Whew! What a week. We made it through the end of the school year insanity. Miss A has successfully finished preschool and next year will be a full-time kindergartener (I get teary just thinking about it.). And Mr. N is off to 4th grade; although rather reluctantly as he will very much miss his teacher from this year. I have a feeling she will be one of those that he will remember his whole life.
Then this weekend we had yet another performance. This time it was Miss A’s turn. 
She completed another year of gymnastics (she’s been in for a few years now) and this year she got to perform in the program’s version of the “Olympics.” 
She was so excited for her big day. Nana and Papa came, as did Grammie and Boom Boom (my dad as he’s referred to by the kids) and my aunt and cousin (who Miss A adores) came to see her big day. She was a regular ham for the audience as she waited her turn (apparently a flare for the dramatic runs in the family)…
And then it was utter focus and determination. 
She even made it up to the ceiling on her rope climb which ceases to amaze me. 
It was such a fun afternoon and Miss A was so happy. Although she was quite concerned that her trophy was “fake.” I think she was expecting a real gold medal. The plastic variety was rather a disappointment. Ha! 
And there’s no rest for the weary. This week we have summer activities starting and then we’re preparing for a bit of fun. Why is it that fun always requires so much preparation? Ah well, that’s why we have tasty desserts to get us through and make up for “fake” trophies. So this week we bring you a few French dessert treats – Sables (butter cookies) and Mousse au Citron (lemon mousse). We’ll leave the French chocolate delicacies to the masters – and those that like chocolate. 😉 
We borrowed our recipes from Joy of Baking and Saveur and didn’t really deviate. The only real difference was in the shape of our sables. From what we read, and if you are an authority on the matter feel free to tell us otherwise, traditional sables have a fluted edge and are circular. Ours, however, are not fluted, nor are they circular. 
Both recipes are very easy to follow. The biggest thing to remember is to have enough time set aside to chill your lemon curd. We made our cookies while the curd was in the fridge. 
Ah yes, and the cookie dough must have time to chill as well. Really that is the only time consuming aspect of these two desserts. 
How do you like our shapes? You may recall the dragon fly from our adventure with Mongolian cookies. 
We served ours together and the butter cookies went nicely with the tangy lemon mousse. They can also easily be served separately. The kids enjoyed eating the cookies throughout the week. And look who tried to sneak into the photo shoot! Another ham for the camera? Or just after some of that creamy decadence!
As for how they ranked? Well, the sables were right on the mark. They are exactly as you imagine butter cookies. The kids enjoyed them more than Mike and I though. We prefer a chewier and softer cookie. Mr. N and Miss A ranked them 3 spoons and 9 spoons, respectively. Mike gave them a 3 spoon vote because he thought they were perfectly executed. I gave them 2-1/2 because while good, they just aren’t my kind of cookie. 
The mousse, which shouldn’t be a surprise given our obsession with lemon bars, went over much better across the board. The mousse is wonderfully tart and full of fresh lemon flavor. It is, however, a heart attack in a cup, so we didn’t eat very much. Just enough to know we loved it! Mike ranked it at 3-1/2 spoons, Mr. N and I gave it the full 4 spoon vote and Miss A, returning to our normal scale gave it 3 spoons. She liked the cookies better – and at least these weren’t fake! 
Now don’t worry, these desserts don’t end our French cuisine adventure. We have a few more recipes in store, but we may bounce around a bit first. Until then, should you want the recipes here you are: Mousse au Citron and Sables. We’ll be back next week with a simple, but delicious treat. Have a great week everyone! 
Eat, Play, Love 
Congratulations to Miss A 🙂 She looks like she really enjoys it 🙂
You know how much I love anything with lemon in it. Every time I see a recipe for lemon curd I buy lemons but they end up being used for something else! I just know I will love it if only I can find the time to make it lol
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Nothing fake about those two desserts. Let the summer fun begin. 🙂
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I couldn’t agree more Karen. 🙂
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Oh my! Look at her go! I’m afraid to jump up let alone throw myself over that horse!! LOL! BRAVO!
The sables and mousse sound amazing…I think I would take a spoon to the mousse and hide in the closet. I like alone time with my fave desserts. 😉
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LOL! Not a bad idea. I enjoy my favorite desserts alone too. 🙂
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Congratulations Miss A! A little superstar gymnast. Just the thought of climbing up that rope is scary enough for me. I love how they are fearless. Love your little sables and it looks like kitty cat though they were pretty tasty too. It is a nice idea to leave then plain for dipping. Happy cooking to you. BAM
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Thank you Bam. I love her fearlessness too – although I’ve got plenty as a result. 😉
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Oh, June is so busy but such a wonderful culmination to a long year of hard work and effort! You can see Miss A’s determination in her spring.. and enthusiastic rope climbing!! She must take after her mom? Lovely sables and their shapes would be perfect in my kitchen too:) xx
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Oh I wish I could say she took after me. Well, perhaps in the determination, but certainly not in the gymnastics. A cartwheel is about as far as I got. 😉
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Typically, I love a chewy cookie as well. I love it to melt in my mouth. But these look delicious. Maybe there is a way i can take your recipe and turn it chewy some kind of a way. And look at Miss A… I think if I was there I would’ve been too loud cheerleading for her LOL
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She would have loved that Kay! A few times she looked over at as making a sign for us to cheer louder. She is quite the little ham. 🙂
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That mousse looks amazing, nicely paired with that cookies. And your daughter is so cute, nice photos!
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The cookies did go well with the mousse. Lemon and butter are hard to beat. 🙂 Well, lemon and blueberries might beat that for me. 🙂
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okay first YEAAHHH Mrs. A! She is so stinkin cute in that uniform and I am not even sure I could climb that rope! THe lemon mouse looks like perfection with those cookies and I will take a rich cookie like the sable any day!
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There’s no way I could climb that rope! I’m in awe of her every time. The kids ended up really loving the cookies. They polished them off good for us. 🙂
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Congrats Miss A!!! She’s a beautiful gymnast! My daughter mentioned a few weeks ago she wants to go to a gymnastic class. I have to think about that as she has to go twice a week and conflict with swimming. My daughter graduated from preschool 2 weeks ago and this is last week for my son. I still remember we talked about the beginning of school year and now ending already! Time flies… I love the dragonfly shape cookie cutter! So cool!
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It does seem like just a few weeks ago we were talking about the start of school. It’s funny how it doesn’t go by nearly as fast for them. Age is an interesting thing. 🙂
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Wow! I can’t believe Miss A climbed all the way to the top! She’s a real athlete! How come we never had such cute jumpers? I recall mine was gross blue and super baggy with elastics around the thighs!
Congrats to Mr. N!
I know I’d love the lemon curd, like you, I’m a lemon nut.
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Oh mine was awful too Eva. These are much cuter and of course perfectly acceptable in Miss A’s book as it has sparkles on it. 🙂 She is a real athlete. It’s amazing to watch what she can do. She’s all muscle this one. And this lemon curd is definitely a good one for us Eva – very lemony!
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Fabulous shots of the gymnastics and what awesome outfits! Tell Miss A congrats.. love the french cuisine, I am dying to try the mousse.. Al I need is lemons!! Have fun! celi
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Miss A said thank you. She was so proud (and still is). I’m sure the mousse would be even more fabulous with the fresh eggs. I still salivate thinking of them. 🙂
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Look at those energetic and fit young ladies doing their thing — amazing! I think Miss A could put some firefighters to shame with that rope climb ;-). Afraid the trophy may not be real gold… heehee… so much for the little Canadian trinkets I was going to offer this weekend (she’ll see right through me :)).
So I’m looking at the dragonfly and all I can see is a standing bunny with an elongated arm. Until eventually I see the dragonfly and suddenly everything changes. Gotta love those shifting paradigms. I am quite taken by this mousse au citron Kristy – I may have to add it to the list; looks too good to pass up!
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LOL! I honestly think she was expecting real gold. Too funny. She is such a funny little girl. I love her big ideas, enthusiasm and assertiveness. Now I just need to keep that in her as she goes through those awkward years all us girls go through. Not looking forward to that! I think you would love the mousse. It makes a lot, so it’s a good one to have when planning for company. A little of that stuff goes a long way. And I found it doesn’t keep very well.
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What a great day you all had and congrats to Miss A. Wow, that is pretty amazing that she can climb that rope so high. It would freak me out. What a little dare devil you have and such a strong one at that. You must be so proud.
The cookies and lemon mousse look perfect for a celebration day and completely summery. I love butter cookies and the addition of the lemon must have been such a nice treat.
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Oh it does freak me out Geni. Trust me. I always try and sit close in case I have to run over and catch her. Terrible places my mind goes. She loves it though and as you know, gotta foster what they love. The butter cookies I think are a nice summer cookie. They are rich, but light feeling in an odd way – because they are surely not light by any means. Still they leave you satisfied after one cookie which can be a good thing. 🙂
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Congratulations Miss A. Lovely photos. I am sure you and the family are going to have a fabulous summer.
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Thank you Norma! I think so too. 🙂
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That Miss A is a gymnast! I cannot believe she made it to the top of the rope climb! I never did and, let’s face facts, it’s looking less and less likely with each passing day. Too bad the sables weren’t better received but that lemon mousse sounds terrific! I have to make that! Thanks, Kristy!
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LOL. I never did either John. In fact, I don’t think I moved much past the bottom knot. 🙂 The kids ended up devouring the cookies, so they really did enjoy those. The mousse though just hits my sweet spot for lemon.
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Great post! Congrats on wrapping up another year! Miss A. has incredible strength in her upper body, climbing that rope so high is very challenging! Plus it requires no fear of heights, which I find even harder than the muscle part 😉 I am a wimp when it comes to heights. And cold weather. And cockroaches. but that’s about it
Great to see them growing although it does seem to go too fast….
Hope you are going to have a fantastic summer ahead!
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LOL! The fear would get me too Sally…if I could ever get up the rope. Ha! She is a daredevil this one – and so stinking strong. And it does seem to go too fast, this growing up thing. Sheesh.
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I didn’t even recognise Miss A. in the first photo there… at first I was wondering what the photo was of, lol! She’s looking so grown already Kristy – I might take a trip down memory lane in a few minutes and look at your older posts to see how your family have changed because I’ve been reading your blog for… well, 2 years at least I suppose now, right? When you have a little one running around that’s some significant “growin'” time right there!
I can’t believe she managed to climb that rope as well… that’s like… seriously impossible! Well, I guess it’s a bit easier when you weigh what she must weigh. Me trying to do it… lol, we went to a forest last night and they have these bars you can do pull-ups on. Talk about a joke… I have arms like spaghetti it seems!
I love this little treat you’ve put together – fantastic, and lemony-nom-nom. The cat sneaking into the picture… haha! So cute!
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She looks so different then when we first started this blog doesn’t she. It’s incredible to me. She’s lost so much of that little toddler look. It’s one of the fun things about the blog – it’s so easy to go back and see how they looked years ago…even months ago. When we see them every day the changes are more subtle, but it’s incredible the difference a month or two can make when they have a growth spurt.
My sister used to call my arms alien arms. Long and gangly and seriously unable to do any kind of pull-up. I like spaghetti arms better. Maybe because I like spaghetti better than aliens. 😉
The cat is a hoot too Charles. We’ve never had one like this little guy. He’s seriously crazy, but in a good way.
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That was really exciting to see Miss A in her gymnastic routines! She is so strong and purposeful in climbing that rope. She really is adorable. And once you shed the first of the school-year tears (I cried every year my children went to school until sometime around 6th grade) you’ll enjoy her enthusiasm and maybe have an occasional moment for yourself. That’s the theory anyway. 🙂 I love the lemon mousse, Kristy. I am eager to try to make that a permanent part of my dessert repertoire. I love lemon curd. This was just a delightful post to read, and your precious family is a real joy to know. ox
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The determination in Miss A is unstoppable Debra. It is amazing to me. And I love it! Glad to know I’m not the only one that cries when they move onto a new grade at school. I’m sure I’ll enjoy my quiet time, but goodness will I miss her! She’s been my little buddy while Mr. N was at school. 🙂 The mousse is so easy to make Debra – and it makes a great deal. It’s perfect for when you’re having company.
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Congratulations for making it through the year!! Miss A is just so adorable, I bet that was a really great day for everyone. Wait until she hits kindergarten by storm!! Dessert looks awesome!!
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She’s ready. I’m just not. 😉
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I can’t believe how advanced Miss A is in gymnastics! Wow! She’s a natural! My girls loved the lime curd I made for the macarons last year so I know they would like the Mousse au citron, yum! We’re the sables really rich and buttery?
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The sables were very rich, but also light tasting. They surprisingly weren’t very heavy. Just right in fact. The girls would love the mousse. Mr. N licked the dish clean! Miss A is a natural. It still amazes me. It’s so fun to watch…especially because she loves it. 🙂
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It’s so hard to imagine that your school year has finished. We’re not quite halfway through ours! I love the look of the gymnastics competition and I do wonder how Miss A was able to climb up that rope. Not something I could do I’m sure. I love the look of the lemon mousse. Sounds very refreshing xx
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I don’t know how she does it either Charlie. I was never able to pull that off in gym class. I literally could scoot maybe an inch or two. This little one is all muscle (and determination).
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Congratulations on the win to Ms A. She deserved a real gold medal as she looks like a real gymnast (climbing the rope all the way to the top … amazing) and so cute too in her suit. 🙂 I’d love to make a batch of sables one day.
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She loves the sport Maria. I’m not joking when I say she’s doing it around the house non-stop (and giving me many heart attacks!). 🙂 The sables are super easy to make, just a bit time consuming.
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