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A THANKSGIVING FEAST

On this special day, we feasted. It was such a foggy cold, and somewhat stressful day, so a night to let loose and feast certainly brought a smile to everyone’s face and ease to everyone’s minds. Of the group we had people of various nationalities, with various diets and allergy restrictions. I am so grateful for our delicious feast that everyone could dive into.

Everyone brought one of their favorite things; I always go with the southern style deviled eggs that my favorite Texan always made. We had a table full of turkey, Valerie’s mashed potatoes, gluten free pumpkin pie, shepherd’s pie, spinach dip, roasted squash and onions and of course, a hearty salad by my honey. It was a feast of champions.

What are you thankful for this year?


This year has been a particular one. A whirlwind of a transition that hasn’t ended yet. It’s almost like nothing feels stable and yet there are things to look forward to, but the stability hasn’t fully hit yet. I can feel it coming. A rhythm. One thing that breaks these types of limbos for me are tradition. I think tradition is such an important thing.

Thanksgiving is a staple in the year for many reasons. Not only is it a heartwarming holiday that brings people together around grub, but it is a marker for things… like setting up your Christmas tree, or the “Go Ahead” to watching Christmas movies. Thanksgiving is the top of the slide right before you hop on and glide through holiday spirit and joy until the new year. Mathilde said it perfectly when we were going around the room each expressing what we were thankful for this year, and she reflected on how nice it is to just stop and really think about that subject, and to take time to communicate it.

Life has gotten a bit ahead of me. I always need a little reality check to realize what a lucky lady I am to have had an incredible education, to be starting a career that I love and living in a beautiful city with a fantastic fella with whom I am so in love. I have a healthy family and will soon have a beautiful baby nephew. I have a cozy home full of love and friends who care about me. I am grateful for all of the people who have stepped into my life this year, and for those whose friendships have a place deep in my heart – who are family to me – whether it’s in this adoptive city of mine or across various bodies of water.

Gobble gobble.

LES CHATEAUX

Happy Wednesday! Just waned to share some snapshots of a trip to the Loire Valley a few years ago when my mom was in town. I have been wanting to go back for quite some time now. Perhaps when winter is over.

BIRTHDAY WEEKEND

This weekend was a very special one. For my birthday, along with Valerie and her man who is in town, we headed to the in-laws fantastically adorable home for a weekend full of delicious grub and surprises. It was cold and foggy most of the weekend, which was the perfect context for making hearty gratins and staying cozy by the fire with a few rounds of Cards Against Humanity and some whisky.

We picked vegetables from the garden and enjoyed the calm of the countryside, even having the chance to visit a neighbor’s farm to see his tractor collection. The fact that he makes his own moonshine and gave me some of his homemade eau-de-vie for my birthday was pretty much a cherry on top.

However, I am clearly the most spoiled person alive, as this birthday weekend didn’t end here…. little did I know that coming back to Paris on Sunday night, there were some snazzy people that I really care about waiting for me at Troll Café to drink a beer together.

It all ended with samosas galore, as the best birthday in the world should. I am still in shock about how fantastic and culturally mixed this day was: a delicious French lunch with the family and surprise local brews, homemade eau-de-vie and tractors with a true campagnard who seemed like he had never met foreigners before, surprise beer extravaganza at Troll Café where they have one of my favorite random beers (Mongozo Banana) and then a bag full of samosas on the house from my favorite Indian restaurant. Does this not sound like a dream? I am the most spoiled person alive.

A special thank you to my dearest honey for planning this, and to all of my dear friends who made this day so magical.

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OM NOM SUPERFOOD GREEN SMOOTHIE

Olivia has taught me to make the most delicious smoothies. This bad boy is one of my favorites, and its quite the morning boost.

What you’ll need:

– Chia seeds
– 1 ripe avocado
– Coconut water
– A handful of kale
– 2 tablespoons of powdered supergreens
– A handful of raspberries
– Honey to taste

Soak chia seeds in coconut water directly in your mixing vessel for 30 minutes. Add the ingredients into the vessel and mix.

For visual instructions, watch the video here.

You can also watch the video post for this recipe here.

A  X DE QUELLE PLANETE ES-TU? COLLABORATION

HAPPY HOUR AT LE KITCH

Once upon a time when I lived in the Oberkampf area, this bar was one of my favorite places to go for Happy Hour. It still is today, even with a little bit of a treck.

Not only is the interior just the best and basically a knick-knack heaven at Le Kitch, but their cocktails have spunky fresh names. Even when not there for Happy Hour, and their drinks are very reasonably priced, and was a core spot while on my student budget when I first arrived in Paris.

I’d like to also add that this is the sacred location of the green nom nom cocktail that is named after Shrek. I’m not sure you can get much more awesome than that. So, obviously, when miss Rachel was in town, this was on our hit list.

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