Saturday, July 14, 2012

Weekend Cooking: Paris moments

Given that it is Bastille Day it seems very fitting to share something French! I also spent the whole day doing something very fitting, and I am hoping to post about that tomorrow!

Yesterday I posted a review of Paris in Love by Eloisa James. Like so many memoirs that are about life in Paris, there is a strong focus on food throughout the book, along with fashion, family, Paris the city and so much more. There were so many food passages that I could have chosen, but I have chosen four that will hopefully whet your appetite for the book. There was another one that I thought I had copied which talked about dreaming of food and the difference between men and women, but apparently I lost it somewhere along the way!

Page 207

After extensive research, I have a blueprint for the perfect tart. It should be very small, hardly more than a bite, and have a buttery, flaky crust, a bit of pastry cream, and a miniature tower raspberries. One or two berries should be topped with edible gold leaf, in order to create the illusion that the eater is Marie Antoinette herself, wearing a spun-sugar wig, nibbling cakes, and handing out dining advice.


Page 147

Today we went to Sunday brunch at one of Gordon Ramsay's restaurants in Versailles, La Veranda. The entrees were fine....but the desserts! I tried nine, determined to learn, through empirical research the very best one. The delicious, chewy passionfruit macaron? The froufrou hot pink marshmallows, the four flavours of creme, the fig tart, the delicate clafoutis? The winner was a dainty cake with a crackling top and luscious mango cream inside, because it was like biting into one of Alice's Wonderland cakes; inside was a voluptuous surprise.

Page 233

Alessandro and I deserted the children for the evening and took ourselves out for dinner at a tiny new restaurant called Saveurs & Concidences, subtitled 'The Cuisine of the Good Senses.' Our waitress was married to the chef; she told us that her husband had long dreamed of opening a restaurant where the food was so fresh that they had no need of a refrigerator. Some of the dishes were good and some were only so-so (Italian men - not to mention names - should just stop ordering risottos in other countries, because it never measures up), but the passion was unmistakable. And while Madame talked, a little boy in and appropriately sized chef's apron poked his head out of the kitchen.

Page 237

Viviane invited us over for dinner last night. The meal began with her rendition of an appetizer she'd recently eaten at a three-star Michelin restaurant (to die for) and ended with a cake that she bought from 'the best patisserie in Paris' - Dalloyau on boulevard Beaumarchais. The inside was in various layers: a tart raspberry mousse, topped with a delicate lemon layer, surrounded by pistachio sponge cake with a gorgeous stenciled pattern in raspberry sugar. The top was glossy with a pale lemon sheen and held a delicate arrangement of berries. The next day we marched to that patisserie, bought the same cake, and took it home to devour.



Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. For more information, see the welcome post.   


23 comments:

  1. Ooh, I am salivating over the pistachio spongecake.

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  2. Same here! Worth a trip to Paris :) The delicate bite-size raspberry tower sounds delectable too...

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    1. I could do a few of those bite size raspberry towers for breakfast. Maybe not!

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  3. oh, I would love to have one of those tiny, perfect tarts...

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  4. ok, you've definitely wet my appetite, the book sounds delicious :)

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    1. And there is so much more to it as well, which is an added bonus!

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  5. Good Lord, I HAVE to get this book!

    BTW, lots of Paris posts today - Happy Bastille Day :)

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    1. Lots of Paris posts all month really! Which is a good thing.

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  6. I thought this was a great book for Paris in July. Louise recently reviewed it on her blog, A Strong Belief in Wicker.

    Here's my first ever
    Weekend Cooking: Paris in July.
    Hope you will stop by!

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    Replies
    1. Welcome to Weekend Cooking!

      I saw Louise's review! I reviewed it myself yesterday.

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  7. Yum yum yum! Yes, I definitely want to read this one. You picked great excerpts. Thanks!

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    1. Thanks Jama. I could have chosen a lot more too!

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  8. I've got this book on my tbr list.

    Have a great week.

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    1. I hope you enjoy it when you read it Carole.

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  9. I want to go out to a meal where I just eat nine desserts... all in the name of research of course!

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  10. What great food quotes! It's like a culinary visit to Paris!

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  11. This looks like a lovely book- food, fashion, Paris...it sounds like a perfect read!
    Rebecca @ The Key to the Gate

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  12. I'm heading straight to the library's website to put this one on hold (hopefully). Sounds like one I'd love!

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  13. I am glad I am not the only person on the planet who dreams of food-centered vacations. To me, that is what a trip to Paris would be, I think. YUM. *le sigh*

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  14. Sob. I am so missing Europe right now. Love all these quotes. Must read this book.

    Sorry it took me so long to visit your post. I was out of town and didn't have Internet access.

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  15. I think I have to get this book too, it sounds so fun to read! It's making me hungry too. I can imagine eating the food, without really eating it (good for us diabetics). lovely quotes, thank you so much for sharing them with us.

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