January 2024 Newsletter
As 2023 drew to a close, a good friend who lives part-time in Hawaii wrote to me that he was there. I immediately thought, “I should join him.” Even though he didn’t specifically ask me to come this time, he’s asked me in the past. (So why not assume I could drop by anytime?) Because of the distance it’s not an easy trip from Paris, so once again, I missed my chance to get some sunshine, sushi, and beachtime.
When I was deciding where to move many moons ago, it was between Honolulu and Paris. I chose the life of French culture and cuisine over surfing and sandy beaches. We do have poke shops in Paris but that’s one of those things that I think the farther you are from the source, the less you should eat it. Like Mexican beer, it’s best enjoyed on a beach in Mexico, which is another place I’d like to be this month.
Most of the year, I’m fine with my decision, but January is the hardest month in Paris for many as most days are gray and cold, and it’s more enticing to stay inside rather than go out. A majority of people in France have a vitamin D deficiency, and I remember shortly after I moved here, my doctor advised me to spend as much time in the sun as possible, which helps your body get vitamin D. But the sun isn’t great for your skin. (Neither is smoking, which I reminded her of, when she went out for a smoke after my appointment.)
I don’t think many of us make New Year’s resolutions anymore because they’re hard to keep, and I don’t think people in France are all that into them either. But one thing I’m personally working toward is making fewer decisions. When I’m with someone, or a few others, everyone looks to me for an answer:
When I ask at the dinner table if people want red or white wine, they’ll ask, “What are you having?”
Going to the movies, it’s “What do you want to see?”
When I mention about meeting up in a café, of course it’s “Where do you want to meet?”
A friend: “Let’s meet for lunch! Me: “Great, looking forward to it.”
Them: “Okay…where do you want to go?”
I’m at the point now in my life where I’m looking for answers, not questions.
We make an average of 35,000 decisions each day and now I know why the French choose a cantine; a café or restaurant they regularly go to in their neighborhood. It’s not based on whether it’s good or bad, but it’s because it’s in the neighborhood and doesn’t require any thought.
I’m sure you can relate to having not the same amount of brain space that you used to. And any remaining real estate that you do have in your tête, you want to use wisely. So I’m dedicating 2024 to using my dwindling space to get back in the saddle and take on some cookbook projects. Yes, plural. While technically I’ve passed the controversial new retirement age (64) in France, I’m not ready to be put out to pasture just yet.
But while people once thought cookbooks were dead, they’re alive and robust. I like the easygoing nature of the newsletter, and this is a fun place to share stories, Paris tips, and recipes with you, there’s something to be said for the permanence of a book, and I love the process of working with a photographer and editor. So those are on my front burner for 2024.
In other news…2023 marked us getting a new sofa. “Someone” was constantly remarking about how small our older one was. For someone who is nearly a foot shorter than I am, that certain person sure feels like they need to have large sofas and beds. Our bed takes up the entire bedroom and I broke my toe once trying to walk around it in the middle of the night, which bothered me more than it bothered him.
One decision we’ve yet to make is figuring out where to put the oversized baguette I found in the back corner of an antique shop on a trip to Brittany a couple of months ago. I hesitated buying it, especially when they told me that at one point, they also had croissants and a pain au chocolat (that some other lucky people got). But after a little negotiating, the baguette was mine.
Or bâtard, I should say, the b*astard of the bread world, which is the literal translation of the word, as well as the name of the bread. A bâtard is not quite as slender as a baguette, but not as squat as a standard boule (round) of bread. 2023 was a pretty full-on year and by the end, decision fatigue got the best of both of us, and hanging it up was another project that went on the back burner.
But hopefully we’ll find just the right place for it. Maybe by 2025, at this rate ;)
I have a wonderful trip to NYC last month that included a truly excellent dinner at Claud, a sizable pepperoni and anchovy pizza at Leo with
, drinks and burgers at Long Island Bar, and breakfast at Win Son bakery, which I’d love a branch of in Paris. Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy and appreciate having access to fresh croissants and baguettes daily, but I also like scallion pancakes filled with crisp bacon and mochi donuts made with red rice. I’ve got a podcast coming up with Win Son chef/owner Trigg Brown this month. So stay tuned for that.December also brought the first Krispy Kreme doughnut shop to Paris and the lines of Parisians were epic. I didn’t quite get it but apparently they saw how many people were bringing back dozens of doughnuts on the Eurostar train from England and decided to open in France. (80 more shops are coming.)
I’m not their target audience (if I’m going to get a doughnut in Paris, I’ll go to Boneshaker) but I’ll have to admit, Krispy Kreme France had a pretty funny ad campaign in the métro stations, deigning to call their doughnuts, “The best croissant in Paris.”
Another ad called for “Macaron démission!,” meaning it was time for macarons to resign.
While I’m not a huge consumer of doughnuts (and my newsletter isn’t a marketing tool for American doughnuts), I do like ice cream.
I did my best to get to Bad Habit ice cream in New York after lunch with
, but he balked at eating ice cream in the 35ºF/2ºC weather—lightweight!—after our very good meal at Fish Cheeks Thai restaurant, where we especially loved extra-crispy pork jowl. We did stop in at Librae where he powered through a pistachio cream-filled croissant, while I pined for ice cream.But I loved the coconut-passionfruit ice cream coupe at Claud, and swooned over the soft serve tahini ice cream sundae another day at Seed & Mill in Chelsea market. Part of its brilliance is that when you get close to the bottom, you find another layer of crumbled halvah underneath the dreamy tahini ice cream. Score!
If you like halvah, one of the best treats I got this year was a box of chocolate-coated Seed + Mill halvah from Dandelion chocolate. (Disclosure: I have a few shares in Dandelion chocolate.) I don’t know how long they’ll be offering the collaboration, but I’ve been hoarding mine, to make the joy last as long as possible. Which is something I don’t have to think about.
-David
A New Item I’ve Added to My Kitchen
In the past, I’ve done gift guides like many others have done. I’m not as plugged into trends as I used to be, and while I’ve seen things like a beautiful cake stand (via
), Chicago-style hot dog-flavored potato chips (via Lottie+Doof), and candy-coated chocolate & Brazil nut Turkey Joints (via ), I didn’t give or get any of those for for Christmas.
Instead I treated myself a present I discovered in my friend’s apartment in New York: A 1/2-quart (500ml) saucepan, also known as a “butter warmer.” The latter name implies that it’s only useful for melting butter. I’m not into having useless pieces of cookware in my kitchen so for years would melt a few ounces of butter or a tablespoon or two of jam in a 2-quart saucepan, which is overkill. Another plus was that I love anything that’s a miniature version of something else, which this All-Clad one is, so it matches the rest of my cookware…although Made In makes a 3/4-quart one that’s similar, but 50% bigger. I can make two œufs cocottes (soft-cooked eggs) in mine so am fine with the 1/2-quart one.
Clocking in at at around $79, they’re not super cheap but I’m a very firm believer in good-quality cookware which will perform well and last a lifetime. And I’m hoping this one sticks around.
Links I’m Liking
-The Olympics: Paris admits the transit system won’t be ready in time for Olympics. The transit system will also be almost doubling transit prices during the Olympics, and hotels are raising their rates 314%…and the government is tripling hotel tourist taxes, too. (France24, CNBC and L’Hotellerie Restauration)
…and Paris booksellers on the Seine are refusing to move for the Olympics (RFI), and the city is not sure how the 350,000 athletes with limited mobility, who come for the paralympics, will get around on public transit. (France24)
[Somehow these things all seem to work out, in spite of talks of strikes during that period. And the Paris Olympics Chief says the Seine will be ready and clean enough to host swimming events. So there will be plenty to watch!]
-I got a preview of Dolci, Renato Poliafito’s upcoming book on Italian baking, and wow - I can’t wait to baker from it! It’s now available for pre-order. (Penguin Random House)
-Travel Mistakes Not to Make in 2024 (NYT/article unlocked)
-Looking for where to drink in Paris? 52 Martinis has you covered with Drink Like a Local in Paris: A Field Guide to Paris’s Best Bars. (HarperCollins)
-The Chartreuse experience (128 boulevard St-Germain) has opened in Paris, with a cocktail bar and tastings coming soon…and lots of Chartreuse on offer. (Limit: 2 bottles per cuvee, per person.)
Remerci !
Lastly, as a new year beings, I’d like to thank proofreader Kim Gooden who makes sure I don’t say things like “although” three times in one sentence and it’s isn’t its*, Dan Stone who’s given me great advice since day #1, Emily Gaudichon, who is a big help with all the mountains of French admin, and pitches in on cooking projects and life advice (and eucalyptus oil from Australia). And audio engineer Justin Golden, who edits my podcasts and makes them sound like I’m in a fancy studio rather than at my kitchen table or in a bustling bakery.
And thanks to subscribers, free and paid, who support and read my newsletter!
*She’s on holiday break right now so any goofs or gaffes in this newsletter fall squarely on me.
Ah, yes. Making decisions.
I turned 71 in mid-December and yes, my cranial space only has so much room left after 7 decades. As a singleton, I have to make ALL the decisions about my household. The cats aren't mentally equipped for it. Friends are always asking me where "we" should go, where "they" should go and no one ever calls or emails to say-"Hey! I found a wonderful tapas/bakery/wine bar/omelet parlor. Let's go!" As a result, when I get asked "where shall we go?," I now say I am out of suggestions. Often, as a result of uttering that sentence, I stay home because no one, other than me, has an imagination nor are they able to use Google or the local papers for ideas. And you know what? I am fine with staying home!
Thank you! I too no longer want to make all the decisions. How do people manage on their own? I often say my gravestone will say “you can no longer ask Michele a question” Happy New Year 🎆