Tot ziens Amsterdam, hej København!

Spending a week in Copenhagen with Kelly!

Breakfast:

Apple

Dutch raisin & blackcurrant bread roll

Snack at Starbucks in Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Holland:

Black coffee w/cinnamon & nutmeg, piece of Kelly's waffle

1/2 Dutch raisin & currant bread roll

Snack:

Dutch raisin & currant bread roll (3), apple
(Made it back to Copenhagen in time for Kelly's class. I'm sitting outside reading while waiting for her to finish.)

Snack:

Apple tart

Dinner (provided by Kelly's housing):

Pasta w/assorted veggies, salad

Snack:

Nut & dried fruit medley from the plane (didn't eat the coconuts)

Some Haribo peach gummies

Late night snacks (provided by Kelly's housing):

Bread (ate half), cinnamon cookie (ate one), raisin bread roll (ate half), rye crispbread, tea

Amsterdam, Day 2

Went to the Keukenhof garden today with Kelly! Lots and lots of flowers, especially tulips - which are Kelly's favourites.

Breakfast: 

Apple (2)

Snack from a waffle vendor around Museumplein, Amsterdam, Holland:

Forkful of Kelly's waffle

(Too sweet.)

Snack:

Corn dinner rolls

Snack:

Apple tart (gave the crust to Kelly)

Sample from a gift shop in the Keukenhof Garden:

Stroopwafel
(Essentially a thin waffle-shaped biscuit with caramel in between, but it's super sweet. I'm glad I never bought one because this small sample was more than enough.) 

 Snack from The Pancake Corner, Amsterdam, Holland:

Pancake w/mozzarella, tomato & pesto (shared w/Kelly)
(This was the best topping option for us picky-eaters, but our expectations and reality didn't quite mesh together. We expected this to taste like a pizza but forgot that the "crust" was a pancake - meaning that it was going to be softer and much more soggy. It didn't taste bad per se, but took awhile to get used to. I think it would have tasted better if we had kept pizza and pancake separate entities. )

Snack from Dutch Homemade, Amsterdam, Holland:

Yogurt with framboos (+sample of pistachio, unpictured)
(I quite liked the tartness of this ice cream, but the name was misleading. Framboos means raspberry, but the swirl tasted more like a weird berry-infused chocolate.)

Ate the ice cream w/the krentenbollen
(Apparently the Dutch quite like their krentenbollen, which is a raisin and blackcurrant bread roll, with cheese. I think I prefer it with ice cream.)

Kelly's cookie ice cream

Snack from Winkel 43, Amsterdam, Holland:

Dutch apple pie (gave the crust to Kelly)
(I love, love apple pie. So naturally, I had to try Dutch apple pie, and from the eatery with "the best apple pie in the entire world". At first I was going to skip it, because I didn't feel up to eating any more sweets but Kelly convinced me to and I'm really glad she did. Best apple pie I've had so far. The chunky, aromatic filling was by-far the best I've ever had. I should buy that by the tons and freeze it for oatmeal topping, apple pie fillings and just everyday eatings. The cinnamon was strong and the sweet apples potent, which matched my criteria perfectly. I hate sugary fillings masked by citrus, which most apple pies tend to have. Is it so hard to have apples taste like apples? Now here's where the declaration gets tricky. This crust wasn't the traditional American apple pie crust but rather cookie-esque. Most people judge apple pies by their crust and filling, but I usually don't care for the crust. While I admit the crust was good in terms of flavour and texture, I didn't enjoy it. There was almost too much flavour and it was much too sweet. Without the apple chunks, it really did resemble a cinnamon spiced cookie.)

Sample from Old Amsterdam Cheese, Amsterdam, Holland:

Sample of Gouda cheese

Bite of Kelly's kaasbroodje 
(A kaasbroodje is basically a puff-pastry with cheese inside, but I think this was more of a pastry than puff pastry. Kelly calls it the ultimate grilled cheese sandwich, but we both thought there was more sandwich than cheese.)

Snack:

Apple (ate one),  1/2 Dutch raisin & currant bread roll

Hallo Amsterdam!

I'm meeting one of my best friends in Amsterdam today! Yay adventure time.

Breakfast:

Tea, oatmeal w/cinnamon & yogurt, apple (ate one), carrot sticks

Snack while waiting in Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Holland:

Rest of the carrot sticks

Snack from Manneken Pis, Amsterdam, Holland:

Patat (shared w/Kelly)
(Basically French fries. They were pretty good, but I wish places would pepper their fries instead of salting them.)

Snack (bought from Albert Heijn, Amsterdam, Holland):

Bosvruchten
(Kelly and I were both pretty thirsty and wanted some juice. Got this forest fruits smoothie-esque thing. Not bad, but I think it would have tasted better without the banana. And since when were bananas a forest fruit?)

Late dinner from Moaz Vegetarian, Amsterdam, Holland:

Falafel w/tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce & various herbs
(Disappointing falafels. I think I like baked falafels better than fried ones too. This is the second fried falafels I've tried and while the crunch is nice, I don't enjoy the greasy taste.)

28 March 2014

Annnnnnnnnnnnnd I'm done with school! I also just ate the same thing today.

Breakfast:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & apple slices, apple slices, pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots, tea

Snack:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots

Snack:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots

Snack:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots

Snack:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots

Snack:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots

Snack:

Pita w/yogurt-pb spread & carrots, tea

Some pb

27 March 2014

Tomorrow is my last day of classes! Super exciting, because I'm flying to Amsterdam the day after to meet one of my best friends!

Breakfast:

Cinnamon oatmeal

Snack:

Wholemeal pita bread stuffed w/carrots & pb-yogurt spread

Snack:

Spoonful of pb

Snack:

Wholemeal pita bread stuffed w/carrots & pb-yogurt spread

Snack:

Wholemeal pita bread stuffed w/carrots & pb-yogurt spread

Nike Air Max Day!

The Air Max turns 27! I remember getting a pair and wearing it for three years because I refused to believe that my feet were growing and kept telling everyone that they were a size five. Yeah, that didn't work out so well when I could barely walk a block in those shoes, but hey, I really loved them. I wonder if my mother still has them in the garage somewhere...

Breakfast:

Lemon & ginger tea, chocolate & cinnamon oatmeal

Snack:

Oatmeal w/chili powder, tumeric & hemp protein powder

Snack:

Kinder hazelnut chocolate from Claire
(I thought about how good this would taste if the inside started to melt a bit so I decided to eat the rest with some oatmeal later.)

Snack:

Chocolate cinnamon oatmeal w/Kinder hazelnut chocolate
(Mmmmm so good. Made my oatmeal extra creamy, although I'm pretty sure this didn't help my slighly sore throat any bit. How did I even become allergic to hazelnut?!)

Au Revoir, Paris!

I'm going to really miss all the boulangeries here. 

Breakfast (purchased from L'épicerie Breizh Café (in 4ème), Paris, France): 

Yaourt aux Myrtilles
Blueberry yogurt
(I didn't enjoy this as much as the coffee-flavoured yogurt. I think it's probably because I prefer plain yogurt with fresh blueberries to blueberry-flavoured yogurt.)

Snacks from Gauthier (in 5ème), Paris, France:

Baguette
(Not as good as Damiani Père et Fils, but still better than a lot of other baguettes. I think that this is probably comparable to the really good Viet-French bakeries in CA.)

Almond croissant
(My last almond croissant from Paris and it was disappointing. I mean, it tasted good but it didn't have the wow factor. Plus there was a dearth of almond filling. I guess I have to plan another trip to Paris soon... apparently there's a really good French bakery here in London but the prices negate the deliciousness.)

Brioche
(I still love the brioche from this bakery. Devoured it.)

Snack:

Brioche w/the hazelnut chocolate Claire gave me (2)
(I could have gotten a chocolate brioche loaf, but felt like that would be too much. But adding a piece of chocolate in every once in awhile doesn't hurt!)

Paris, Jour 3

Be prepared for the on-slaught of sugar.

Breakfast:

Brioche, kiwifruit, clemintine (didn't eat), apple, vanilla ice cream & caramel sauce

Caramel au Beurre Bordier
A closer look at the caramel sauce that Claire bought from L'épicerie Breizh Café (in 4ème), Paris, France last night.

Snack (purchased from La Grande Épicerie de Paris (in 6ème), Paris, France:

Yaourt au Café
Coffee-flavoured yogurt (gave some to Claire)
(Mmmmm so good. A lot of coffee-flavoured yogurts add a ton of sugar to compensate for the bitterness of the coffee, but this still retained the slight bitterness of the coffee and tartness of the yogurt!)

Snacks from Pierre Hermé (in 6ème), Paris, France:

Chocolate sample
(It was good chocolate. I liked the slightly fudgey center.)

Montebello: pistache et compote de framboises
Pistachio and raspberry compote macaron (shared w/Claire)
(The shell was surprisingly soft and my teeth completely sank through the layers without a hitch. I'm not sure if I liked how soft this was, but the flavours were very refreshing. Definitely better than the last pistachio and raspberry macaron I had, which was in NYC from François Payard. I also liked that it wasn't very sweet, but I'm starting to realise that any dessert made in America is going to be much sweeter by default.)

Jardin de Lou: chocolat, gingembre frais et gingembre confit
Chocolate, fresh ginger and candied ginger macaron (shared w/Claire)
(My favourite chocolate-based macaron flavour thus far! I think this is Pierre Hermé's special flavour of the month or something so I'm really glad I got to try it. This cookie wasn't as soft as the other two Hermé macarons, but it was still softer than most. Absolutely loved how it didn't crumble yet a slight crunch was present. But what I adored was the bittersweet chocolate flavour followed by the subtle zing of ginger only to get a blast of the latter toward the end. It was glorious and one of the most beautiful compilations of chocolate and ginger I've ever tasted.)

Miléna: menthe fraîche et fruits rouges
Fresh mint and red fruit (assuming berries) macaron (shared w/Claire)
(Another extremely soft cookie with a refreshing flavour. The mint wasn't very strong so the colours are a bit deceiving; it tasted more like a berry macaron laced with mint rather than the other way around. I liked the unique combination, but preferred the chocolate ginger one. I probably would have liked this more had I tried it first but sadly, the chocolate ginger macaron spoiled my tastebuds for all other flavours.)

Snack from Ladurée (in 6ème), Paris, France:

Réglisse
Liquorice macaron (shared w/Claire)
(This cookie was crunchier and more crumbly. Between Ladurée's crunchiness and Pierre Hermé's softness, I think I prefer the latter. And the flavour was disappointing too; I'm a fan of liquorice so I was hoping to actually taste it but it was super subtle.)

Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette tea-infused macaron (shared w/Claire)
(This Ladurée tea is apparently a black tea with rose and spices that include anise or something. Whatever the spices, this flavour combination was unique and a pleasant surprise. The cookie was less crumbly than the liquorice but still crumbled a bit. Also, the bright teal colour of the interior was a bit off-putting but so feminine and a perfect fit for the macaron flavour.)

Late lunch at A Jean Nicot (in 1ème), Paris, France:

Croque monsieur avec salade
(Basically a grilled cheese and ham sandwich, but I gave my ham to Claire. It was a good grilled cheese sandwich, but I couldn't help wishing I had some fresh tomato slices or something to go with the sandwich. The Dijon mustard overpowered the flavours too much  and as much as I like ketchup/tomato-based sauces with my grilled cheese, I didn't want to "ruin" a French classic.)

Snacks from Gosselin (in 1ème), Paris, France:

Macaron framboises et pistache
Fresh raspberry and pistachio macaron (shared w/Claire)
(The cookie wasn't as good as the others and a bit on the dry side. It surprisingly wasn't crumbly though. My favourite part of this was the fresh raspberries; the burst of sweet, juicy berries complemented the pistachio cream well.)

Beignet à la crème
"Donut" filled w/cream (shared w/Claire)
(Quite light for a cream-filled "donut". I think the filling was more of a custard, but I enjoyed how it wasn't very sweet.)

Croissant au beurre
Butter croissant (gave some to Claire)
(I used some of the cream from the beignet to eat this. The croissant was buttery and flakey, with a crunchy exterior and soft interior - which would make it a decent croissant, but I'm actually not a big fan of regular croissants. I like it when almonds, chocolate or some other flavour masks the buttery flavour.)

Snacks from Boulangerie Aux Castelblangeois (in 1ème), Paris, France:

Mille-feuille
(Ate some of Claire's. Again, not a big custard/cream person but I quite enjoyed it in this! The flakey pastry layers were still crunchy and crisp, and the custard/cream wasn't very sweet or eggy! Win win.)

Bite of Drue's apple compote bear claw
(I forgot the actual French name for this, but that's what it essentially tasted like. Made me really miss apple pie.)

Snack from Martin Yannick (in 1ème), Paris, France:

Croissant aux amandes et chocolat
Almond and chocolate croissant (shared w/Claire)
(Super disappointing! The almond flavour was not present at all, so it tasted like a flattened pain au chocolat. But chocolate is almost never bad, so it worked out.)

 Snack from Aux Délices de Manon (in 1ème), Paris, France:

Croissant aux amandes  
Almond croissant (shared w/Claire)
(This surprisingly held its original shape, since most almond croissants are flattened and a bit softer, but this was more like a fresh croissant with almonds baked in/on it! I liked the crunchiness, but wished that there was more of the marzipan/almond filling. Claire and I have been on a mission to find an amazing almond croissant since I'm obsessed about them, but I have yet to be "wowed". And the matcha green tea almond croissant doesn't count.)

Late dinner at Chez Claire (food courtesy of her host mother): 

Bread, apple & carrot salad

Rye bread w/cheese

Fingerling potatoes, lentils w/black pepper

Chocolate mint