Ann Mah's newsletter / March 2018
March 2018 newsletter
Bonjour!
My husband always says that there are two states of being: either you're in Paris, or you're out of it. This month, I was lucky to be in for a while and I luxuriated in long walks, shopping for vegetables at the primeur, and gossiping with my hairdresser. I also made a nutso 72-hour work trip to London where – amid approx 70 hours of meetings (or so it seemed) – I had the best fish and chips of my life at Masters Superfish (washed down with tea, of course! So British!) and a fabulous meal at Darjeeling Express with Indian food goddess Malika Basu. I can't wait for her new cookbook!
Traveling solo meant not only 7am Eurostar trains (oh my god, why), but also lots of lovely time to read! I adored Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, even if the guy next to me on the train back to Paris thought I was completely mad as I alternately laughed and wept my way through the final pages. I also loved The Alice Network, a World War I spy novel that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Here's what else I've been up to!
Book giveaway
If you joined me via Instagram, thank you for following me and entering to win a copy of L'Appart by David Lebovitz! The winner has been notified, but I have more book giveaways planned for the months. Newsletter subscribers always get first dibs on contests. I hope you'll stick around!
What I've been eating
Coconut lemon bars
I am loving my friend Marie Asselin's new cookbook Simply Citrus, which is devoted to... citrus! (Surprise!) However it doesn't just focus on lemons, limes, and oranges, but also grapefruit, kumquat, yuzu, mandarin, and more. Marie has created both sweet recipes – like these coconut lemon bars (recipe here), which I made and can certify as scrumptious – and savory dishes I can't wait to try like orange and ginger pork sliders with peanut slaw. There are even citrus cocktails! This bright and clever book is injecting a shot of sunshine into my dreary winter palate.
Six-and-a-half-minute egg
When Dorie Greenspan posted about Bon Appétit's 6.5-minute egg on Instagram, I had to make one, too. Coddled eggs are a great way to dress up a salad and they're also super easy to make. You can find the recipe here. Note: my yolk was more jammy than runny, so next time I'll cook it for just six minutes.
Gougères
We have had way too many "snow" days this year. (A "snow" day is when school closes because of weather, even though there's no actual snow.) Somehow my daughter and I have developed a "snow" day ritual of baking gougères. They're easier and faster to make than cookies; the ingredients are pretty much just eggs, butter, and cheese, which we always have on hand; and she loves cracking the eggs and piping the dough. We kneel before the oven door to watch them puff, and gobble them up when they emerge from the oven all golden-brown and irresistably-scented, thereby ruining our lunch. At this point I have made so many batches of gougères, I actually have the recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking memorized. This one from the New York Times is close to it.
What I've been reading
I absolutely loved writing about the history of three Chinese neighborhoods in Paris – I learned so much, and I discovered some wonderful new restaurants, too. You can read my article on Food52. (Photo above of Paris's 13ème arrondissement from @ode_aux_createurs)
Also in Food52: A few months ago, my dad and I made a special 60-mile odyssey to San Bernardino to eat tacos at the historic Route 66 restaurant, Mitla Café. They were worth every minute of SoCal traffic. On the other hand, writing this article on Cal-Mex food without any tacos was sheer torture!
Some guy made wine in his Instant Pot and now I'm wondering if I should include a recipe in my French Instant Pot cookbook? :)
In celebration of her new book, Eating My Way Through Italy – which comes out on May 29 (preorder here!) – I'm thrilled to appear in conversation with Elizabeth Minchilli at the Smithsonian Associates here in Washington DC. We'll be talking about Italian culture, cuisine, and travel. Tickets are available here – and did I mention that a tasting of Italian specialties will follow? I hope you'll join us!
The lovely Emiko Davies took a road trip through Tuscany that's all about the food (sounds like my kind of travel!).
Finally, GoodReads is hosting another 50-copy giveaway of my new novel, The Lost Vintage! The contest ends March 16, and you can enter to win here.
A bientôt!
Last month I ran out of time to make #mymonthlypie, so this month I'm baking two pies. Lemon bars count as one (right?) and for the other I'd like to try this caramelized garlic, spinach, and cheddar quiche, which a friend posted about last week and which I've been thinking about ever since. I'll let you know how it turns out next month. In the meantime, thank you so much for subscribing to my newsletter! If you enjoy receiving it, I hope you'll consider forwarding it to a friend. And if a friend sent you this message and you would like to subscribe, you can sign up here. See you in April!
Amitiés,
Ann