Stohrer's wells of love

So much sugar today...I made a stop by Stohrer, a patisserie in the deuxieme (2nd). Apparently it was founded in the late 1700's by the royal patissier, or the guy who was the head pastry chef for the king of France (Louis XV at the time). The exterior is so old-school and the interior has a few gorgeous murals. They have savory dishes on the right side of the store but I was there to get a sugar high. And see, there's a line out the door!

They still sell some of the same pastries they did back in the 1700's (recipe wise that is). And so today I got their specialty, puit d'amour or "well of love" and because I couldn't resist (and cause I've never tried one), a kouing amann which translates to "butter cake" in Breton. 

The puit d'amour is essentially a cylinder made out of puff pastry (the well), filled with pastry cream and topped with some caramel. Pastry cream + caramel most definitely = love, at least in this case. And the kouing amann? Well that was like eating a whole stick of butter and a cup of sugar, but in the best sense. Its essentially the same type of dough as a croissant, but it has a ton more sugar and butter as each time you fold the dough, you fold in more sugar and butter. And again, SUGAR AND BUTTER. Dorie Greenspan explains it best. But the best part about it is the doughy chewy center. Yum! I left half of it for tomorrow but it took a lot of willpower.

Oh, but for dinner I had some cous cous with merguez sausage and a bit of harissa. Since I have no desire (nor time) to make anything complicated, I'm going to be doing only quick, simple and delicious things that I can easily make for one.

Update: I finished the kouing amann this morning. Still flaky and delicious.

amboohrgherrs

Ce quoi ca? It is the first hamburger (or "am-BOO-hr-gh-err" as they say here) I have ever eaten in Paris. 

My coworkers convinced me to try what they claim is the best burger ever from a place nearby called Razowski's (contrary what the daisies on the website may make you think, the place is very sleek). I ordered the "Razowski burger" which was "pain de mie, boeuf, oignons, champignons sautes, avocat emince, creme fraiche, ciboulette" which I took to be "bread (hamburger bun), beef (patty), onions (not raw), sauteed mushrooms, sliced avocado, creme fraiche, chives".  And this is what I got.

Granted I should've known better because I like the minimal (cheese)burger with just lettuce, tomato, ketchup and pickles. And I was already weary when the regular burgers on the menu had mayonnaise as one of the ingredients. Mine didn't have mayo, but seriously, look at it. I mean really, they killed it! Its like killing a cow twice. It's already dead, why don't we ruin the meat as well? Sigh. Cold burgers? Not real hamburger buns? No ketchup?! Blasphemy. Fine, I can deal with raw onions but the vehicle for the patty, an essential component, is way off. I mean it's like two toasted rounds of bread! The only thing redeeming about this were the "fries" I ordered which were really roasted potatoes, and the pickles. And my Diet Coke. 

Prior to getting the burger, my coworkers told me not to voice my dislike, if that be the case, and if I did, I would be greatly disliked and banished from future ordering (which I can't afford at the moment). However, I'll give the place a second chance, but not for take-out. I am not a fan of cold burgers. I feel sorry for them if that's the best burger they've ever had...they need to try something better...

So, dear Mr. Danny Meyer, I suggest you expand to Paris asap. They will be all over you as french people like to be uber trendy but compassionate to the working class and since burgers are simple food and from America, they'll be all over you like a...I'll refrain from writing something inappropriate. No, really, they do. Its calle bobo or bourgeois bohemien. Anyhow, Danny, make it happen.

Pretending to cook for two

Ah, so difficult to get used to cooking for one (do I even want to?). I knew I didn't need to get two zucchini's when I bought them but getting just one to stuff is so sad. But I think after making the stuffed zucchini I realized I don't like cooking for one. It's boring. I have no one to taste my food other than myself! It's so much easier for me to toss a salad together, or butter some bread, or reheat some frozen ratatouille. Sigh.

Stuffed Zucchini (loosely adapted from Chocolate and Zucchini)

2 round zucchinis

1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 onion

1 clove of garlic, minced

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1/4 cup of grated cheese

Olive oil, salt, pepper, herbs de provence (or whatever herbs you have)

Preheat the oven to 400F. Cut the tops off the zucchini and core out the inside and reserve the zucchini flesh. Put the zucchini shells and tops into a casserole dish, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. place in the oven for 20 minutes until the shells are soft but not collapsed.

Meanwhile put a pan over medium high heat. Add a count of olive oil and sautee the garlic until fragrant. Add the reserved zucchini flesh and cover with a lid. The zucchini will render a lot of water, so drain periodically. Add a tablespoon or two of tomato paste, salt, pepper and herbs and continue cooking the zucchini until soft (about 10 - 15 minutes). Place in a colander either over a bowl or in the sink and let drain.

By now the zucchini shells should be done. Take them out of the oven and place them upside down on a paper towel lined plate. In the same pan as the zucchini flesh, sautee the onion over medium heat in a little olive oil. Add the ground beef, season with salt, pepper and herbs and continue to saute until lightly browned. Add a tablespoon or two of tomato paste and stir to combine. Take off heat and add the cooked zucchini flesh. Mix thoroughly.

Stuff the zucchini with the sauteed beef mixture. Put the tops of the zucchini on and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Take out of the oven, take the tops off and divide the cheese evenly on top of the two zucchini. Put the oven to broil and put the zucchinis back into the oven for a few minutes until the cheese has melted and is golden brown.

You can also make vegetarian stuffed zucchini...just substitute rice or quinoa or some grain for the meat and use ricotta as a binder.

Le frigo

Today I received 10 pairs of shoes. Granted, they were all my shoes from when I was in the U.S. My air shipment came in. Along with the shoes were the two cartons of clothes, bags, my make-up holder and the towels that still smelled like my laundry in NYC. And it took just 30 minutes to unpack my life in New York. Although I am missing all my "dry food stuffs" as they labeled it...they must have sent it by sea.

Now my apartment is overflowing with clothes (I didn't realize I had that many!) and I don't know how to organize everything since I'll be moving out in a month and a half anyway.

And my fridge is overflowing with yogurt.

And those two green balls at the bottom? Round zucchini. To be stuffed with the ground beef above, some rice, some tomatoes and I dunno what else. We'll see how that goes.

Glorified ham and cheese

They say there are so many different types of cheeses in France that if you eat a different one each day for a full year, you still won't have tried all of them. You'd have 35 more days to go, at least. And so, during lunch, instead of getting St. Nectaire, which I've tried before (one of my coworkers said its too smelly thereby I deduct that I am more French than him), I got Cantal on my sandwich. And apparently, Cantal is made from milk from cows that feed on hay in the winter months in the Auverge region in France. You know what happens to the milk from those same cows when they feed on grass in the summer? It's made into a different cheese! That one is called Salers. Genius!

And so, the point of my story is that I had the most delicious sandwich today. Ham and cheese. But waaaaay glorified because the baguette was from Julien which is a somewhat famous bakery in Paris (it won best baguette a few times), and the ham was jambon de pays, which is a thicker, less salty but more intense prosciutto, and the Cantal cheese which has a mild flavor but the texture of butter that has been slightly softened and can barely be spread on bread. Oh, and it also had some butter on it. IT WAS SO GOOD. And huge. I ate a whole baguette for lunch. And then a salted butter caramel tiramisu from Kaiser. Oh gosh....

Update: Apparently this place (Le Petit Vendome) really does have some of the best sandwiches in Paris according to various internet sources. I even got the right combination! +1 pour moi!

Skiing in Courchevel

I haven't been skiing in two years, but thats not saying much since I've only skied twice before! We (company weekend trip! but the cost most likely comes out of my bonus) went to Courchevel the weekend I "officially" moved to Paris. Apparently its the "Aspen of Europe" or something like that. That doesn't impress me but it was so pretty! There was so much snow...the most I've seen in many many years. And they make everything so nice, stringing up evergreens with lights. And its not really a town, its a bunch of little chalet villages (chalet's are so cute!) on a mountain that connect via roads. So we took the TGV there, which is one of those super fast trains where if you stand up to go to the bathroom you end up wobbling up the aisle, and falling onto random people's seats, which I pretty much did. And this is our dinner on the train:

Only in France would they give you a boxed dinner, with a half bottle of wine. But no water.

On a random note, apparently all the Russian oligarchs like to go to Courchevel for Russian New Year, during which time my hotel room, for example, was 1,300 EUR a night. That is not a typo. And 4-bedroom (the ones without) a pool, go upwards of $30,000 for a weekend. Crazy! But, the view out of my 1,300-EUR-a-night-during-Russian-New-Year room (we had roommates) can't be beat...

Bye bye best(est) city in the world

The movers came to pick up the rest of my stuff on Monday, leaving JPs apartment pretty much scrubbed clean of any of my belongings. And now I'm in the Air France lounge at JFK. How depressing. Sure, lounges are nice and all but not when you're leaving what I've learned over the years is the best city in the entire world. There's so much to do, so much to see, so much to EAT! You can do whatever you want, whenever you want, regardless of the time of day (or night for that matter). And there's something for everyone. I don't know why tourists like NYC (I don't think I would, it takes more than a few days to get accustomed) but I definitely know why people love living there.

And so, for my last supper (hah, funny korovka...) I made JP's favorite: lasagna rolls. I've made these a few times and they never come out the same because the filling depends mostly on the ingredients I have on hand. I loosely adapted the recipe (as I tend to do) from Giada de Laurentiis' lasagna rolls. It's a perfect way to use up any leftover cheese or veggies you have an hand. I usually eat only one of these but I've seen JP polish off up to three in one sitting. Plus, they taste great reheated!

Lasagna Rolls (adapted loosely from Giada de Laurentiis)

1 tablespoon butter

2 teaspoons flour

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons milk

Salt, pepper and nutmeg

6 lasagna sheets

3/4 cup + 1/3 cup ricotta cheese

1 ball of mozzarella, diced finely (or you can use shredded)

1/2 cup of frozen spinach, thawed in the microwave and squeezed dry

2 links of hot italian sausage

Any other veggies you have on hand, finely diced

6 slices of prosciutto

2 cups marinara sauce

Shredded parmesan

Preheat oven to 450F

Noodles: Set a pot of water to boil. Add salt and a little bit of olive oil. Add the lasagna noodles and boil until they're no longer firm (7 minutes or so). Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet so they don't stick together.

Bechamel: While the noodles are boiling, make the bechamel sauce by melting butter over medium low heat. Whisk in the 2 teaspoons of flour and whisk continuously for two minutes. Add the milk and turn heat up to medium high. Whisk the bechamel until it begins to simmer and thickens. Take off heat and add salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg.  

Filling: Take the italian sausage out of the casing and sautee. When there's almost no pink visible, add whatever veggies you had on hand (I added some finely diced zucchini but you can also add some mushrooms or peppers or whatever you have). Sautee a few minutes more and take off heat. Mix the 3/4 cup ricotta, thawed spinach, the mozzarella (leave some for sprinkling on top later), and the sausage and veggie mix. The hot sausage should melt the cheese a little binding the mixture. If not, you can add an egg in there but I usually don't. You can also add whatever spices you want to the filling.

Assembly: Pour the bechamel sauce into the bottom of a 9*9 inch glass dish. Take a lasagna noodle and spread some of the 1/3 cup of ricotta on one side. Add a slice of prosciutto and then place a heaping tablespoon of the filling towards one side of the noodle. Roll up and place seam-side down into the glass dish. Continue with the rest of the noodles. Top of the marinara sauce (I like TJ's Rustico sauce), sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and add some shredded Parmesan on top. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes until the sauce bubbles. Uncover and bake for another 15 minutes until the cheese on top is golden. Remove from the oven, let stand a few minutes and serve.

This is what happens to my leftover filling:

I fry it in a tiny pan like a pancake!