Summertime

And just like that, summer is [edit: almost] over. I’ve had quite an adventure the past couple months, and I feel like I owe you all an explanation for my silence. Maybe I don’t owe you an explanation, because that makes it sounds like I’ve done something very wrong, but I’d like to reconnect with you as a reader of this blog. I appreciate that some of you check in with me and ask, “Have you been baking?” which I usually respond to by spewing excuse after excuse why I have not been baking. If you’ve asked me that question this summer, you might have gotten one (or all) of these answers:

“I’m going to Thailand!”
“I’m in Thailand!”
“I’m jet lagged!”
“I’m busy preparing for a company conference!”
“I’m at a company conference!”
“We’re getting ready to move!”
“We’re moving!”
“Well, we haven’t moved yet, but my stuff is in storage!”

That is the rundown of my summer. Tim and I flew to Bangkok for a family reunion, celebrating both of my grandmothers’ birthdays and eating nonstop. I’m saving those juicy details for another post. Right before we traveled to Southeast Asia, we found an apartment we love in Long Island City and signed a contract to buy it. And because our plans don’t always work out accordingly, we had to vacate our previous apartment before closing on the new apartment. Where am I living now, and where is my stuff?

Well, my gracious sister-in-law and her husband are letting us stay with them until we close, and our stuff is packed away in storage. We’re lucky to have them in our lives, and it’s been a lot of fun staying with them. Our two-week-long slumber party has consisted of playing Mafia II (Tim is really good at action-adventure games by the way), watching Mad Men, Skyping our parents, and most fun of all, playing with the silliest Yorkie-Poo I’ve ever met.

It’ll be bittersweet when we do close on our new place. I’ll get back to baking and you’ll see more posts from me, but then I won’t have a family of four to cook for, and I’ll also have to say goodbye to this adorable little guy. Woof!

Snacking in Paris

Today is a very special day! This is the day I wrap up my Paris posts. It's also Tim and my two-year wedding anniversary, but I will spare you all by leaving the sap out of this post.

I had grand plans for snacking in Paris. I took many notes from Robyn's amazing Paris trip and thought we'd be able to tackle all the pâtisseries she photographed and wrote about. Alas, her blog isn't just "The Girl Who Ate Something"; it's called "The Girl Who Ate Everything" for a reason. I don't know how you did it, Robyn, but I salute you.



































First on my list was Pâtisserie Sadaharu Aoki. My friend Janice lent me The Patisseries of Paris by Jamie Cahill to plan for the trip, and I read it cover to cover many times. Sadaharu Aoki jumped out at me from the pages because I absolutely love Japanese flavors in dessert form, so I could imagine nothing better than French-style pastries with Japanese flavors. It met all my expectations, and I wanted to buy the whole store. Instead, I walked out with the matcha azuki duomo pictured above (a must try!), an assorted box of macarons, a jar of matcha azuki jam, and various chocolates in all flavors. See more drool-inducing photos captured by Béa and "the chocolate guy."

























We went to the Louvre on our first full day, and after spending most of the morning in the Denon Wing, we needed to refuel. We went to the nearest cafe and ordered un café gourmand and a Coke. If anyone's ever advised you against buying a Coke in the Louvre, take the advice. Otherwise expect to pay about 4 euros for the Coke. We knew it'd cost us, but Tim had a thirst only Coca-Cola could satisfy. The macarons were tasty, but I probably would've been okay eating sugar cubes to last me through both Sully and Richelieu wings.

























Yes, we visited McDonald's on Champs-Élysées. Tim and I quickly became accustomed to having espresso every afternoon, so while walking along Champs-Élysées, we popped in the McCafé to enjoy deux cafés gourmand. The WSJ recently ran an article on the recent popularity of the macaron, highlighting their appearance in McDonald's in Paris. The article poses the question, "Now chains like McDonald's have added them to the menu. Can Parisians really tell the difference?" I'm not Parisian, but I believe there's a difference. McDo's version was significantly chewier than Ladurée's, and the chocolate and caramel flavors were only so-so. Seeing macarons at the McCafé on Champs-Élysées is one thing, but what if we saw them at McD's in Penn Station? Now that's a scary thought.

Though our snacking wasn't comprehensive, we did more than what I just mentioned. We ate more macarons from Ladurée, madeleines from Boulangerie Eric Kayser, Nutella crêpes from what I think used to be Crépuscule, assorted snacks from Monoprix, assorted cheeses from Fromagerie Quatrehomme, éclairs au chocolat from La Maison du Chocolat, and more éclairs from Angelina.

Here's the list of places we did not get to try: Boulangerie Poilâne, Pierre Hermé, Gérard Mulot, Berthillon, Mariage Frères, and many, many more. In a way, I'm glad we still have a list of things to do in Paris. (Always look on the bright side, right?) We will certainly be back, and we'll be able to enjoy them more in what I hope will be warmer weather.

If you have any must-see recommendations for Paris, please let me know! I know some friends visiting later this year, and I'd love to be able to give them more recommendations.

Les Papilles

Dinner at Les Papilles was our favorite meal of the trip. I'd read all about the mandatory prix fixe dinner from "the chocolate guy" and had decided we will eat there while in Paris. I was psyched once the decision was made, but then I realized we needed a reservation. I speak zero French. What did I do?

I actually love learning languages, so I took this as an opportunity to pick up a few French phrases to prepare for the trip. I searched around and found this site to be the most helpful one because of its audio tools. Once I pieced together what I was going to say, this site was helpful in pronouncing words for me. When it came time to call and make a reservation, I froze and asked in an apologetic voice, "Parlez-vous Anglais, s'il vous plait?" and the rest of the conversation was completed in English.

Back to Les Papilles. This place was amazing, from the service to the thought put into each course, and though we sat elbow to elbow next to an Irish couple, they made lovely neighbors and even offered us a taste of their wine when we had to choose ours.



































This was the market menu for February 13, 2010. Even if you can't read French, like me, you can tell only delicious words were written on that chalkboard. "Retour du marché" means "back from the market." After figuring that out, it made me feel even more love for this place.

























These were the chips, croutons, bacon, and chives that went with the soup. I was tempted to eat them alone, but a server motioned for us to pour the soup over it all.

























I'm so glad we did. "Velouté de patates douces, quenelle de crème à l'huile d'olives, chips de patates douces, croutons, lardons frits, ciboulette" wouldn't have come together otherwise. In English, that would be sweet potato soup with a dollop of olive oil cream over sweet potato chips, croutons, bacon, and chives. This soup was full of flavor, and we loved all the different textures in it.

























"Poitrine de porc braisée, haricots coco, carottes, pois gourmands, tomates confites oignons nouveaux et sa sauce au pistou" is braised pork belly with white beans, carrots, snow peas in a tomato confit and pesto sauce served on the side. This entire meal was so comforting, but the arrival of this dish especially warmed us up.

























We loved all the vegetables that came with the pork as we were afraid we wouldn't be eating enough fruits and vegetables in Paris. Since Tim switched jobs into the healthcare industry, we've been more intentional about eating healthy. I hope you all are eating your greens too!

























"Fourme d' Ambert, pruneau au vin rouge" is simply Fourme d 'Ambert cheese served with a prune in a red wine reduction. The combination of this cheese with the prune was perfection. I ate the entire thing, and Tim suffered for the next 24 hours. I am sure that is way too much information for you, but I will happily endure the aftermath of eating stinky cheese because I love stinky cheese! Although really, this wasn't all that stinky.




































"Panacotta clémentine et caramel" was a very nice clementine panna cotta with caramel sauce. We were stuffed at this point in the meal, but the flavors of the panna cotta were so vibrant, we continued to feast on the last course of the market menu.




































This place is also a wine bar and has a cellar that contains even more wine than on their walls. We are far from wine connoisseurs, so we asked for a light red wine recommendation and we were presented with a nice pinot noir from the Domaine Ganevat winery in the Côtes du Jura AOC. I can't remember the specific notes or tastes of the wine... so why don't I point out the faces in places instead? What a cute monkey face on the wine bottle.


We wanted to eat at great places in Paris without the fuss of dressing up or caring about being seen. Les Papilles was exactly that. Leaving the question of what to eat in the hands of those who know best is always fine by me, so if you feel the same, definitely visit Les Papilles.


Les Papilles
30 rue Gay Lussac
Paris, France 75005
01 43 25 20 79

Bouillon Racine

We dined at Bouillon Racine on our last night in Paris. The decor is absolutely gorgeous, but you will have to take my word for it since I only took photos of our dinner.

The previous night's dinner was rather stressful (highlights of the story include a lost reservation and a piece of lamb flung towards the French woman next to me), so our dinner expectations we reset to enjoy anything as long as we were able to relax.

I read somewhere that Bouillon Racine serves lame and dreadful food, but as I just mentioned, we didn't have high expectations so we enjoyed our dinner very much. This was our menu that night:

























The soupe du jour was a carrot soup that was just lovely. I love all kinds of cooked carrots, and the creamy warmth of this soup was a big dose of comfort to me.

























Tim ordered the pork rillettes that were flavored with Coteaux du Layon. Spreadable fatty pork? Who wouldn't love some of that? I'd love to try to make it one day.

























I had the tartare de boeuf as my entree. As a Texan, I like my steak bloody, and I also like it uncooked. It was a good tartare, though there wasn't anything exceptional about it. And I would have preferred McDonald's french fries over the pommes Pont Neuf that were served. Yes, I'm being serious.

























Tim ordered the confit de canard, and he loved it. The small taste I had was great: crispy skin and juicy meat dripping with duck fat. Those mashed potatoes were so rich I could taste the butter and cream in it, but that makes it crazy delicious to me.

























For dessert, I had the pear poached in red wine and spices. It was refreshing to just eat fruit at that point in the trip, but the pear was masked by all the spices, it wasn't quite the same as eating my usual fresh fruit for dessert.
























Tim ordered the crème brûlée flavored with maple syrup, and I will confess to what I'm sure everyone of you did while eating crème brûlée in Paris: I imagined being Amélie while delightfully cracking the shell with a silly smirk on my face. Admit it, you did it too! The crème brûlée was good, but we had a lavender flavored one the night before that sticks out as the better one.

Tim and I had our most relaxed meal at Bouillon Racine, and the food was pretty good. We were able to laugh about the meal we had the night before, and we learned fantastic food isn't the only thing that makes a fantastic dinner. Company and conversation are even more important, and I had the best company and conversation in the world that night.


Bouillon Racine
3 Rue Racine
Paris, France 75006
01 44 32 15 60
www.bouillon-racine.com

J'aime Paris

J'aime Paris. My visit has come and gone, all too quickly. I am so very thankful for the opportunity Tim and I had to experience Paris this winter. Our senses were saturated while we walked the city, we grew as a couple as we learned more about each other, and I've returned so inspired. Inspired by the meals we ate, the beauty we saw, by everything... people told me I'd love Paris, but I didn't think I'd be this hooked.

When people ask me how Paris was, the first thing that comes out of my mouth is, "cold." I knew it was going to be cold there, but my goodness, it was COLD. Some of our plans were shot because we didn't have the strength to stay outside for long, and really, was I going to have ice cream in 20F degree weather? (The answer was no.) But I learned it's okay to not do it all. How could you possibly in less than five days? I consider this trip a first taste, because I hope to be back for more.



































We brought back as many Parisian treats as we could fit in the extra bag we packed. We have all kinds of treats from Patrick Roger, Fromagerie Quatrehomme, La Maison du Chocolat, Ladurée, Fauchon, Chocolat De Neuville, Jeff de Bruges, McDonald's, Pâtisserie Sadaharu Aoki, Monoprix, and La Grande Epicerie. I hope these last us longer than a week. ;)

Now, I normally don't post about eating out on Talida Bakes, but because Paris was so inspiring, I will prepare special posts on Paris eating over the next week. Thanks to everyone who lent me books and gave me recommendations on what to see and eat, I wouldn't have fallen in love without your help!