Final snapshots

My last few days in Paris in the form of pictures. Primarily food, of course. Lets start with some wine, shall we?

Assiette de fromage and wine at Le Rubis, a fantastic old low-key wine bar in the 2nd near the Tuileries

Savory chicken curry tart from Tartes Kluger in the 3rd where I brunched with MS and WD...and saw one of my Directors. Pretty well made tarts, a little overpriced but in a nice setting where you can sit and chat as long as you want at communal tables.

Tarte tatin, eclair au chocolate and a tarte fine aux pommes from Ble Sucre. The tart was amazingly light and the tarte tatin...well, see for yourself:

I don't know how the pastry chef does this but it looks like an apple! But it's actually really thin slices of caramelized apples reassembled. Amazing. And amazingly delicious.

MS brought me a chamoy apple from Texas! I'm glad she was able to sneak it past customs.

A Kouignette, or a mini kouign amann from the newly-opened Larnicol across from the Saint Paul metro. Apparently the guy is a Meuiller Ouvrier de France, a title you win at a craftsman competition held every 4 years. Basically, it's a big deal if you win one. I assume he got his for chocolate but the chocolate there, although amazing looking, wasn't all that great. What was great was the salted butter caramel pastry you see here that I devoured (apparently David Lebovitz says you should eat it warm) and the caramels which come in a ton of flavors (my favorites were the plum, coffee and speculoos ones). Also, the ability to self-serve everything helps. I have more pics but they're on my French blackberry which doesn't really work anymore and I have no idea how to put pics on my comp. If I figure it out, I will. Otherwise, meh.

Cookies I made for coworkers with the ingredients I had left over in my pantry before my move. Oatmeal raisin, white chocolate macadamia and two types of kitchen sink cookies.

The most amazing chocolate chouquettes from one of the most ordinary pastry chains in France, Paul.

 
Ah, my favorites...Pierre Herme macarons. Depayse with matcha, azuki bean, lime and ginger, and Metisse with carrot, orange and cinnamon. I have still not had the famed Istaphan flavor.

Chocolate overload at Jean-Paul Hevin including a choco passion cake with a cocoa biscuit topped with passion fruit chocolate mousse and covered in dark chocolate with bits of crunchy things throughout, and a pomme de terre which is drunk raisins and candied oranges mixed with biscuits and chocolate, and enveloped in an almond-paste shell. They were actually out of a lot of pastries so we kinda had to settle...and we also had some of their hot-chocolate tastings.

I wasn't a huge fan...it's pure cocoa (no added sugar) with various additions (matcha, which tasted like grass, and raspberry coulis featured here) that apparently you're not supposed to mix in as they are already professionally done and it would ruin the taste. Huh? Yea whatevs.

Spring after everyone leaves and the beurre au lait cru and bread that they graciously gave us for free after I kept pestering the sommelier with questions about it and saying how much I loved it and how much I will miss the buvette

Finally, some pizza from Al Taglio - margarita, amatriciana, potato and truffle cream, and jambon. Pizza is sold roman-style where they cut slices of whatever size you want (ok, there's a minimum size) off a big rectangular pizza for you. Delicious, cheap and perfect for sharing.

Catered mexican from El Nopal for my going-away dinner...yay! They even made me agua de jamica and specially-requested refried beans!!!

My Paris living room with my furniture (so cute! and no those are not pineapple grenades on my couch...)

And after I moved my furniture out and put the owner's furniture back in. My stuff was waaay better.

And, lastly, my plane...

Au revoir for good now Paris! Back to the NYC!

Favorite NYC bites while on vacation

NYC was, as always, colder than I ever expected but I suppose the constant sunshine makes up for it. Between the coldness, I stuffed myself silly with tacos, elotes, tostadas, agua de jamaica and tamarind popsicles in Mexico. And as much as I love the food down there, it's New York that's my favorite restaurant city. So here's a quick rundown of my favorite New York City bites this (last) time around.

Top bites (in no particular order):

1. Pretty much everything at Kin Shop, and specifically the steamed red snapper in green curry

2. Banana pudding from Buttercup Bake Shop which is less sweet than the Magnolia's one

3. Jalapeno cheddar pretzel from Sigmund Pretzel Shop stand at the Union Square Holiday Market

4. San Daniele prosciutto, Grana Padano and fig mostarda panini from Biba Wine Bar (this is a cheat as it's actually in Philly but I got to see my Parisian-wine-bar-during-summer partner BB!)

5. Hot apple cider from Breezy Hill Orchards in Union Square

6. Mo's dark chocolate bacon bar from Vosges Haut Chocolat

7. The (pricey) tequila and mezcal cocktails at Mayahuel  

8. Ridiculously fresh mozzarella, topped with a drizzle of olive oil at Eataly

Disappointments:

1. New menu at Dos Caminos - watery guac and a waitress that forgot 2/3 of our order

2. Brunch at Telepan - some stuff was good but overall it was meh, especially for the price

And here's some pretzel love. OMNOMNOM.

NYC - Eataly

Finally got myself over to Eataly which I've neglected on two previous visits to New York. That thing is massively chaotic. I could barely get my bearings while dodging the stay-at-homes who were more than happy to drop $8 on a bag of dried pasta. The standing-tables in the middle at which lunchers happily scarfed down salumis and salamis didn't help but I'm amazed that the waiters somehow navigated this hectic maze. By the way, who are all these people there in the middle of a work day? Do you people not have a job? You must otherwise you wouldn't be shopping here...

Anyhow, after TC and I put our names down for the Pizza/Pasta restaurant (40 minute wait) we wandered around a little bit to kill time. If I lived in the area (cross fingers) I would most definitely drop lots and lots of money here. Fresh pasta, freshly baked breads, sauces, cheeses, meats, olive oils, all kinds of balsamics (even the $200 ones) and other goodies galore. Drool. I'd justify it by cutting out one of my weekly clothing-shop trips that I tend to have more often than I should in NYC (closet in definite need of some Spring cleaning, specifically for shoes).

After finally sitting down, I couldn't not order the mozzarella after TC mentioned how good it was. And good it was indeed - everything I love in good mozzarella. None of that deli-cheese rubber ball stuff. No, this is creamy and milky, a whole ball cut into rounds and topped off with good olive oil and sea salt. I ate three pieces. No wonder I'm now tipping the scale past the higher end of what I should be.

As for our split of the pasta/pizza, the buccatini all'amatriciana was reminiscent of what JP had ordered at Enoteca San Marco in Las Vegas (maybe not so surprising considering it's another Batali/Bastianich restaurant) and the pizza margherita was quite palatable with a nice chew to the crust, a thin sweet tomato sauce and globs of that delicious mozzarella.

Now I'm really eager to try the rest of the offerings at the store - particularly Verdure, the vegetable-focused restaurant

Thanksgiving - the store

Sometimes, you just want a taste of home so much that you don't care how much it will cost you. This is especially the case when that third Thursday of November rolls around and you find yourself scrambling to find the American ingredients you need for all your Thanksgiving recipes. Luckily for me, I thought ahead and came back from the US last time with three cans of pumpkin puree and a a bag of cornmeal. Those found themselves in some cornbread, some pumpkin rolls and some pumpkin pie pops. But I needed cranberries so down the street I went (literally) to the appropriately-named Thanksgiving, a store that sells American (sometimes imported from Canada or the UK) foodstuffs. 

The second I walked in, I was soooo glad about the stuff I brought back from the US. A can of Libby's pumpkin puree? €3.50. Packet of jello? €2.50. Nestle Tollhouse white chocolate chips? €7.00 (although the semisweet chips were cheaper at €4.50). They seems to be doing pretty ok with such a high mark-up! Granted, I don't know what they pay on their import taxes and their rent is probably pretty high as its in a popular area (unless they own the space, as they have been there for some time...)

But I was there for one thing and one thing only. And so I sucked up the cost of Ocean Spray cranberries at €4.50/12 oz bag and got two. Because, after all, what's a Thanksgiving dinner without some cranberry sauce?

Chunky apple and cranberry sauce

adapted from Good Housekeeping c. 2001

2 tbsp butter
4 large Golden Delicious apples peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch dice 
1/2 tsp cardamom
1 bag (12oz or 3 cups) cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup water

In a nonstick large skillet (12-inches is ideal), melt the butter over medium heat. Add the apples and cardamom, and cook about 10 minutes stirring occasionally, until apples are golden and tender-crisp.

Increase the head to medium-high, stir in the cranberries, sugar and water and heat to boiling.

Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until most cranberries pop and the mixture thickens slightly (anywhere from 6-10 minutes). Pour into a lidded container, cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

Note: Apparently allspice works as well if you don't have cardamom but I'm sure cinnamon or cloves would work too.

London - Ottolenghi

Ottolenghi, you deserve your own, lengthy post. I can sing praises all day. Everything in your store screams "eat me!" Butternut squash, roasted aubergines, chili-laced broccoli, glazed carrots...my god, if I had one of these near me I'd never eat elsewhere nor would I cook! Screw the meat, this is vegetarian paradise. So since there's no Ottolenghi in the U.S., the next best thing is the cookbook. You know, the holidays are coming up, hint hint.

(They had a no-photo policy but I managed to sneak a quick one of the pastry section from the hallway leading up to the store)  

AG left work early and stopped by Ottolenghi for takeout dinner before I got there. Vinegared beets with apples, broccoli with chili and garlic, glazed roasted carrots, potatoes and grain salad and sugar snap peas and green beans, and a pear and sultana tart that tasted like fall...I knew I wanted more.

Wandering over the next morning, I picked out the flourless lemon polenta cake for breakfast, which was moist and studded with candied fruit. The icing of top (delicious and ridiculously sweet in its own right by the way) gave the cake the right not-overwhelming amount of sweetness. It was really hard to leave half the cake...good thing I cut it in half before taking a huge forkful. 

And I couldn't not go back again so on Sunday morning, we dropped by to pick up £25 worth of veggies for me to take back to Paris. Mmmm...gonna be waiting for that cookbook. But in the meantime, I might pick up some broccoli or aubergines.

Eclair weekend!

Sadly, SC couldn't join but she was the one who alerted me to this - Fauchon eclair weekend! September 9, 10 and 11, Fauchon, the epicerie fine on Place de la Madeleine, showcased 50 varieties of sweet and savory (but mainly sweet) eclairs.

Taking a break while working yet another weekend, I went to check it out on the last day in the evening hoping to avoid the crowds (conveniently, Fauchon is a 7 minute walk from my office). Behold:

Colors! Edible gold and silver foils! Half naked Brigitte Bardot! (Note: she is apparently a crazy old lady now who I bet you never ate eclairs). It was hard to choose but I went with pink grapefruit, champagne and raspberry, and bébéclairs in salted butter caramel, lemon, almond and chocolate raspberry flavors. 

No I did not eat them all myself! I shared them with the other two poor souls stuck in the office on a Saturday night at 7pm. I don't like eclairs, as I've mentioned before. But these, well these were a different story. The pink grapefruit had a puree of real grapefruit, rather than just cream, on the inside (although I'm sure it was in a cream-like base), the champagne had what seemed to be crunchy violet candies (candied petals?) on top, and the bébéclairs (which I liked the best, especially the salted butter caramel) were the perfect sized piece of pure flavor. Perhaps I am an eclair-convert now...

Outdoors at La Terrasse

Galeries Lafayette is a cluster during the soldes. There are lines to get into the Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Longchamp store-in-stores (curiously not at Prada though...). The area of refuge? The newly-opened summer-only restaurant on the 8th floor of the Galeries, La Terrasse. I read about it on my new favorite all-things-edible-in-Paris collaborative blog Paris by Mouth.

I didn't even know you could go to the roof here. It's a great free way to see the rooftops of Paris. There were even people camping out and eating sandwiches. Here's the view of the Invalides dome (that's where Napoleon's tomb is), which I attempted to line up with the dome of the Petit Palais. Kinda failed.

And here is the back of the Opera Garnier.

Surprisingly, the wait for the restaurant wasn't too long, considering the fact the chef is an alum of the three-stared Arpege (10 courses $540?! Guess I won't be going there anytime soon...). I ordered the heirloom tomato salad which came with olives (I ate around them), basil and micro-greens, dressed simply in olive oil. MMMM, tastes like summer.

I was planning on going solo but SM joined me. They ran out of the pasta with Parmesan and yuzu so he got the chicken meatballs with vermicelli noodles and veggies in a seafood broth with shrimp. I think he was happy.

While attempting to shop in the store, I stumbled up on the Pierre Herme boutique in the basement. I couldn't resist. Into my tummy went a chocolate (with cacao nibs) and strawberry-balsamic macaroon which trying on a dress in a dressing room (hence the awful lighting)

And at La Terrasse Pierre Herme made an appearance again in the form of a glorified ice cream sandwich named Satine - fromage blanc and orange coulis sorbet sandwiched by two passion fruit macarons. This disappeared. Fast.

Conclusion to the day? Right after lunch we met up with WD and went to watch Toy Story (VO and 3D!) at the Gaumont Capucines Opera around the corner. I shed tears. Lots of them.