David Lebovitz's Blog, page 135
December 11, 2009
Tse & Tse Sale!
The odd-looking thing arrived in my mailbox recently, and I had no idea what it was.
So I spent some time spinning the wheel around and around, and around and around. And around and around. Until I got dizzy, and it landed on this
It's the annual Tsé & Tsé open warehouse sale!
December 9, 2009
Polenta Ice Cream (Gelato di polenta)
Technically this gelato isn't 'polenta' ice cream, but it's made with corn flour. But when I was in Torino, Italy last year, a local gelateria was making what they were billing as a 'polenta' gelato, using farina bóna.
So if you want to argue with an Italian chef, you're welcome to. After tangling with puzzling bureaucratic paperwork for a disproportionately-large chunk of my days lately, I'm happy to just accept what people say, and no longer question the how's and why's. (Like when I got a...
December 7, 2009
My Favorite Cookbooks of 2009
I have a stack (actually, about four stacks) of cookbooks that arrived this year, many of them riddled with bookmarks for recipes. Some of them I managed to get to, presenting recipes on the blog or baking for friends and neighbors, and a few I didn't get around to yet. In this year's round up, I did sneak in a few recipes from favorite classics cookbooks in my collection, but there's a nice representation from books that came out in 2009. Included are a few guidebooks that I found...
December 6, 2009
Fruitcake Bar Recipe
I've been making these Fruitcake Bars more and more as the holidays approach. Not only are they incredibly simple to put together, unlike other fruitcakes, these really do taste great.
They can be made up to a week in advance, which will undoubtedly help alleviate holiday stress. It's from my archives but thought it worth sharing again since folks enjoyed them so much at a recent Paris book event (and wine-tasting), and because the baking season is quickly approaching and it's nice to ...
How to Use the Comment Feed
A number of you have asked me about adding a Comment RSS feed to the site, so you can keep in touch with the comment and responses. We're in the process of adding one at the end of each post, but if you're using Firefox or Safari, each already has a built-in way to subscribe to the comment feed of the site.
In Firefox, in the URL bar, where the name of the site appears, there is a square orange icon on the right (see above). Click on it, and there is a drop-down menu for both...
December 3, 2009
West Country Girl
There's a new girl in town. And she owns a small crêperie which has been getting lots of good press in the food magazines, in spite what some might feel is a relatively obscure address.
To me, though, it's not all that obscure because I go over there all the time, as it's located near one of my favorite buildings in Paris, which I keep walking by thinking that one fine, lucky day, there will be a A Vendre (or A Louer) sign up so I can move into one of the fabulous retro apartments...
December 1, 2009
Paris Book Event This Weekend
This Sunday, December 6th from 3-5pm, I'll be doing a booksigning with Heather Stimmler-Hall of Secrets of Paris, author of The Naughty Paris Guide, and Keith Spicer, author of Paris Passions.
We'll be hosted by Context Travel in Paris and Oliver Magny of O-Château, who will be providing libations (ie: wine).
Since it's the holidays, if you're good, I might even bring some Friendship Bars...depending on whether you've been naughty or nice.
Menu for Hope 6: Call for Prizes!
This year I've been tapped to be the European host for Menu for Hope 6, an annual event to raise money for the UN World Food Programme's Purchase for Progess campaign.
The auction will go live on December 14th, with participants from all over the globe, ending on December 25th. Prizes will included signed books by the authors, culinary tours and cooking classes, wine tastings, and lots of surprises!
You can read more about the event and the charity at Chez Pim.
If you live in Europe or the U...
November 29, 2009
Apple Spice Cake
Recently I ate at one of those small neighborhood restaurants whose fame spreads beyond the quartier and people come from other neighborhoods, as well as from other countries, to eat at because it is très reputé.
Le Repaire de Cartouche (99 rue Amelot) is one of those restaurants in Paris. It's known for very good food and an especially compelling wine list. The prices aren't too high (although not too low, either) and you can eat very well without spending the equivalent of a...
November 27, 2009
Thanksgiving in Paris...and above & beyond
When folks ask me what the French do for Thanksgiving, I don't think the word they're expecting to hear are "Um, nothing." And why should they? It's not as though America shuts down for le 14 juillet.
Still, a few places around here do get into the spirit and you'll see a few bags of cranberries at the market, a few more sweet potatoes piled up, and smart volaillers stocking whole turkeys, normally a rare site in France.
Since it's pretty much life-as-usual around here on the f...
