Bonjour from Paris
Despite all the usual travel woes, we made it to Paris yesterday…and it is c’est magnifique. However, my laptop and our hotel’s internet are not playing well together, and despite the best efforts of GH and Anita, the lovely and tres helpful Directrice d’Hotel, it is not going to happen. Right now I’m using the hotel’s computer in the breakfast room and it is slow and under-powered…but it does the job. All this to say…I won’t be posting as often as I’d hoped, but I’ll catch you up sooner or later.
Today it was tres cold and rainy. We headed towards the Centre Pompideau. Paris is packed with families on their spring break, just like us. The line to get into the Centre Pompideau was very long but because we have the Musee Pass we walked right in…well worth every penny in just one use. The Centre is stuffed to the gills with fabulous art…we only stayed for a couple of hours today…we all get very passive when viewing art. As we left we stopped in the Plais de Pomideau and bought crepes from this lovely gentleman. They were delicious and we ate them as we watched some talented street performers…oh and I can’t forget the brief but surprising hailstorm…it was surreal to watch the Plais de Pompideau become almost white with the sudden storm…it was that way all day…drenching downpours, blasting cold winds, followed by blue skies, sunshine, and gentle breezes.
We are having a wonderful time, enjoying it all, and eating well. Our French is improving as we continue to use it. J’amie Paris.
Crepes
I’ve spent quite a lot of time preparing for our upcoming vacation to Paris. There are David Lebovitz’s Paris pointers to check out, drool over, then add to the google map, there are restaurants to scout out at Zagat, and they too must be added to the map, there are museums, gardens, markets, and monuments to add to the map, and there are stores…food, music, books, hats…we must see it all, or at least we must try. I’ve not yet finished it but I’ve got a good start. Imagine my dismay when GH commented that there were too many chocolatiers on the map…as if. I actually thought I showed tremendous restraint by not including more. He has yet to understand that though they all work in chocolate, each has something personal to say with his creations…and I must taste them all…just a taste.
After reading about all the sumptuous food in Paris it is difficult to walk into my kitchen and be inspired to make anything. Actually I’ve got a bad case of “is it vacation yet” and our weekly snow/ice storm hasn’t helped one bit. Sunday morning I went in the kitchen and surveyed the provisions. There were bananas, nutella, creme fraiche, apples, caramel sauce, ham, cheese…all good ingredients for crepe fillings. I whipped up the crepe batter in the blender (actually the perfect device for making crepe batter) and used the electric griddle to cook them. The geobeat video showed me the technique for flipping and folding so I was good to go. GH loved the Willow Creek Ham and Pleasant Ridge Reserve crepes, Dexter was insanely happy with his nutella and banana crepe. But I think it was the crepes I made for Alex and I that were the absolute best…and the most fun to make. I peeled and sliced an apple and sauteed it in butter with a bit of cinnamon added. Right before I filled the crepe I doused them with armagnac and flambéed them. Then once they were nestled into the crepe I added a dollop of creme fraiche, folded them, and swirled them with warm caramel sauce. Mmmmmm….gooey, apple, delight.
Crepe Batter
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups of milk
1 cup flour
Put all the ingredients in the blender jar and mix on the lowest speed the blender has until the batter is smooth.
