During the current lockdown in Paris, you can still get most things at the supermarket. True, there’s less of a selection as some items are more popular than others; butter, of course, is popular, and so is flour. Fortunately I always have a good stock of both on hand, lockdown or not, but I did neglect to replenish my chocolate supply. But the pasta and…
It’s funny some of the dos and don’ts that people have come up with around food. Things like that you shouldn’t wash button mushrooms, that you should drink red wine with cheese, and that you shouldn’t let soap anywhere near your cast iron skillet. Nope, nope, and nope. Not sure where these things get started, but people grab the ball and run with it without…
Someone was once trying out for a job at a restaurant I worked at, who cooked a meal that had a course which paired fish with cheese. I don’t recall if he got the job or not, but I do remember someone in the kitchen muttering, “Everyone knows that fish and cheese don’t go together.” I don’t know who gave him that information, but everyone who…
I used to have a hard time with certain cooked vegetable salads, such as ratatouille, even though people have insisted that I would like their version. Which I’ve always found odd, because if someone told me they didn’t like chocolate (I know – horrors!), I would not try to sell them on a brownie or chocolate cake. Ratatouille always tastes like a lot of stewed vegetable all mixed up,…
When I was in London, it just happened to be Wimbledon weekend and even though there wasn’t a tennis ball in sight where we were, all we wanted were pitchers of Pimm’s Cup. To our dismay, a number of places didn’t have them, and at the one restaurant that did, we were unimpressed. (So much so that the waiter took it off the bill.) Since…
[UPDATE: Il Gelato Centogusti is unfortunately now closed.] I’m very fortunate to have a gelato guide in Milan, because it’s a rather spread out city. And like many Italian cities, I’ve found some of the best gelaterias are located farther away from the city center. (Younger, less-established gelato makers can’t often afford to be in the expensive areas.) Unlike other Italian cities, Milan isn’t really…
I’ve never liked celery. To me, it’s like eating green water held together with a lot of fibers. Unless it’s filled with peanut butter or cream cheese, you can keep it. The only time I ever buy a bunch is when I’m making stock, which is a shame, because that only requires a stalk or two, and the rest sits in my refrigerator until it wilts and…
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