Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Mmmmm...Marrons!

As I write this I am finishing the delicious "marrons" (chestnuts) I just roasted in our very own (dum da da daaaah!) OVEN! Yay!!!

Yesterday, after work, I left the girls' home and headed to the local HyperCasino (a large supermarket) to get some things for dinner. It was late, and by the time I got home Dr. B said, "you're too tired--let's go out for pizza." As we ate our pizzas (mine with ham, mushrooms, cheese and tomatoes--his had all this plus an egg. Yes, I said egg. The french put really weird stuff on their pizzas!), I was excited to tell him about something I saw at HyperCasino (this is a chain of grocery stores--there is no gambling involved!) It was a small, electric oven--kind of like a toaster oven but bigger--for less than 30€. Parfait! I went today and bought it, and tonight roasted some of the chestnuts that the girls' father, P, gave me. They are delicious. Kind of a nutty, starchy, potatoey, sweet but not really sweet, delicious and hard to describe thing. They are in season through December, and I have seen them falling from the trees all over Paris. Wonderful--now I understand the old Mel Tormé standard... ("♫♪ Chestnuts roasting on an open fire...♩♬")

I am very much looking forward to using our new "four" (oven). I was getting pretty tired of eating just things you can cook in a frying pan (la poelle) or a saucepan (le casserole). The oven is small enough to sit on a counter (about the size of a microwave) but big enough to roast a chicken, make baked potatoes, enchiladas (IF I can find the stuff for them, that is! I have yet to see a tortilla here, and if I find them my guess is they won't be the freshest.) I am so happy to have a real, though miniature, oven.

Anyway, today I also spent some time walking around the Rue Mouffetard area, and then brought Lucy to school to pick up the girls. They loved her, and she was behaving her self quite well. We walked all the way to the Jardin de Luxembourg, but unfortunately there are no dogs allowed in it. (So far, I have yet to find a park here that does allow you to walk your dog.) Lucy was very thirsty, so C's hands became the water bowl as I poured from my bottle for her. We walked all the way back to my apartment (a very long way). We were all tired, so we had a snack before going out to the bus to head back to their home and practice music for a few minutes before their Dad, P, came home. Wednesdays they do not have school, so they will do their homework sometime tomorrow. I will pick them up at their modelage classes (sculpture) near the Louvre at noon, then we head back home for lunch. Their music teacher will join us for lunch, and then both girls have a 1 hour lesson. We've been working hard on their music this week, so I hope she will be pleased with their progress. C said that my tips have been very helpful!

When I got home from work tonight, Dr. B had made supper for me (chicken soup with potatoes and carrots). Very nice, and it was so nice of him to make dinner. We ate a good meal, and I got to try the new "concoillote" cheese I bought, that I had tasted at the wine and cheese tasting at Harriet Welty Rochefort's house. Unfortunately, I grabbed the garlic version, so I didn't like it as much as the plain, but it wasn't bad spread on bread. It has the consistency of vanilla icing (the drippy kind) but is a mild, creamy cheese--kind of like a cheese sauce more than anything.

Looking over, I notice that both Lucy and Dr. B are pretty tired, so I think we'll hit the hay early tonight. À demain!

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2 Comments:

At 3:57 PM, September 27, 2005, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sounds like you two are settling in nicely. Take pics of your apt. when you get a chance. Would love to see it! Well, we are all wishing you luck around here. We are just waiting for this new baby to get here, any day now. I just keep getting bigger and bigger. When will it stop! Well, eat some more french bread for me! Love it. Fun to look at your blog. Love, Jenn, Jaison, and Jake Freed

 
At 11:37 AM, September 28, 2005, Blogger Mel said...

Glad to hear you got to Paris safely and are settling in. It sounds like you are having a great time!
Take care.

-Melissa (friend of Rox)

 

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