Links

I can’t say that November has been a good month. Except that I am alive and well, and my family and friends are too, and what more is there to be thankful for? It is my most heartfelt wish for all of you who read this. I am also incredibly grateful that the many messages I received in which you expressed your concern and sent words of support. It has meant more to me than you can imagine.

One of the strangest things when such dramatic events happen, is that life does go on.

Even as we keep the victims and those who loved them in our thoughts, we continue to go out, to eat at restaurants, to play with our kids at the playground, to take the metro, to go to the movies, to have drinks with friends.

It is a leap of faith, that whole business of hoping that you won’t be in the wrong place at the wrong time, though you don’t deserve it more than anyone else living alongside you in the same city.

But surely it is the only possible response to terror: #jenaipaspeur — #iamnotafraid.

And so, in the spirit of not letting the bad guys win, I give you some happy highlights from my November, and I wish a heart-warming day and a marvellous feast to those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving today.

Good eats

• I had a wonderful meal at Le Potager de Charlotte (Charlotte’s vegetable patch), a new vegan restaurant that opened on rue Condorcet in Paris’ 9th arrondissement. My eggplant with sunflower seed “bolognaise” was amazing, and it is wonderful to see a restaurant-style, vegan cuisine that’s delicate and sophisticated. Here’s the Snapchat story I made from the experience (more on that below!).

• I have been doing research for an article about the best croissants in Paris (such hardship) and Gontran Cherrier’s is high on my list.

• I had lunch at Le Tricycle, a micro-resto on rue de Paradis (10th arrondissement) that serves ital cuisine and makes excellent vegan hot dogs. Pictured above is the avocado dog and the vegetable mafé.

• I placed a group order with fellow chocoholics to lay my hands on organic Porcelain chocolate from Dutch bean-to-bar maker Original Beans, and with it I made an egg-free chocolate mousse leveraging the power of chickpea “juice”. You’ll hear more about this soon on Chocolate & Zucchini!

Follow me on Instagram for many more food shots and Paris recommendations throughout the month!

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A few reads and finds from this past month! Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.

~ Cabin porn: who knew it was a thing?

~ Five useful lessons Cambria Bold has learned from five years of meal planning. Here are my own menu planning tips and tricks!

~ I am beyond honored that my French Market Cookbook features in the Blue Hill gift selection.

~ How do you get people to eat more seaweed? Easy: you make it taste like bacon.

~ The gorgeous rue Crémieux in Paris’ 12th arrondissement, photographed by the ever inspiring Audrey F.

~ Loved these two episodes of the Food Blogger Pro podcast featuring Dianne Jacob on finding your voice, and my friend Elise Bauer on building a food blog empire.

~ Have you ever come across those little books from Short Stack Editions ? They’re hand-stitched and bound with baker’s twine, and I can’t think of a better trio to start a collection with.

~ A lovely interview with my talented friend Marie C. on her web series My Life in Sourdough.

~ The Challenges of Updating a Vintage Recipe, in light of my recent work on Ginette Mathiot’s Preserving book, now published in the English language by Phaidon.

~ Interesting insight from Alton Brown about choosing a passion-driven career: Love is the gasoline, not the car.

~ A treat of a video for bread lovers: an artisan boulanger in the wee hours of the morning.

~ Are you a fan of tarte au citron? Here are Paris’ 10 best lemon tarts according to L’Express magazine.

For more links and articles throughout the month, follow me on Twitter or follow me on Facebook!

A few reads and finds from this past month:

~ I have become a member of Food Blogger Pro, and I am loving the many video courses and resources to help me grow and improve Chocolate & Zucchini. If you have a food blog too, and want to join the community, here are promotion codes you can use.

~ Spicy eggplant balls, chilled eggplant soup, zaalouk: my aubergenius recipes in the Wall Street Journal.

~ From potimarron for breakfast, to chocolate after dark: Here’s a day on my plate.

~ Made me laugh: A new caption that works for every New Yorker cartoon.

~ Ten Paris food secrets you may not know about.

~ Can you protect your belly from Delhi belly? (The French call it la tourista.)

~ How to age gracefully.

~ Guillaume Long’s take on what utensils he brings on vacation (in French). Here’s my own minimalist kit for the traveling cook.

~ 10 French Instagram accounts you should follow if you like food.

~ Food illustrations are making a comeback. Is this the end of food photography as we know it?

~ Cubed food: do you recognize them all?

~ Turn lemons into lemonade and coffee stains into adorable monsters.

For more links and articles throughout the month, follow me on Twitter!

A few reads and finds from the past month:

~ I wrote a piece in the Wall Street Journal on How to Get the Most Out of Your Local Farmers’ Market, with recipes and photos (guest-starring my then four-month-old).

~ I was a guest on Public Sénat’s television show La Politique c’est net to discuss food blogs and social media. You can watch the video (in French).

~ 10 best spots for ice cream in Paris.

~ I am having fun with these French/English language puzzles — great to while away a train ride this summer!

~ How to have a better lunch at your desk.

~ Happy news: Ippudo is finally coming to Paris! We’ll see if they use the same sesame mills I fell in love with at their NYC location.

~ How to double the antioxydants in your salad greens.

~ 10 French pastry chefs to follow on Instagram.

~ Inspired to make these rhubarb squares, this vegan curry with sweet potato noodles, this grilled chicken shawarma, and this szechuan eggplant. For more recipe inspiration, follow me on Pinterest!

~ How to pack for two weeks in a carry-on (I wish someone would do a “traveling with kids” version!).

What about you: any great read or link to share?