01/03/2015
Artichoke and forgotten vegetables cream soup

It’s still pretty cold here in Paris, let’s make some soup. I found these beautiful forgotten vegetables, which I didn’t know, on the stand of the Causses grocer at the end of Maison et Objet. Their actual shop is located in Pigalle.

The Ingredients

5 Jerusalem artichokes
5 Peruvian ocas
5 mashuas
5 small artichokes
1 stock cube
1 piece of butter

The Recipe

1. Turn the artichokes over (short tutorial) and empty the hay.
2. Cut all vegetables into cubes, bake them with the butter in a large pan, salt and pepper.
3. Cover with water, add the stock cube, cook until the vegetables are tender, then mix.

25/02/2015
Sketch

Sketch is not just a restaurant, it is an evolutive place, a living gallery where art rubs shoulders with music and cuisine. In an early 18th century building in the heart of London, the space was thought by Mourad Mazzouz and the famous French chef Pierre Gagnaire. It just had a recent facelift under the direction of the French designer India Madhavi and turned into a monochrome pink setting resembling a tangy candy or a Hollywood lounge of the 1970s. Between the copper and marble touches, the walls are covered with the 239 drawings by David Shrigley, the winner of the last year’s Turner Prize. The artist extends his artistic thinking to the table, where salt shakers, mugs and other porcelain goods see themselves dressed in the writings of the English illustrator, and are pedestals for the eatable sculptural creations of Pierre Gagnaire. Even the waiter’s uniforms were designed specifically for this artistic breeding tank, by fashion designer Richard Nicoll. This space called The Gallery is only a part of Sketch, which hosts other delirious rooms as The Parlour, The Glade, The East Bar and Reading Room.

Sketch
9 Conduit street
London

photos © Sketch

22/02/2015
(CONTEST) Happy 5th birthday !

The blog is celebrating its 5th anniversary! Yes, time flies indeed… And for the occasion I wanted to spoil you, my faithful readers and the newcomers as well, with a sublime contest! I was preparing this anniversary-contest for a long time, and I am so excited to share it with you finally ! Here’s what you can win:

First prize: a dinner for 2 persons in the fabulous 2 Michelin star restaurant Michel Rostang!

Second prize : an it bag “L’Amour est une gourmandise qui se déguste à deux” from Comtesse DuBarry

Third prize: the pretty book “Les délicieuses pies des soeurs Elsen” which just came out edited by Marabout

To play it’s simple you just have to :

1. Like my Facebook page and Michel Rostang‘s

2. Answer the following question, either by leaving a comment below or on my Facebook page under the contest picture:

“Who would you like to share this dinner with if you win and why?”

You have until midnight Monday, March 2nd to play. Feel free to share the competition around you – who knows, if one of your friends wins, he can always invite you!

Contest open to metropolitan France residents only.

BRAVO to all of your entries and your touching comments! Here are the winners of the contest:

First Place (dinner at Michel Rostang): Alexina C.

Second place (box Comtesse du Barry): Michel N’guyen

Third place (book Marabout): Milartist

Please send me your address through the contact page on the blog!

Another huge thank you to my partners who allowed me to offer these great prices!

14/02/2015
Michel Rostang

With Michel Rostang, cuisine is a family affair. The chef is pursuing this culinary passion that lasts for 5 generations, accompanied by his wife and two daughters in his Parisian restaurant opened in 1978. He received his first Michelin star only a year later, then got the second in 1980, honoring his family of restaurateurs who had the most Michelin stars in France in the 1960s! It is surely one of the first to create a chef bistro with Flaubert’s opening in 1987, and then nothing can stop him: he opens other bistros like Villiers, the Boutarde, Absinthe, and also Dessirier and Jarrasse, specializing in fish and seafood. But let’s go back to the parent company, tastefully decorated, with an attentive service, and now led by the young and talented Nicolas Beaumann since 8 years. First formed as an apprentice by Michel Rostang, Nicolas evolved at Le Meurice with Yannick Alleno as line cook and sous-chef. Here Nicolas was able to soak up the signature cuisine of Michel Rostang, while bringing his personal touch, a delicate and mastered classic cuisine. The chefs are honoring the truffle, a rare and delicate product, in a dedicated menu. Perfect, I got in just for the season!

sardine club sandwich / amuse bouche parmesan, pigeon and beetroot jelly

artichoke soup, fresh truffle

foie gras and smoked eel, beetroot

Le Ponclet homemade butter, bread from Poujanran

incredible chestnut cream, langoustine over a bed of caramelized chicory

scallops filled with truffle, vegetables and Périgueux sauce

poultry and fresh truffles, pasta filled with mushrooms

extraordinary : this dessert is made from dried cigar leaves!

verbena sorbet, apple and amazing sponge cake

10/02/2015
Pomegranate smoothie

So what should we put in this love potion for Valentine’s Day?

Ginger for its aphrodisiac side … and for a touch of red, the color of love, let’s use pomegranate course, a symbol of fertility and…sexuality! In addition, it is full of vitamin C.

The Ingredients

– 1 piece of ginger
– 2 very sweet pomegranates
– 1 or 2 apples
– 1/2 lemon

The Recipe

With a juice extractor:

1. Remove the seeds of the pomegranate, and place them in the juicer with apples and ginger.
2. Add the lemon juice in a glass and mix well.

Without the juice extractor:

1. Cut the pomegranate in half. Press it with a lemon squeezer, and take the juice out with the help of a strainer.
2. Press the piece of ginger to extract the juice, and mix it with a good apple juice and lemon juice.

03/02/2015
Black sesame panna cotta and strawberry coulis

As you may have noticed, I love Japanese food and Japanese products such as matcha, miso, yuzu, shiso, black sesame… Today I will talk about black sesame paste which I love to work with, like making quick marble cakes for example. You can find it in Japanese stores, in Paris at rue Saint-Anne (I’m not sure there is some at K-Mart at 8 rue Saint Anne, but I have found in Kioko 46 rue des Petits Champs ).

It’s not strawberry season but you can use frozen fruits, coulis that you can find in supermarkets or seasonal fruits!

The Ingredients (for 6 jars)

– 2 tablespoons black sesame paste

– 300 ml of milk or soy milk

– 50 g of sugar

– 3 gelatin sheets

For the coulis

– A dozen strawberries

– 1/2 lemon

– 20 g of sugar

The Recipe

Boil the milk with sugar and sesame paste. Beat to that all is well dissolved.
Dissolve the gelatine and add to the milk. Mix well, cool down.
Place in glass jars and chill several hours in the fridge.
Cook the strawberries with the sugar, a little bit of water and lemon juice to medium heat until it is thick.
Serve the panna cotta with the coulis and add some black sesame seeds.