I'm Lovin' It

McDonald's video game says "People live fast and want to eat quickly. Fast food restaurants are the cathedrals of our age and everything must be efficient and optimized."



Do you have what it takes to manage a multibillion dollar fast food franchaise? You control everything from the cow welfare and crop management/rainforest razing in South America to the local burger flippin wage monkeys to the marketing that lures the sheep, I mean consumers, in.



Sure there are nasty unsavoury things such as hormones, genetically engineered feed, mad cow epidemics and convinient industrial waste laced products. But as the big boys say, "This could have some risk to consumer health , but make no mistake: in love and war everything is licit."

When the moon hits your eye...

America loves Pizza
- Link courtesy of NotMartha

I know Naked Flying Baby Day is not for some time yet (and scares most people witless) but here is a template for the pizza pictured above. Because there is always someone you love enough to make heart shaped pizza for....even if it's just yourself.

momma's momma's momma's recipe

*right, so i typed this at 4am and lost half of it. will finish editing and recreating as the time allows. please forgive our verbolicious dust.*

The other night Madame Claudia kindly invited me to dinner. Now before you get all too titillated 'Madame' does NOT connote a lady of the night but rather a slightly older wiser friend from French class back in the day (where 'day' = 'when I still actually went'). When I arrived at the Madame's abode I was greeted by a vision in floral print and a large glass pitcher with the beginnings of a sublime summer beverage. (I apologize for the photo quality, I blame my shaking on hunger pangs.)



Cruel cruel woman that she is she put me straight to work to earn my supper (I jest, I would have come earlier to help with the dinner part but was running late, are you surprised?) While the Madame continued to cut, squeeze, and slice lemons with a rather frighteningly large knife I was in charge of drawing and quartering the helpless strawberries. All of this was to be added to the marinating alchemical concoction of ice, sugar, and vanilla beans.



After adding some H2o to taste everything was blended to perfection by stirring with the same ridiculously oversized slicing and dicing implements (really, we just needed Edward Scissorhands to lend a hand). Why? Cause that's how her Momma did it. And her Momma's Momma. And...



Accompanying our succulent dinner, like feathered mule stilettoes on a 1950's starlet, was a very fresh and refreshing pleasantly pinkish beverage. Not too sweet nor sour, complex, heady and rather intoxicating.

Like any good recipe that has been handed down, there is no recipe (how zen). But rather a list of ingredients that is eyeballed amounts, tradition, and frequently tasted. Above all though, there is the 'rightness' and alignment to the memory of the original flavor. A hard thing to master (just read Vogue magazine food editor Jeffery Steingarten's article in The Man Who Ate Everything regarding his mother in law's fruitcakes or the time he tried to pin cup and tablespoon measurements to a recipe that has always been made off the cuff.) Here goes my best, I've recreated this at home sans exact measurements and it worked very well. In fact, according to the Madame, there is no one who doesn't LOVE this recipe. Humble, no? :) Luckily, she's been well justified in my experience. Without further ado....

Madame Claudia's Strawberry Vanilla lemonade

4-6 well washed lemons (depending on the size of your glass pitcher )
1/2 a vanilla bean
several cups of sugar
a handful of strawberries, hulled and quartered
ice
water filled to the top of said glass pitcher

Generously fill a glass pitcher with ice, dust ice with granulated sugar until fairy like. Oh, who are we kidding? Dump in a whole lot, a restrained whole lot though. You will probably need to add more later. Take the vanilla bean and after a quick rinse cut in half the short way, holding on to the remainder for another special dish at a later time, and then the half of a bean in half down the middle the long way. Scrape the insides on to the ice and sugar and toss the pod in as well. Proceed to cut off the ends of the lemon and then cut in large round slices into the pitcher (I didn't squeeze my lemons into it before cutting them up, Claudia did. Both ways work equally well) Next add your strawberries, fill 'er up with the water of your choice and stir with ridiculously large knife. I am serious, don't even think about using your Granny's wooden spoon. This lemonade needs tough love. Stir/slice at until well blended and pink-ish. I would recommend drinking it the same day as the berries get a bit battered around. But no worries you'll finish it in one sitting. Cheers

Aside - For those of you getting sick of off-the-cuff NotRecipes (patent pending) and miscellaneous food and restaurant reviews, I will hopefully be doing some serious baking again soon. Real baking with actual measured amounts and mostly fixed ingredients. I've been dying to make some pretty pink champaign cupcakes (wow, did that ever sound girly! I feel like I ought to be 'hearting' the dots of my i's) for some time now but am waiting for a special occasion to do so. I have a whole birthday gift magnum of Veuve Clicquot in a fabulous orange carrying case and a box of really really cute cupcake toppers waiting for me. I am aiming for real recipes around the fall. When I am feeling more inclined to fire up Bessy the ol' oven again. But one never knows. :)

FoodVentures : Mentos

The Freshmaker gets Fruity(er)


Doo Doo Doo Doooo Doo Doo DooWaaaaaa!!! Mentos has gotten a facelift...well, not really. The packaging is the same, more or less. I guess you could say they've gone all new age on us by changing what's iiinside maaaan. Groovy, no? It appears Mentos is trying to get down with the homies these days (that's what the kids are still saying, right? Dope, yo!) Behold, three new flavors to tempt your tastebuds with...or will they?

Pomme Vert (green apple) - These reminded me quite a bit of those weensy green boxes of Applehead candies we'd love and loathe having in elementry school. Super sour and slightly squishy outside melting to expose the sweet sweet pearl of a hard apple candy inside. Except that Mentos version is much more homogenous in both texture and flavor variation.

Strawberry Yoghurt (self evident) - Sqyd's favorite of the lot but after eating her first one the investment-return ratio dropped severly. In normal people-talk: first one yummy, second one eh, third one urp. How do they differ from Mentos current strawberry offering? It's the yogurt, people, the yogurt.

Pamplemousse Rose (pink grapefruit) - Imagine if you will, Chuck Norris. In a pink robe and curlers. Sipping something with an umbrella in it and having a citrus foot scrub (hah, now just TRY to get that image OUT of your head!) If Chuckie were to round house kick you in the mouth after his pedicure it might be something like this Mentos. Or it might be nothing like that. I just like imagining Chuck prettying himself up real nice before kicking bad guys' asses. What can I say? We all have our own little quirks. (Semi-off topic question, is the singular of Mentos still Mentos or is it a Mento? Hrmmm. Deep pondering must be done.) My initial reaction was "BLECH!!!...Want one?" It catches you unaware with a huuuuge burst of flavor followed by a milder gentler Chuck...I mean flavor. Novel but not my Mento of choice.


Survey Says: A truly tepid, meh. Quite frankly Mentos should stick to what they do best...cheesy as hell 70s style commercials with super catchy jingles (mmm FooFighters video) and leave funky flavored fruity chews to Jelly Belly. But you get an A for effort, Mentos.

new AND improved

If I've never seen it chances are that I will buy it and try it. Any and everything from white chocolate kitkats and inside out reese's peanut butter cups to hot dog flavored cheetos from Asia (no, really.) I blame or thank, depending on how you look at it, this habit on my grandma. She would troll the grocery stores for treasures before we would visit. My brother and I would arrive and be greeted by things like hubba bubba bubble gum soda and rice krispie treat cereal. My grandma was like a particularly food obsessed Indiana Jones (and the Supermarket of Doom?) She rocked.


That said, I would like to introduce a new segment on UglyFruit in her memory and spirit of adventure. I plan to do tastebud- jerk reviews of all of my impulse purchases. I like to think of them as mini food adventures. Therefore, let me present to you, my intreped readers, Food-ventures. Enjoy.

Cherry Blossom Girl - a Fruit Filler

"Life is like a cherry. Sometimes sweet, sometimes sour, and generally ends in the pits." - a Lady Purist

I am a berry lover. Red, blue, yellow, big, small, prickly. I don't discriminate (um, except for maybe gooseberries...but they just require the proper jam recipe, that I have yet to find). The other day I saw a 'pick your own strawberry' sign in France and got goosebumps. Understand, I can eat obscene amounts of strawberries but there is an especially special place in my heart for cherries. The fleeting and ephemeral cherry season will soon be upon us, my berry brothers and sisters. I preemptively bought my first batch the other day and it fell a bit flat. So now I am just waiting and dreaming and drooling.

There's something akin to a treasure hunt when you go to the store and fondle the robust and succulent fruit. Getting your fingers sticky on berries gone bad (not ENTIRELY unlike 'girls gone wild' for some, I suppose...erm...anyways....) and hunting for the darkest, firmest, biggest berries possible. Then, like a Johnny Appleseed disciple gone astray, liberally dispersing the beginnings of future cherry trees to be while walking around with a large paperbag full of them. I cannot tell a lie, I heart you cherry.

KUGELHOPF!!!

Coffee (cake) Talk: A kugelhopf* contains neither Kugels nor Hopfs. Discuss amongst yourselves.


*It is, however, one of the most fun food words I've come across. Try using it as an interjection in the most inappropriate ways. Good times, my friends. The Duct Tape Goddess and I were travelling through the Alsace a bit back and happened upon this wacky bread/fruitcake/dessert conglomeration. Hommage must be paid.

In fact, much travelling has been going on while she and Sqyd are visiting from the other side of the Vast Emptiness (also known as Iowa, wink wink. Love ya, Iowans!!!) Expect fabulous reviews and deep (or not so deep) musings soon.

Grazing in Carouge

The sun was shining and the city had come alive with it, especially after the freezing cold dose of the rainy reality of spring we got yesterday. (see hot chocolate post) So I decided to take advantage of my free time and Mother Nature's good mood by walking along the river from my apartment to Carouge. Fortuitous because I happen to see a sign for 'glace de la maison' along the way and was determined to stop back for some ice creamy provisions for the long hike home.

Carouge is a beautiful quartier (suburb) set in the larger scope of Geneva. Originally a haven for those not sharing of Geneva's puritanical ways (remember kiddies, Calvinism started here), Carouge was granted to the King of Sardinia in 1754. Italian ownership is abundantly obvious in the layout of the streets and the appearance of the artsy boutiques and apartments hiding small gardens in their hearts. Even the atmosphere is quite different than in the city at large, although it's just a short tram ride from the city-center.

What I didn't know when I set out, however, was that today was the Carouge community sidewalk sale (for lack of a better phrase) was going on today as well. Wow. Now THIS, this was a street festival. Row after row of edible goodies, chinese, faux-mexican, strange looking swiss sausages, sweets, and a stand devoted to nothing but monster sized potatoes. Where to begin? Among this veritable smorgasbord I even managed to fit in a bit of second hand shopping :)



One of my favorite finds of the day was a previously unknown to me and typically swiss candy, the double-creme de la Gruyere caramel. Mr. David Waser of Le Beko de la Gruyere had just finished making a batch of the melty lumps of deliciousness and I was compelled to buy a small bag...you know, to take home for later. Ha ha ha. Now understand, I am reasonably familiar with Gruyere double cream (to be eaten with meringue puffs and berries usually) and most definitely with various types of caramel as well (long story about homemade caramel for caramel apples gone awry). But this one is a whole breed unto itself. It has a homely appearance and could attempt to masquerade as a lump of brown sugar but there is no obviously grain texture. It almost looks like it could be a very dry pale fudge...but that's not quite right either.

But who cares about how it looks? It's the taste we are more interested in! In the mouth it slowly dissolves and each distinct flavor makes an individual appearance until they mellow and combine. The first flavor is the deep strong well known 'caramel' flavor followed but a low rich buttery note that is highlighted by a very dairy milk taste and wrapped up with a zing of salty/sweetness. Very special, very unique and very deliciously dangerous. I think tomorrow I need to take what's left of the bag to work. I also intend to check out the rest of Mr. Waser's artisanal offerings at the next marche, there's a 'vin cuit de poire' bottle with my name on it...and a printed recipe for gateau au vin cuit!!! I am planning on that to be my first recipe attempt in french.



Ah, ah. Let's not forget the ice cream for the way home, yes? Granted, the Italians are renowned for their gelato...but would 'glace' from the historically Italian part of Geneva measure up? More after this quick break from our sponsors.....hehe just kidding, you silly readers you. Unfortunately, I forgot to jot down the name of the shop (but it's nearby so I can and WILL always go back later) and was rather full-ish from my pseudo taco and candy sampling. I skipped the cone and restrained myself to just one flavor, pistachio. Cool, refreshing, green as it wants to be, pistachio. On my walk home I stopped to sit and reflect on the flavors of this little ball shaped frozen confection. And noticed that my lime green tanktop and the green green grass painted bench set off it's chartreuse tint rather nicely. A great photo op, even if a bit tricky to manage with all of my bags of loot.



This ice cream was more sorbet style, it had a vibrant fresh flavor and was very light. Not too sweet and with none of the usual heaviness of cream filling the mouth. It also seemed like it was spiked with amaretto or a bit of coconut. All part of the nut family to be sure. ;) It finished very cleanly and the only way you'd be able to tell I was a bit nutty would be to kiss me. Ok, perhaps not the only way. :)

I am now lusting after my ice cream machine that is sitting forgotten in a cabinet in the states. Languishing and waiting for me to fire her up again and concoct more of what my brother and I fondly refer to as 'edible experiments'. Would that make me a mad scientist? Mad, am I? MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! Um, right. Carry on then.

Best. Hot Chocolate. Ever.

Gilles Desplanches. Say it with me. Zheeeeee-ehl Deeeeeh Plaaaaahnssshhhh. Listen, it even sounds luxurious. The best hot chocolate in Geneva, in Switzerland, and in fact, the World (to date) is to be found in the sophisticated cafe environment just off of Rue de la Confederation in the quartier des banquiers (mmm well dressed men in 3 piece suits AND chocolate. Truly a taste of heaven.) When my Saturday stroll around town plans with a friend were quickly dashed by the freezing wind and rain we took refuge in my little corner of heaven.



The chocolat chaud de la maison here is phenomenal. It comes in it's own cute little serving pot, just right for two dainty mugs full and served with a small bar of the darkest tartest chocolate I have ever had the pleasure of tasting, all while being a study in tasteful monochrome. The hot chocolate itself has a very mouthfilling flavor and is subtly sweet but the bittersweet nature of the roasted cocoa bean is underlying its smooth sensuality. It's a very earthy flavor and made more so with teasing notes of vanilla and anis. The most surprising and overlooked part that truly elevates it to hot beverage greatness though is it's homogeneous consistency. It is as if the chocolate and milk/cream have always been ONE. At no time did they ever NOT coexist in harmony. It's a very special feeling and one I didn't notice until recently. I have always sought to put my taste-bud like finger on just what made it so different from all the others I've tried. Rest assured, if you ever come to visit me in Geneva...we WILL be basking in the warm chocolately embrace of Gilles Desplanches.

The Oh-Shit-I-Forgot-To-Go-To-The-Grocery-Yesterday-And-Subsequently-Have-No-Food-In-My-House Improv Dinner Post

Dudes, and dudettes, it's late. I am going to bed. I just wanted to put this up on the right day for a change. Regardless of the hour. Will update a bit later. Here's the beginning anyhow (consider this an appetizer)....

What to do? What to do? It's 8pm on a Sunday night and as you may have guessed from the oh-so-obvious title, my bright little readers, I didn't make it to the grocery yesterday. Living in Europe you take the good (light as air fresh from the oven croissants daily, being in the middle of EVERYTHING {unlike Iowa, which is also in the middle...of nothing. Ooooh, nestled parenthasis, can you dig it?} and excellent public transportation) along with the not so good (ridiculous rent and apartment hunts, not much customer service, and the whole world shutting down on Sundays.) So here I am hungry on a Sunday. The thought of another ramen dinner or kebab is making me feel a bit ill. Don't get on your high horse. I loves me some ramen...and kebab. Just not on a regular basis. To Be Continued....

***5-13-06 Continued.....Digging thru my magically defrosted fridge and freezer and scavaging from last weeks dinner party I managed to scrounge up some carrots, a half of an already peeled onion, part of a zucchini and some truly wilted and pathetic looking peapods that I tried to perk up in ice water (no dice...luckily the peapods crisp up again while cooking. Good to know, no?). Images of fluffy white rice and an asian inspired sauce to complete the veggie sautee started forming in my mind. What follows next is by far the healthiest meal and fastest to prepare that I've had in quite some time.

Before starting the meal I recommend preparing your sauce to taste. A bit of cornstarch (for body), a bunch of soysauce, some water, and generally garlic, ginger, and pepper, perhaps some cinnamon if you are feeling a bit adventurous. Fresh is best but on an underprepared Sunday powdered spices will have to do. As we all know (or you will now) basmati rice requires rinsing and then boiling the water down until level with the rice before covering and continuing to cook. While all of this ballyhoo is going on, you have the perfect amount of time to peel and cut your veggies. As the rice slowly cooks with the lid on you can sautee some onions in your choice of oil + sesame seed oil, then add the carrot, then zucchini and at last just let the peapods slightly kiss the pan. Stir up the sauce again before adding to the pan of veggies over low to medium heat and cook until just thickening. Quickly remove your delicious looking veggies, dish up over a big ole bowl of rice and top off with some sesame seeds. Et voila! Dinner she is serve-ed. And don't forget your iced green tea (first flush darjeeling FTGFOP1 from Arya...but that's a whole other post!).

Ps-It's worth noting that this simple semi-recipe can be easily turned into a chicken lo mein-like dish by quickly sautee'ing some chicken then adding the cooked veggies to the same pan before adding the sauce mix and then throwing all of it together with pasta in place of rice. See, my little ones, two recipes for the price of one :) I love you that much.

Matthew 6:11

There is nothing quite like brunch at Le Pain Quotidien on a miserable and drizzly Sunday....except when you beat the crowds by going on a miserable grey drizzly Saturday!!! Mwahahah, I so sneaky! The restaurant (3 different locations in Geneva...and to my chagrin, over 60 franchises worldwide. Sigh.) is what realtors like to refer to as 'cozy' and oozing 'rustic charm'. Except in this case that is not code for the size of a shoebox with a family of rabid raccoons already occupying it.

The charm of the place is the rough hewn communal tables, the limited amount of tables, the warm environment like your grandmother's kitchen and of course the shared jams and assorted spreads (Hey! Bring that back, I wasn't done with it yet!) Actually, I despise sharing my treasure trove of glittery sweet sparkly fruit spreads, then again I never played nice with others in school either. MINE!

I digress, normally the fixed brunch menu is my first choice. It has a wide selection of savory palate pleasers which are kicked off by a coffee or hot tea and the pastry of your choice. But, quite frankly, I was looking for something a bit lighter today. The spring menu was intriguing and coquette-ish with its early show of salmon fume or toast with chevre chaud, pears, honey and thyme. Which I must certainly return for...next thyme you might say ;) GROAN.


I settled upon (not literally, dear reader. I detest unnecessary laundry and am sure that the staff would not have been thrilled to see me spooning with the croissants.) a simple assiette de fromages, fresh squeezed orange juice, and some tartine to sweeten things up. The juice brightened up my day and each little fragment of pulp burst in my mouth like sunshine made 'pop rocks'. What about the cheese and tartine you might ask (go ahead, ask. I'll wait....) Well, rest assured, all is right with the world. I was able to mix and match a wide variety of breads (hearty and nutty, vaguely whole-wheaty, and some sor of 'country' loaf) indiscriminately with an equal diverse selection of cheeses (chevre, brie, parmesan, and some sort of not-quite-cheddar) AND top it all of with the chocolate spread or raspberry jelly of the maison.

What?! Quit making disgusted faces. I blame it on living in Sweden too long. The thought of jelly on a cheese sandwich is delightful! It's like the playful combination of pineapple on pizza or a french fry dipped in a Frosty. 'Don't knock 'em till you've tried 'em'. Also, 'If you can't beat 'em, join 'em'. And let's not forget the ever popular, 'When the going gets tough, the tough eat bruch'. Um, right. Moving on from overused cliches....

The only slightly negative comment I can make is that the breads, having been presliced earlier in the day were a bit less than perky. The were a little dry and rapidly passing their prime. Luckily the toppings helped me to forget all of that, even if I did have to fight tooth and nail to maintain my little pot of jelly. All in all, a quite fulfilling midday meal and a great place to lose track of time. Although, now that I am aware it's part of a world wide chain...I am a bit less enamored (but somewhat appeased after reading their history and finding out that they use mainly bio products). I miss my Mom-and-Pop greasy spoon diners. Everyone deserves scrambled Egg Beaters, homefries, and toast overflowing with butter and INDIVIDUAL SMUCKERS JELLY PACKAGES at 3am. Even if they do always run out of the strawberry packets first. Hmmm, that gives me an idea....Battle of the Brunch, anyone? (Faim, Alhambar, Pain Quotidien, etc. vs. American style brunch a la Chez Moi)

Chex-mate

Continuing my culinary foray into Eaux Vives, I followed my nose to Chex. Chex is the brainchild of chef Gavin Clutterbuck. info on chex..... history, current program, etc. (coming soon)

On this Saturday Mark Butcher, one of WRG's on air personalities, had just returned from travelling through Asia. To welcome him home and introduce the community at large to Chex's new location chef Gavin hosted an 'open house' and invited in friends, former participants, and welcomed random people off the street who were lured by the siren scent of exotic spices. We were able to watch him demonstrate how to prepare several Malaysian dishes and afterwards sample the fruits (and curries and satays, oh my!) of his labors. It was a very enjoyable afternoon and as nice as it was watching a professional tying helpless fish in intricate banana leaf casings, I itch to don one of the aprons and have a go at one of the courses myself. Any one interested an afternoon course? Leave me feedback.

Les Halles

I've just discovered one of Geneva's little known secrets*....Les Halles des Rives. Camouflaged by it's mild mannered street level shop appearance beats the heart of a culinary like beast. Stand after stand of local producers selling sushi next to artisanal cheeses. Butchers with giant cleavers bump elbows with men making fresh pasta. All under one roof, with an outdoor Saturday market to boot.

As I entered and wandered longingly up and down the isles I noticed that my friend's father had a stand. How fortuitous, I had planned to forage my breakfast at Les Halles and now knew where to start. With his help I decided on a Greek tyropitakia and some borek and specially spiced pistachios for later. He was even so kind as to throw in my breakfast's dessert, baklava.

While walking amid the stalls outdoors I notice that all of the goods being sold are raw products for later. The Swiss farmer's markets tend to be less 'grazer' friendly than their American counterparts. I was hunting for other breakfast treats and something homemade to drink, but try as I may I only found Coke, Sinalco, and bottled water. sigh.

A few blocks away I managed to seat myself among some of the brightest sunshiny yellow tulips of the season and dig into my little piece of Greek fashioned heaven. Phyllo dough that could compete with clouds but feet firmly planted on the ground with earthy toasted poppy seeds embracing a warm creamy layer of the salty goodness that is feta. And gone all too soon.

Luckily my small breakfast ended up as an ethnically diverse amuse bouche for the Malaysian goodies cooked up later at Chex. More on that to come....

*the reason Les Halles is little known is not due to its appearance...but rather it's forbidding hours. 6am til 1pm? ouch.

72% Spring

One of my all time favorites is chocolate combined with fruit. I know, you are asking yourself, "Rai, what's up with all of the chocolate in your posts lately...the name of the blog isn't 'Chocoholic' or 'Countess Chocula', althought perhaps it ought to be. Where are the sauces and breads and things you mentioned?" Well my response is, "BECAUSE I CAN!!!" So there ;) As I was saying, I am a huge sucker for berries robed in chocolate, dark dreamy Godiva bars that hide a secret fruity filling, mousse cups adorned with glittering jewel-like fruits, the list goes on and on. And yet, I find here, that there is a more purist chocolate attitude. Pralines and nuts are like chocolate's well known but little mentioned mistress and fruit the horribly neglected step-child. Perhaps you'll see a dehydrated grape (aka raisin) hiding in a Tourist bar among it's nutty neighbors, but fresh fruit and chocolate? Zut Alors! So here is my praise for the exquisite incomprable pairing of two of mother nature's finest. Cheers.

Ugly Fruit and the Chocolate Factory

April 1st, a day for more than just pinning paper fish on the backs of unsuspecting friends (no, really, this is the custom here). This year, April 1st brought the second annual Festival du Chocolat in Versoix, as well as the 180th anniversary of the Favarger chocolate factory. It was my duty and privilege as a chocoholic...I mean, connoisseur to lead a trip up there and check it out. Also, a very good warm up for the Salon du Chocolat in Paris to be held this fall.

Our small group met at the train station bright eyed and bushy tailed at 9.50. Ok, maybe not so bright eyed...most of us had been out late the night before and anything before noon on a Saturday is pushing it. But there was chocolate to be had. So we hopped the train and a scant 20 minutes later arrived in Versoix, a beautiful lakeside town. Made all the more beautiful by the jam packed tent. We planned to arrive early because there had been rumors about chocolate samples running out mid-day last year and we had a private tour scheduled at the Favarger factory around 13.30.

As our group of 15 slowly ate our way through the tent we had to pause more than once at some of the miraculous things offered. (Sadly, I remembered my camera that day...just not the memory card. D'oh. Remember, it was before noon on a Saturday. My friend Jackie was kind enough to send the images you see here) One of the first sights to greet our eyes was a chocolatier hand stirring a bunch of chocolate covered honey roasted almonds. When I say hand stirring I mean, literally his bare, rather furry, arm was elbow deep in the mini cement mixer looking thing and completely covered in chocolate. And yet, my first thought was not, 'How unhygenic' but rather ' I wonder if he'd mind if I licked his arm?' Now, don't tell me you wouldn't all have had this thought as well! I didn't attack him and he kindly offered up still warm almonds covered in manna for us. Mmmm, manna.

In the next corner we had to prod our way to the front of the crowd hemming in the chocolate fountain. No, you read right. CHOCOLATE FOUNTAIN, surrounded by fruit. What a beautiful mess we all were, and how I wish I hadn't forgotten my camera! On offer were also, chocolate mustards, absinthe white chocolate truffles, moelleux, chocolate spreads for tartine...too many things to recount. My favorite Genevois chocolatier was there, Phillipe Pascoet , and I found some new ones to love and explore,of which there will be further right ups later, you can be sure.

Our group of 15 headed over to Migros and picked up a quick lunch to enjoy at the lake shore (despite the rain) before zipping over to the factory for our tour. We were able to follow our noses to the quaint chateau like factory....with the huuuuge lines snaking around it! We ducked in the back, donned our protective booties and were off. Unlike the factory tours in the US, we were able to wander among the machinery rather than behind plexiglass walls. We sampled as we learned, the best way to do it, and before we knew it our chocolate festival had drawn to an end. So, with full bellies we each bought a small dixie cup of fruit and chocolate fondue to enjoy on the train ride back and began dreaming of the penultimate festival this fall.

quarter century

So, today I am another year older. I think Mother Nature decided to give me a taste of spring for my birthday...and it tasted sweet. I had an excellent birthday bash last night with my swiss amis and my expat pals. The past few weeks have been rather hectic so here is a Mexican 'vegetable pear' filler until I can update the blog as I would like to. Let's just say, there's a junk food review, saucy sampling, and carbohydrate caper in the works.

La chayotte c'est choux, non?

¡Ay, Carambar!

I am so completely juvenile (and not ashamed to admit it!) when it comes to toys, contests, and most of my style. As can be witnessed by the um...subdued color scheme of this website. I tend to be easy to shop for. If it's kitschy, brightly colored, funky or if even your 8 year old kid sister would would look askance at it because she's too old for it, chances are good I will love it.

Hence, when I opened my very first Carambar and saw there were points in it to be collected I immediately wanted 'It'. Regardless of the fact that I had no clue what 'It' was. This is like getting a decoder in your cracker jack box. Sure the popcorn is fine...but we suffer the sugar high for the 10 cent toy nestled lovingly within. Back to my narrative...So I set out to find what our little mystery prize was to be. The options are either a dvd (eh) ORRRRRR a Carambar t-shirt!!!!!! I'll take what's behind door number 2, Pat. My Vache Qui Rit shirt from the last point collecting spree needs a companion.

I rushed out and bought a bag of my very own and brought the bounty in to work to share....not without an ulterior motive, of course. I am currently up to 73 points of the 200 needed to ransom for the shirt. Wish me luck ;)

Now...about the candy itself. Imagine if a Reisen candy and a Milk Dud got wild and crazy some fine halloween evening and shed their silky chocolate coatings in your trick or treat sack. Throw a Tootsie Roll into orgy and the resulting lovechild might resemble something like our baby Carambar. Now dress the candy up in a snappy red and yellow couture covered in jokes and random trivia...in French. It has a surprisingly complex taste for a mass produced candy marketed at sticky fingered children shopping with their moms (and what mom doesn't love their child enough to glue their jaws shut with candy for a little while. Remember those giant jaw breakers you used to beg for? And your mom would finally seem to catapult and give in to your demands? It was really for her enjoyment...not yours.) It's not solely sugar or cloyingly sweet but I am starting to fear for my fillings. Especially as I haven't established myself with a dentist here yet!

Overall I'd have to say I prefer the nibble sized Milk Duds. Then again I am a self admitted (but not yet committed) chocoholic, so any candy without chocolate is a snack opportunity wasted. These are good in that once-a-year sort of way...and yet, just a bit addictive. If you find yourself craving Carambar, give into that feeling.

And send your points to me :)

Amuse-yeux

Summer by Guiseppe Arcimboldo
Originally uploaded by fuzzyshoe.

On today's menus is a big thank you to Mr. Jonathon Nix of Waltham Mass. for letting me use his painting of a xxxxx (to be disclosed later, see update below) on my title bar. (This will be added as soon as I figure out how to do so! Look forward to it, it's real purdy. In fact, expect a complete aesthetic overhaul in the near future.)

Mr. Nix does scrumptious sculptures and totally toothsome paintings, be sure to peruse his peachy paeans to produce here. Don't forget to peek at the myriad of other mediums he masters in as well. To keep him in good company let me also mention worth searching for the transcendant pepper photos done by Edward Weston, the intriguing vegetable portraits by Giuseppe Archimboldo and the amusing illustrations by Greg Brown.


*UPDATE* May 7, 2006 I am finally getting the hang of this 'blogger' thing and thanks to my future webmaster (www.rai.nu, coming soon) Laurent, we now have the image appearing in the title bar. w00t. Thanks Larry! And another thanks to Mr. Nix for the truly awesome and vibrantly alive painting of a Kiwano, better known as a horned (not horny) melon. I am still however working on the graphics and layout of the page in general though. Will keep you all updated as I go.

Cheers,
your hostess with the mostest - Rai

...but it's got a great personality!*

And so it begins. I've been flirting with the idea of blogging my culinary adventures for some time now, but have been hesitant to take the plunge. "Does the world really need another food blog?" my shoulder devil would ask. "There are so many filling so many niches already, what can you add or contribute?" And my other shoulder devil would say (yes, that's right, there are two. I seem to have conveniently misplaced my shoulder angel), "But the world needs to hear YOUR experiences, YOUR tastes, suffer...no..enjoy YOUR recipes. Yessss, world domination through baked goods. Mwahahaha." At that point, perhaps, I realized it might be a better idea to start writing and quit listening to the imaginary voices in my head ;) So, dear reader, here I am.

On a more serious note, I just feel a need to communicate with like minded individuals. I find that many people don't understand my enjoyment of cooking and eating. That is to say, I love flavors and textures, the smell, alchemy, and method in baking and cooking, in discovering unknown restaurants to share, finding new favorite foods and then holding on to them by my teeth (literally and figuratively).

My life is tied to food in so many ways -- preparing it, eating it, reading about it, discussing it, assessing it, dissecting and debating it. So many of my memories are associated with specific foods. Yet, despite all of these intricacies, many people have asked why I WASTE my time preparing meals at home. (Perhaps I just enjoy doing it? Yep.) They think it's odd for a young working gal to have any degree of domesticity. (Did I mention I hate doing dishes?) I suppose it's odd for many people to still cook on their own...or at least derive any pleasure from doing so. There's nothing I love more than clipping an incredibly difficult, multi-step, make-3-day-in-advance recipe from "Gourmet", "Bon Apetit" or "Chocolatier" and eagerly await trying it out.

Sometimes I get the wonderful and age old "Rai, I eat to live, not live to eat!", implying that my world gravitates around my next meal (which is just not true -- it may very well be a snack instead ;) but I truly don't understand why it must be one or the other. Why can't it just be lively eating? Rather than consuming solely for consumption's sake, I think it's time to suck the joy out of the marrows. Be bold, brave, and creative. Create memories and anecdotes...and I don't mean just the food. The best meal (or bottle of wine, or hot fudge sundae) is that shared among friends. That said, solitary dining and amusing oneself have equal if different merits.

There are so many spices and soups and desserts and hole in the wall diners and cafes and croissants and strange fruits not to be missed. By looking at a meal as a way to stay alive and just doing the scantist bare-ist minimum to ensure your survival, you are missing a plethora of enjoyable experiences. Yes, one could live on a very bland diet and be healthy, but where is the joie de vivre in that? Your average pooch will eat the same bowl of dog food day in and day out for as long as it lives. but how much happier is that pup when you throw it a scrap of bacon, dab the roof of it's mouth with peanut butter or pamper it with a 'frostypaws'? I can see how cooking might not be for everyone -- but eating and enjoying it? Well, there is no harm in that. It needn't be high-minded or high-handed -- sometimes we all get cravings for Taco Bell (What? You don't? Freak!) or something else that there is NO artistic or culinary art involved in. But it is just as valid because it's something we enjoy, however guiltily. So here's to guilty pleasures and eating for the joy of it!

Bon Apetit
Your Hostess-

Rai


*Disclaimer: This is not a mission statement. It is just a current gauge of my thoughts and feelings involving food. And life. I hope I can expound and explore my feelings as I go. Grow as I go. I tend to write in free form thought...and cook off the cuff. I hope you enjoy both or at least come to appreciate them. I am working on expanding my tastes and my mind. Someday I may write a real mission statement...but I like the idea of leaving it open ended and malleable, able to change with me. From time to time I hope to elaborate on my influences and inspirations -- why I like what I like and how I've come to learn I am a bit picky and what I am doing to broaden my palette. Ideally these would all be part of a real mission statement...but then this may end up a mini e-novella. Think of this less as a blog and more as musings, an experiment in life, a journal of discovery...food, self, and otherwise.