August 31, 2005
Blog Day 2005: New Blogs to Discover!
Today is Blog Day 2005, an event that was created to help broaden our blog horizons. So many blogs get created every day that it's impossible to keep up with all, and most of us find ourselves visiting the same favorite blogs, the ones where we feel at home and comfortable, where we know who's writing and what it's about, the ones that have been around for long enough that we feel safe they're not just going to die on us once we're hooked -- isn'...
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August 29, 2005
Brochettes d'Agneau au Thym
[Lamb Skewers with Thyme]
It's strange how much more comfortable I am around vegetables than meat. Vegetables are familiar, safe and easy to work with. I never run out of things to do with or to them, I know how to choose them, how they're supposed to feel in your hand, how long they keep and how they react to various treatments and seasonings.
Meat, on the other hand, is a much more mysterious matter. Different breeds, different cuts, differ...
"Brochettes d'Agneau au Thym" continues »
August 26, 2005
Introducing... la cocotte!
Finally! It's here! My birthday present and new best friend, my stupendous cast-iron cocotte by Staub!
My parents came by my apartment yesterday and were kind enough to lug it on the metro with them, after driving it all the way back from Les Vosges, snuggly bundled up in multiple layers of bubble-wrap.
31 centimeters in length (12''), weighing in at 6.3 kilograms (14 lbl) when it's empty -- I've been buffing up my arms with dumbbells in pre...
"Introducing... la cocotte!" continues »
August 25, 2005
Tomates Coeur de Boeuf
On this rainy August day (this is not the weather I signed up for! I want a refund!) I just had to share with you the perfectness of these here tomatoes, bought at our produce store on rue des Abbesses. They are everything you could possibly hope for in a tomato -- stark red, heavy in your hand, thin-skinned and fleshy, fragrant, sweet and juicy.
This particular variety, with its plump ribs just begging to be sliced, is called Coeur de Boeuf -...
"Tomates Coeur de Boeuf" continues »
August 24, 2005
Fresh Herb Muffins
I have a new piece up on NPR's website: this one includes some tips about picnics and a recipe for fresh herb muffins!
For my metric-minded readers, here are the measurements to make the muffins:
- A small bunch of fresh flat parsley, about 25 sprigs
- A small bunch of fresh cilantro, about 25 sprigs
- A small bunch of fresh chives, about 20 sprigs
- 3 eggs
- 125 ml buttermilk (substitute plain yogurt or kéfir)
- 80 ml pesto
- 25 g grated parm...
"Fresh Herb Muffins" continues »
August 22, 2005
Say hello to my little friend
I have told you about the Boulangépicier on a few occasions before, and I continue to wildly enjoy the bread, sandwiches and pastries that they make. "Be" happens to be just a couple of blocks away from where my grandmother lives, and is thus conveniently on my way from and back to the metro when I visit her.
Just a few weeks ago (before they closed for the month of August, quite cruelly), I noticed a basket next to the register in which they ...
"Say hello to my little friend" continues »
August 19, 2005
Announcing WBW13: Like Wine For Chocolate
I have the pleasure to announce that I will be hosting the 13th edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday, scheduled for September 7. Being the chocolate lover that I am, the theme I have set is Like Wine for Chocolate*: for this edition I would like you to look for a wine that will pair beautifully with an intensely flavored chocolate cake. Sweet or dry, red, white, rosé or polka-dotted -- your choice entirely!
Below, you will find my super-easy re...
"Announcing WBW13: Like Wine For Chocolate" continues »
August 17, 2005
Childhood Food Memories
Yup, yet another food-related meme, for which I was tagged by both Pascale and Jacqueline. This one has you indulge in the reminiscence of five childhood food memories. Here are mine!
Les Nounours à la Guimauve
When we had a little pocket money my sister and I would drop by the boulangerie around the corner from school to buy candy. The display case was visible through the window so we would stand there for a little while trying to decide what...
"Childhood Food Memories" continues »
August 16, 2005
Dans la famille Coquelicot, je voudrais le pain!
[In the Poppy family, I would like the bread!*]
Coquelicot is the name of a bakery on Place des Abbesses, a couple of blocks away from our apartment. Their baguettes are fabulous and hold a special place in our hearts and our bread rotation. In addition to baguettes, Coquelicot makes a variety of specialty breads over the course of the week. And because they're thoughtful and know how vital bread is, they give out a little time table for you t...
"Dans la famille Coquelicot, je voudrais le pain!" continues »
August 14, 2005
Sweets from Sweden
It was Andrew's idea to replicate Nic's Blogging by Mail event for us European food bloggers. The rules are most simple: you put together a little care package, send it to someone, and receive another package from someone else. Nothing beats the thrill of having surprise goodies land on my doormat so I had to sign up.
As Andrew's round-up can attest, all of us were graced with thoughtfully selected and/or homemade treats and Anne's package, fl...
"Sweets from Sweden" continues »
August 11, 2005
Pied de Porc Vinaigrette
I was at the charcuterie yesterday to buy a few slices of jambon de Bayonne, an air-dried cured ham from the French Basque country.
Une charcuterie, for those who have yet to be introduced to this delightful concept, is a store that makes and sells all manner of goods derived from our friend the pork (ham, sausages, pâtés, rillettes...) and a wide variety of other prepared dishes (from salads and quiches to choucroute garnie and boeuf bourgui...
"Pied de Porc Vinaigrette" continues »
August 10, 2005
Drink Local, Drink Montmartre! (WBW12)
I have been but a sporadic participant in Wine Blogging Wednesday, the event created by Lenn (read here and here) but it is poor planning that is to blame rather than a lack of interest. And when I found out that the theme he had set for the 12th edition was Drink Local I thought to myself, I just cannot be a proud Montmartre citizen and miss an opportunity to write about the Montmartre vineyards.
Vineyards? In Montmartre? Yup, it is yet anot...
"Drink Local, Drink Montmartre! (WBW12)" continues »
August 8, 2005
(Not So) Chique
One often hears complaints about how things aren't the way they used to be, how everything is going downhill fast, how nothing works the way it should and nobody cares anyway, but back in the days, boy, <insert whatever was so great back then>.
I am wary of this kind of statement, not only because hindsight is subjective -- ten years from now those same people will surely miss what they have today -- but also because it's a negative att...
August 5, 2005
Compote Pêche Abricot à la Crème de Coquelicot
[Peach Apricot Compote with Red Poppy Cream]
I seem to have a particular fondness for the red poppy, its fragile fluttering silhouette and its thread-thin stem, too thin it seems to support its flamboyant scarlet petals and contrasting black heart. I like that it is easily spotted from afar -- in the middle of a field, on the banks of a country road or in the most unsuspected places amidst city landscapes -- and I like that it is a flower best...
"Compote Pêche Abricot à la Crème de Coquelicot" continues »
August 3, 2005
Ricotta Maison
[Homemade Ricotta]
The minute I read Heidi's post about making your own ricotta and her comment that "this ricotta tastes and smells like the milk it is made from so use the best and freshest dairy you can find", I instantly thought what a perfect use it would be for the bottle of raw milk that Christoph and Susanne gave me for my birthday as part of their superb farm-fresh gift basket.
I set to work in late afternoon the next day, slightly i...
August 1, 2005
Fleur de Courgette and Other Food Gifts
Oh gifts, gifts, gifts! Is there anything sweeter in life than having your friends go out and find something just for you, something that they think you will like and enjoy, something that will surprise and delight you? And when you do and it does, when the idea is fabulous and the gift exactly to your taste, when it is something that you really wanted or something you would have wanted had you known it existed, when it is custom-made for you a...
"Fleur de Courgette and Other Food Gifts" continues »