Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Pastry Sketch Crawl

Last Saturday, January 22nd there was a Sketch Crawl marathon. Groups of artists gathered in Rio, Paris, Sydney, NYC, SF, etc. and went out sketching together. Naturalement I heard about it on Sunday, the day after. 
C'est toujours comme ca non?

I rarely go out sketching onsite, but I decided to create my own sketch crawl, just drawing pastry in various New York tea salons.

First stop Pain Quotidien and this lush tarte framboise + a pot of mint tea.

On a cold Sunday night the joint was buzzing.

I was nervous as a cat. I set up my tiny paint boxes

And commenced painting with my sketchbook on my lap!
Not easy at all let me tell you :(

Yikes!
The folks at the next table wanted to know if I would eventually EAT that tarte..?

It was all I could do to figure out where to place the tarte on the paper, much less think of putting it in my stomach. (I took the #$@ thing home to study and nibbled off the raspberries before any serious studying took place - c'est la vie)

Voila!

My sketches tableside at PQ.

Who could resist drawing a honey bear?

Pas moi

Et enfin - le finished painting

The same Paris bookshop offering yesterday's baking sets had this Draw-A-Horse set in the vitrine. Oh where is the how-to-draw-a-raspberry-tarte set SVP?
Aides moi!

This is my 'January' project (and February-March until I get to Paris and can do this properly). I'm in the early warming up stages of my Pastry Sketch Crawl.
WE CAN DO THIS NON???
All moral support is most welcome
SVP!

Monday, January 24, 2011

Cook'In Box

Let's Bake!

 The French make it so easy.

 The bookstores provide a gazillion ways to bake a cake or a macaron or a cupcake.

And all the essential baking accoutrement are included IN THE BOX. WOW
Isn't this the funnist idea ever?

It's not all sweets either.
Soupes, blinis et cocottes are provided too...
 The ever-present MACARON comes in a box and I bought it. Not that I'll ever bake but who could resist? They were selling this in the gift shop at the musee des arts decoratif no less. Hello Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The box includes a special thermometer, recipe book, nozzles and the whole shebang for just 12 euros.
 
You can easily pick up these cook'in box books at Amazon.Fr. True the shipping is $$$(almost the same as the book in you live in the US) but that's still not so bad in my opinion.
Madeleines anyone?

So many gateaux...mini and big.
I found a Japanese version of these here in New York. So how come US publishers haven't figured out what fun this is?
BONJOUR COOK'IN BOX!
 

Friday, January 21, 2011

French Pastry Loves Andy

Andy Warhol was the absolute master of color... And multiples of color were his specialty... It makes perfect sense pastry chefs would flip for Warhol. Let's face it, not all French pastry is wildly colorful like these famous caneles of Bordeaux. So why not box them up in a Warholesque version?
And what about the wonderful but dreary old cacao bean - well it is colorful for the short time it's in the shell. Here Chocolat Cluizel has cleverly colored giant chocolate 'beans' in brilliant Warholian colors..
A wall of colorful chocolate bars - I wouldn't mind that at home, say in the living room...
How about a wall of colorful Macarons - citron, mango, fraise, framboise etc.
They deserve a lovely colorful box - why not?
Miam
Miam!
Warhol Macaron Boite, watercolor,contact, 9" x 11"
I had to try my hand at a bite of Warhol non?
So many are thankful to dear M. Warhol, even posthumously...
Was a French marshmallow-maker looking at Warhol too?
YUM
Merci beaucoup M. Andy!
BONNE WEEK-END!

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Parisien Pastries!

Parisien pastry Sometimes a Parisien pastry looks like jewelry...
And sometimes a Parisien bracelet looks like pastry...
Parisien pastry Sometimes a Parisien pastry looks like a work of art (more often than not)
And sometimes a Parisien artwork of food looks like I don't know what...
Parisien pastry Sometimes looking at boxes of macarons makes you want to take out your paintbox...
Parisien pastry And then you pray.
Parisien pastry Sometimes a box of Parisien fraises/strawberries...
Parisien pastry Looks just like a berry red pousette/baby stroller...
Or like a Parisien pup in a berry red coat...
Parisien pastry There's no question...
Parisien pastry That Parisiens...
Parisien pastry Get their 3 - 5 (RED) fruits a day...
But are they getting them all in pastries is the question.
And does it matter?
BONJOUR PARISIEN PASTRIES!!