Ingredients Archive

May 20, 2008

Tahiti Vanilla

Long-time readers of this blog (and those who sift through the archives while pretending to work) may remember me mentioning that my source of choice for vanilla was a small family-run company based in Mayotte. Alas, when my sizeable stash dwindled and I decided to place a new order late last year, I found that the online shop had been dormant ...

"Tahiti Vanilla" continues »

December 17, 2007

Figue + Chocolat

[Fig + Chocolate] Perhaps you remember the fig ice cream I wrote about earlier in the fall. Wanting to bolster the spirit of my fresh figs -- the last of the season -- I set out to buy dried figs, only to be told that my organic shop was all out, and still waiting for the new crop to be delivered. Aha! This made complete sense -- fresh figs need...

"Figue + Chocolat" continues »

October 4, 2007

Goji Berries

The first time goji berries popped up on my radar was last winter, at London's Borough Market: amidst the fudge makers and the pie ministers was a natural foods stand that sold all manner of esoteric goods. Dried goji berries were prominently featured, with various health promises attached. I tend to take these clamorous claims -- a better eyes...

"Goji Berries" continues »

March 30, 2007

Le Kumquat Corse

[Kumquat from Corsica] I wrote a little ode to the Corsican clementine last winter, but it turns out one shouldn't flatter a citrus too much, lest it rest on its laurels and the following year's crop be a disappointment. All was not lost, however, on the citrus front: the maltaise orange from Tunisia was honey sweet and remarkably juicy, and a ...

"Le Kumquat Corse" continues »

December 15, 2006

Favorites of the Moment

Barbie dolls didn't do much for me when I was little, but I had a passion for plush animals. Each of them had a name and a set of personality traits (often refined by my father, who would improvise bedtime shows for my sister and me, with voices and everything), and they felt more alive than I think grownups can really remember. A direct conseque...

"Favorites of the Moment" continues »

March 2, 2006

Chocolate & Quinoa

You know how sometimes, you introduce two of your friends, and later find out they've clicked so well that they call and see each other without you? Now, as I understand (and this I gather from reading women's magazines, so take it with a grain of Maldon salt), some people hate that: it makes them feel left out, or perhaps sligthly cheated. But I...

"Chocolate & Quinoa" continues »

February 27, 2006

Le Sirop de Rose de Pierre Hermé

[Pierre Hermé's Rose Syrup] I attended the two-day Omnivore Food Festival in Le Havre last week, during which a number of renowned chefs gave cooking demonstrations. Among them was Pierre Hermé: he didn't actually pipe the ganache himself, but rather commented on his pastries as his sous-chef expertly assembled them onstage. The main focus of ...

"Le Sirop de Rose de Pierre Hermé" continues »

February 19, 2006

Grocery Store Staples

I don't really mind waiting in line at the grocery store. Don't get me wrong, I don't choose the slowest cashier on purpose: that usually happens without any special effort on my part. But I do enjoy this idle time, during which I can study the latest chewing-gum innovations (they seem to come up with new ones every other week), mentally review m...

"Grocery Store Staples" continues »

December 9, 2005

Clémentine Corse

Hold the fruit lightly in your left hand. With the edge of your right thumb nail, cut a slit through the thin skin, close to the stem. Pull the skin up and away carefully, trying to pluck most of the white strands from the little nostril. Keep tearing at the thin peel, working your way down and around, until the clementine is completely naked. If...

"Clémentine Corse" continues »

November 23, 2005

Madeleines au Miel de Châtaigner des Cévennes

One bite in these unassuming madeleines and the hair in your nape will stand to attention, as you suddenly register the intensity of the chestnut honey aroma, and the smooth, moist, melting texture of the crumb dissolving in your mouth. You will taste it again to make sure it wasn't just a fluke or a tastebud hallucination, and to your amazement ...

"Madeleines au Miel de Châtaigner des Cévennes" continues »

November 14, 2005

Jambon de la Vallée des Aldudes

[Ham from the Aldudes Valley] In the galaxy of first-class hams, this one most definitely deserves its place. It is made by 60 producers in the beautiful valley of Les Aldudes in the Pays Basque, from a specific breed of pig called le porc basque. This pig, which sports a pretty pink and black outfit, almost didn't make it through the twentieth...

"Jambon de la Vallée des Aldudes" continues »

November 9, 2005

Piment d'Espelette

Leaving Bayonne, we drove down the Atlantic coast to see Biarritz and Saint-Jean-de-Luz. We stayed in this fair beach city for the night and had a really nice dinner at a modern-Basque restaurant called Olatua -- an excellent cod with txorizo and a mighty fine gâteau basque. In the morning we left and crossed the Spanish border to visit San Seb...

"Piment d'Espelette" continues »

September 23, 2005

Pimentón de la Vera

Pimentón de la Vera is a paprika-like powder made of smoked and ground chili peppers, produced in Extremadura, one of the seventeen autonomous communities of Spain. Extremadura is in the South-West of Spain, close to Portugal, and it is in fact where the first chili peppers were introduced as they were brought back from the New World. Pim...

"Pimentón de la Vera" 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 at...

"Sweets from Sweden" continues »

June 13, 2005

Premières Groseilles

Red currants hold a special place in my heart as the perfect companion to peaches and nectarines and a dash of whipping cream in my mother's summer fruit salads -- preferably enjoyed in the cool shade of the garden, on a table with a cherry-patterned tablecloth secured by pretty star-shaped weight clips, should a little breeze pick up. I also li...

"Premières Groseilles" continues »

May 6, 2005

And today, I bought salt.

...but not just any salt: Maldon sea salt, after so many sources conspired (and most recently the much-linked Slate article and its tempting dandruff analogy) to make me cave in and buy salt at 17.80€ a kilo (4.45€ for the 250g box). Yesterday was a holiday in France ("l'Ascension", which marks the day on which Jesus returned to God: w...

"And today, I bought salt." continues »

April 22, 2005

Paris-Grown Meyer Lemon

About a year ago, I posted a recipe for one of my favorite cakes, a flourless orange and ginger cake. In the course of the comment conversation, I mentioned that the recipe could also be made with other citruses, and Meyer lemons in particular. Meyer lemons are a variety of lemon, believed to stem from the love affair between an orange (or maybe ...

"Paris-Grown Meyer Lemon" continues »

March 23, 2005

Première Fraise

[First Strawberry] I am normally not one to buy fresh fruit out of season -- the waiting game only heightens the pleasure of eating them at their peak -- but I had to buy strawberries last week for a project I'm working on. I wrinkled my nose at the notion of buying March strawberries and fully expected these bright red babies to be tasteless li...

"Première Fraise" continues »

February 25, 2005

Le Chou-Rave

Le chou-rave -- in English kohlrabi or cabbage turnip -- is definitely my greatest vegetable discovery for this winter. Although its name would indicate that it is a root vegetable ("rave" means "root", as in betterave [beetroot] or celeri-rave [celeryroot]) it is in fact a surface vegetable and belongs to the cabbage family. It is also exception...

"Le Chou-Rave" continues »

February 17, 2005

Gomasio à la Spiruline

[Spirulina Gomasio] I'm always happy to try new and intriguing food. It's a hit-or-miss kind of habit and I have on occasion bought things that turned out to be nasty (in that ugh-nasty-nasty-bleh-spit-spit kind of way), but it's all in the name of science and research, yes? My organic grocery store in particular seems very much aware of that ...

"Gomasio à la Spiruline" continues »

February 9, 2005

Tomme Affinée au Marc de Raisin

However uncanny the resemblance is, this is not a slice of blueberry streusel cheesecake. This is a Tomme Affinée au Marc de Raisin, sometimes referred to as "Who-the-hell-put-grime-on-my Cheese". Tomme de Savoie is a cow's milk cheese à pâte pressée non cuite (pressed, unheated cheese *), and this one has been aged under a thick blanket of grap...

"Tomme Affinée au Marc de Raisin" continues »

February 4, 2005

La Pomme et le Clochard

[Lady Apple and the Tramp] This apple you see here is one of my very favorite varieties. Oh sure, it doesn't look like much from the outside: round with slightly flattened top and bottom, its yellow uneven skin is matte with brownish freckles. Quite far from the glossy prom queens of the apple family -- Gala, Granny Smith or Golden. But slice i...

"La Pomme et le Clochard" continues »

January 27, 2005

Bergamotes

[Bergamot Oranges] I bought these two from a basket at the Batignolles market the other day, intrigued as I was by their label and shape (notice the cute nipples). Alternative citruses have been getting more and more attention these past few years, with yuzus, combavas, kumquats and cedrats coming out of the shadows, infusing dishes with unusua...

"Bergamotes" continues »

January 14, 2005

Carnet de Vins

As someone who adores notebooks of any shape or form, as someone who wants to teach herself about wine and is convinced that keeping wine tasting notes is the only way to go, you can imagine my joy at finding this darling little notebook at Lavinia, the wine super-store close to La Madeleine. Small enough to be slipped in your purse or shirt poc...

"Carnet de Vins" continues »

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 c...

"Pâtes de Fruit" continues »

August 30, 2004

Basket of Treats from Italy

The really cool thing when you have an obvious and widely known passion such as mine (and that would be food, I wish you'd pay attention) is that your friends and family know precisely what gifts will send you through the roof in fits of bubbling joy. Latest example? Laurence and Marie-Laure, two of my closest friends, whom I've known respective...

"Basket of Treats from Italy" continues »

August 28, 2004

Oeufs de Caille

Quail eggs : one of nature's smallest wonders! The beautiful thing with these teeny tiny eggs, is that they all look different, each of them with a unique half-inch of personality, random patterns of little smudges and freckles, some brown, some black, some blue. You half expect them to crack open any minute, letting out a very small gawky di...

"Oeufs de Caille" continues »

August 23, 2004

Basket of Treats from Germany

I am sure you remember about Christoph and Susanne, our German friends, who are both research scientists in Paris and serious food enthusiasts. In fact, I think of Christoph as the German twin of Alton Brown (for the scientific approach) and Jeffrey Steingarten (for the thorough, border-line obsessive experimentations), which is bound to make him...

"Basket of Treats from Germany" continues »

August 18, 2004

Ail Rose de Lautrec

[Pink Garlic from Lautrec] Those of you who have been around for a little while have probably noticed a personal penchant for all things pink, and this is only confirmed by my two most recent shoe acquisitions. I certainly don't shy away from hefty doses of garlic either, so you can certainly imagine my glee at welcoming this beautiful bunch of ...

"Ail Rose de Lautrec" continues »

July 23, 2004

La poire qui était toute petite

[The pear that was really very small] I got this pear at the Gérardmer market -- a.k.a the magic market of the ceaseless wonders -- at the same produce stall where we got a crate of apricots to make jam. I'm always on the lookout for new and unusual fruits or vegetables, and those tiny ball-shaped pears did not escape my hawksight. "Oh, qu'est-...

"La poire qui était toute petite" continues »

June 18, 2004

Figues d'Iran

[Persian Figs] These cute marble-size figs are called Persian figs, or Shirazi figs. They come from Iran, where they are produced on a small scale, in villages : they are picked from a type of fig-tree which grows scattered in the mountains, and they are then dried in the sun. The path those little guys have taken to reach me is a little tortuo...

"Figues d'Iran" continues »

June 15, 2004

Mushroom Salt

Just when you thought that some things, like salt, couldn't be improved upon, someone has to go out and invent mushroom salt! This pretty grinder, which I bought at the Grande Epicerie de Paris, contains thick crystals of sea salt and chunks of dried mushrooms -- chanterelles, porcini and African caesar mushrooms -- so that the seasoning you gri...

"Mushroom Salt" continues »

April 30, 2004

Maryland Delights, Act III : Old Bay Seasoning

And this is the third and last installment of the Tale of the Maryland Delights which Alicia sent me. The last item is a tin of Old Bay Seasoning, without which, I am told, no Southern kitchen is quite complete. It is a mix of celery salt, mustard, red pepper, black pepper, bay leaves, cloves, allspice, ginger, mace, cardamom, cinnamon and papri...

"Maryland Delights, Act III : Old Bay Seasoning" continues »

April 20, 2004

Maryland Delights, Act II : Baking Mixes

Last week I told you about the Chocolate Cremes that Alicia had sent me in her Foods From Maryland parcel. This parcel, neatly packed up in a large box of chicken bakes, also contained three boxes of assorted baking mixes. We do have baking mixes in France of course (yup, got 'em about the same time as electricity, early last year), but they are...

"Maryland Delights, Act II : Baking Mixes" continues »

April 19, 2004

My Father's Vinaigrette

In my post about Pissaladière, I alluded to my father's signature vinaigrette. Such a teaser could not go by unnoticed, and many of you expressed an eager curiosity. The request for more information was passed on to my father, and I will now step aside, and let you read his reply : Yes, perhaps the time has now come for the secret recipe of CDV...

"My Father's Vinaigrette" continues »

March 29, 2004

Sweet and Swirly Rusk

Well you know, I'm sorry, but I feel like I wasn't given a fair chance. At all. I mean, really, who could resist? On the package it reads : "delicious rusks with the delicately sweet taste of malted barley". And the rusks have a swirl pattern on them. And there is a little red banner proclaiming that it is new and nouveau, and nyhet! As well!...

"Sweet and Swirly Rusk" continues »

March 27, 2004

Galette Repas... ou pas!

This Galette Essene is a small loaf of sprouted cereals bread, which I found at my organic grocery store. I talked about a galette essénienne before, but this is a different animal : where my former galette was brittle and cracker-like, this one is a moist little thing. The package, by calling it a "galette repas" proclaims it can be eaten as a ...

"Galette Repas... ou pas!" continues »

March 25, 2004

Ricottella de Poisat

This package of ricotta was given to me by a passionate and very kind cheese maker from Grenoble, whom I met at the Salon du Fromage - a parting gift after our long conversation, during which we tasted the whole array of his products (and not your teensy scanty samples either), discussed their respective flavors and textures, personalities and be...

"Ricottella de Poisat" continues »

March 19, 2004

The Gorilla Date

After reading the Amateur Gourmet's irrepressibly-giggle-inducing post on Medjool dates, I decided to chime in and add to the praise on that precious fruit. But why is my date so angry, I wonder? Is it because it is all brown and wrinkled? Is it because we gobbled up all of its siblings in the clear plastic container and it is the only survivor?...

"The Gorilla Date" continues »

March 17, 2004

Tourteau Fromagé

Le Tourteau Fromagé is a French cheesecake, one that I mentioned buying during a recent grocery store trip. "Fromagé" means "with cheese", and "tourteau" is a variation on the word "tourte", which means "pie". I happen to find the word "tourteau" very cute - it puts me in mind of a small cuddly animal for some reason. It is a specialty from the ...

"Tourteau Fromagé" continues »

February 21, 2004

Galette Essenienne

I bought this at Pousse-Pousse, the little boutique where I buy my sprouting seeds and where I collect my weekly Campanier baskets. It is a sort of thin flatbread, made with sprouted seeds that have been ground and dehydrated. There are different flavors, depending on the seeds that have been used, and I chose the leek one (well, of course). The ...

"Galette Essenienne" continues »

January 25, 2004

A Truckload of Shortbread Cookies

What could possibly beat a box of shortbread cookies?...

"A Truckload of Shortbread Cookies" continues »

December 15, 2003

Crème de Noix du Monastère

[Walnut Butter from the Monastery] I take bus 67 to get home from work every day. This bus line isn't very crowded, and takes me from the South of the 13th to the 18th arrondissement along a very pleasant route. You can usually find me sitting by a window, reading, writing, or just gazing outside and observing. At one point, in the 4th, the bus ...

"Crème de Noix du Monastère" continues »

November 14, 2003

The Giant Pomelo

Another instance of blog synchronicity - there may be some pheromones at work here, who knows? Deb recently posted a picture that made me laugh, on which a pomelo looked huge, posing proudly next to a teeny tiny mini-grater. On the very same day, I had taken a somewhat similar picture of my first pomelo ever! I enjoyed the taste very much, by th...

"The Giant Pomelo" continues »

November 6, 2003

Le Thé Mariage Frères

I could not agree more with Amy. Tea from Mariage Frères is one of those things that just make life a whole lot better. The beauty of the tins it comes in does nothing to hamper my feelings, nor does the beauty of the boxes the tins themselves come in! And the names, indeed, the names! If you can't make it out on the pic above, I have : "Thé sur...

"Le Thé Mariage Frères" continues »

October 24, 2003

Luscious Persimmons

Persimmons are still a newly discovered continent to me. I experienced my first persimmon about two years ago, in California. Sofya, a coworker of mine from Russia (St-Petersburg to be precise), had a tree laden with them in her garden, so she brought some to work for sharing. I loved that about my workplace, there was always something in the kit...

"Luscious Persimmons" continues »