Wandering: An Unharried Day in Istanbul

Start by sipping Turkish coffee in the Arasta Bazaar - behind the Blue Mosque.  This picture is inspiring me to get the percolator going right now.  Ahhhh.  Coffeeeeeee.  Arasta, though still a tourist trap (but who are we kidding? we're tourists!), is much quieter, smaller, and less frenzied than the Grand Bazaar, especially off season.

Wander around the smaller streets by the bazaar and you'll happen upon some bizarre display like this at Cocoon.  What in the...?  These are felted hats!  In fact, the store is full of felted lovelies, along with some beautiful textiles and handcrafts.

The Istanbul Handicrafts Market (Kabasakal Caddesi 23) showcases their artists' work in glass, pottery, silk painting, and weaving.  The different crafts are housed in small studios/shops surrounding a sunny, central courtyard.  Artists sometimes are at work in their studios.

If you're feeling peckish, try Çiğdem Pastanesi at Divan Yolu Caddesi 62A.  It serves delectable baklava, pastries, and cappuccinos worthy of Rome.

Or, if you're hungry enough for lunch, go to the Sultanahmet Fish House for super-fresh fish at very, very reasonable prices.  Their three course meals are fantastic.  Sit at a window and watch people and cats go by.

Here's Sappho: she's expecting your visit at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum - and behind her is the discus thrower, on loan from the British Museum (not sure how long that will last).  The museum really does have an impressive collection of ancient Near Eastern, Greek, and Roman art and artifacts, along with Ottoman tiles and art.  Beware, however: the museum guards will kick you out at 4PM!  So make sure you arrive with plenty of time.  Closed Mondays.

Walk across the Galata Bridge at sunset, then make your way to drinks and dinner on the modern strip of shops and restaurants on Istiklal Caddesi in Beyoğlu. Rest your feet and relax!

Whimsical felted rabbits, with each their own felt tote bag, at Cocoon.

Eating My Way through Paris: Macarons part 4

Well, after reviewing macarons from three patisseries and trying my own hand at making them, I finish this macaron series with Monsieur Macaron Himself, Pierre Hermé . We visited his shop (one of two in Paris) located on a quiet corner in Saint Germain des Prés. I was allowed to take precisely and only two photos inside of the store. Here they are:

Lovely, perfect pastries on display.

The famous macarons themselves! I had a hard time getting all the flavors straight -
my French is really abysmal, and I am too proud (sometimes) to speak in English!

After haphazardly choosing a variety of mini-macarons, we headed out to the fountain and park area next to St-Sulpice to enjoy ourselves.

As far as I can remember, the flavors are (clockwise from top right):
mint, cocoa, raspberry and something-or-other, and olive oil-vanilla.

We couldn't miss the famous Ispahan concoction - a giant macaron filled
with raspberries, lychees, and rosewater-flavored cream.
This is Hermé's signature pastry.

Crunch!

The flavors of rosewater, raspberries, and lychees melded together elegantly - and I am always gratified when lychees are used. I feel that they are such an under-appreciated - or, rather, unknown - fruit. But, really, they are so sweet, light, and lovely.

But . . . as amazing as Pierre Hermé and his store are, I must announce the winner of the macaron taste-off to be Fauchon. For us, Fauchon's macarons had not only perfect texture but also the most delicious flavorings, and the best balance of sweet, salty, fragrant, and rich. This is not to say that ANY of the patisseries we tried were lacking (although one of the Hermé maracons was slightly too chewy, almost - gasp! - stale). Fauchon was just more perfect. But, of course, I'm always willing to go back to Paris and try everything again!

Eating My Way through Paris: Macarons part 3

This is the entrance of Ladurée on the Champs-Élysées, a patisserie with a very different modus operandi than Fauchon. Fauchon is modern and chic. Ladurée is aiming for baroque opulence, with velvet walls and chandeliers. It certainly works!

Here's the line on a Saturday night.

There are attendants in white gloves, ready to wrap up whatever delicacy you like.

And the wrapping is absolutely fabulous, as you can see here. This is a little Ladurée tableaux
I set up in our lodgings that night - before we promptly gobbled it down.

Aren't they lovely? Clockwise from the top: bergamot (yes, the spice
that flavors Earl Grey!), pistachio, chocolate, citron, and raspberry.

These were pretty good - I think the pistachio was especially yummy. The bergamot flavored macaron was interesting - it captured the taste of a mildly sweet and creamy cup of tea without being too weird.

Okay, this is not a macaron, but it is, in my opinion, Ladurée's pièce de résistance: a rosewater-raspberry concoction with oh-so-subtly flavored cream and tiny bonbons embedded in the sides. The bottom is a pâte à choux, filled with more cream.

Eating My Way through Paris: Macarons part 2

Fauchon is located by the L'Église de la Madeleine, along with Hédiard, another gourmet food store - which makes for a very tasty corner of Paris, all around.

This is at Fauchon - amazing store, with all sorts of goodies: foie gras,
terrines, pâte de fruits, etc. But look at these pastries! Those are raspberries,
painted a pearly white! I really cant' say enough good things about Fauchon.

Eclairs at Fauchon - not sure what I think of decorating
an eclair like a hot dog, but I'm sure they taste good.

A citron macaron from Fauchon. Perfect macaron shell - you can see the
crunchy exterior, followed by the almondy chewyness, followed by
perfectly flavored filling.

The macarons we ordered at Fauchon were full size - about 2-3 inches in diameter, as you can see above. I must say that they were fantastic. Maybe taste and texture are affected by the size of the macaron - maybe the bigger the better? Anyway, these were a welcome treat after a very wonderful but exhausting day at the Louvre.

Eating My Way through Paris: Macarons part 1

Since relocating to Heidelberg, Germany, I've been astounded by how easy it is to get to other European locales. Last weekend we headed to Paris - only 3 1/2 hours by train! As my mom said, "That's like driving to Tahoe!" (from the SF Bay Area, that is). One of my main incentives for going to Paris was sampling all the macarons I've been obsessing about for the last year or so. It seems that this meringue sandwich cookie has taken the foodie-world by storm. So here goes for our Paris macaron taste-off:

This is the display in the Lenôtre, in Bastille, 11th arrondissement.
We stopped there our first morning, for our first macaron tasting.

These were light and satisfyingly crunchy-chewy, with lovely fillings.

I was impressed by the chocolate ganache filling - very rich. The others we tried were pistachio, frambois (raspberry), and caramel, with sea salt. I think my favorite was the caramel (it usually is!), but one complaint is that the sea salt hits you first when you bite into the macaron, and it's a bit strong. The burnt-sugar taste of caramel comes almost at the end, which is too long to wait, in my mind. All in all, though, a great sweet treat - light but very satisfying.