loladrian

i like Table a decouvert (french) http://tableadecouvert.typepad.fr/table_dcouvert/ and Dorie Greenspan's (sometimes about french cuisine, sometimes state-side... but you can tell she has an affinity for the french part of it!) http://www.doriegreenspan.com/dorie_greenspan/

Kate Zucherman's The Sweet Life has some beautiful fall desserts. Date cake with toffee sauce, hazlenut cake, apple and quince tart, vanilla, brown butter and almond tea cake, prune armagnac creme brulee, chestnut and amaretti cookie pudding, maple star-anise mousse, brandied dried fig souffle... can you tell i love this book??? You can PM if you would like any recipes, but I think the book is well worth purchasing. Let us know what you come up with!

RESPONSE, the RFC and I had a disappointing meal there.Bummer! Did you go for lunch or dinner? We had a surprisingly good dinner at La Gazzetta, so good in fact, we decided to go back for lunch the next week. The lunch was disappointing (yet half the price) and not nearly as well-prepared as the dinner. So I would only really recommend it at dinner. Plus, the space looks cooler at night.

sorry it took me so long to try again... i was a little discouraged after previous attempts. But I was inspired again by a horrid excuse for a 'amburger here in Paris to get the recipe right. I was a bit hesitant, but I attempted the "moomie's" recipe for beautiful buns. Beautiful they were! These are the perfect solution. Easy to make, although I was nervous when the dough was incredibly sticky, but just kept on kneading (no machine or batteur here) and the result was great. Light, fluffy, and melt in your mouth. Works wonderful for traditional sliders. Thanks everyone!

Yes indeed a great answer to fast food! We had a nice lunch here yesterday dining on two cocottes; one with prawns and greek veggies, the other with cabillaud, crispy pig's foot and rustic veggies. Both were quite tasty, but not outstanding (I am not complaining for 12 Euros!). The wine list had a great selection of incredibly reasonable glasses and bottles. We paid 3 Euros a glass for some crisp rosé (Lillet, which I adore and for some reason is difficult to find here, was also only 3 Euros a glass). The place was packed at 13h30 when we arrived and they told us it was a 20 min wait, but we only waited about 5 min. I would recommend getting a salad or soup in addition to the cocottes, the portions are light. One negative was the noise, it was awfully loud. And I had the feeling at times that I was in a Staub showroom... not only is everything served in Staubs, but there is a huge wall of Staubs for purchase at the front. Overall:Very clever and well-designed space for a tasty quick lunch.

I am glad you enjoy Pramil. It was so empty on the Sunday evening we were there I worried about their viability. Though the chef said Sunday was a slow day. Was it busy? ← No! And I was a little worried when we arrived because we had walked by a few cafes that were pretty buzzing. We arrived about 13h, and were the only ones there. By the time we were on dessert, there were only 2 other tables full. The quality and value were very high in my opinion, so I was a bit surprised. I hope business picks up (or is better on other days).

The potato bun results: so sticky again after rising, the only way I could put them into balls was to add even more flour and flour my hands after every bun. I didn't give up hope though. After the second rise, I baked them and the results were good. Not perfect, but my best shot yet. The outside was too tough and crunchy, like a hard outer shell (due to all of the flour on the outside I assume) and I sprayed them with water before baking like suggested in the rosemary roll. The inside was great. Fluffy, moist and the texture I am looking for. I would like a hint more flavor though. I would like a little butter-y flavor like the ones Baggy made (any recipe??). And perhaps an egg wash before hand to keep them from looking dull. So this wasn't the golden ticket, but much closer than I have been yet. I think it was a combination of my amateur bread-making status and the differences in flour. Next to try: a bun with added butter and a hint of sugar. Whew. Baggy, you put me to shame! Two recipes in one day! I am so envious of you... I wish I had that patience and talent.

you are lifesavers... Saucee- I added about an extra 1/4 c flour, but i didn't measure it, i just kept adding more until i got a texture that was suitable for kneading. They are on the rise now, so I have my fingers crossed. Ann_T- If these don't work, I will try the linked recipe! Thanks!! And I love the idea of sage and black pepper. yum.

Just a quick report... We had lunch today at Pramil and it was delicious. The restaurant was very cool with a huge window where you can see into the kitchen, although you have to go to the back to see it. The food was very well prepared, simple and tasty. I started with a cold soup of fresh almonds, then monkfish with fennel and fava beans. My copain started with a cauliflower cake accompanied by a nice spicy jelly, and then veal with chantrelles and potato puree. I couldn't resist dessert, because they had such interesting flavors of ice cream (my single favorite thing). We opted for the figs with Schezuan pepper ice cream and it was the perfect way to end a lovely meal. 19 € at lunch (entree/plat, our plat/dessert) and 29€ for dinner (entree, plat, dessert). I would definitely go back.

I am not sure if anyone will read this in time, but I just made the potato roll dough and it was extremely sticky!! So sticky I couldn't knead it very well. I added some flour to be able to knead it, but now I am worried I either added too much flour, or did something terribly wrong. I am letting it rise now, because I figure I may as well, but something tells me I did something wrong? I used flour especially for bread making purchased at the store... but I couldn't find the farine bloem Baggy suggested or imported flour today.

I have to agree with you there, and I almost hold my breath as I do... but I was soo disappointed! After all I had heard I was expecting gold. But there was a lot of dust, no prices and I felt like I was in a garage. I prefer MORA, which is just around the corner and the sales staff much friendlier.

Thanks for the report AGM. It inspired us to head to Pramil tomorrow for lunch. I hope they still have the figs and pepper ice cream...

you are clearly talented bakers! I appreciate your help so much.... saucée- I agree with you that what I do not want is a bun that is dry and will fall apart with the delicious things my co-conspirator has in mind for using on the burger. And I think my hesitation for the brioche route have been confirmed by you... It would be very nice for fois, salmon etc., but we will be using beef. Your potato roll is on my first-thing-to-do-tomorrow list. (we had company last night so dishes were key today!). baggy- great idea (getting flour from the baker)! It is so funny moving here, and realizing all of the wonderful things you can get from your baker. I never thought of getting flour there. I know they are happy to sell you the dough, because you pay by the weight of 'prix du pain' without the hassle of baking it. I will wink, smile and buy that a couple of things I have been drooling over... We are using a beef patty (with a little pork mixed in, because french beef is much leaner than american beef, and we are looking for an american style hamburger albeit a good one) some chopped onion and topped with pickled tomato, caramelized onions and blue cheese. So I will give the potato roll a try with some better flour and hope to report good news tomorrow.

Baggy- thank you so much for all the information. As for flour, I am using T65 (an organic one-I have no idea if that makes a difference) and it works well for cookies, muffins, etc. But this is my first attempt at buns here in Paris, so I will look for the flour you recommended. Ok, I need fat content to get the softness I am seeking. Would you recommend going more in the direction of brioche? Or is that too much fat? Could I just add butter to the potato roll recipe, or does that change everything? --knowing the chemistry involved in yeast/dough, I am guessing that would be a flop. I am thinking of going the brioche route, although I will give the potato roll a shot too. I am just hesitant the brioche will be too rich, and the potato not fluffy enough. thoughts?

thank you mukki, i actually did try this recipe a while ago and it produced (with my hands!) ok buns, but not the squishy, lightness I am looking for. saucée, what a great idea! I should of thought of that (I guess that is what forums are for). I love potato rolls, I will give them a shot. I was going to yesterday, but I was too busy making pate de fruit... To be honest, I will probably not get to these until early next week, but I promise to report back. Thanks for all of your help.

wonderful, thank you! I will try them this afternoon... one quick question, do you proof the yeast first with the water before mixing the dough?

I would love to make home-made mini hamburger buns and I cannot seem to get it right! Every time I try, they come out too dense and heavy. I want light, airy ones you can squish. Any good recipes out there? Or tips for that matter? Thanks in advance!

No, they are quite different. Yes indeed the two are quite different and we found out the hard way. So do not confuse the two! Le Gourmand is pretty sad. VivreManger, I would love to hear what you chose and how it was... and anyone else that had lunch out yesterday (monday).

Yes, Mondays can be difficult. I always have a satisfying meal at Bistro Vivienne, but that may not be what you are looking for given your suggestions. What about Au Gourmand? They just opened again near Palais Royal and got great reviews so far. Very high quality ingredients (bread, butter, Joel veggies) and delicate preparations. I hate to admit it, while most loved it (and better critics I might add) I had a nice meal there, but nothing worth running back for. Except maybe the bread and butter!

While I was disappointed by the main couses (no wow-factor), I was also dissapointed by the menu's offerenings. I would give it another try if the menu had more selection like the ones JT had earlier reviewed or something that called out to me. I love the idea of seasonality and frequent menu changes, so I haven't lost all hope for its being stellar. Perhaps seasonally stellar... I guess I have my fingers crossed because it is in walking distance too!

I hate to say it, but I agree. It was a stylish bar and restaurant, the service was friendly, wine was good, but the main courses were very average. I guess I had very high expectations given the reviews, but I was dissapointed.

I adore Le Petit Marche, just off Place Voges. The food is very reliable and very reasonable. Last time we had Tuna Mille-feuille, Rabbit in the style of Provence, Duck Confit with caramlized plantains, and a beautiful whole fish perfectly infused with the fresh herbs and lemon it was cooked on. Main courses in the 14-25 Euro range. Open everyday.

Oh, I can't wait to hear what you come up with Margaret. Aside from booze, what else can you do with those guys? I am very curious. The only recipe I found online that called for "green almonds" was in fact, chopped almonds with green food coloring. yikes.

How true! I could distinguish the chocolates from Madagascar given their very vibrant and fruity flavors. And probably because they were the ones I preferred. It would be interesting to do origin based tasting, but I too need time to recover from chocolate overload. Something that Ptipois mentioned, which I found very interesting, is that most chocolatiers here are melters, as opposed to true makers of chocolate. Most of whom use Valrhona. So I am guessing if we did a origin based tasting, many would taste similar because they would be Valrhona's chocolate! Maybe for an origin tasting, we could use only true chocolate makers' products (such as Maison du Chocolat). But again, after some time to digest!

wow. I have just discovered this thread and I am new to the pastry forum in general, but this is fabulous. I have been using this indispensable book since it came out, and I am even more inspired by all of you! Just a note, and hopefully I am not redundant as I didn't not sift through all 30 (!!) pages of the thread, but her good-for-almost-anything pie crust is one of the best I have ever tasted, and her instructions make it pretty fool-proof. The shortcakes, to die for, and of course, the world peace cookies are constantly being requested. I did just try the custardy and crunch peach tart, but used cherries instead of peaches and pistachios instead of almonds, and it was pretty decadent! Her basic biscuits are in the oven right now... thanks all for the inspiration.