Ann Mah's newsletter / February 2020
February 2020 newsletter
Bonjour!
I love to go running in the Champ de Mars and the late dawn of winter mornings means I often catch the sunrise. The park is usually empty and calm at that time, so I was surprised the other day when I ran into two women screaming at each other at the top of their lungs. It turns out that one was accusing the other of not picking up her dog's poop (which, as a park frequenter, seemed highly plausible to me!). I half wanted to award the accuser with gold stars, half wanted to stick around and watch how it all went down... but my sense of propriety got the better of me and I ran on.
As you might have guessed, I'm in Paris for a bit! I'm here on a writing retreat, which sounds glamorous but basically means I never go outside! I've been surviving on Picard and chipping away at my next book, inch by tortuous inch. (Writing books is tedious and not worth talking about; reading them is fun.)
Here's what else I've been up to...
What I've been eating
–Miznon is one of my favorite restaurants in Paris, and I especially love their whole roasted cauliflower. So I was thrilled to find a recipe to make it MYSELF in Ottolenghi's Simple (which, sidenote, is also the first Ottolenghi cookbook I've ever really loved). If you don't have the book, the recipe is here: Roasted with cauliflower with crème fraîche.
–It's cassoulet season and I was thrilled to share my recipe with The Kitchn. It takes four days – and it is totally worth it. (IMHO)
–Writing about Grenoble, the ancient capital of the French Dauphiné, has me craving gratin Dauphinois like nobody's business. This recipe from Chocolate and Zucchini is ace.
What I've been reading
–This BBC article on a doctor who hid two Jewish girls during World War II in Val d'Isère – and the town's continuing willful ignorance of his actions and their role – illustrates the lingering shame of World War II.
–Home-cooked multicultural meals made by immigrants and refugees, delivered to your house. It's called Foodhini and I just learned about it from a friend. If you're in the Washington DC area, check it out!
–I laughed and cried reading this Washington Post essay from author JJ Goode on feeding his kids: As a cookbook writer, I just knew my children would be good eaters. Then they were born.
–If you've ever wondered about toilets in post-war France (oh, is it just me?) this Chicago Journals article is everything: The French hygiene offensive of the 1950s.
–My beloved American Library in Paris is kicking off its centennial celebration with a very special event: music, dinner, and cocktails in The Library AFTER DARK. Ooooh!
And finally, a few new books from friends:
Cartier's Hope by MJ Rose is a novel about the Hope diamond, whose unlucky reputation may have been fabricated for media attention.
Murder in Bel Air, Cara Black's 19th installment of the Aimée Leduc mystery series, is now in paperback.
David Lebovitz's new book Drinking French – covering all French drinks from dawn to dusk, from coffee to cognac – is coming out March 3 but you can preorder now!
A bientôt
Much like Robert Frost might have written:
The woods (this newsletter) is lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go (many words of the new novel to write) before I sleep.
Farewell friends and see you next month! Until then come find me on Instagram to check out the 20 minutes per day I allow myself to go outside ;)
XO,
Ann