Esprit de L'Escalier

International PFR - 1

I decided before I left for Europe that I wanted to do an International Pie Field Research expedition while I was there. A savory pie PFR was discussed in Scotland, but when it came to eating them, we ate them with little discussion. By the time I got to Rotterdam, I was a little desperate. Luckily my hostess did not think I was completely nuts when I explained to her my schtick. We were got lucky when we found Proef, a small bakery that Nan's friend had suggested to her.

IPFR: Proef, caramel pie
Guest judge: Nan, American expat living in Rotterdam

Now, I said I was a little desperate, and as you can see above, a caramel torte is not the normal pie I look for, but for a caramel torte, I'd make exceptions.

Nan's review: The crust was more cakey than normal pie, she described it as "dense, straight-up butter cake" topped with "clearly homemade caramel." While I saw the crust as merely crumbly, she saw it as "a vehicle of delivery." The caramel reminded us of caramel apples, or those expensive, specialty caramels.

Ultimately she gave it a 3.5: very good, but unexpected. She thought it had "the richness and satisfaction of chocolate, but it didn't have perfect execution."

All in all, we had an excellent snack, though a bit on the sweet side. (That could have something to do with the fact we ate dense carrot cake with this torte.) It made me think about the existential question, "what IS the definition of pie?" I'm welcome to any definition that would include caramel torte.

Part I: Scotland

Scotland was the perfect antidote to the frenzy that was the week before I left – the week of finals and papers and late night stress sessions. Scotland was full of remarkably nice weather, excellent friends, excellent friends of friends, lovely drinks (from Pimm’s to special beers to exclusive whiskys), and so much good conversation and laughter.

I went to visit my friends Mariah and Matt.  Mariah and I met long ago on our study abroad semester in Prague, where I learned to love her dearly.  She and her partner Matt are two of the easiest people to be around.  No surprise to me, but their friends are just as lovely.  (And check their light-filled flat - that couch is a divine place to sleep.)  Highlights include a visit to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, a vegetarian haggis (that was much better than that might sound), a storytelling night, and a failed berry picking expedition.

All in all, I was completely charmed by my hosts and by Edinburgh. 

More photos here.

Decompressing

I am back and decompressing.  My mother said she is very ashamed of the sloth the household has exhibited today, for me, though, it's been exactly what I needed.  For three weeks I have been surrounded by strangers (in airports, buses, trains) or by my American and German counterparts or friends (new and old).  It is really nice to be in a dark, cool place with no worries about making connections or presentations or not knowing the language.

I don't know where to start with my adventures.  I have 8 rolls of film to get developed and I think I'll tell bits and pieces as I post photos.  Off the bat I have a small stack of polaroids to share.  The top photo is of the Frauenkirche in the old city part of Dresden (which was totally destroyed at the end of WWII).  It was rebuilt and reopened in 2005.  The photo directly above is of some graffiti I enjoyed.  Graffiti was plentiful throughout the city.  The photo below is from an art passageway in the Neustadt, the area all the young people in town go out in.  The wall is called "Rain" (or something like that) and opposite to it is "Sun," a yellow wall.  One free afternoon, towards the end of our stay, I wandered it with some of my American friends.

Almost home

Hello lovely blog!  Sorry for my long absence - I am still in Europe but am almost home.  I'll be home Thursday, in sh'allah.  :)  I am currently in Rotterdam, to be precise, for one more night staying with new friends Nan and Luke.  I met them at my friend Mary's wedding on the 14th and promptly asked if I could stay with them.  (Apparently when traveling I have no gall or sense of proper decorum.)  It has worked out beautifully, though, as I needed a place to stay and they have been willing and lovely hosts.  Today Nan and I wandered around Rotterdam, visiting a market and a museum, seeing everything from fillets of fish to some Bosch panels.  We also ate a lot of sweets and even did a PFR.

I haven't blogged since I have been gone, and frankly it has been a lovely break.  My trip has been a whirlwind of activity with not a lot of chances on the internet.  (Plus every time I was on the internet I was in someone's home, taking a break from working on our poster project, and it's not exactly prime blogging time with three people looking over your shoulder.)  I have been having a great time.  I loved Dresden and am scheming how to get back.  I had a great (though expensive) time in Ireland for my friend's wedding.  The wedding was perfect for the bride and groom and I will go into details later.  I just wanted to let everyone know I am alive and well and on my journey home.

A little blurry

This polaroid turned out a little blurry.  I didn't mean it to, and would have taken another if it wasn't my last shot in the pack.  But it's very fitting for my current state of being: blurry.  School's out people.  I just turned in my final paper.  Thank god.  I'm worn out and am so happy this quarter is done. 

My brother has been in town (he actually just left this evening).  While I don't enjoy sharing a bathroom with him, it's always fun to have him around.  He collaborated in an art project with his old roommate from art school and some other friends, and there was a big show for it Saturday.  (It even scored a write-up in the paper - including a mention of the brother!)  It was a really cool video collaboration that was projected onto the windows of a building.  About a hundred or so people were sitting on the sidewalk outside watching.

Anyhow, tomorrow I will be running around getting things together as I leave in the evening.  Thanks for all of the book suggestions.  I have tried to find some used copies and have come up short.  I deeply miss the used book stores of Chicago.  There are no good ones here.  Boo.  I will probably pick up one or two, though.

I don't know if I will be blogging while I'm in Europe.  At this moment I'm leaning to no, as I think I'd like a break, but I'm currently exhausted and that might be factoring in to that.  Ten to one, I'll want to write.  Either way, I hope you all enjoy your June.

Twenty-three days and counting

I have two weeks and three days until I leave the country for three weeks to ping pong around Western Europe. I have less than that time to prepare for/finish any number of group projects, homeworks, 20 page papers (only one thankfully), final exams, other detrius that school throws in my path.

I need to start planning what I'm packing. A rough list is sketching itself in my brain, but I need to write it down. I have to pack in a some-what smart way, seeing as I'll be gone long and will be hauling my crap on my back for three weeks. Luckily I don't have to pack the bridesmaid's dress I'm wearing for the wedding in Ireland in week 2 of my trip (thank you bride!). I'm just going to try and pack as minimally as possible, assuming at least once I will hit a laudromat. (I believe the key to this is packing a LOT of changes of underwear.)

I have my first two-ish weeks planned, but have about 4 or 5 days between my Germany school-related program ending and my return flight in London that are wide open. I would like to spend a couple days in London, but am worried about the cost. I am already planning on bothering a friend of a friend who just moved there, because once he slept on my futon, and maybe now he has a futon that can reciprocate. If anyone has any lost-cost solutions, or suggestions of how to spend my time, I'd love to hear them!

I am ready for the adventure and both wish I could play it totally by ear and simultaneously have all of my nights booked in some hostel or another. I plan on taking copious photos to share when I return, but don't be too jealous of me, because have you seen the exchange rates recently? Ouch.

In other news, my awesome friend Eliza is working on the new version of The Electric Company and it got written up in the NYT. I hope it succeeds!

NYC snaps

The top two photos are to express my love for Olmsted and Vaux. The bottom is Natasha in Mood Fabrics. She bought herself some fabric to make a summer dress. More photos here.

Two things to look forward to

It's Friday night, nearing 11, and I've been sick all day (all week really). My sinuses are clogged, I'm clammy and headache-y, but I've cat snuggled up at my side and I have two things to look forward to. One of them is that Battlestar Galactica is back next week. (Yes, I'm watching the two mini specials on SciFi right now. I knew Joss Whedon loved it, but how great that Jesse L. Martin and S. Epatha Merkerson of Law and Order love it?) I'm sad I won't have a buddy to watch it with me this season. Nonetheless, I can't wait to see what happens.

The other thing I'm looking forward to is a trip to New York at the end of April to see Josh Ritter play on my birthday. I'm going with Miss Natasha and we're going to visit our friend Allison and celebrate our birthdays. I'm really, really excited. (Plus, I get to meet Kathleen of Diary of a Heretic!)

I hope everyone has wonderful weekends - full of good health.

Pie Field Research: Tartine

I can't believe I have let this post go for so long before actually committing it the blog. I think I was waiting until I needed to talk about it. This morning I read a Whipped post about Caroline's experience with some amazing pastries and I realized it was time. Partially this was because she articulated a pang I was currently having: a sweets craving that had yet to form itself into what I really wanted. Then I realized it was for pain au chocolat. This made me remember the last pain au chocolat I had in San Francisco and the Pie Field Research I did while I was there.

One of my “need-tos” when I visited San Francisco last month was to visit Tartine bakery. For years I have read wonderful things on blogs about this place, so Stacey and I waited in a line out the door and around the corner for about 45 minutes so I could experience it. We chatted about urban planning and Cleveland with a stranger in front of us (this quarter it seems I can talk of nothing else but my current studies) while making the snail’s pace through the line.

Once we got inside and smelled the lovely buttery, flaky aroma of the bakery I knew the wait was worth it. I couldn't quite see what was available until we were at the counter and so I made a quick, last minute decision on the slice of coconut cream pie. Stacey ordered the bread pudding on the suggestion of our new friend, we decided to split a Panini and I also ordered a pain au chocolat for the next morning (more on that later).

Stacey told me (after we tasted our goodies) that when I ordered she almost asked me to change it, because the coconut cream pie did not sound too exciting for her. We were both glad she had not. This pie, oh, this pie was so good. Thinking about it now makes me sad, happy and hungry all at once. I joked the week I was back in Ohio afterwards that the memory of this pie would sustain me through the rest of the winter. It has, to a certain extent, and has made me want to move to San Francisco. Is it silly to want to move to a city due to a bakery?

But back to the pie. I decided to do a Pie Field Research assignment with my last-minute order. The crust was flaky and it was protected from getting soggy by a thin layer of hardened chocolate. The chocolate seemed to have a touch of liquid caramel on top before the filling. The filling was light and creamy, with lovely toasted coconut overtones, and sprinkled on top. Coconut cream pies can often be heavy and sticky in consistency. This slice was unparalleled with the coconut cream pies in my personal history. Stacey called it “a gentle coconut.”

Our score: four enthusiastic stars. You must visit Tartine when in San Francisco.

(Oh, that pain au chocolat I also ordered? I bought it with the mind that Stacey and I would split it for breakfast the next day before I left town. That morning found me devouring it over its bag, embarrassed for my uncouth behavior but unable to stop myself. I did end up giving Stacey some, but I am still embarrassed by how I acted. It was divine, though, even a day old.)

Polaroids from San Francisco

My trip to San Francisco was great. I had a wonderful time with my cousin. We went out to see her brother and his family, as well as re-learn a favorite card game from childhood. The weather was perfect - in the 50s and sunny. I also got some quality time with my friend Stacey. I ate so well. So well. More on that later.

These are polaroids of my cousin's balcony. It was so energizing to be in a new city, and to be around such positive people. I do love traveling.