FrogPrincesse

These madeleines are beautiful... It's been too long since I've baked a batch!

I saw this beautiful roasted chicken with caramelized shallots on Kerry and Anna's excellent foodblog yesterday (here), and felt compelled to try it right away. It was delicious and required very little prep (excluding the fact that I started with a whole chicken and that my butchering skills are still approximative... but I am working on it). Recipe by David Lebovitz.

Is Laird's Bonded not available in your area? Calvados is a poor substitute, besides being more expensive. Laird's bonded is available in my area. I used to have a bottle that I finished some time ago. I actually don't care for it in most drinks, this one being one exception. It's a little too rough for my taste, so I decided not buy another bottle.

The PDT cocktail book has been indexed on Eat Your Books (here). That should be very helpful to search for cocktails by specific ingredients.

That chicken looks wonderful. I assume it's this recipe, correct? I will try it soon, for sure!

You are right, I remember you mentioned it on your blog a while back. Since then, I've been on the lookout for a good tequila-orgeat cocktail, and was very excited to find this one!

The logical follow-up for the Slope is the Sunset Park (Michael Madrusan), which replaces the Punt e Mes with dry vermouth (and uses slightly different ratios). I found it last night while looking for Manhattan variations in the Bartender's Choice app for my husband who was not convinced by my latest discovery, the Infante. 2 oz rye, 1/2 dry vermouth, 1/2 apricot liqueur, 2 dashes angostura bitters It's described as a summertime Manhattan. It's good but a little on the sweet side, so I would reduce the amount of apricot liqueur next time.

To recap the cocktails I made so far with my homemade orgeat, by base liquor: Rum: Mai tai, Bitter Mai Tai, Scorpion, Cavalier Cognac: Japanese Cachaca: Rio Bravo Gin: Army and Navy (previous post) Rye: Trinidad Sour Bourbon: Eastern Sour I realized that I had not tried pairing orgeat with tequila. So last night I checked the Bartender's Choice app and came up with the Infante (Giuseppe Gonzalez): tequila, lime juice, orgeat. It's very simple, and looks gorgeous in the glass. I see some online examples that use grated nutmeg, which sounds like a great idea. I really liked this cocktail as it accentuates the delicate flavor of the orgeat.

Playing with my Bartender's Choice app, I made the Archangel cocktail a couple of nights ago, not realizing at first that I had already made it on the PDT thread (the recipe is identical to the PDT book, except for the absence of lemon twist). This time I used the gin specified in the recipe, which is Plymouth. Gin, aperol, muddled cucumber. The Bartender's Choice app describes the drink as a Negroni-influenced Martini, which is an accurate description.

Thanks Kouign Aman, I sent you a message regarding the sprinkles. I checked the expiration date for my baking powder, and sure enough, it had almost expired (June 2012). So I threw it away and bought a new one. I tried another test batch of cupcakes this weekend, this time a chocolate recipe. It's interesting to see how few chocolate cupcake recipes use actual chocolate. The majority just seem to use cocoa powder. I eliminated recipes not using dark chocolate and recipes using ingredients that I would rather not see in my cupcakes (e.g., oil, condensed milk, Hershey's syrup, vinegar, mayonnaise (!)), or ingredients I did not have on hand (buttermilk). I was using Eat Your Books for my search which is very handy to eliminate specific ingredients. I came up with this recipe from "Confession of a Tart" that looked promising. I followed the instructions as is, even the step where the cocoa powder is added to the butter + chocolate mixture in the bain-marie (I am not sure why it's not mixed with the dry ingredients). I used the weight measurements because I really don't like baking with volume measurements as this can be another big source of error. Everything went well. Using an ice-cream scoop to portion out the batter was a revelation for me - so much easier than a spoon or a spatula! The batter was quite thick/sticky. The cupcakes rose this time but they also cracked badly. I made sure not to over-bake them by checking them regularly. For the frosting, I used the Sprinkles recipe (here). The verdict? The frosting is perfect, absolutely delicious. But the cake left to be desired. It was light and the taste was good, but it was also on the dry side, incredibly crumbly, and way too messy for a cupcake. I since found a recipe from Dorie Greenspan for chocolate cupcakes so I will try it next (recipe here).

What a fun thread, I just discovered it. I thought I would revive it by posting a picture of the equipment I bought at Cocktail Kingdom earlier this year, which has been getting a lot of use already. Regarding vintage items, I keep hearing stories of people finding perfectly-sized & adorable cocktail glasses at the Salvation Army for a few pennies, but no luck for me so far...

I made this refreshing coconut drink tonight, the Coco de Agua (Charles H. Baker Jr , via Bartender's Choice app). Light rum, coconut water, lime juice, simple syrup, and club soda.

Wonderful pictures. Love the fish selection and the two plates of pasta (langoustine and vongole) look absolutely delicious. And the dishes you make at home are always inspiring. Thank you so much for sharing your week, Franci!

I believe you can get them from Cocktail Kingdom That's where I got it.

Coquilles Saint-Jacques with Champagne What do you do when you have leftover Californian "champagne" that went flat? Coquilles Saint-Jacques of course! The sauce is made by sauteing shallots in butter, adding some fish fumet (I use fish stock), reducing (I skip that step since I use stock), adding heavy cream, and simmering for 15 minutes. The scallops are seared. Then the pan is deglazed with Champagne which is reduced (I also use any juices from the scallops that may have accumulated), and to which the cream sauce is added. The sauce is finished with butter, lemon juice, and chives. I served the scallops with bok choy and carrots from my CSA.

Impromptu cocktail party at our house tonight with a friend/neighbor to celebrate the end of a productive week. The weather was great in San Diego today so we went with rum-based drinks. We started with a classic Daiquiri with Flor de Caña 4 years. Then we had a Captain's Blood with Appleton 12 years (and Angostura, lime, simple syrup), a new favorite we discovered yesterday (see here). We followed with PDT's Paddington with Flor de Caña 4 years. Really nice with some oro blanco grapefruit (here is a picture I took previously). To finish, a Santa Cruz Daisy with Appleton 12 years (+ lemon, a little bit of club soda and a few dashes of curacao/Clément créole shrubb).

I love reading your notes, David. Thanks for your detailed reviews, it's fun following you around! Comme Ça has been on my list of place to try- LA or the Las Vegas branch. Excellent cocktails with a cocktail menu designed by Sam Ross, and French bistro food, a perfect combo as far as I am concerned!

Let me know what you think about the Hart of Darkness. Regarding the rum combos, since you are having a party maybe you can just prepare a bunch of different ones and have everyone sample them and decide what they like best. I tried this approach a few times at cocktail parties and it's been lots of fun. We made flights of White Negroni variations for example; we passed them around and had everyone share their thoughts (we call this our cocktail "lab"). It was also interesting to see how they evolved over time as the ice melted. The key is to make sure to mark each glass (permanent markers work fine), otherwise it's very easy to lose track!

Nice review. Beautiful space. It is quite different from their Parisian branch, which is located in an old building with exposed stone walls and a wood ceiling, and looks more modern/rustic (but is very nice too). It looks like the cocktail menu may be different as well. In Paris I remember having a basil drink ("l'experience") that was quite good, but much less complex than the drinks you describe. But the small space was so crowded that we could not establish a relationship with the bartenders, which was disappointing because it is such a big part of the experience.

My personal favorite combo for the Mai Tai is La Favorite coeur de rhum vieux (aged) + Appleton 12 years, staying with the Trader Vic formula (aged rhum agricole + Jamaican rum). But there is only one way to find out - try different combos until you find one you like! I've never had Depaz so I don't know how it compares to other rhum agricoles. I would think that you need something with enough funk to really stand out in this drink. Some of the aged rhums can be too smooth. I've been using the Trader Vic recipe upthread (post #9) and have started using Clement Creole shrubb recently as the orange curacao, which works better than Cointreau, after a side-by-side test. As for the passion fruit, I have a bottle of passion fruit syrup but have found it surprisingly not very versatile. I love passion fruit but it is such an intense flavor that it is hard to use well in mixed drinks. Recently though I made the Hart of Darkness from Beachbum Berry Remixed for Mixology Monday, and it was quite nice. It only uses 0.5 oz (I don't think more would be very good).

I first saw them at a bar I frequent and I love their look and the fact that they are reusable. They don't impart a metallic taste to drinks. I am a little bothered by them though (like Mrs. slkinsey apparently) because they are cold and hard, but most likely it's just a question of habit/adjustment. Most people don't seem mind. I think I will end up buying a bunch of them just because I don't like plastic straws.

I decided to bake cupcakes for my daughter's birthday next month. I bake regularly but have never made cupcakes. I actually never saw a cupcake until I moved to the US from France more than 10 years ago. At the time, muffins had just started becoming popular in Paris. I don't even think there is a French word for cupcakes even today (they just say 'cupcake' which a French accent...). Anyway, I am very picky with cupcakes but like the ones they make at Sprinkles, so I am using them as my model. Additionally, they have the advantage of having a semi-hard frosting, which it should make transportation much less stressful. I plan on baking approximately 4 dozen cupcakes and they will have to be transported by car. I am thinking of baking two different flavors. Dark chocolate is a must because we are chocolate addicts in our household. However for my first attempt I decided to try the Sprinkles strawberry cupcake recipe that I found online because I had all the ingredients on hand. I made the recipe with no modifications with a Kitchenaid stand mixer. I made a half batch (yield of 6 cupcakes instead of a dozen) and used fresh strawberries since we can find excellent ones in San Diego. Sprinkles strawberry cupcake recipe, video (which also shows what the cupcake looks like) Sprinkles strawberry frosting, video Here is the batter. I love the pretty pink color, and the fact that the recipe does not use food coloring. The frosting, which I blended a little further after I took the picture. I forgot to take a picture of the cupcakes after they came out of the oven, but here is the finished product. They came out pretty well for a first try, but I need your advice to fine-tune the recipe. The cupcakes tasted great, so I don't want to depart too much from the recipe, but maybe tweak my technique to improve the results. First, the cake itself. It did not rise much beyond the paper liner unlike the cupcakes shown in the video and there was no overhang. And as a result, it was too dense. A few things could have caused this... The batter may have been overbeaten, my baking powder may be too old (I forgot to check the date), or maybe the oven temperature was not quite right. The yield was exactly 6 cupcakes so the amount of batter for each one should not be the issue. Could the fact that I only made a small batch have been a factor? I wonder what will happen when I scale up the recipe. The recipe is by volume unfortunately, which could be another source of error. The buttercream frosting was delicious, however it was not as smooth and spreadable as what is shown in the video. The instructions say not to overwhip to avoid incorporating too much air so I stopped mixing as soon as everything was incorporated. The frosting had a somewhat dense texture, but maybe I should have transferred it to the refrigerator for a short time before using it? Next, I will be testing a chocolate cupcake recipe. I am going to use this Sprinkles dark chocolate frosting recipe but don't have a cupcake recipe. I will be needing dark chocolate sprinkle flakes, which unlike regular sprinkles are flat and square (see the picture of the dark chocolate Sprinkles cupcake here). I am hoping I won't have to order them online.

I am sure it tasted great with your homemade falernum. The commercial stuff I have does not have much flavor.

I have so much catching up to do on this thread. I can't believe that I haven't posted the Easter meal yet... In the interim here is what I made last night. I had very little time to cook so I looked for something tasty and simple. Veal scaloppine with salsa verde-brown butter The veal is pounded, dredged in flour, and cooked rapidly in olive oil. The salsa is made in a mortar and ressembles a tapenade with herbs replacing the olives (if that makes sense). It contains parsley, mint, marjoram, garlic, anchovy, capers, lemon juice, and olive oil. A little bit of the salsa is mixed with brown butter and drizzled on the veal, and the rest is served on the side. In the book the veal is served on top of polenta and bitter greens. I ran out of steam for the polenta and instead served it with arugula and sugar snap peas.

Surprised there isn't more activity on this thread. The Daiquiri is such an elegant drink. I just tried a Daiquiri variation tonight with Jamaican rum (I used Appleton 12 yr) and angostura bitters called Captain's Blood. So simple and so delicious. It really highlights the flavor of the rum.