It’s tough call, but I’d have to say that Flo Braker is my favorite baker in the world. Having known her for a few decades, I can’t think of another baker that I like more. And I won’t apologize to any other bakers out there, because I think they’d pretty much agree with me. When I was writing my first book, I remember leafing through…
When I moved to France from San Francisco, I worried about what every San Franciscan worries about— “What am I going to do without burritos?” For those who aren’t familiar with San Francisco-style burritos, these bullet-shaped tummy-torpedoes are rice, beans, salsa, and meat all rolled up in a giant flour tortilla and eaten steaming hot. I don’t want to antagonize the burrito folks, but being…
Or I guess I should say—what in the sea? I recently came across this cake pan online, a unique piece of baking equipment that effectively combines my most favorite thing in the world (cake) with my least favorite thing: heinous beasts from the deep with tentacles. Look. I can understand making a cake that looks like a castle, a clown, or a toy car. Barbie…
I don’t know when it took hold, but le Brunch has become popular in Paris. Unlike the Bloody Mary and Mimosa-fueled repasts we had when I lived in San Francisco, in Paris, the concept is a little different. For one thing, Sundays are blissfully “sacred” and no one seems to want to wake up and go anywhere until — well, Monday. And the places that do…
[Note/update: Due to requests for my Bûche de Noël recipe, above, I’ve included it in my book, My Paris Kitchen.] I couldn’t let the year end without a little reportage about Christmas this year. You heard about my last-minute scramble to find the World’s Most Expensive Pastry Bag, which is now safely stored away in my Safe Deposit Box for next year. There’s a joke…
There’s a phrase that’s used in restaurant kitchens, in the weeds, which means that basically, you’re sunk. It’s when the orders are coming up too fast and you’re behind, or that you’ve taken on more work than you can chew and you can’t keep up. A few weeks ago I volunteered to make a Bûche de Noël for the Christmas dessert. At the time, it…
In my high school locker room, when the jocks congregated after winning a big game, they’d all jump around, yelling the word, “Sah-weet! Sah-weet!“ adding a big, tight, thumbs-up for emphasis, while jumping all over each other celebrating their victory. While not as exciting as a group of sweaty, nearly-naked high school athletes jumping all over each other, I don’t know about you, but what…
[UPDATE: This company is no longer in business. You may wish to consult with Clove Bakery if you’re looking for an American-style wedding cake in Paris.] This weekend, I’m going to my first-ever French wedding. I don’t know if the Bridezilla phenomenon has taken root in Paris, but my friend insisted, nicely, that her gâteau de marriage be one flavor in particular: carrot. I’ve written…
I’m now used to sitting down for dinner at 8 or 8:30pm…or 9…or 9:30pm…or 10:30pm…or whenever…but when I first moved to Paris, those first few months were a bit rough and I wasn’t quite sure me, or my stomach, would be able to adjust. My tummy would start a-grumblin’ around 5 o’clock and I’d start wandering around my apartment, lopping of pieces of bread and…
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