So I finally made it to the evening...
kids in bed, run done and dusted, kitchen tidy (ish). just in time for...Hotel Babylon and a cup of tea...of course not! I have lived in England for over a decade now but still can't drink the stuff I am afraid. Just not for me.
What I do like to drink, apart from strong, black expresso coffee, is an infusion of  dry verveine (verbena) leaves in the evening. No sugar, occasionally a small teaspoon of honey (from mum and dad's own beehives) for a sore throat a little treat.
It's a long family tradition. Like lots of food and drinks I enjoy, it brings back happy memories and a big smile on my face thinking of it.
Back when I was a kid, my grand parents used to grow verbena in their garden. Each summer they'd carefully pick and dry the leaves on large plastic/melamine trays then keep them in an empty biscuit tin. And every evening spent at their place, without failing, my mamie would serve us a "verveine". She'd bring the tray to the living room and we would drink it whilst watching TV in the evening. Pretty china cups, white with blue japanese style tree pattern. Teeny spoons, gold and shiny, won from some competition in a home products catalogue no doubt. I LOVED it. Sometimes, we'd even suck on a lump of sugar dipped in "chartreuse" or "eau de vie" at the same time. Bliss.
I don't have a verbena tree here in Sussex. I have loads and loads of lemon verbena which grows like mad in the garden no matter how much I prune it back (actually it probably makes it even healthier!). I have tried to buy verveine sachets at the supermarket in France but it doesn't taste of anything like the real leaves. But thanksfully, my mum sends me supplies of whole dried leaves she buys at the Marché Couvert in Villefranche sur Saone for me when she can. And when I am really lucky, my sister's mother-in-law to be (well , they are getting married in less than 3 months now :) sends me some home grown leaves from  her garden in Allauch, near Marseille. The smell of those is just terrific, just like mamie's verveine. So thank you very very much Michelle.
So I haven't yet found a local supplier of  dried verbena leaves. But other great places and food yes. On my recent local adventures with the kids, I have revisited Crumbs at Shoots Garden Centre in Washington. There was a queue all round the shop on that Saturday morning and I could have bought 2 baskets full of products myself, easily. Great fruits and vegetables. Hummy chocolates from cocoaloco. Chutneys and jams. and more. I settled on some "Vacherin Mont d'Or" a creamy, soft cow cheese made only for a few winter months, a slice of Saint Agur (a gorgeous, creamy blue cheese), a bit of camembert, onion marmelade and a lovely fresh loaf of walnut bread (one of my favourite, and perfect with strong blue cheese). I also stopped twice at Truffles in Mill Square in Storrington to get one of their fruit loaf, great for breakfast, a couple of bunny shortbread biscuits for the kids and a sliced "low GI bread" . I know the name is not that attractive but it tastes really great, packed with seeds. even the kids love it in their sandwiches.
I finished the Vacherin in a sort of "tartiflette" for one yesterday night, what a treat!