October 31, 2004
Mon Premier Moleskine
[My First Moleskine]
I carry a notebook with me at all times. And a blue pen, too.
You never know when inspiration will strike, when a good idea will suddenly pop, when a silly or profound thought will cross your mind, when you will witness a situation or overhear a conversation that just begs to be jotted down. It has become such an important item to have by my side that I feel like I'm missing a limb when I forget to take it.
So far I hav...
"Mon Premier Moleskine" continues »
October 28, 2004
In Which Two Kilos Of Chocolate Enter Her Kitchen
At the end of Chocolate & Zucchini's birthday party last week, after all the guests had left in a whirlwind of kisses and effusive thanks and well wishes, the dust settled and it was just Nicolas, Maxence and me, collapsing into chairs, exhausted but beaming.
Nicolas, who hadn't eaten all night from all that cooking, brought out a loaf of bread and a small round of demi-sec goat cheese, bought the previous Saturday at the organic Marché des Ba...
"In Which Two Kilos Of Chocolate Enter Her Kitchen" continues »
October 26, 2004
Cubes à la Noisette
[Hazelnut Cubes]
Very rarely do I repeat a recipe. This stems from the fact that I am forever, and in all areas of life, much more interested in the new and the unusual, than in the same-old, however easy. But this NRFBS (Non-Repeating Food Blogger Syndrome) is also brought on by this very blog you hold in your hands, so to speak : if I am going to bake/cook/make something, I figure I might as well bake/cook/make something new that will -- I h...
"Cubes à la Noisette" continues »
October 24, 2004
Pounti Auvergnat (IMBB9)
I was particularly enthused, a few weeks ago, to read that Derrick was hosting the 9th edition of Is My Blog Burning? and that the theme he had set was terrines.
Reason number one : Derrick The Talented is one of my absolute favorite food bloggers, I am always in awe of his uncompromising approach and his ambitious endeavours. His was among the first food blogs that ever existed, and An Obsession With Food is one of the two or three blogs wh...
"Pounti Auvergnat (IMBB9)" continues »
October 22, 2004
C&Z Birthday Party
Pick a good occasion to celebrate -- say, your blog's first birthday.
Talk to a chef you know, like and admire, who owns a small restaurant in an unlikely area of Paris. Invite fifty people : old friends, new friends, enthusiastic readers, neighbors and your precious sister -- guests from France, America, Canada, England, Germany, Poland, Italy and Holland.
Agree with the chef on a theme (that's easy : what's your blog's name again?), discu...
"C&Z Birthday Party" continues »
October 19, 2004
Chocolate & Zucchini in ELLE!
This week's ELLE magazine (in the French edition) has an article on blogs (by Alix Girod de l'Ain no less, page 113) which mentions Chocolate & Zucchini! Being a long-time and devoted reader of the magazine (it is my favorite breakfast companion) and a big fan of that journalist, this was a fabulous surprise -- which came right on time to start yesterday's party on an even happier note... [Story coming up, of course.]
And congratulations to Pa...
"Chocolate & Zucchini in ELLE!" continues »
October 18, 2004
Soupe de Cresson à la Sauge Fraîche
[Watercress and Fresh Sage Soup]
On Saturday morning, at an hour which felt far, far too early to be up on a week-end morning although by any reasonable standard it was really just mid-morning, I met with my chef-friend Nicolas Vagnon in front of his favorite produce stall at the Batignolles organic market.
As we have already done on several occasions with equal joy, we then proceeded to shop for fruits and vegetables, he for his restaurant,...
"Soupe de Cresson à la Sauge Fraîche" continues »
October 14, 2004
Salade de Sarrasin au Pain d'Epice
[Buckwheat and Gingerbread Salad]
Buckwheat (sarrasin in French) has always occupied a very special place in the "cereal" section of my heart -- no doubt because of the fabulous galettes de sarrasin (savory crepes) we used to eat in Brittany.
It is a cereal that's seldom used in France (except in its flour form for said galettes), possibly because its alternate name blé noir (black wheat) makes it sound like a not-so-royal counterpart to its...
"Salade de Sarrasin au Pain d'Epice" continues »
October 12, 2004
Toast de Foie de Lotte
[Monkfish Liver on Toast]
I had purchased a can of foie de lotte at the Salon Saveurs last spring, and it had been quietly sitting in our kitchen cabinet ever since, waiting for its turn to get a little attention. We finally opened it for a quick and easy lunch recently, spreading the chunks of liver on freshly toasted bread -- just like we used to when I was a child and foie de morue (cod liver) on toasts was an occasional Saturday lunch trea...
"Toast de Foie de Lotte" continues »
October 11, 2004
Chocolate Chili Bites
On Saturday night, we had the pleasure of attending the fourth edition of the Paris Potluck, hosted by Alisa and her husband Jean-Yves. This time around, Alisa had suggested that we follow a theme : no more random assortment of everyone's current food obessions! And as she (and I and pretty much everyone else) had been suffering from terrible Mexican food cravings since moving to Paris, her theme of choice was Mexican, as announced happily in a...
"Chocolate Chili Bites" continues »
October 8, 2004
Candied Seville Peel
And as if her company wasn't enough of a treat, Pim also brought me a gift from Sunny California. "It's from June Taylor", she said, "our local Christine Ferber".
In a pretty jar with square shoulders, strips of soft and chewy peel swimming in a velvety syrup. In a pretty jar that glows like an orange lightbulb, the false twins Sweetness and Bitterness, followed closely by their little sister, the tingly Zestiness.
Beautiful on my counter, de...
"Candied Seville Peel" continues »
Party Reminder!
If you would like to attend the Chocolate & Zucchini party in Paris on the 18th of October, please let me know by the end of the day. The details? Here are the details!...
October 6, 2004
Pâtes de Fruit
Today is my father's birthday. And as has been the tradition for as long as I can remember (and probably long before that), one of his gifts will be his favorite treat, a big assortment of pâtes de fruits from Hédiard.
Pâtes de fruit, literally "fruit pastes", are firm pieces of sweet fruit purée, a bit like jam made solid, rolled in sugar and cut into various shapes, generally squares or rectangles. The quality is highly variable -- I remembe...
October 5, 2004
Fregola Sarda with Zucchini and Pinenuts
On a night of ravenous hunger, decide that what you want is something warm soft and tasty with a little crunch, to be eaten in a bowl with a spoon, curled up on the couch and reading a magazine.
No need to forage through your kitchen cabinets, you know precisely what will hit the spot.
Wash and slice three zucchini thinly with your magnificent mandoline. Sauté in a bit of olive oil, with lots of herbs and just enough salt to bring out the zu...
"Fregola Sarda with Zucchini and Pinenuts" continues »
October 4, 2004
Purple Potato
It must be the child in me speaking, but I love it when food dresses up in unusual colors : blue bread! pink garlic! black tomatoes! green rice! red pesto! ... and wow, purple potatoes!
I had heard of vitelottes potatoes before, and I had seen them used to make stunning potato chips in particular, but I had never seen them sold anywhere. Until recently that is, when I found them at the Gérardmer market -- oh what incredible resources this humb...
October 1, 2004
Oeuf à la Coque, Mouillettes Rouges
[Soft-Boiled Egg, Red Pesto Bread Fingers]
The Oeuf à la Coque * : one of the simplest pleasures in life.
It is the easiest thing to make -- although believe it or not, I have to ask Maxence every time how long the egg should be boiled for -- and conveniently single-serving if you want it to be.
It is fun to crack and pop its little hat open, and it is also the best companion to a few mouillettes. Mouillettes? Yes, those little fingers of...
"Oeuf à la Coque, Mouillettes Rouges" continues »