I Love You, España

Last summer, my boyfriend and I spent three weeks exploring the gorgeous landscape of Spain. We made it to Madrid, Segovia, Toledo, Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada and of course, Barcelona. We ate well, walked everywhere, and completely immersed ourselves in the rich culture.  (I documented the delicious food we ate in this post). Looking back, I can't think of one word to accurately describe our trip. So I'm leaving it up to these photos to do the talking.  

Comfort Food

Chicken pot pie isn't exactly the ideal meal for the health conscious.  That's why I usually reserve heavy comfort foods for cold, rainy days.  On a particularly cold day (for LA standards), I followed this recipe from Ina Garten and was very happy with the results. I was even more happy to use my fancy soup ramekins, which are also perfect for french onion soup. I cut a few corners by using store-bought pastry and added my own personal touch by throwing in some crimini mushrooms in the mix and omitting the pearl onions.  My only suggestion is to half the recipe unless you're planning on feeding an army. 

White Chocolate Brownies

After reading David Lebovitz's "The Sweet Life in Paris," I've become slightly obsessed with French food and culture.  So when he posted this fabulous recipe, which originated in a French magazine, I knew I had to try it.  I'm kind of picky when it comes to white chocolate because sometimes it tastes artificial or overly sweet. But with highly quality Ghirardelli white chocolate, these brownies are a welcome deviation from traditional brownies - they're moist and chewy and the lemon zest gives it a perfect zing. 

Above: Nobody said this was a healthy recipe.  With over a stick of butter, this recipe is classically French.

Below: I baked the batter for exactly 30 minutes.  Depending on your oven, monitor the crust color to prevent over-baking, or worse, drying out. Nobody likes dry cake. 

LA Winter Tart

There may be a polar vortex blowing through the country, but in LA, it's been feeling like summer lately.  I took advantage of the beautiful LA weather (and harvest) by making a berry tart, which is usually reserved for summer.  With an extra pie crust in the freezer, I improvised and made a rectangular tart, which I filled with some homemade eclair custard cream and topped with a berry mix.  Summer or not, this is the perfect base for any fruit tart.

Custard Recipe

2 cups milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

6 egg yolks

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 tablespoon butter

1. In a saucepan, heat the milk and vanilla over medium heat.  Bring to a boil.  Immediately turn off the heat and set aside.

2.  In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cornstarch and whisk vigorously until there are no lumps. 

3. Whisk in some of the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture. (A splash will do).  The purpose is to bring up the temperature of the eggs gradually so they don't curdle. Whisk in the remaining hot milk mixture into the eggs.  Pour the entire mixture through a strainer back into the saucepan. 

4. Cook over medium-high heat. Whisk constantly until thick and slowly boiling.

5. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter.  Once it has cooled to room temperature, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. 

To assemble the tart: 

Thaw the pie crust until pliable.  Press the dough into your desired pan.  Bake the pie crust according to the package directions.  Once the pie crust is cooked and cooled, spread the cooled custard mixture into the tart shell and top with your favorite fruit.  Dust with powdered sugar.  Alternatively, try glazing the fruit with warm jam or jelly.

...Or, just dip the fruit in the custard and eat as is!

30 Degree Weekend

View from the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Museum Row 

I spent this past weekend in New York with a few of my best girlfriends from college.  Having graduated from college in a town that is eternally sunny, the four of us were perpetually frozen during the whole weekend.  But, the icing on the cake was reuniting with my freshman year roommate, who is a temporary New Yorker (until she moves back to the best coast).  Sharing a room with these amazing girls and seeing old faces made me nostalgic for our dorm days, and although we were only together for a short weekend, I realized that time doesn't weaken true friendships. 

Above Left: Breakfast at Ess-a-bagel.  

Above Right: Dinner at Mario Batali's newest venture, Otto Enoteca

 Above: Our hotel lobby, where episodes of Gossip Girl were filmed
Below: Obligatory trip to Laduree

Above: Picasso's "Les Demoiselles d'avignon" at MoMa

Below: Lombardi's white pizza and margherita pizza, which were both inhaled in 5 seconds.

Above Left: Arguably the cheesiest french onion soup in existence at Balthazar in SoHo. My friends loved the Steak Frites.

Above Right: French toast and mascarpone/cherry rice pudding at Rice to Riches in Nolita. (Think rice pudding á la Pinkberry.)

Below: Flower mimosas at Sarabeth's on the Upper West Side

Sweet Spain

It’s been over a month since I returned from my three-week trip to Spain, and yet, the smells, flavors, and sounds of the rich country are strong as ever in my memory. My boyfriend and I spent three weeks trekking through Madrid, Andalucia, and Barcelona, making sure to immerse ourselves in each city’s distinct culture before moving onto the next. We were floored by the stunning architecture, touched by the unbelievably hospitable Spaniards, and in constant awe of the iconic artwork that was pervasive throughout the country’s museums. But most importantly, the food stood out as the epicenter of Spain’s rich heritage and culture. I’ll be posting more photos from my Spain trip, but for now, here’s a roundup of my favorite desserts from Spain.

Above: Perhaps my favorite dessert from the trip - the milhojas de turrón (back) from La Campana, the oldest pastry shop in Sevilla. It's reminiscient of a classic French mille feuille, but is far richer, thicker, and nuttier. It has notes of almond and condensed milk. 

My boyfriend and I were blown away by the churros con chocolate at Cafe Fútbol in Granada. We've had our fair share of churros, but these were hands down, the fluffiest and crunchiest.

Above: We succumbed to the "cronut" craze and tried the sugary treat at Boldú in Barcelona. The lemon-poppy seed was a hit while the nutella flavor was just ok.

Below: One of the highlights from our trip was my boyfriend's birthday meal at Ferran Adría disciple Carles Abellán's Suculent in Barcelona. We capped off our dinner with a refreshing Yuzu sorbet and Brie cheesecake, which is one of the best desserts I've ever tasted.

Above: (Left) Raspberry spongecake on a stick at Carles Mampel's Bubo Born in Barcelona. (Right) Granada's light and subtly sweet take on a classic cheesecake.

Below: One of the best milhojas I've ever had - at Mallorca Market in Madrid.

 Below: Ice Cream Roundup - We were impressed by three flavors, each from a different city. The mascarpone/dulce de leche/sunflower seed (left) in Sevilla was so delicious that we had it two days in a row. The violet (right) from Madrid's Mercado de San Miguel was a spin on a classic Spanish candy flavor based on an indigenous flower. The pistachio (below) from Granada's famed Los Italianos was one of the most natural tasting pistachio flavors I've ever tried.