Potential Gold

The Best Baguettes in Paris (2008)

The verdict is in...

The two bakeshops below scored highest in a blind tasting at the Chambre Professionnelle des Artisans Boulangers-Pâtissiers, located on Quai d’Anjou (on Île Saint-Louis), in Paris, France.  On February 12th, 143 artisans brought their freshly baked baguette to the contest.

A few were automatically rejected due to size and weight conflicts between what was allowed and what wasn't.

The winner this year, from a Tunisian background, is Anis Bouabsa, 28, who won the Grand Prix de la Meilleure Baguette de Paris 2008.

He can be found at:
Au Duc de la Chapelle

32, rue Tristan Tzara

75018 Paris

Tel: 01 40 38 18 98

In second place this year was Fabrice Pottier; another young baker who supplies Alain Passard's restaurant, L’Arpège - daily!

Organic Kiwi

Yup - not monster Kiwi, just organic!

Guinea Hen

On special at the market were these two Guinea Hen.  Funny, is the word hen both singular and plural (too lazy to look up...)?

Both of these little things cost me about $5.00

A quick rinse and a good dry, followed by a generous rub of olive oil is how I like to start off the process.  I make sure to dry out the cavity and season that well with salt and pepper.

Chicken & Mushrooms...Plain & Simple

I was home alone the other night - actually, I remember it was a Sunday night.  Limor was out and I was just lounging on the couch.  I stepped over to the kitchen and peeked into the refrigerator.

Inside I found some chicken breasts and a large helping of cremini mushrooms.  Right away I thought this would be a good match for a vinegary and earthy sauce that could use the help of some well rinsed capers and a dab of butter.

I pulled out my day-to-day ingredients.  I reached for my vinegars and came out holding onto a bottle of Sherry Vinegar and a bottle of White Wine vinegar which I picked up at Monterey Market in Berkeley.

I pounded out my chicken breasts and dusted them with a touch of flour.  Into a hot pan they went until golden brown on both sides.  I wasn't too concerned with the breasts being cooked, just that they were golden and delicious.  Later, they went back into the sauce to finish cooking.

Once the chicken was out of the pan,

Akbar Pasadena

Decent food with good prices, Akbar in Pasadena is a good choice for a quick meal while cruising the streets or coming in for a bite during lunch time.

We were there on a Sunday afternoon.  The place was moderatley busy, not comperable to the nearby Cheesecake Factory or Mi Piaci in the same vicinity.  Both of thise places had long waits as tourists and locals alike flocked to eat and be seen.

I was glad to start with a beer as it's been quite a while since I had anything with alcohol in it.  The last few weeks we've been getting over colds and antibiotics to assist in the process aren't friendly to alcohol present in the body, or vice versa...

Back to the food - it was good.  Simple and easy and the menu was fun and easy to order from.  Limor wanted a vegetable dish but we were told the veggie dishes at Akbar aren't really like braised dishes with lots of sauce, which is what she wanted; so Limor ordered the Coco Lamb.

Coco Lamb at Akbar is a rich stew based on Coconut Milk and shredded Coconut with pieces of lamb braised for a long period of time.  There were lots of chilies in the sauce and it was well seasoned.

Blue Corn Tamales

At the farmer's market there are always lots of pretty good booths that offer an array of flavors.  This past weekend we tried the Tamale vendor.  With many flavors of Masa and different fillings, we chose the Blue Corn filled with Jack Cheese and Roasted Green Peppers. 

The combination was great and the Tamale was very well seasoned and delicious. 

For more info about Tamales, click here!