A little off topic:
I was just in Paris for a couple of days, on my way to the South of France, and Mum and I stayed on Isle de la Cite so I thought it would be fun to get breakfast on Isle Saint Louis. Of course, on this particular morning they are filming something on the main road of the Isle. Well whatever, we wanted our coffee so we walked along, presumably by the extras who were chosen for the decided Parisianness when I noticed a very tall handsome man, and it took a bit, but I soon realized it was Ryan Reynolds. Anyhow, standing around seemed silly, so we went to two Grand Cafe Cremes and a tartine. We finished breaky, and headed back up the main rue, this time I paused to take a couple of looks at dear handsome Ryan as he was getting his hair combed and his makeup retouched, then continued, glanced again, and once more and then continued on my way up the street, when I heard "Cameras Rolling" and all the extras who had been standing around starting walking too! Well we both apparently decided the best thing to do was continue walking, and then I got to the corner and this french lady, apparently part of the production crew, ushered me over to her. So we waited and saw Ryan walk along the street in his gorgeous suit and ducked into like a little makeshift area next to a cafe, and that was it. Not sure what they were filming. Tried to look it up. It seems he was here promoting something, but I couldn't find out what the filming was for. Perhaps an ad? Anyhow, it was pretty fun. Last year, Woody Allen's new film "Midnight in Paris" was being filmed, and they were filming a car scene and the car drove right by us. Couldn't make out Carla Bruni unfortunately, so seeing Ryan Reynolds dans la flesh was much more exciting. Hope he enjoyed Paris, poor guy. Totally hot, no idea why his wife dumped him.
Anyways, if you see a new movie or ad of his coming out sometime soon, I'm the extra in the sunglasses and gray jacket who looks a little confused....
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Las Meninas - Horchata
From left: detail of Las Meninas, Fenice Red tumbler by Nasonmoretti (michaelcfina.com), and horchata (photo from Spain: A Culinary Road Trip by Mario Batali with Gwyneth Paltrow amazon.com)
You'll notice that the Infanta is being handed a small red cup, I am assuming for some refreshment of sorts. So, I figured, I should get a little red cup too, for whenever I need a refreshment. If the Infanta has one, I want one. But then, what to put in the little red cup? Well, how about some Horchata. A very fittingly Spanish drink. In Spain, horchata is made with tiger nuts. I originally thought they were like lychee's or something, but it turns out they are not nuts, they are tubers. So anyway, I tried some in when I was in Barcelona a couple of years ago, and I really didn't like it. I guess I don't like tubers. Then I tried a recipe from a lovely book I got for Christmas called "Spain: A Culinary Road Trip" by Mario Batali with Gwyneth Paltrow. The recipe in the book is called Gwyneth's Horchata and its made with almonds, not tubers. I like it much better. So here is the recipe to try yourself:
Gwyneth's Almond Horchata
Serves 2
1 cup blanched whole almonds, soaked overnight in 2 cups cold water
1 vanilla bean, split
1/4 cup of sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cayenne pepper
2 cinnamon sticks
Put the almonds and their soaking water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth. Strain through a very fine strainer (discard the solids), and pour the almond milk back into the clean blender. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and add them to the blender, along with sugar and ground cinnamon; blend well. Pour into two glasses, sprinkle with cayenne, and garnish with cinnamon sticks.
copied from: Spain: A Culinary Road Trip by Mario Batali with Gwyneth Paltrow. HarperCollins. 2008.
I suppose this is as good a time as any to mention that Gwyneth's own cookbook which just came out, totally rocks my socks. My Father's Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow (available at amazon.com) is a lovely, beautifully laid out cookbook, with great, easy, unfussy recipes. I hate fussy recipes that are impossible to followand blab on and on (That’s right, Judy Rodgers, I am talking to you). This book is none of that. Good ingredients, clear directions, fabulous ideas. Its just a gorgeous cookbook and its nice reading her intros to the recipes. I’ve already tried her stuffed artichokes, and I photocopied a bunch of recipes to take with me to the South of France this summer. She has a whole section on sandwiches and they all look amazing...especially the duck burger. I had one in Rocamadour, it was so good. I have to try hers. Yum!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Las Meninas - The Dress
Well, I think this is pretty spot on! The cinching at the waist, the flowers in the hair, the shape of the skirt, the flower on the belt matching the flower on the bodice, the way the pink of the dress spilling beyond the waist is just like the pleat below the Infanta's waist! ...if Marc Jacobs wasn't looking at Las Meninas for this collection...well I don't know. This dress from his Spring 2011 collection has a definite Spanish feel. I think Balenciaga would have loved it. It's perfect to go running around Madrid in. It would look fabulous in the Spanish sun, the colors are perfect for the city, it would look great at the Prado. It's incredible how those two dresses look alike. The Infanta would have loved it. I love it! (photo from Style.com, Marc Jacobs Spring 2011 Ready-to-Wear)
Monday, May 2, 2011
Las Meninas - The Makeup
The Infanta has a lovely orangey-pink glow to her. Her lips and cheeks go with the flowers on her dress and in her hair. I'm sure she would have loved nail polish, and certainly would not have had to do her own nails! The orangey-pinks are really nice for Spring and Summer, and give a healthy, beachy kind of glow, great for touring around Madrid when you go to visit the Infanta!
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