ERICEIRA AND LISBON, PORTUGAL


I visited Portugal with my sister and Olivia three years ago on a weekend trip to see our friend Tiago.  He's from a seaside town outside of Lisbon called Ericeira, which I just found out comes from the word ouriço which means sea urchin in Portuguese.


The warm(er) weather was a welcome change from the black-ice January temperatures in Paris.  It was a beautiful weekend spent bouncing between Lisbon and the coast, exploring castles and eating the most delicious food... Like these strange white beans that are gross on their own but the second you have a sip of beer (Super Bock!) it's a match made in heaven. We ate bolihnos de bacalao (fried codfish balls) while listening to Fado in tiny mosaic-tiled restaurants, bought roasted chestnuts from street vendors, but the most ridiculously delicious discovery by far were the pasteis de nata (tiny custard pastries) from Pasteis de Belem.  Their recipe hasn't changed since they opened in 1837, and it's so secret there are two separate kitchens. One makes the dough for the crust, and the other makes the custard.  Neither knows the others recipe.  You have to shake some cinnamon and powdered sugar on them first. That's the rule.

Lisbon seen from the Castelo Sao Jorge
sea urchin!
a church in Ericeira
on the way to dinner in Lisbon
Pasteis de Belem
Arielle and Tiago at Castelo Sao Jorge


Rua de Belém 84  
1300 Lisbon, Portugal
213 637 423

MOUNT STUART HOUSE, ISLE OF BUTE



I was sorting through my closet, and I came across a lost memory card in a pocket of a bag I hadn't used in a lonnnng time. (It's amazing what you find in those sometimes, a lot of trash but there's treasures too!) I was THRILLED to find it was one of the cards from the Fife Regatta in 2008, photos I'd lost in a computer crash years ago.  The regatta is an epic trip, racing vintage sailboats for a week from island to island in the Firth of Clyde.  I had to share these photos from a wine party at Mount Stuart House, on the Isle of Bute in Scotland. This is where Stella McCartney got married.  I think she had the right idea.  If it were up to me I'd take the master suite with the glass breakfast room, and all my friends can have a wing of their own.  We'd meet for badminton and champagne on the lawn, then for grand banquets under the starry domed ceiling in the Marble Hall, where stained glass windows depict all the signs of the zodiac. How dreamy is this place?

and a one, and a two, and a one two three...

CHEZ MOUSTACHE

The Moustache Men- Phillipe, Nam, Axel, Mickael
 On the topic of restaurants in Paris, I had to share my new favorite with you, Chez Moustache. I may be biased, since this restaurant was opened by good friends of mine, but you really do feel as if you are at a friend's house when you're here. The guys run the restaurant every day, so the service is personal and efficient, the menu is delicious and reasonably priced, the cocktails go down almost too easily, and you definitely feel like dancing when they turn the music up a little at the end of the night.

My favorites are the cheeses to share (burratta or baked camembert), the black cod (despite my vegetarianism), the brioche perdue with salty caramel, and the basili gin or ginger fig cocktails.



Chez Moustache
4 rue Jean Pierre Timbaud
75011 Paris
01 43 38 26 88

all photos from the Chez Moustache facebook page.

RHUM GINGEMBRE FROM WALY FAY, PARIS

My most recent trip to Paris ended with a last meal at my favorite African restaurant, Waly Fay.  We'd come here almost weekly with friends when I was living in Paris.  Yes, the food is amazing, but what I missed most was the ginger-infused rum.  Not only do you feel warm and jolly after only one, but it somehow perfectly complements the heavy, flavorful food. Check out some photos of the delicious starters here by my friend Bonie Rose.



Again, (these places with their delicious rum drinks and secret recipes!) no one will let you know exactly what goes in, but here's how to make your own at home:

GINGER INFUSED RUM - RHUM GINGEMBRE

What you'll need:

-Your favorite white rum. You don't want spiced rum for this!
-one or two ginger roots, depending on size (you want about a cup once diced)
-brown sugar
-one vanilla pod (optional)
-mason jar
-lime for serving

 Scrub the ginger using a vegetable brush.  Do not peel.  Dice ginger into tiny pieces and put in jar. Fill jar with rum, add about four tablespoons of brown sugar and vanilla pod if desired.  Store in a dark place for about a month.  Strain the rum and serve over ice with the juice of half a lime, and a little more sugar if you like it sweeter.

Cheers!

 Waly Fay
6 Rue Godefroy Cavaignac  
75011 Paris, France
01 40 24 17 79

OOH LA LA

I just found these photos taken by Angela Kohler a few years back when I was living here in Paris with Valerie.  A few jobs she had lined up had fallen through, so we just wound up taking photos all around Paris so she'd have something to show from her time there.  She submitted our fun stripe-y best-friends shoot to Eliza magazine and they ended up featuring us in their travel issue!






photos by Angela Kohler

via Eliza Magazine- Fall 2009

MOSCOW on NOMADIC FILES


My friend Olivia started a fun new feature on her blog the nomadic files called Nomadic Pals. Once or twice a week she features a new destination from the point of view of one of her friends. This week: Sacha in Moscow!  It was really fun going back through old photos and looking up the places we went.  I can't believe it was three years ago already!  Check her blog every week for a cool new idea for your next vacation :)

  

BURRATA NIGHT



Burrata Night has always been a pretty popular request at my house. You present each guest with one burrata and lots of side dishes. By allowing everyone to compose their own plate, everybody leaves satisfied. You can get creative and interchange the vegetables based on what’s in season, I’m just using what I found at my local market. As a vegetarian, I find that roasting vegetables brings out the best flavors and I’ve never gotten a complaint from any of my meat-eating friends.  Using prosciutto helps me avoid cooking meat, which I’m fairly unfamiliar with. I like to serve it all with olive oil, fleur de sel, fresh black pepper, homemade balsamic reduction, and delicious crusty bread to soak it all up. A good red wine doesn’t hurt either.  If you have a BBQ, feel free to grill instead of roasting, but here are the oven instructions for those of you without. I’ve arranged them according to ideal prep+cook time, all together should take you about two hours. Serves four.

Shopping List

4 BURRATA
10 SLICES PROSCIUTTO
2 LARGE ONIONS
2 RED BELL PEPPERS
2 SMALL ZUCCHINI
1 EGGPLANT
1 LARGE HEIRLOOM TOMATO
CHERRY TOMATOES ON VINE
3 CUPS CHANTERELLE MUSHROOMS
STRAWBERRIES
MACHE SALAD
BASIL
THYME
BALSAMIC VINEGAR
OLIVE OIL
GOOD CRUSTY BREAD, LIKE BAGUETTE
GOOD RED WINE

  
Roasted Bell Peppers
Preheat oven to 450°F.  Place bell peppers on a lined baking sheet and roast until skin starts to blacken, turning once or twice to make sure all sides roast evenly. When ready, place bell peppers in a paper bag and allow to cool. The steam will make it easier to remove the skin.  When cool enough to handle, remove stems, seeds, and skin and slice lengthwise.

Zucchini
Cut zucchini into long spears and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper and allow to roast with bell peppers at 450°F for 20 minutes or until golden.

Eggplant
While the peppers and zucchini are in the oven, slice the eggplant in half lengthwise. Cut a deep grid into each half diagonally, being careful not to pierce the skin. Open the cuts and sprinkle salt into them, then set aside for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven heat to 400°F.  Pour about a tablespoon of olive oil onto each half, sprinkle with thyme and place facedown on a lined baking sheet.  Roast for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of your eggplant. The bottom should be soft and caramelized.

Balsamic Reduction
In a small saucepan, bring one cup of balsamic vinegar to a boil.  Turn heat to low, and allow to reduce for about ten minutes. You should be able to coat a spoon with the liquid, but do not overcook, it will thicken as it cools.

Caramelized Onions
Halve the onions and slice cross-wise.  Heat up a few tablespoons of olive oil in a pan over medium heat, add onions, and stir until golden. I like to add about two “shots” of water into the pan about five minutes into it and let it cook off. I find that it softens the onions and gives them a beautiful golden color. Keep 1/3 of the onions in the pan, transfer rest to bowl.

Wild Mushrooms
Add the chanterelles into the pan with the remaining 1/3 of onions, adding a few more tablespoons of oil. Sautee over medium heat until golden, about ten minutes.

Tomatoes
Slice the heirloom crosswise and arrange on a plate with basil leaves. Lay the cherry tomatoes over the top, drizzle with olive oil.

Strawberries, Prosciutto, and Mache
Arrange each ingredient in it’s own bowl or plate and serve.



all photos by Olivia da Costa for Sous Style