On Saturday night, we had the pleasure of attending the fourth edition of the Paris Potluck, hosted by Alisa and her husband Jean-Yves. This time around, Alisa had suggested that we follow a theme : no more random assortment of everyone’s current food obessions! And as she (and I and pretty much everyone else) had been suffering from terrible Mexican food cravings since moving to Paris, her theme of choice was Mexican, as announced happily in an email with multicolored letters.

As always, I toyed with different ideas for a while, and waited until the very last minute to decide what I was going to make. I asked Alisa what everyone was bringing, and she told me that appetizers and main courses were well covered, so a dessert would round out the menu nicely. I’ve never been a big fan of the desserts they served at Mexican restaurants in California (much less in Paris, where the Mexican restaurants I’ve tried are an insult to Mexican cuisine), so I decided to just come up with my own idea of a Mexican dessert.

So. Mexican dessert… Inspiration struck : chocolate and chili are both very Mexican, right? How about adding ground chili to my dear melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cake? And since this is a very rich cake and my petit-four silicon molds are begging to be used, stomping their tiny little feet in my kitchen cabinet, how about baking mini bites of chocolate and chili cake?

And so after a fabulous Mexican food bonanza — margaritas, three kinds of salsa, guacamole, tortilla chips, two kinds of enchiladas, chicken mole, spicy shrimp, zucchini and corn salad, cactus salad, refried beans, oh how I missed you guys — desserts were brought to the table : a delicious lime pie, wonderful crepes with pecans and homemade dulce de leche, and a bowl of my Chocolate and Chili Bites.

Those little bites are a delightful rollercoaster in taste. You pick one up, study it with curiosity because you’ve been told there’s chili in there, but it looks harmless enough so you pop it into your mouth. At first, all you’re aware of is the moist and intensely flavorful chocolate cake, with its little crusty top. And then, as an afterthought, just when you’re starting to wonder well, where did the chili go, there it comes, and a miniature heatwave invades your mouth. And as your palate tingles, you have to laugh at the spicy little trick that’s just been played on your tastebuds, and hop gaily onto the rollercoaster again.

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On a night of ravenous hunger, decide that what you want is something warm soft and tasty with a little crunch, to be eaten in a bowl with a spoon, curled up on the couch and reading a magazine.

No need to forage through your kitchen cabinets, you know precisely what will hit the spot.

Wash and slice three zucchini thinly with your magnificent mandoline. Sauté in a bit of olive oil, with lots of herbs and just enough salt to bring out the zucchini flavor.

Heat up a small skillet and dry-toast two handfuls of pinenuts which you purchased in bulk at G.Detou — thinking then “how am I ever going to use this up”, thinking now “uh-oh, need to get some more”. Send some warm thoughts in the general direction of your sister, whose eyes light up and sparkle at the mere mention of the words pignons de pin.

Bring water to a boil, and dump in some Fregola Sarda, those small dot-shaped pasta grains that your friends brought you back from Rome, and which turn out to be the tastiest little pillows of pasta goodness ever, plump and soft between your teeth. Cook them for a random amount of time since the package does not say; wait until the pasta gets just to the point of tenderness or until you decide that you simply must. eat. now.

Drain the pasta and toss with the zucchini slices and pinenuts. Grate liberal amounts of parmesan on top, making sure your eagerness doesn’t cause you to scrape the tips of your fingers on your extra sharp cheese grater. Toss again, ladle a generous helping into a pretty bowl, do that curling-up-in-the-small-of-the-couch thing you do so well, balance your magazine on your knees, and dig in joyfully with little murmurs of delight.

And when you’re done, smile a contented smile and cherish the thought that you have another serving for lunch the next day…

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Oeuf à la Coque, Mouillettes Rouges

The Oeuf à la Coque: one of the simplest pleasures in life.

It is the easiest thing to make — although, believe it or not, I have to ask Maxence every time how long the egg should be boiled for — and conveniently single-serving if you want it to be.

It is fun to crack and pop its little hat open, and it is also the best companion to a few mouillettes. Mouillettes? Yes, those little fingers of toasted bread, a small set of edible cutlery with which to stir, mop and thoroughly enjoy the inside of your egg.

Mouillettes are traditionally spread with butter (preferably salted), but the concept is more than open to variations, and you should absolutely feel free to dress your mouillettes with whatever apparel strikes your fancy. Eggs are such easy-to-please, lenient little fellows.

The Oeuf à la Coque is also, undoubtedly, the king of egg dishes. I mean, what other egg dish requires the use of its own little throne, the royal coquetier, giving me the occasion and joy of whipping out my designer egg cup, complete with matching spoon and integrated salt dispenser?

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“- Bonjour madame la boulangère! I would like to buy a cake for my blog.
– What a lucky blog! Is this a special occasion?
– Why yes, it is my blog’s first birthday!
– My my my, how time flies! I remember your blog from when it was just a wee little baby blog, with just a handful of posts — and now it’s one year-old already?
– Yes, I am very proud, and I think it would very much like to celebrate with a cake. Something small something chocolate, something pretty something yummy! What can you suggest?
– Well, we have this chocolate and caramel cake, we have this chocolate and praline cake, we have this chocolate and green tea cake, and we have this chocolate and chocolate cake.
– Oh, they are all so very pretty and look so very yummy, it’s hard to choose… what is your favorite?
– I think I like the chocolate and chocolate best.
– That sounds like a good choice by all standards, we’ll have one of these!”

And so, we put the little cake on a plate. And lit a candle. And sang a birthday song. And blew the candle. And drank a little wine. And ate the little cake. Happy Birthday Chocolate & Zucchini!

And thank you all, dear readers, whether you’re a long-time visitor, newly on board, or just passing by — thanks for reading what I have to say, thanks for your comments and support. Chocolate & Zucchini is a fabulous adventure for me, but it would, of course, be nothing without you.

And since no birthday is quite complete without a birthday gift, I have decided to open forums on Chocolate & Zucchini! I receive the visit of so many interesting people (yes, that would be you) with so many interests in common, I thought it would be a good idea to give you a place to meet, chat and share all the wonderful things you have to say! So go ahead, take a little tour, make yourself comfortable, ask questions, give advice, discuss recipes, cookbooks, restaurants, tips, techniques, ideas, inspirations!

But wait, there’s more! No birthday is quite complete without a party either, so I am also throwing a Chocolate & Zucchini Birthday Party! Mark your calendars : the party will be on Monday, October the 18th, and it will be hosted by my chef-friend Nicolas Vagnon at his restaurant La Table de Lucullus. You are all warmly invited to come, and I will be positively delighted to meet you.

Here are the details : participation will be 30€ per guest (payable when you’re there), and that will get you dinner and wine, selected and prepared by Nicolas and yours truly. If you would like to come, let me start by doing a little happy dance, and then ask you to please email me before the 8th of October with your name, phone number, and the number of people who will be coming with you!