Pierre Herme et Moi by Solidad Bravi

About a week ago I went to a book party celebrating a collaboration of 2 of my absolute Parisian heroes -TOP patissiere Pierre Hermé and TOP bandes dessinée artist Soledad Bravi on their cookbook Pierre Hermé et Moi at HQ Pierre Hermé.

I've told you about the wildly sophisticated French comic books/bandes dessinée in the past. Soledad is a witty, fun artist of the genre. Plus she's illustrated quite a few Hermé's macaron boxes, lucky girl.

Their cookbook together is a joy to behold

The drawings are amusing. The recipes not intimidating.

There are little secret tips from the Maitre chef himself in the corners as if he was whispering in your ear.

The drawings are comme d'habitude adorable.

We tasted these delights from Pierre Hermé et Moi. 

There are authentic PH macaron recipes in the book for caramel and for olive oil macs plus l'Ispahan, la tarte à la rhubarbe, le cheese-cake, le sablé à la noisette.

Camille is Hermé's right hand man and top in-house patissiere. He creates whatever Pierre dreams up and sketches ready to taste in this divinely Zen dreamy kitchen/cuisine.

Pom, pomme, pommes - a Granny Smith combo of confit of apple, chopped fresh apple topped with a dollop of Granny Smith ice cream. Have your apples 3 delicious ways.
 

Pierre Hermé, Solidad, Camille pose for les bloggeues..
 

What does the world's top pastry chef do to blow off steam between creating babas et tartes? Voila.
 

This table is where future PH collections of infiniment caramel or citron are voted on. One would be inclined to conclude quite a lot of tasting goes on at this table.
 

Everyone is chatting and mingling while your spy grabs a few shots and fantasizes...
 

A perfect backdrop of serenity for the creative mind to work in. Why does my studio not look like this? Because I am a chaotic mess and have no interns to tidy up. All applicants will be considered carefully PBers.
 

A perfect bouquet sits beside Coco Jobard and Pierre's beautiful Ispahan book. If you can name of these flowers do tell.  I was mystified. They look almost like origami paper flowers...
 

In the stairwell heading out
 

Ispahan rose sculpture from the Rue Bonaparte shop window. Note above the reflection. Everything in PH HQ is visually stimulating in a quiet way.
 

For at least 8 years I have been looking closely at Pierre Hermé's pastries to paint them and eat  them (to get to the full essence). I'm fascinated by their colors, textures and geometry.
 

I'd never tasted passion fruit till the Mogador macaron and now it's my favorite flavor - acidic, exotic when combined with milk chocolate. This is his invention.
 

Naturally I've wanted to meet M.Hermé. I've been introduced to him in crowded settings many times.
 

The book party was the first time we actually got to chat. He speaks perfect English by the way.

I admired the design of his kitchen.

"It's by Patrick Jouin".

"Ah the guy who designed Christophe Michalak's Choux stand near the Eiffel Tower.

"Yes"

Pierre asked if I'd like to see the garden. It was raining cats and dogs out but I said sure and we stepped out on the balcony.

"Oh is it by the guy who did the wall gardens at musée Branly?"

"Yes, Patrick Blanc".

Meanwhile look at Pierre Hermé et Moi. I wonder if they will do an English version..miam miam
 

DIY Angelina Hot Chocolate

They were out strolling in the Tuileries one Saturday and stopped in for a takeaway cup of Angelina's chocolat chaud.

Why I've never gotten an Angelina takeaway hot chocolate I can't tell you but a seed was planted. Especially since hot choc is my daily morning drink of choice. I decided to drop in and get one. What's more I plotted to test Angelina's classic, classy brew versus my latest revised hot chock recipe.

I usually make my morning hot chocolate with quelle ordinaire mix from Monoprix (on the left 3€). I cut it with 1/3rd of Monop's house brand cacao (on the right 3€). Both are Fair trade and from Latin America so no trafficked children picked these beans FYI 

I always toss in two squares of chocolate, also plain old house brands from Monop, Franprix, Carrefour or Nestle. They all run around 1.40€ a bar. No couture tablettes in my home brew. What I really like about these bars is they have broken up feve de cacao/cocoa nibs which add a slightly nutty texture and flavor to the hot chocolate. Miam  

At the Salon de Chcolate I discovered Pierre Marcolini's caramelized eclat/flaked feve de cacao. OMG the best thing I ate at the whole chocolate Salon! But at 9.90€ sadly these have not become an addition to my hot chockie ;(

Still a girl can dream... Then I read on Huffington post that these little broken bits of cocoa bean are maybe the best thing you can eat since vitamin C was discovered. They have 9/NINE fabulous ingredients! PBers you gotta go and find these. I mean it.

'Magnesium: Cacao beans are one of the best dietary sources of magnesium — a mineral needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in our bodies — with 272 milligrams per 100 grams. It's important for muscle and nerve function and keeps the heart rhythm steady.

Fibre: You don't get any dietary fibre when you eat a chocolate bar, but you do get some when you snack on cacao nibs: one ounce has nine grams!

Iron: Iron, which is necessary for red blood cell production, is found in cacao nibs. An ounce of the raw nibs has six per cent of your recommended daily iron intake.

Antioxidants: Surely you've heard about the antioxidant power of dark chocolate — well, that goes even more for cacao beans, especially when eaten raw. Antioxidants are important for health because they absorb the free radicals that cause damage in the body.

Mood Improver: Neurotransmitters are the messengers in our brains that tell our bodies how to act, and that includes mood. Cacao's ability to act on those neurotransmitters is why it's known for its mood-enhancing skills. Chocolate and cacao stimulates the brain to release particular neurotransmitters that can trigger emotions — including good ones like euphoria. That's why some people say chocolate is better than sex!

Phenylethylamine (PEA): This is a chemical found in cacao, one that our bodies also make naturally. We produce PEA, an adrenal-related chemical, when we're excited — it causes the pulse to quicken, making us feel focused and alert.

Anandamide: Anandamide, a lipid found in cacao, is another compound tied to cacao's feel-good properties. This lipid has been called "the bliss molecule", because its natural molecular shape represents that of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

Theobromine: Cacao beans do have a couple of controversial ingredients, though. One of them is theobromine, which makes up one to two per cent of the cacao bean and is a nervous system stimulant that dilates the blood vessels — much like caffeine. This ingredient is what makes cacao and chocolate unsafe for dogs, and some people find that it affects them the way caffeine might.

Oxalic Acid: Oxalic acid is a compound found in cacao that inhibits the absorption of calcium, a mineral that's also found in the food. So though there is calcium in cacao, it's not considered a good calcium source for this reason. The good news is that you're getting more of the calcium by eating cacao than you are if you eat processed chocolate, because the sugar found in chocolate takes calcium reserves from the body.

Other foods also contain oxalic acid, including rhubarb stalks, black pepper, and poppy seeds'.

I went looking at health chain Naturalia but all they had was raw whole beàns (10€) No good.

Then it hit me. Get it at G.Detou on 58, rue Tiquetonne

Yup, they had em for 3.30€ for 250 gr. This is a major steal.

Back to la cuisine. Lately I throw in a whole cinnamon stick(top sticks from Cinnamon Hill), to acts as a thickening agent/emulsifier. By chance I added a slice of crystalized ginger from Shanghai Tang (Cock Brand 1.50€) & it thickened even more. Always a stick of vanilla goes in. I reuse the vanilla bean and the cinnamon stick over and over. The ginger gets eaten every time. Voila, I'm ready to do hand-to-hand combat with favored winner Angelina (in the brown paper cup).

Here are some extras you can throw into your brew. Ground Bourbon vanilla bean. Why not a touch of chunk grains of salt for contrast?

Essential ingredients:

3 heaping TEASPOONS of any decent hot chocolate mix including some cocoa mixed into it.

1 cup of whole milk

1 vanilla bean

1 cinnamon stick

2 squares of dark chocolate with cocoa nibs

1 teaspoon of cocoa nibs

NO ADDED SUGAR (there's cane sugar in the mix).

A pinch of salt.

In this case a 'watched pot' never boils over.

Bear is on the job.

Too many times I've turned my back, walked away and come back to chocolate soup on the burners. I let it come to a rolling boil with an occasional stir now and then.

Ta da

This cooks fast. If you make it the night before and heat again in the morning it will be super, duper thick.

So we have the champ, Angelina in the left corner and our home brew on the right

Bear, our authentic resident Frenchie makes the taste test. Granted he knows which side his baguette is buttered on and tends to side with the home team. The home brew has a more complex flavor due to the added ginger and cinnamon stick. Plus the texture is pleasantly nutty(merci feves). Angelina, hands down, you can taste the cream but they both have a 'creamy' texture. Angie is also sweeter. And the WINNER IS?

Well you decide PBers.

Please give this simple recipe a try and let us know what you think.

cheers Bear et Carolg

May Day, White Flowers, Spring Green, The White Rabbit

On May Day everyone is walking around carrying the obligatory bouquet of muguet.

It's the one day of the year you don't need a license to sell on the street in France

Every Tom, Dick and Mary is out there selling bunches of lily of the valley brought in from Nantes.

Most shops are closed for May Day, but florists are open of course.

The little pots are selling at all price points.

One of the things I love about Paris. There's something out there for everyone and everyone participates. Whether it's foie gras and champagne for Christmas or trench coats or bouquets for May Day all Parisians join in.

The Spring green pot of muguet decorates a beauty care shop window.

Perfect decor for a perfume shop in the Place de Vosges.

Not trees but muguet shade these mini Paris buildings.

A fancy florist on rue Cambon doesn't dare snub the wild flower.

Back at Place de Vosges an artist sketches on May Day

With Bach playing in the background.

Little girls are selling their chalk drawings of muguet.

You know I bought one.

What to wear when you're waltzing around with your bouquet of muguet? Not these shoes.

Kate Moss has a new TopShop collection at Galeries Lafayette. Maybe you could wear this traditional embroidered frock...

Grazia magazine goes for a more contemporary look.

What about May makeup? Think SPRING GREEN !

More Spring Green flower heads at Printemps.

Worn with cutoff jeans.

Every year Printemps brings out their flowery white rabbit.

What about these darling white rabbits and Alices at the N2 Néréides counter in Galeries Lafayette. You know I couldn't resist. I got some Spring Green nail polish too. I could have been dans la rue selling my Lily of the valley Sketch letters next to those little girls...

Maybe next year?