Merry Christmas

I only got home from Paris last night and still had to gift wrap all of my gifts and wanted to make Christmas cards as well. So I needed something that is easy and simple to make but yet pretty to look at. When I was holding the silver shimmering gift wrap paper in my hands, I came up with the idea of cutting deer heads out of it and simply clue them on different colored card boards. I love the result and cannot wait to see the happy faces of my family and friends when I hand them there gifts.

Merry Christmas everyone!

xoxo

Pasteis de Nata

(pastéis de Belém)

(homemade pastel de nata)

After coming back from Lisbon last spring, I tried several times to recreate the famous Portuguese egg tart pastry ‘Pastel de Nata’, before finally succeeding. The original version comes from Belém, a beautiful district in the West of Central Lisbon. I think everyone who has been to Portugal is familiar with this delicious pastry but maybe not so many people have managed to make them at home, as they are not the easiest thing to make. However, after trying several recipes, I found this one which is quite easy to follow and the result is delicious.

Ingredients:

1 roll of puff pastry, 8 egg yolk, 180 g sugar, 300 ml cream, 200 ml milk, peel of 1 lemon, 1 tablespoon starch flour

•Unroll puff pastry, roll it up again and cut in 12 pieces; squeeze each piece flat and put them in muffin moulds; put in fridge

•For the cream, whip egg yolk with sugar, starch flour and a little of the milk. Heat up the remaining milk and cream and slowly add the egg and milk mixtures. Stir as much as you can and allow it to boil for 1 minute; remove from stove, add the lemon peel and allow the mixture to cool down; cover with plastic wrap

•Fill the cold cream in the puff pastry baskets and pre-heat the oven to 250°; bake for 15 minutes until the top is dark and has almost burned parts.

•Add cinnamon and enjoy while they are still

If you are in Paris, make sure to go to the pastelaria ‘Comme A Lisbonne‘ in the Marais district. They sell delicious and authentic pasteis de nata at 2 Euros/piece.

Comme A Lisbonne – A Pastelaria In The Heart Of Paris

When I went to Lisbonne earlier this year, I couldn’t stop eating ‘Pasteis de Nata’, a Portuguese egg tart pastry topped with cinnamon. The original version of this delicious and sweet delight, comes from Belém, a beautiful district in Lisbon. The other day, while walking through one of my favorite Parisian districts, I discovered that the the famous Portuguese pastry has finally made its way to the French capital. You will find delicious and authentic Pasteis de Nata, in the small pastelaria ‘Comme A Lisbonne’ in Le Marais area of Paris. The patisserie is tiny and therefore more suitable for take-aways (2 Euros/pastry). Other Portuguese specialities like fish, wine, olive oil, salt, jam, honey, chocolates & tea Gorreana which comes from Europe’s only tea plantation can be purchased there as well.

Make sure to check out my recipe for Pasteis de Belem, to see how you can easily make them at home!

Comme à Lisbonne
37, rue du Roi de Sicile
75004 Paris

Tuesday – Sunday from 11 am to 8 pm
http://www.commealisbonne.com/

Christmas at Lafayette

Just like every year, Galerie Lafayette has beautifully decorated its shopping windows on Boulevard Haussmann in Paris. This Christmas, the 12 shopping windows are telling the story of the doll Lilly and the bear Martin who receive a mysterious invitation. In each window the two friends are experiencing a different adventure which draws hordes of people (kids and adults) in front of the windows each day. One can hardly walk on the Boulevard between the 6th of November and the 1st of January, when the fairy tale ‘Il était one fois’ (once upon a time) will have to disappear from the shopping windows. The beautiful Christmas tree that is set up inside of Galerie Lafayette every year looks amazing, especially together with the stunning glass roof of the building.

Miss Dior exhibition

Today I went to the Miss Dior exhibition in Le Grand Palais in Paris. I loved to see the sketches of the perfume bottles and how they have evolved over time. Some beautiful Dior dresses from the 1950s and 1960s are displayed in the exhibition as well – simply amazing! The last day of the exhibition will be on Monday. If you are still planning on seeing the exhibition, you should take some time as the waiting line in front of the building is one hour even on weekdays, but to see the art of Dior it is definitely worth the wait!

Brussels – the capital of chocolate

(all pictures by me)

When I got to Brussels yesterday, I felt like I had arrived in heaven – in chocolate heaven to be precise. It seems like every shop in this lovely city is filled with sweets and chocolate. I tried the chocolate and cherry waffles at Dandoy in rue de l’etuve, treated myself to some chocolate covered strawberries at Godiva and finally paid a visit to the chocolate artists of the world: Patrick Roger and Pierre Marcolini! Both are located in the Sablons area of Brussels. The design of the shops and the product presentation are incredible. When you step inside you feel like in a museum where every piece of chocolate is treated like a unique piece of art. At Pierre Marcolini I bought two boxes of chocolate. “16 saveurs du monde”, contains 16 pieces of chocolate, made of chocolate from 8 different countries and the Pierre Marcolini collection which must be the best chocolate in the world. I even found a small shop that sells amazing Arabic sweets near La Grande Place. Everyone who loves chocolate simply must pay a visit to Brussels! I ate dinner at Le Santouri, a small Greek restaurant with really good food and a charming atmosphere near Place du Grand Sablon, in Rue de Rollebeek 30, 1000 Brussels.

Look #5

Look #5 von cookie-couture, black pumps enthaltend

I love to combine cool fashion pieces like parkas, tank tops and jeans with elegant shoes and bags. It creates a look that is sexy and laid-bag at the same time.

Jeans (Pull & Bear), shoes (Zara), bag (Louis Vuitton), Bra (Agent Provocateur)

 

Sunday Beauty Post

Sunday is the perfect day to try out some homemade beauty recipes. This morning I tried this avocado, honey and olive oil hair mask. It moisturizes your hair, leaving you with a soft and shiny look.

Ingredients:
1/2 avocado
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp olive oil

Mash up the avocado, add in the honey and olive oil and mix well. Massage the mask into your hair,especially on your ends, and let sit for about 20 minutes. Wash and condition your hair as usual.

Look #4

Unbenannt #10 by cookie-couture featuring a silk shirt

This is my look for a fancy night out…Happy Friday everyone!!!

shirt (Isabel Marant), leggins (Farfetch), boots, (Giuseppe Zanotti), bag (Zara), braclet (Tiffany & Co.)

Paris in Black & White

(all pictures by me)