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Ever since I started to work, I have the feeling that my summer has pretty much schrunk to a couple of weeks of vacation, which does not happen until Mid or even End of August, usually.

When you work every day, you do not really benefit from summer days as much as you do when you are free as a student as a bird and actually have the time to do so. As a consequence, these precious 14 days are always longed for badly, especially since our yearly tradition to head off to Southern France.

Although it might seem somewhat boring to go to the same place every year (which believe me, is not when this place is Côte d'Azur, but I admit that some may think so), there is just something comforting about going to familiar cafés, markets and shops and finding the lovely things you missed the whole year because you can't get them home.

Like these.

Delicious Amorino ice-cream: they use organic eggs and fresh milk. My personal favorite is chocolate, vanilla, mango and raspberry.
www.amorino.com

Home Made ice tea with different herbs. The perfect refreshment at  a beautiful family-owned place called Volupté Anytime in Cannes.
www.volupte-cannes.com

Having already confessed my love for Compagnie de Provence products, I simply had to visit their beautiful boutique in   Rue St Francois de Paule in Nice.

Lenôtre is a very French place and offer great food for breakfast and lunch along with  a range AMAZING  desserts.
These are raspberry, chocolate, coffee eclairs. I did not eat them all. Well, almost. They also offer cooking classes which I wanted to attend, but which were unfortunately on vacation during the month of August. This did not stop me from consuming many of their sweets.
www.lenotre.fr

And these are simple candies. I love returning home and unpacking stuff bought on vacation - and these bring special colorful memories from yet another fabulous 2 weeks.

Yummy & stripy

Les recettes de victoire is a gorgeous collection of yummy-looking striped (oh là là) cooking books I found on the beloved www.colette.fr. There is a great selection ranging  from légumes et crudités to tartes et gourmandis - I think I must have them all!
They're only 5,90 Eur each and are a perfect gift for any elegant francophile lady. Bon appétit!

Home sweet home

I always say that the best part about business trips is coming back home. I love returning to my cozy apartment; going grocery shopping with the sweet anticipation of preparing a home-made meal; enjoying a long bath with a scented candle; appreciating my very own week-end beauty ritual and finally, sleeping in my comfy bed with freshly mangled bed linen.

This week-end, after having spent an entire week away, I am excited about being home and experimenting with a new pastry book. Possibly, its fruitful result will one day be served on a pretty etagère like this:

To be admired and purchased on http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/

Heaven

If you are looking for gastronomic heaven and are open to try something you have never eaten before, then you will sure find it thanks to Pierre Hermé's most famous creation - the Ispahan macaron(big thanks to arbooz for educating me!).

And I am not writing about this because macarons are so in these days and are practically everywhere.

No, no, this heavenly - yes, you will see the word heaven many times in this post - is more than a mere macaron. This pastry creation is a marriage of rose, lychee and raspberry flavours, and represents one of the most divine experiences of taste that I have gained in a looong time.

Try them in France here

Or, if you are in Germany, you can get pretty lucky here

More delicious

We loooooove good food. What we love more, is organic, beautifully packaged food which looks festive and appealing. Consider me a marketing victim, but packaging is the way to communicate with the shopper and I am a firm believer that this communication goes far beyond nutritional information. Today's consumers and shoppers are unfaithful, spoiled and saturated. The way to reach out is through a clever emotional appeal. This is why I love these intelligently and strategically developed brands and concepts - they really touch your soul - and tummy!

Bon appétit!



Mymuesli is a genious concept which is about creating your own muesli online and getting it per mail!
Check them out at http://www.mymuesli.de/




Lov organic is a subbrand of Kusmi and is another great type of tea
http://www.lov-organic.com/




Well, macarons need not be introduced. I still procrastinate trying to bake them myself, but one day I will and you will find out here!
http://www.laduree.com/




Evian undertakes regular creative collaborations with different artists. This one stems from cooperation with Issey Miyake and can be found at colette - where else.
http://www.colette.com/




This one ...well this one's for the soul. Sigh.



It's tea time - well, not just yet

As much as I have come to appreciate a cup of latte macchiato, tea will always be my one and only love when it comes to spending a quiet cozy afternoon.
There are exactly three brands, that make exceptional tea and to which I will always be faithful. Kusmi tea and Mariage Frères from Paris as well Clipper Teas from the UK.


All three brands offer premium quality tea (admittedly, at a premium price - but worth every cent spent!!!)  in  beautiful packing, which is, let's be honest, quite important :)

www.kusmitea.com

www.mariagefreres.com - make sure you check out their beautiful tea house in the Marais District in Paris - a MUST-HAVE for any tea lover!

www.clipper-teas.com

Easter with The Grandes Patisseries

Although working in the chocolate business, I am rather a tarte/gâteaux/pie-kinda-gal. I love them all - in all forms, textures, flavors and colors; sweet, sour and bitter, huge and tiny, simple and with a little twist. No matter how satiable a dinner might have been - there is always a little space especially - and with a lot of love - reserved for these sinnful yet sweet moments that I indulge myself into, on a regular basis!
On Easter though, there is something about the way the "grandest" of the patisseries of the world present their creations that makes me deviate from my habit and turn into an appreciator of le chocolat. Maybe it's about the form, after all?

What are your favorite ones? Please share!

Divine selections displayed are (in chronological order): Ladurée, Leysiffer, La Maison du Chocolat and Pierre Hermé.