mi pasta es su pasta: March 2012

good company and good food. there is nothing like it, especially in the form of your adoring parents. just last week they joined me in tasting many "firsts" including the ski trip to chamonix i've been dreaming of my whole life. my eyes are open like 5 minute old infant, seeing the world anew! of course i am casually referring to some classic french dishes that i have been saving to savor at the right moment. i'm talking the likes of scalding hot fondue aux cepes aka mushrooms (yes i scalded my mouth taking the first bite #rookiemistake), silky smooth foie gras with saint jacques scallops that melts in your mouth- the most delicate food in the world..."tastes like butta," escargot-- a garlicky mesh of mussel like rubberiness and sweet sweet butter that you pop into your mouth like "new wave" popcorn. in addition to paper thin apple tart tatin, crêpes suzette que flambées au Grand-Marnier- yes, flaming in front of you but not in the touristy asian steakhouse sense, and finally, a stinky, gooey, pungent, cheese cart to which, i must admit, my palate is adapting.

crêpes suzette

"La Vallée Blanche," the 22 km glacier i skied down spotted with crevasses and views of Mont Blanc #unforgettable

prior to break all my friends were discussing their whirlwind excursions to places like portugal, copenhagen, morocco etc. when they asked what i was doing i said "skiing with my parents in the french alps." their mouths dropped and responded "wow you're so lucky, you are going to eat so well." and that i did. in fact so well, that i feel the need to detox after ten days of two hour feasts with accompanying wine and dessert. after that long your stomach starts expanding and and you arrive at a perpetual state of bliss and horror at the fact that you cannot bend down to tie your shoe for fear of projectiling. however, i do not regret it...

oysters as part of a six-course seasonal prix-fixe menu at "saturne"

course #4

escargot avec mashed taters at hole-in-the-wall "le timbre"

quail at "le timbre"

(here we waited for approximately half an hour for the check, a normal amount for paris, a phenomenon of which i have never observed in such formality)

millefeuille (aka napoleon to us new yorkers) at "le timbre"

to end the week of eating off just right, i went to my newly discovered cousin's bat-mitzvah in paris. after all of the shabbat services, friday night and saturday morning we were treated to familial warmth and classic jewish sephardic food. the tables were laced in israeli salads of hummus, roasted red peppers, potato salads, challah, eggplant dips, marduma (a tomato-y spread), and the list goes on. we indulged, we drank, we sang, we talked for hours. i felt home again even with family i barely knew and half way across the ocean from my home.

the party. we cannot forget the party. at the King George V Four Seasons off Champs-Élysées, it was quite the soirée. i could survive on the hors-d'oeuvres buffet alone. tables upon tables of specialty foods from zabar's-like smoked salmon-- that smooth buttery salmon i missed so much on a toasted sesame bagel with cream cheese- ah, to sushi and champagne with strawberries, smoked meat, ceviche, mini-bites of fried finger food, and the pièce de résistance...a foie gras table!!! yes, logs of foie gras on little toastettes, and even foie gras macaroons! such indulgence.