A year in a French market: Autumn
« Previous EntriesCheese in St-Etienne and environs
Monday, December 5th, 2011I’ve been traveling so much this fall, I can scarcely download the photos from my camera before I’m packing my bags once again. As a result, these pictures from St-Etienne — about 40 miles southwest of Lyon, in the Rhône-Alpes region — are a few weeks old and the gentle sunshine that diffuses them seems [...]
Joyeux Thanksgiving!
Thursday, November 24th, 2011Whether you’re pilgrim or Indian, pumpkin pie or pecan, dark meat or white, football fan or kitchen junkie, marshmallow sweet potatoes or plain, happy Thanksgiving! I’m off to Aveyron for a bit of book research but I’ll be back next week with tales of amazing, elastic aligot. In the meantime, as you begin to prepare [...]
Comfort me with pumpkin
Monday, November 21st, 2011My husband’s grandmother loved Canadian rye whiskey, which she kept in recycled airline cocktail bottles in her purse. She believed in the four “L”s: living, loving, learning, laughter, all pronounced in a Queens accent so thick you could spread it on a bagel. Her chicken soup remains legendary. “Wouldja like a plate a soup?” she’d [...]
Fall foliage in Burgundy
Tuesday, October 18th, 2011Last week I went to Burgundy for a few days. Though the purpose of my trip was to eat research boeuf Bourguignon — I’m saving tales of wine-braised beef, garlicky snails, and liquid Epoisses cheese for a chapter in my new book – I also spent a lot of time driving (over 620 miles in four days!) and marveling [...]
Pumpkin mania
Friday, November 19th, 2010Pumpkins! Pumpkins! I have been obsessed with PUMPKINS this fall. In the past, I avoided them, intimidated by their grandiose size, their knife-defying flesh. But then, a couple of things happened. First, I ate a wonderful dessert during my rainy weekend in Provence — a pumpkin cappuccino — pumpkin purée, warm sautéed apples, and cinnamon whipped [...]
Un tout petit peu
Wednesday, October 27th, 2010Sometimes I think that shopping in France is the inverse of shopping in the States. We Americans are addicted to big box chains, buying in bulk, stocking our cupboards with giant jars of peanut butter and cartons of goldfish crackers. Whereas the French are obsessed with buying food in as small an amount as possible. [...]
Inspired by nature
Tuesday, October 19th, 2010The world is full of fungi today, apparently. I did a double-take when I passed these funny ornamental mushrooms (photo left) shortly after snapping some gigantesque cèpes (photo right) in the morning’s market. Would you rather eat mushrooms or decorate with them?
How do you like dem apples?
Friday, October 15th, 2010Friends are coming to dinner tomorrow and I’ve been doing a little baking. Thanks to a windfall from David, who kindly gifted me with three pounds of apples, this pie came to fruition (ba dum). I was inspired by this New York Times pastry recipe, except I couldn’t bring myself to use lard. Instead, I made a [...]
Before and after
Tuesday, September 21st, 2010Mirabelle is the cutest name ever for a fruit, and when the tiny plums started appearing on menus and in the market, I wanted to experiment with them, too. And thus, this rustic mirabelle tart was born. It has a crunchy whole wheat olive oil crust and walnut filling, and a wholesome sweetness (though it could have [...]
A year in a French market: The great pumpkin
Thursday, December 10th, 2009How much would you pay for a can of pumpkin? You know, a 16 oz can of Libby’s solid-pack pumpkin? A lot, it turns out, if you live in Paris. I don’t like to complain about Parisian prices too much, because Paris is a world capital and world capitals are expensive. But, tasked with making [...]
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