london sundays: borough market

friday afternoon Z & headed out to the borough market for some delicious grubbing, people-watching, & general anti-stressing. located near london bridge in a train-station-like building made of metal & light, the market is full-up with food & wonders! in the threaded-through stalls there were fishes & curries & stews, kangaroo burgers (which Z tried) & lamburgers & ostrich steaks. pasteis de nata & fresh crepes & turkish delight by the basket. freshmade cider, crazy imported beer & lavender lemonade in fancy stopped bottles. the whole market, with its old-school vibes & signage, felt a bit like being in movie. it was also quite the scent-sensory experience! we ate our selves silly on burgers & small sweets, toasted with champagne cider, and then spent some time just wandering around, thinking of places different smells reminded us of, & of people we would love to be meeting at the market. it was a delectable way to celebrate a long week & to see a new corner of london. next trip we are decidedly going to try on a weekday to avoid some of the rush & elbows, but even wall-to-wall with people it was pretty much a dreamboat.

last macaron standing

when we arrived back in london from paris, the box of macarons we bought was almost full (yeah, i ate the row of broken ones on the train). within a day it was totally empty. a month later we bought some more at harrods. by the end of the night? gone. then two weeks ago in brighton we found a french patisserie within the first five minutes of our trip, and we ate most of the macarons right then & there (we did take a few with us on the rollercoasters & they stayed mostly in tact!) sigh. some things are just too light-filled for their own good. so last week, recognizing we couldn't actually afford a macaron habit, i finally found a used copy of i love macarons & gifted it to Z! soon we'll baking away at our very own sugar-sparks! i'll let you know how it goes, particularly in light of our weird half-oven that Z accidentally cleaned the temperature numbers off of in an odd fit of vigor & vim. in other words, wish us luck!

p.s. my friend couldn't remember the name of these little confections at a party recently, and kept calling them pastel hamburgers. how awesome is that?

earl grey with a twist

this afternoon i am drooling over these early grey sandwich cookies over at whimsy & spice. they are like british-style oreos!

cocktails & cars are good for partying

one of my favorite old-timey drink is the sidecar: a mix of brandy, orange liqueur, and lemon or lime juice. not only is it delicious, but it makes me feel like a flapper--especially when paired with red lipstick. (you can read some of the varying stories of where the drink's name originated here). but this past week i tried an incredible twist on the classic--a pear and cardamom sidecar at the old queen's head. and it was divine. there are many recipes out there to choose from--though i'd go with one that involves brandy rather than vodka. i hope you all rock your friday like you mean it!

golden winter

Z & i made this soup last night for dinner and the leftovers today were even better. it's the perfect meal for a chilly afternoon. (we add a bit of hot spiciness to kick it up a notch, but that's up to you).