Petit Paris Patisserie

A Neighborhood You HAVE to Come To!!

Monday, September 12, 2016

On September 11, 2016, my Mom and I explored Astoria. We were craving our favorite carb, noodles. Pye Boat Noodle sounded like an authentic place that stuck to its roots. By taking public transportation, we were off to start an amazing journey, something we didn't know in the beginning.

When we arrived, the restaurant didn't open yet. So we decided to stroll through the neighborhood to kill the time. My Mom and I came to realization that Astoria had a lot of different restaurants, and each had a different variety of food from a different country. Many of the restaurants also had outdoor seating! It looked liked a whole other Manhattan, less crowded, of course. Also unlike Manhattan, Astoria had blocks and blocks filled with food! After that stroll, my Mom and I knew it was a must to come back to this neighborhood!

We were led through the restaurant by the waiter. As we were walking through the restaurant, I noticed that it was a really vintage place. Most of the seating was wood. At that moment, I knew that I would love this restaurant. There was also a sign that said" We Love Spicy". The seating outdoors was magnificent! Chairs and tables were surrounding a little rectangular pond. I mean, what's not to love?

When we were given the menu, I was so confused. Everything on the menu looked delicious! After five minutes of flipping through the menu (which might have been a long time for the waiters just standing patiently outside), I decided to have the Boat Rice Noodle with Pork and a Pork Broth, (it has a different name on the menu but I forgot the name. Yikes!) my Mom decided to have the Baa Mee Moo Dang, egg noodles with crab meat and roasted pork. We ordered Deep Fried Quail Eggs as an appetizer.

Our appetizer came quickly. Hmmm... the skin (wonton skin) was so crisp and the egg was so soft! They were definitely generous with the sauce and the serving size! A moment later, our main course came. I spooned the broth and sipped it. It was so flavorful and spicy! Not too spicy for me, but you could taste the spice. The dish had three types of pork, deep fried pork skin(hmm..), sliced pork, and minced pork. The rice noodle was splendid and the soup complimented all the elements of the dish.

The Baa Mee Moo Dang came with a generous serving of veggies. Yay! What makes this dish different is the combination of pork and crab meat as topping that's probably not offered in many noodle restaurants. Of course my mom had to add chili to it before she digged into it. We walked out knowing that we would come back soon.

We walked for about 30 minutes and stumbled upon a frozen yogurt place that also sold ice cream rolls. My Mom and I have been wanting to try ice cream rolls, so we walked in and gave it a try. We ordered the Green Tea Ice Cream Roll(of course). The process was interesting. It wasn't like how you would make regular ice cream. We got to choose three toppings so we chose mango, peanuts, and dark chocolate chips. My Mom and I dug in. Oooohhhh, how heavenly it tasted! It was a really big portion though! Good thing my Mom and I shared it. We were so full after that!

The trip altogether was fantastic! We were really lucky all the places we ate at gave us big serving sizes to fill our stomachs! Astoria really is a hidden gem. I'll definitely come back to Astoria for more food adventures!

Keep checking for more food adventures and recipes! Have a great day!

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Deep Fried Buttermilk Chicken

Sunday, April 3, 2016

This dish is the perfect fried chicken! Whether made on a special day or just a regular day, you'll definitely enjoy this dish.

For the brine:

1 small onion, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, smashed flat
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons kosher salt
5-6 branches rosemary
4 1/2 cups water
half a lemon

For the chicken:

8 chicken legs, drumsticks and thighs separated
8 wings, tips removed
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
2 tablespoons sea salt
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 cups buttermilk
Canola oil
Rosemary sprigs

To make the brine:

Saute the onion and garlic until translucent. Add the kosher salt and rosemary. Add the water and lemon juice. Bring the water to a simmer, stir to dissolve the salt. Remove from the heat and cool. Refrigerate until chilled.

Place the chicken in the brine and refrigerate for at least 8 hours up to 24 hours.

Remove the chicken from the brine and rinse it under cold water. Pat the chicken dry and place on a cooling rack or paper towels.

Combine the flour, black pepper, paprika, salt, cayenne, and baking powder in a bowl. Whisk and divide the mixture into two bowls. Pour the buttermilk in a third bowl.

Heat the oil in a deep-sided pan. Dredge the chicken in the seasoned flour, then dredge in buttermilk and then dredge it in the other bowl of seasoned flour. Place in the oil and repeat with the remaining chicken. Fry until golden brown, turning pieces occasionally. Remove to a cool rack and allow to rest. Serve with rosemary and lemon zest.

Enjoy!

comments: 1

Strawberry Shortcake Recipe

Sunday, March 27, 2016

Here's the recipe to a wonderful, delicious and sweet treat you can make at home. Strawberry shortcakes are simple but delicious. Whipped cream is optional for non-whipped cream lovers (like me).

Ingredients:

Biscuits:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 tablespoons (85g) chilled, unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
2 hard-boiled egg yolks, pushed through a small mesh sieve
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Strawberries:

3 pints (1kg) fresh strawberries, cut any way you want
2 tablespoons sugar (optional)

Whipped Cream (optional):

1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar

Steps to make the biscuits:

Sift together the flour,1/4 cup sugar, and the baking powder. Add the butter and rub it into the flour until you have a texture of coarse crumbs. Add the eggs and cream and gently mix it until the dough comes together.

Turn the dough on a lightly floured board and knead it to make a smooth dough. Pat down the dough to make a 1 inch thick round. Use a lightly floured 2 1/2 inch round cookie cutter, cut out the shortcakes. Brush the shortcakes with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar. Place the shortcakes on a plate lined with waxed paper and refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line your baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer the shortcakes onto the sheet. Bake it in the oven for 12-15 minutes until golden and firm. Let it cool.

To make the strawberries, mix the strawberries and sugar. ( you don't have to add the sugar and just use the strawberries)

Whip the cream and sugar together until the cream thickens.

Cut the shortcakes in half lengthwise. Place the bottom halves on dessert plates and spoon the macerated fruit and juices over them. Top with whipped cream. Top with the top halves of the shortcakes and serve.

Enjoy!

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Discovering Amazing Foods

Monday, November 16, 2015

Today November 15,2015, my Mom and I walked around the city. We tried a new restaurant called Indikitch. I had spotted this restaurant on the way back to school from a trip to Manhattan.

When we walked in, it was a big seating and it had light. However as you walked in deeper, the environment was dark. We looked at the menu and ordered. We realized the restaurant was like Chipotle, you got to choose a feast or rice. Here is the link to the menu. http://indikitch.com

I ordered the pulled pork Briyani. It was a huge portion! Surprisingly, I finished it! I think it was a great dish. It had a combination of something crunchy and a little sweet. I liked my dish and would definitely would recommend it. My Mom ordered the spicy fish salad. As usual, she ordered her dish extra spicy and she told me that it STILL was not spicy enough for her taste, but could be spicy for others' taste. So she was OK with that, because she can really tolerate spiciness to a level that's not even funny. She also said that she liked her salad because the salad was fresh, the fish was wonderful with an appropriate level of sourness. The serving size was perfect.

We ordered samosas as a side. The samosa had a lot of filling, which is great! We thought that the samosa could be a little hotter. There could have been more selections like chicken or beef samosa. It would've had been better if there was more crust in it though. They were generous enough to give us a lot of sauce!

Overall, I would rate this restaurant 4.5 out of 5 because the food was great, but the environment could be better. The place could have more light.

After lunch we explored some shops and my Mom and I walked to 19th street and bought a box of doughnuts from a place called Dough. This is the link if you would like the address: http://www.yelp.com/biz/dough-brooklyn

The box contains four doughnuts so we bought the chocolate banana, cinnamon sugar, apple and hibiscus doughnuts. The chocolate banana doughnut tasted great! It wasn't too sweet and had a crunch in it. You could really taste the banana. A warning though, your hands would be chocolatey after that. The cinnamon sugar doughnut is a classic doughnut, soft and chewy and would be a good companion for a cup of coffee. Too bad the place is too small with a very limited seating space. We were thinking to take a few minutes to just sit and enjoyed our doughnuts but it was impossible with this tiny space. So we enjoyed the doughnuts in the park.

I would rate Dough 4/5. The seating could be larger. The doughnuts were extraordinary.

After a long day, I went home feeling full and tired. I definitely hope you will try these places! Indikitch is a great place to enjoy lunch by yourself or with a friend. Dough is a great place to buy doughnuts as a snack on the way home from work.

Keep checking the blog for more reviews, recipes and more!

comments: 1

An Amazing French Restaurant "Bliss 46 Bistro"

Saturday, July 4, 2015

On July 3rd, 2015, my Mom and I went to a neighborhood called Sunnyside. It is located in New York. We went to try this French restaurant named Bliss 46 Bistro for dinner. The restaurant is quite small but the food is really bold and flavorful.

The first entree we got was some bread with butter. Then after about 20 minutes, we finally got our food. I ordered the Coq Au Vin. My Mom ordered a salad and a wild mushroom ravioli dish. The Coq Au Vin was amazing. The sauce was thick and creamy.

Debbie Wibowo, the photographer of this blog, and also my Mom, says a few words about the restaurant: " The location is convenient as it's close to the subway station. The staff are friendly and we love the atmosphere there. We ordered Coq Au Vain, a salad, and wild mushroom ravioli. All dishes are delicious! The coq au vain came in three pieces with an abundant mashed potato, and rich sauce. Salad is fresh. We ordered profitlores for dessert and it was good too. The only reason I didn't give a 5 star is because the bread could be warmer, the butter could be smoother and should melt in the bread, and that the ice cream in profitelores should be colder and harder so it won't melt as soon as the plate arrives in your table. But overall, this is a good restaurant with great food and we will definitely come back."

I definitely recommend this place. The service is great and so is the food. We will definitely come back. You should really go to this restaurant! Here's the address:

43-46 46th St
Sunnyside, NY 11104

Hope you enjoyed reading! Please keep checking the blog for more updates!