Macarons aux fraises tagada

Fraises tagada...

a candy that I hadn't heard of untill I stumbled upon a post of macarons aux fraises tagada on Tart'in & chocolat who referred to the macarons recipes from Mercotte and Pure Gourmandise. The macarons looked wonderful so I hàd to make those macarons. Unfortunately, the recipe of Mercotte wasn't that easy (especially the syrup-thing for which a sugar thermometer was needed). The recipe of Marina from Pure Gourmandise had quite common ingredients so that was the one I wanted to follow...

only one problem left....

I couldn't find fraises tagada in the Belgian supermarkets. Luckily I spent my holidays in France where the fraises tagada almost seem to be a national childhood memory like Prousts madeleines. So plenty of fraises tagada in the French supermarkets. Since I didn't know if the candies taste and the macarons would please us I only bought one bag of fraises tagada.

This precious bag has been waiting in my cupboard for about a month and a half, that is, until my thesis was submitted and I had found some recipes (rice tart and waffles of Liège) in which I could use the egg yolks that were going to be left after creating the macarons.

Making the macarons took me about...well, about half a week and lots of planning...

According to the recipe of Pure Gourmandise, the egg whites needed to be separated from the yolks at least 24 hours. After forming the macarons on the baking plate, they needed to rest overnight (The next day my mum was a bit worried because those cookies I baked were still really soft :s). I let them rest more than a day (because I had a really busy day) and baked them in between the graduation and the graduation reception that I was invited for (actually while I was having dinner and getting myself ready for the reception).

Once they were baked, I had to put them back in the oven (just for the night) because I had no other (safe) place to put them (without them being eaten already) and I didn't return from the reception untill late. Only the next day (I lost count, the forth day is it?) I started making the ganache with the fraises tagada and the white chocolate. For glueing the macarons togheter, the ganache was surely sticky enough.

The result of the 4 days of making macarons looked like this...

Good enough for the first time, I think, but still some work on techniques though ...
and maybe on buying a good food colouring so the nice rose of unbaked macarons doesn't turn into some salm-like colour...

Last minute graduation reception

After six years of studying at the K.U.Leuven I finally graduated (even with distinction!) and obtained my masters degree in psychology (more specific: clinical psychology for child, youth and family).

The proclamation itself was quite a pityfull business. Althoug we saw more than 15 profs leaving the room where they held the deliberation, only one (!) made the effort to be present at the proclamation and I suspect him of being there only because two people have to follow on the list when the names and grades are being read aloud. Because we only gratuated after the third examination period no official reception (with drinks, snacks and professors giving speeches) was held. Until last year our faculty was the only who held two official promotions, one in july, after the second examination period, and one in september. This year they decided that they couldn't afford two promotions anymore so they only held one in july (instead of doing it on an evening in september so that everyone who graduated that year and even those who are already working, could be present).
Luckily Annelore (a friends friend) invited me at the last minute to a party/reception that her parents threw for her graduation.

No pictures from that party though, I didn't take my camera with me and besides, we were all to busy eating those delicious snacks and desserts that Annelore's parents ans sister created.

There were:
- mini vegetables with dip
- cherry tomatoes with a shrimp-mayonaise filling
- different types of chips (also with dip)
- little mediterranean quiches, halved for serving
- mini cheese croquettes
- mini spring rolls
- panna cotta with berries and raspberry coulis on top
- mini creme brûlée (with caramel sauce on top instead of the 'brûlée')
- white bavarois with limoncello and crushed bonbon Napoleon on top

Although I'm not so into last minute party-invitations, I'm glad I accepted the invitation this time. The role of the yummy snacks should be obvious, but probably more important is the fact that we all had a 'real ending' to those years as a university student.

Squirrel Hero!

Although I don't like the taste of fresh breath-mints (they just tast too minty for me), mints seem to give superpowers to little squirrels....

We saw just a sneak peek of this Vigorsol ad while we were watching football on tv (the Squadra azzura against...some other national team) and an injured player had to be carried off the field (apparently the Italian tv uses this moments to advertise...).

Because our knowledge of the Italian language does not consist of more than proper greetings, asking where we can find the toilet and ordering bread, pizza, pasta or gelati, we didn't really understand what was told while we saw the squirrel doing really heroic things. Showing only the last part (where the squirrel runs to the end of the branch and shows his superpowers) didn't really help us either....

Luckily things like YouTube exist and their even seemed to be an English version of the ad....

After a quick search on the net we found that the brave squirrel, a.k.a. Cippi, even has a website where you can not only watch and download the ad, but you can also play some games and download a screensaver and a wallpaper.

I might have to rethink my opinion about mints and put some of them in my handbag... You never know what you can find on your way...

More Boch!

And yes...there are still other people who are interested in Boch...

On Kapaza and SeniorenNet I found an ad of a lady who had collected Boch pieces for years and now wanted to sell over 200 pieces (!!) of her collection.
I quickly made a list with all the pieces I still needed and e-mailed it to here and ..... indeed, she had lots of the pieces that were on my list.

So, on Friday I took an early train to Ghent and from there another train to Kortrijk. The lady came to pick me up at Kortrijk Station (and brought me back too) and took me home to see the 11 squared dessert plates with rounded corners, 8 colorful cups an the little plates to put them on. All the pieces were still in good condition, so I payed, she wrapped them carefully in paper, put them in a box and there I went with my precious box back home.

Thanks to this purchase and the one from the lady in Charleroi I almost have all the pieces I wanted to collect. I already have most of the cups with their little plates. The only two cups I still have to find are two grey ones, but they seem rather rare. I also need a grey dessert plate, one emerald green soup plate with golden edge and a mint green dinner plate with golden edge.

Boch Frères is not only know for its crockery but also for quite famous Art Deco vases, for example by Charles Catteau. Even Quentin Blake (well-known from his illustrations in the Roald Dahl children books) had some of his incredible crazy birds decorating a sandwich platter and some bowls (the Up with birds! serie).

During recent years Boch Frères went through some changes, including a change of name, and is now know as Royal Boch. In 1994 they received the title of Supplier to the Royal Belgian Court and they still have lovely pieces!!

Boch Frères, La Louviere Belgium

Woohoo!!!

Thanks to eBay I have been able to buy some more pieces of the Boch set that was left when my grandmother past away about 24 years ago. Since the set wasn't complete anymore, nobody wanted it at the time and it was left in some old cupboard. I discovered the few pieces (5 dinner plates) when I was searching plates and cups to take with me to my students room. The three little plates (to put a cup on) stayed at home.

The set dates from the late fifties, early sixties (around the time when the World Exhibition was held in Belgium, 1958 to be precise) and has lovely pastel colors My pieces are meanly mint green, yellow, blue, rose and emerald green, bordeaux and grey.

My dad drove me all the way to Charleroi to pick up 11 dinner plates, 11 soup plates (all with a golden edge though), and 12 cute bowls with 'ears'.

The lady who sold this pieces also had some other very interesting pieces...2 of the dessert plates with rounded corners, cups in all the colors (except grey and yellow) and the matching little plates (to put the cups on). I just had to take them home too...

Next goal: trying to collect two items of every type and every color so I have a complete set of plates and cups.

Soon More to Come!

After reading through so many wonderful and inspiring food blogs I just could not resist making my own.
There probably won't be a lot of posting in June and July since I still have lots of work before graduating (in September hopefully) and I'll be spending most of July in France.
Afterwards I hope to be able to share some of my food adventures with you!

See you soon!