comes to making a list of ingredients then I would do well to still live in Hammersmith and food shop in Chiswick. When sourcing ingredients in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, despite all the produce available, I think Nigel’s recipes may be a task too far.

Instead of panicking I decide to go back to basics and venture out to see what produce is available locally and determine to get creative through inspiration. Courgettes remain abundant, spring lamb is at the butchers and fresh peas have made an appearance.

So, knowing I want something for Easter and bearing in mind I wish to create something light and spring-like, if not summery, I opt for lamb chops roasted in a marinade of lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, red onion, dried thyme, dried oregano, salt and cracked black pepper. To complement the meat I decide on a salad of raw courgette, lemon, garlic, red onion, fresh podded peas, feta cheese, fresh parsley and fresh mint.

I mix the lamb with the marinade of citrus (I used lime another time), dried herbs, onion and garlic, season it well and roast in a medium hot oven for about 15 minutes, until pink and tender. The salad is finely sliced courgettes (I use one of those dodgy mandolins), mixed with more citrus juice, a little olive oil, seasoning, fresh parsley and mint, the fresh peas (steamed for 10 or so minutes) and, finally, crumbled feta cheese.

All of this can also be bought at the supermarket, save maybe the fresh mint and parsley. It is the freshly podded peas that really make the difference and it proved to be such a winner I was asked to make it a second time. For the second version I also found fava beans and though they are a right royal pain to prepare, you do not need many, and the flavour really does add another dimension to the salad.

What is particularly nice is that the citrus infuses the garlic and red onion, making a really tasty and sweet garnish to the lamb. For the French palate, that finds the British idea of lamb with mint sauce so utterly bizarre, the slightly mediterranean/Greek style courgette and feta salad with the fresh mint is a good introductory accompanying dish. The hot meat and cool salad are a perfect combination for a light spring meal…

I call this Springtime Lamb with Zucchini and Feta Salad.

Thanks to N for spotting this.

In this month’s edition is also a lovely back cover illustration for the British Poster Design Awards 1968/69, which looks very modern indeed. There are also great ads for playplax, which I remember using at primary school, and for a comfortable chair that promises to reduce ‘Executive Backache’, featuring the great British bobby.

Yet again there is also another colourful and creative ad from Windsor & Newton and an interesting spread on a classification for analysing the design of proprietorial symbols by Hans Weckerle, a Swiss typographer. This is followed by a 4 page visual article by two, at the time, recent graduates (Anthony McCall and Mike Bygrave) that presents a record of events that led up to the design student crises of 1968. I have also included a small article titled Puff of the year, a title awarded by the magazine itself to over-inflated product or design merchandising – this time it’s for the wonderful Americana chopper (or handheld vegetable chopper).

An illustration by Charlie Riddle illustrates an article on supermarket shopping that I have chosen not to include in this post (I don’t have time to scan and upload all articles, but full articles can be found here: http://www.vads.ac.uk/diad/). There is also a half page on ‘automatic headway control’, which, at the time, was a futuristic concept. Now, of course, it is something that is already in operation.

Anyway, the Gentle Author’s blog Spitalfields Life is published by Saltyard Books (an imprint of Hodder & Stoughton). If you get the chance then the book launch is on the evening of Friday 2nd March, in Nicholas Hawksmoor’s towering masterpiece of Christ Church, Spitalfields.

You can purchase the book here, and visit the Spitalfields Life blog here.

What is more, there is an excellent post regarding the designer involved in the book design for Spitalfields Life, David Pearson, and some of the excellent covers that he has been involved with.

The picture above is the new bronze boy on a rocking horse, called Powerless Structures, Fig 101, and is the fourth sculpture to be exhibited on the plinth in Trafalgar Square, London.

This one on is Jeanne d’Arc on the rue Rivoli in Paris. It is also the meeting place for the annual rally by the Front National in the city, and is a more general symbol for ‘recovery’.

I wonder what the Scandinavian artists Elmgreen & Dragset are trying to tell the viewer…

More in the Guardian here.

Last week, the new Windows 8 logo leaked online. Meanwhile, the logo’s designer, Paula Scher at Pentagram, could only sigh. The dimensions were off, and it wasn’t even in the right color. Her work for one of the world’s largest brands was already being skewered, but it wasn’t even the right work.

Fast Company and Co.Design get to the quick: http://www.fastcodesign.com/1669092/the-new-windows-8-logo-arrives-trailed-by-hackers-and-haters

And here’s the winner.

Okay, today is Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day if you prefer, and I thought I’d share my method for making pancakes, thus dispelling some of the myths; it really is a very simple and quick dish to make.

I have a very simple formula for the amounts that I’ve followed for the last 20 years, in fact ever since my Mum gave it to me when I was a student. It goes like this: 4oz flour, 1 egg, half pint of milk and a pinch of salt. I also now add a liberal dose of ground black pepper. Pepper is a surprisingly versatile ingredient and works well with sweet dishes – do not relegate it to the savoury department only.

So that trusty formula makes 5 pancakes usually; by doubling the quantity I always get exactly 11 pancakes, which just goes to show how consistent the formula is. Don’t use water as it reduces the richness of the pancake, milk is just fine, and don’t worry about the mixing process – just bung all the ingredients in a large bowl and whisk vigorously (the use of an actual metal hand whisk is recommended here as it cuts through all the lumps and bumps and makes for a nice smooth-ish frothy mixture). No need to leave it standing or anything like that either, you can easily knock this mix up in a few minutes – pancakes are a fast food.

Slightly pre-grease a non-stick frying pan on the highest heat, add a small knob of butter, swish the butter around the pan a little until it’s melted (do this before each pancake and use lard if you’re old school). Then ladle in some of the pancake mix (I use a soup ladle – it holds exactly the right amount to create a thin, plate sized pancake). Make sure the mix covers the pan. One minute or two either side is all it needs – the test is that the pancake should become loose of its own accord, or with a little nudge with a spatula, once it is cooked. Keep the cooking on a high heat, no need to fiddle around with temperatures – this isn’t rocket science.

While cooking I place the plate or plates in the oven at a low temperature, just to keep them and the cooked pancakes warm. No need to layer the pancakes with greaseproof paper – they won’t go too soggy and horrible in that short amount of time.

One tip is to pre squeeze your lemon and have the sugar ready as it’s imperative to gobble down all the pancakes while still piping hot. We once took a taxi on the Côte d’Azur and the driver of that taxi had been responsible for first importing the bottled ready squeezed lemon juice to France. Lovely chap, but squeeze your own fresh lemon for goodness sake, we’re all far too lazy these days. That’s another reason for warming the plates, to keep those pancakes nice and warm for the lemon and sugar syrup topping. I won’t hear of any other topping, sweet or savoury, in my mind that’s just wrong. If you want banana or nutella or cheese and something then that’s your business…

Oh yes, and I never have a ‘dodgy’ first pancake anymore either. Delicious.

NB The photos have now been updated to show the ones I made this very evening.