Spring in Paris

I love the spring in Paris. It arrives much earlier than in Toronto so by mid-April I'm enjoying favas, peas, baby onions and new potatoes. I tell everyone that I come to Paris in the spring just so I can eat white asparagus. Well, I've just discovered that I may have to change my travel plans. 

Signs of Spring

Since I've been complaining about winter, I want to tell you that spring is coming, well at least in my hallway. You can see my fig tree has leaves and several figs, it is responding to the longer days.

Book number 4 - Bitter

I made a promise to blog every week and of course I've already broken it. But, I do have a good excuse -  my book Bitter: A Taste of the World's Most Dangerous Flavor, with Recipes. I am in the last stage of the book's production, which means a lot of careful reading, looking for typos, missing words and mistakes of any kind.

Friends in the Bayou

While the weather was warmer in Louisiana it was the warmth of the people that impressed me most - friendly and unfailingly polite. The importance of good manners is often overlooked today. From the culinary students to people in the street, there was an acknowledgment that you existed - a smile, and greeting often followed by a conversation. That's something I miss in Toronto. In Paris I will get a bonjour from strangers in the street and often find myself at the bus stop talking to someone I've just met. When I return to the Toronto, I have to adjust, my hellos to strangers in the street as they are usually met with a start and then discomfort.

More from the Bayou

The word boudin for me conjures up images of the French sausages - boudin noir and boudin blanc. The first, is a blood sausage, and the second a more delicate, finely textured sausage made from pork and chicken, often embellished with black truffles. A boudin in Louisiana is different, it is still a sausage, but.....