I hadn’t planned on buying rhubarb yesterday morning, but I was at the stand of my favorite producteur and there it was, and there I was, so our collective fate was sealed. As I waited for him to wrap my stalks tightly in brown paper, my mind raced to think what I would do with them. By the time I handed over a couple of…
I was in the middle of a lovely spring lunch at Chez Prune up by the Canal St. Martin the other day with Paule Caillat, a friend who taught cooking classes in Paris. We talked about many things, but of course, the conversation quickly turned to the most important subject of them all: baking. And soon she began to tell me about this tart dough…
When I lived in America, it was rare to find leeks. Some of you out there in the states are probably thinking; “Leeks? Aren’t those the fancy onion-like things at the supermarket that look like overgrown scallions?” Well, yes.
Tomorrow is the official start at les Soldes, the twice-annual period when the French government allows stores to discount merchandise. It usually last four weeks, although for the past couple of months, a few scofflaws have been marking things down discreetly anyways, flaunting the law in these cash-strapped times. The area I live in is the Bastille, and it was once known as a hub…
1. A few weeks ago I went back to Exceptions Gourmands with a friend from New York. The two women working there were quite nice and helpful, and my friend ended up picking out a few things to buy. The amount was something like 7.53€. So my friend opened her wallet and handed over a 10€ bill. “Oooohhh,” the saleswoman said, eyeing the lone bill…
…it’s a challenge to get through to the person you really need to speak to on the phone. …the amount of documentation you need seems excessive. …when there’s a screw up, there’s no one to complain to. …all the workers act like they can’t be fired—because they can’t. …you’re sure the folks up ahead of you are getting better treatment. …there aren’t nearly enough bathrooms.
1. Dressing It’s not dressing, it’s stuffing. Get it? It gets stuffed in the bird. That why it’s called stuff-ing. Even if you don’t use it to stuff, you’re not ‘dressing’ the bird. The mere mention of the word ‘dressing’ makes me wince down to my you-know-what. (It’s even hard for me to type.) If you want further proof, it’s Stove-Top ‘Stuffing’ Mix, not ‘Dressing’…
Just a note that my internet and cable everything has been down for the past week. And because that’s not enough, my some messages from certain servers are being blocked and/or returned for whatever reason. But rest assured, there’s no one here taking care of the problem. After calling several times at 8€, or $11 a pop, and getting disconnected in lieu of speaking to…
What are the absolute last words you want to hear when invited to someone’s home for a meal? One such phrase was:“We had some fish that was about to go bad, so we’re having it for dinner.” Welcome to my world, which you thought was all baguettes and chocolate, but also (sometimes) includes dubious dinners, too.
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