Travel: September in Paris: Favorite Pastry Shops

This blog is not for those who are watching their waist lines!

Since I have been to Paris several times, I skipped all the major tourist sites except the Louvre, of course. This time my fascination is to visit and taste different boulangeries and new patisseries since I was here four years ago.  I can feel my heart beats faster as I walked into these beatifully arranged  shops.

I was overwhelmed by La Grande Epicerie de Paris, a part of Le Bon Marché department store, an entire floor with shelves stocked with black sea salt from North Africa, to pink fresh shrimp from Deauville, France. There I picked up a few bags of my favorite galette de beurre and  lavender soaps from Marseille, then headed out for lunch at Ladurée, known for its legendary macarons and others pastries. One afternoon, I was invited for lunch at Madame Depuis in the 16th arrondissement and I wanted to buy these delicious macarons as gift.

A friend of mine suggests to go to “La Carette” at Trocadero  (www.carette-paris.com), an old classic. But then my film maker friend Joanne disagreed  that I  must go to the new hip “Pierre Herme“ (www.pierreherme.com), the eponymous shop from the former pastry chef at Fauchon. One of his famous pastries is Le Deux Mille Feuilles and for his tiny macarons. 

At last I opt for Eric Kayser patisserie (www.maison-kayser.com), since my hotel is near this rustic, artisan shop. I picked up a few rows of delicious caramel and hazelnut chocolate macarons, while indulging in a few madeleines on site. It`s one of oldest bakeries in Paris, recognized for its seasonal  flavorful fruit tarts, which recently opened a chain of shops in high traffic neighborhoods.

A week in Paris is just not enough!

La Carette, Trocadero, Paris

Pierre Herme, Saint-Germain, Paris

Canning & Preserves: Abundance with Summer Peaches

While at my godmother Sonja's beach house for a few days this past week, one afternoon we stayed in preserving summer peaches from the farmer's market. "We will appreciate these peaches during the winter," said my 86 year old godmother.

A very good friend of mine, Eugenia Bone, a brilliant writer, wrote a book on preserving. "Gina" is a food aficionado like most of us. We share the same gym; whenever we are in the locker room, we will be chatting about anything from  wild mushrooms in Pennsylvania to the best gadgets for making spätzle.

From a recent New York times article comes her simple recipes for preserving pears. A light simmering in syrup does little to prepare the fruit for a long hibernation in the pantry; to make them safe, you need to process them—place the closed jars in a pot, cover with water and boil for 20 minutes.

Gina has her way of using fruit and alcohol. 

“With water-bath canning, you’re really just poaching,” she said. 

“So I thought, the canning can be the cooking.”

She used firm Bartlett pears, which she said are best for canning because
they maintain their shape, and warmed them through in a thyme
syrup. (Heating the pears before canning pulls some air out of the fruit.)

After transferring the pears to jars, she covered
them with the syrup, adding bay leaves, peppercorns
and lemon zest.

Eugenia Bone, author of Well Preserved 
You will need two pint-size wide-mouth Ball or Kerr jars with bands and new lids. 

Weekend Trip: Hudson Valley, Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Rhinebeck, Culinary Institute of America

We started our trip late one Friday morning after rush hour, from the New York City's west side, heading to Blue Hill at Stone Barns. It's a good 50 minutes pleasant drive on the Taconic Parkway. We stopped and had lunch at Blue Hill, which is a working farm for the restaurant as well as for those who wants to volunteer. On Saturday, the market is open to the public from 2-4 pm. They serve organic meals such as duck panini, roasted beet salad, and the fluffiest egg salad you've ever tasted.

We continued onto Route 9 toward the town of Hudson and decided to stay in Rhinebeck, NY (another 1.5 hours further away).

Some choices for staying include:

Olana at Hudson, NY

• Madalin Hotel in Tivoli, NY. A perfect stay in a gorgeous restored historic landmark, located in the heart of Tivoli, NY.
• Rhine Cliff Hotel in Hudson Valley is also a nice and serene. It's a boutique country hotel that's tucked away near the Rhinecliff Amtrak Station -- 5 minutes into the heart of Rhinebeck by taxi for shops and restaurants.
• Belvedere Mansion in Staatsburg, NY is where we stayed. Although, the rooms are very small, it has an outdoor pool and great tennis courts, useful for us since we're both avid tennis players.
• Maple Stone Inn is another hotel located in New Paltz that has a cozy, intimate feel and provides an excellent breakfast.
• Journey Inn is a contemporary style, with a good location near tourist sites such as the Culinary Institute of America.

Many talented chefs have opened restaurants over the years here in the Hudson Valley. Some of places that we've visited recently:

• Terrapin Restaurant in Rhineback, NY. Josh Kroner is the chef and owner. He uses local vegetables from farms and provides excellent service every time we go. I particularly enjoyed their small dish menu.
• Arielle is a new restaurant in Rhineback, NY that is run by the Belvedere Mansion's owner. It had very good French and Mediterranean cuisine and a beautiful outdoor space.
• Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park, NY. See great chefs on site while classes are in sessions. An amazing selection of desserts and small dishes to sample at their cafe' or if you feel like white table cloth service, you have choices from French to Fusion-inspired restaurants...It's the world's premier culinary college!

Things to do and places to see:

white peaches at meads farm.

• Wings Castle in Millbrook is also a delightful place to visit and view the famous tourist site of castles and such.
• Fisher Museum is another place to take a look at for performing arts and incredible picnic ground located in Annadale at Bard College.
• Storm King Art Center
• Dia Art Foundation is another museum that is "internationally renowned for initiating, supporting, presenting, and preserving art projects, mostly collections from the 1960's."
• Dutchess Tourism provides many options of tourist sites that you may visit during your stay.
• Opus 40 is "about one hundred miles from New York City, tucked into a pocket of the Catskills near Saugerties, lies one of the most extraordinary pieces of sculpture ever created by a single man."
• Meads farm is also a perfect farm for family outing to pick succulent white peaches, cherries and berries this time of the year.
• Olana Estate Historic Site is my favorite where I took a great nap after 45 minute tour of the mansion over looking incredible view of the Hudson Valley and prestine Catskill. It's 250 acre, historic estate of Federick Church who made his fortune with Hudson Valley paintings and built the mansion based on his travels in the late 1800's, also 20 minutes from our hotel. There are many great trails for hiking with incredible views; so pack some water and great walking shoes, you are ready to explore New York in the country side.

Recipe: Stonington: Too Many Chefs in the Kitchen, Part 1

I rented a summer home this July with my family in Stonington, CT. We have my cousin Ron, my sister inlaw Yin and my parents' housekeeper from Shanghai; all happen to be great cooks.

Since we have 14 to 22 of us every day for dinner, one evening we brined a whole pork tenderloin that yielded about 8 lbs. We marinated it with apple cider, honey, crushed light peppercorn, rosemary, thyme, lots of garlic and sea salt. Of course, we immerse the ingredients in  water overnight in the refrigerator. Occasionally turning the porkloin overtime. Since our hosts have 11 acres of garden, fresh flowers and herbs, I use a mixture of rosemary and silver thyme processed with six cloves of garlic, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper (for basting).

To grill:

• Prepare to raise the heat very high

• Remove the meat out from the refrigerator half an hour before grilling.

• When the temperature of the grill reaches its peak, place the pork loin on the rack until it chars on both sides. Then turn down the temperature to low.

• Afterward, put the cover down for about 30-45 minutes. Occasionally turn the meat and brush with the olive oil mixture mentioned previously.

• It is perfectly fine for the meat to be a touch pink. Let it cool and then slice. It's deliciously moist and juicy.

• Serve with grilled summer peaches and swiss chard on the side to add to a perfect meal.

Recipe: Stonington, Connecticut: Too Many Chefs in the Kitchen, Part 1

I rented a summer home this July with my family in Stonington, CT. We have my cousin Ron, my sister-in-law Yin and my parents' housekeeper from Shanghai; all happen to be great cooks.

A purveyor from New York City had given me half of a goat which had inspired me to make something with a nice blend of spice rub. Since this half goat totals about 18 lbs of meat we decided to create a variety of meals from it using different cuts.

Cooking plans:
For the meatier part: kabob with the outdoor grill - dried spice rub with Hungarian paprika, garam masala, coriander seeds and cumin; Malaysian curry.

For the shin part of the leg: slow cook with lots of slivers of ginger, garlic, sweet onion, white wine and the Karma spice I acquired during my recent trip to Penang. We let it slow cook and made it into a stew, keeping it a few days in the fridge for easy warm up at dinner upon returning from a day's outing.

Weekend Trip: Philadelphia

For years my friend Patty has been inviting me to visit her home in Philadelphia.

This past weekend a bunch of friends and I hopped on Eastern Bus on the Lower East Side of New York City.  

A 7pm bus got us there in time for our 9 o'clock dinner reservation.

We sampled 20 or so tapas style dishes for a delicious meal at Chifa, one of four
restaurants owned by Garces Brothers.

The next morning after a brisk walk by the Delaware River all of us started cooking
and then sat down to a three hour brunch including scrambled eggs with truffles and gruyere, mimosas, fresh-picked strawberries from a local farm and a few side dishes.

Farmers Market: What to do with Asparagus

There's an abundance of fresh, crisp asparagus in the market now, since it's in season.

A quick and easy preparation is as follows:

1. Simply shave the bottom of the stalks. 
2. Fill a half cup cold water or just touching the bottom of pan and let the asparagus blanch for 7 minutes with healthy sprinkle of salt. 
3. Serve at room temp with French vinaigrette. 
4. Using a small bottle, add 3 tbsps of Dijon mustard, 2 diced shallots, 2 cloves crushed minced garlic, 1/8 cup champagne vinegar, salt, fresh crushed pepper and 1/4 cup of good olive oil. 
5. Close lid tight. Shake well. 

For a light dinner, I serve with lamb meat balls with yogurt, cumin sauce, and a baguette.

When my friend James Oseland from Saveur Magazine comes into my studio for lunch, he does something even easier, just squeezing half a lemon and crushed pepper with olive oil over the cooked asparagus.

May Says Flowers

May is the month where enormous quantities of flowers pour into the market. Peonies come in beautiful powdery light pink or Paper Whites with a hint of red in the middle. For Chinese wedding couples, it is the velvety red color that is bursting and cheerful. A bunch of beautiful peonies as the centerpiece brightens your dinner tables.

Get up early one morning and head to the flower market or have your caterer/florist to do some nice simple elegant floral arrangements. There are plenty of spring blossoms. It can be quince or cherry blossoms. You can make a nice statement in the entranceway to greet your guests with tall magnolia branches.

Events: Do Your Own Decorating

Martha Stewart, Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel: are they too much alike? You can do your own decor for your party depending on your heart's desires...there are a lots of fabrics, color schemes and curios in your home or your neighborhood.

South Asian Station by Saffron59

Recently we did an opening for Cirque du Soleil with 1500-2000 guests for dinner; their theme was Thai, Turkish and Indian. It was staged at a nightclub four stories high. We focused on each station with the colors we like to decorate with, using the flowers behind these countries. In our neighborhood hardware store, and fabric store, there were inexpensive lamps, platters and textiles that perfectly fit the theme without ending up with a Martha Stewart cookie-cutter look.

Think about your next fun party...make it festive, colorful and full of zest...stage your own creation...

Testimonial: Marla's Wedding

After planning with the bride and groom for a year, last week we catered the winter wedding of their dreams. It's very rewarding to receive nice note such as this upon returning to the office in the morning.

Dear Leili and the crew:

Thank you so much for your work at the wedding this weekend. Your food was exquisite and tasted fantastic. I had so many positive comments about the food from guests. I am so sorry I wasn't able to get a moment to thank you in person-- its my one regret of the
evening. Please let me know if there are any specific wedding websites or magazines for which I can write a (very positive) review or testimonial for Saffron 59, this went well beyond my expectations and I would love to help spread the word.

I am fairly certain Dante, our photographer has photos of the appetizers and main course if you would be interested in these.

Many many thanks,
-Marla

Recipe: Stone Crabs

There is now abundance of these stone crabs in New York City, no need to fly to California or Florida. Simply steam them for seven minutes and make a nice dipping sauce with a touch of salt, chopped red birds eye chiles minced with a squeeze of lime juice, mix in a few tablespoons of water and Nuoc Mam (fish sauce). If you have sprigs of cilantro handy chop them in. 

How to check if they are fresh? Simply turn the crabs upside down and check for freshness by their movements and no tiny bubbles being blown out from their head. After purchasing, keep in brown bags away and hold in fridge until ready for steaming. Yum!

Bravo Auguste!

Photos: Peter Cuce
 

I was at a fashion show at Asia Society last week and discovered this young talented Indonesian designer, Auguste Soesastro. Mr. Soesastro debuted his first Kraton collection with the influences from his heritage, arts and culture of Indonesia. 

Kraton specializes in high-end luxury fabric with a classic cut. The superb tailoring techniques and the uniqueness of incorporating Eastern and Western influences, using batik (hand dyed) fabric with light wool textile.

Gazing at the runway gave me such fond memories of the time I spent in Indonesia while I was living in Asia for four years. Incredible, amazing artisans this country offer such as Mr. Soesastro, he was born in Jakarta, to Dutch Indonesian parents.

He spent a few years in Paris and studied fashion, interned at some of the major haute couture houses and moved to New York to work for Ralph Rucci, an American couturier. This talented designer is definitely someone to keep an eye on.

Paprika Adds Spice to Your Life: Hungarian Oxtail Stew

Colorful, delicious, flavorful spices that add zests to your life! 

Paprika, is one that has a wonderful flavor to create a marinade for a nice piece of meat, fish or in dressings. 

Recently my Hungarian sweetheart and I had 16 of my loved ones over and cooked up a huge pot of his native oxtail stew with celeric root, turnip, carrots, onion, celery and few chunks of savoy cabbage.

Simple brown the oxtail and add in the vegetable with a few tablespoons of red colorful Hungarian paprika and one spoon of spicy hot paprika.

Let it cook for two hour and half in simmer while you are surfing in Facebook or cleaning those picture files that have been slowing your computer.

This makes a delicious meal accompanied with some egg noodles. With this cold winter weather, open an inexpensive full bodied Burgundy or Rioja.

Enjoy and cozy up with your favorite friends.

Travel: Spice Souk by The Arabian Gulf

Every year in October, while booking all the holiday functions for my catering company, Saffron 59, I start getting restless at the same time to book a flight to Asia to visit the orphanage I sponsor in Burma. As a certified travel agent, I have to figure out routes to avoid crowded flights with different destinations to Asia during this time of the year. 

This trip, I experienced from the sublime to the ridiculous; by stopping over in the Middle East, in a country with the tallest towers in the world being built - Dubai, who are planning to air condition their beach when the temp hits 50 degrees Celsius in the summer. However, this is also a country with old-style values; the bustling ancient markets start at dusk with fish arriving from the gulf and spices trading with the neighboring countries of Iran, Oman and even India.

Visiting the aromatic spice souk, with canvas bags full of saffron colored turmeric, from roots to black
salt; strolling by the creek puts me back a few centuries. I imagine witnessing the traders auctioning off
their commodities and now the ridiculous part of this trip would be to Myanmar, where I will be spending the next two weeks, a country that turns on the electricity only from 6-9 pm daily and the internet is almost non existent.

The Taj - My Culinary Experience

Over the last few days while listening to the tragedy unfold in Mumbai, my heart empathized with the families of the victims and to those who lost their lives. It was at the Taj Hotel Mumbai, the Gate of India, where I received my apprenticeship in southern Indian cooking with a young bright chef Vikram. 

A few years back after one of my group culinary trips, I took a detour and spent five days at this beautiful colonial hotel overlooking the Malabar Sea.

Late every afternoon, after the lunch crowd consisting mostly of international guests dispersed, chef Vikram would bring out tastings of delicious varieties of regional curries, piping hot naan and parathas fresh from the tandoor oven. I would then select a few of these dishes for him to teach me after the hectic lunch hour. The kitchen staff worked long shifts. After lunch, the staff was busy preparing for the dinner menu for the hundreds of guests that come through the Tanjore. This was the time when Vikram took me for a tour of the bustling market to shop and visit stalls from cookware and spices. Coincidentally, the market was located right near the train station where many lost their lives in the beginning of the attacks. 

Keeping track of last week’s horrific events, I could not help thinking of my wonderful culinary experiences with the kitchen crew at Tanjore Restaurant and how this event has transformed the gentility of the people who were passionate about their work and food. Writing this blog brings my senses to the smell of delicious fish curry with sounds of popping mustard seeds and hot chapattis in Vikram’s kitchen. I am sure there will be many fruitful stories like mine to share with great memories of this colonial landmark and that our stories overcome the calamities that enveloped the Taj last week. 

** update August 20,2014- The Taj Hotel Mumbai has totally revamped with all new and modern  restaurants.

Here is a simple vegetarian dish I learned from Chef Vikram

Okra with Curry Leaves

1 pound fresh okra topped and bottomed

10 curry leaves

4 dried red peppers

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup finely chopped onion

4 red Serrano chilies sliced thin lengthwise

and cut into 1/8-inch slices

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon kosher salt.

Set a wok over a medium heat. Add the oil, toss in the mustard seeds, red peppers and curry leaves cook until the seeds start to pop. Add onion and green chili and sauté until tender.

Turn the flame to high and add the okra, add some water or vegetable stock, stirring constantly for two –three minutes, add spices and continue cooking until okra browns (about 10 minutes).

salt to taste.

Note:You can substitute Asian Long Beans, Cauliflower or String beans.

Curry leaves :

Grown on small trees, the soft leaves are stripped from the short sprigs, use fresh or dried, just sizzle in hot oil to reveal its clear spicy flavor,then add to a finished vegetable dish, great to jazz up seared salmon or red snapper.

  ** update August 20,2014- The Taj Hotel Mumbai has totally revamped with all new and modern  restaurants.

Holiday Cocktail Party Ideas

A cocktail party should be fun and festive; it can be as simple or complex as you wish to make it.

Make a quick list- how many guests will be attending? YOU DO NOT want to be working at your party. It's wise to have someone there to give you a hand but not your friend or family members.

It is great to mix guests with different backgrounds and interests, you will be playing the host. Have a caterer and combo of your own signature dish you are best at with flavorful spices. And do one or two fun delicious cocktails to get your guests buzzing and have a fabulous time.

Here is one of the easy delicious recipes from my kitchen.

Seafood Ceviche (you can do this ahead of time and mix it an hour before the guests arrive

1 lb of #36 shrimp (deveined and shelled)
1 lb. of bay scallops
1 lb. filet of sole- sliced thin pieces
1 sliced serrano chile, minced
6 juice of limes
salt and pepper
1 minced red onion, minced
1 mango- peeled and diced into small pieces
1 asian pear- peeled and diced small pieces
2 cloves of garlic

Prepare all these ingredients, put aside all the seafood on bed of ice. mix all the seafood ingredients with lime juice one hour before guests arrive and then toss with the rest of ingredients. add salt and pepper to taste. served with toasted tortillas or point toast......

Exchanging Culture on Your Travel

Over the years of my travel, whether on yoga retreat in the mountains of Oaxaca or in Petra, Jordan, my most satisfying experiences have involved exchanging knowledge with or cooking and marketing with the people of the country. In Bali, I rented a house in Ubud in the middle of a rice field from a family that owns two restaurants catering to the tourist in town. I showed them how to make spicy marinara sauce so that they don't have to buy expensive Ragu bottles from supermarkets.

In the morning, take I took a ride on their jeep to the market and afterward we would cook in their kitchen, to create some Ikan Bilis, a traditional fish curry made of candle nuts, along with all styles of Satay sauces.

So on your next travel, take a class, and go right into the kitchen if one of the meals you had wows you; don’t be shy to volunteer and get your hands dirty.

Family: My Niece Samantha

Six weeks ago I became an aunt again to my niece Samantha..

With Asian tradition for a month old baby, one gets to introduce family and friends by giving lavish banquet meals.

My brother and I decided to do a BBQ with all kinds of seafood and quality cuts of meat from Pino Prime meat on Sullivan St,  New York City. It was a nice Sunday in mid August, good times partying by the pool, and not having my catering staff involved after they have catered four weddings recently.

Large Tiger prawns, succulent diver scallops. Dry aged steak, Kobe rib eye.  

Where can you go wrong? No need to be a pro to cook this. Simply marinate with some nice dry rub spices with the large scallops, my friend Daniel snipped fresh thyme from the garden, crushed garlic and white wine for a marinade.

Carol made amazing berry compote with kaffir lime leaves and peppercorn syrup to end the meal.

We opened some nice Prosecco to start, Malbec and Riesling as well.

Berries, Berries, Berries

This season there has been an abundance of berries. I just came 

back from my godmother's beach house and she had blueberry 

and blackberry patches growing in her garden. So plump and 

luscious, she simply made them into jam.

Our kitchen here in Saffron 59 has been making warm berry cobbler with lemon zests, crisp toppings, and if you want to be a little fancy, add simple syrup with slivers of kaffir lime leaves, fresh lemongrass slices, assorted crushed colorful pepper corns, fragrant star anise and a cinnamon stick while the syrup is hot.

With flavors ranging from mildly sweet to tart and tangy, fresh berries are simply delicious 

on their own.

Recipe: Soft Shell Crab with Tamarind Glaze

Soft shell crab is in season!

Now is the time for soft shell crab! It's easy to make, delicious, and a fast dish for the summer. The best soft shell crab usually comes from Maryland and is only $3-$5 a piece from your local seafood market and is seasonal and fresh. You can lightly sear it with butter and garlic or olive oil, or you can use my signature dish we feature at Saffron 59. It is one of the traditional recipes that I made while I lived in Saigon, Vietnam.

Recipe

To prepare the crab, simply remove the gill and the claws. Then egg wash- flour, beaten egg

add panko crust then sear each side for 2 minutes

For the sauce,

small chunk of dried tamarind, soaked with 1/2 cup of warm water

then you squeeze the pulp and seeds out to get the juice (set aside)

brown the shallots and add the tamarind juice

season with fish sauce, sugar, salt and pepper

bring to a boil

Spoon the sauce over the crab then garnish with fresh slivers of scallion and enjoy!