paris: jam

Showing posts with label jam. Show all posts

Fraise Knock Out!

I hope you didn't spend your weekend arm wrestling a jar of strawberry jam like I did...

I wasn't thrilled with last Friday's watercolor - the reds were...just too red!

Off I marched to Union Square Farmers Market...

Ringside the Day-neutral berries were just waiting for me to show up...

Across the aisle the strawberry jams were aiming to hit hard...

Mon dieu! But at $8 bucks a jar I hesitated...

To the left the $8 dollar ready-to-eat lobsters were yelling out,

"Take us home and paint us!"

I asked Beth's Farm Kitchen,

Do you have something for a little less?

Beth's:Not really, unless you want the jar that didn't jell for $4?

Me:I'll take it!

Me:Do you always have something on sale every week?

Beth's:Never! We've been making jam for 30 years!

Me:Oh...ooops

I grabed the strawbs, jam AND the lobster and headed home...

Time to duke it out with some pencil 'thumbnails'

Then a slugfest with the red pigments...

Second entree into the ring wasn't so bad, but the berries got the upper hand...

Parisian pastry chefs always keep the upper hand with their strawberries. You can't walk a block without bumping into one or two strawberry tartes in Paris...

I found out from Relais Desserts that strawberries are not even a fruit. Who knew? It's those little yellow seeds, the 'achenes' that are the actual fruit. Louis XIV sent Amedee Francois Frezier (is that where le fraisier got it's name?) off to South America. He brought back many new varieties. Now there are at least 600 kinds of berries to put in your tarte, though the Plougastel, the gariguette and the mara des bois are the most popular. I was chastised in Monoprix for buying berries from Spain - mechante/naughty

Et voila

Have a BERRY Good Day PBers!

Julie's Jam Jars

Just one look last night and I was head-over-heels in love...

Photo by Julie Whitmore Pottery

Over at Julie Whitmores I fell again for another jam jar...

Story of my life really...

For a girl who should NOT even look at sugary jams I never seem to learn...

Staying with French Girl in Paris is like being in a field of jam landmines - I need armour at that place truly...

I used to collect mini-jam jars desperately trying to subvert my addiction. Ha! A lot of good it did me...

News Alert*

I must report dear PBers, that I am throwing in the 'macaron' towel as far as baking goes. I've had it. 3 strikes and I'm OUT!

I'm going to stick with painting thumbnails instead...

And practicing watercolor layering, instead of layering failed meringues with buttercream...

I'll be having another 3-day sale of older watercolors in September...

And as a bonus for the 1st 8-10 watercolor sales, I'll throw in my French (and Japanese) macaron cook books. Lucky you.

I'VE HAD IT with baking!!!

Photo by Julie whitmore Pottery

Do stop in at Julies for a delightful visit.

You'll thank me I know. Just look out for those enticing jam jars.

BONJOUR JULIE'S JAM!

Bonjour Croissants

Les Croissants Pur Beurre, watercolor, 9" x 11"

Yesterday we ventured into the land of tartes and pate sucree. Today, fasten your seatbelts as we tear through the lush golden anatomy of the French croissant and pate feuilletee.

Is it pâte brisée? I'm crazy for L'atelier des Chefs' fierce pastry instructor - I can watch him torture that pastry endlessly whatever it's name is...

Thanks to Merisi, I now have a special knife and can cut paper-thin slices of the golden croissant...

So much better to just munch a small bite and have a flat tum like these beauties..

If only I had a portable battery-operated knife to take to Paris, then I could eat a thin sliver of the richest pastries and not think twice about it.