Easy French Vinaigrette
For the better part of the last 5 years I have not used store bought dressing.
Nope. Not when healthy, delicious dressing is so easy to make- and so much better for you!
And no Franco-Italophile expat-wanabee would be caught dead using store bought stuff, right?
I have both a favorite French vinaigrette as well as an Italian dressing that uses balsamic vinegar. They are both staples in my house.
Today I'd like to share the French Vinaigrette.
Keep in mind- I despise recipes, especially for something so simple. Frankly, it would take longer to read the recipe than it would to prepare the dressing!
French Vinaigrette
- good quality olive oil
- champagne vinegar
- small shallot, minced
- dijon mustard
- honey
- salt and pepper
In a large serving bowl, pour a little of the vinegar- a few tablespoons perhaps. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add a big dollop of dijon mustard, followed by about half that amount of honey.
Stir with a wire wisk until combined.
Now, add about three times the amount of olive oil as you did vinegar. The trick here is to whisk briskly as you s-l-o-w-l-y stream the olive oil into the bowl. When emulsified, add the minced shallot.
Leave the dressing in the bottom of the large bowl, place salad greens on top.
Toss at the table when ready to serve.
Et Voila! French Vinaigrette!
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* Some other alternative for this dressing. Serve with a Salad Niçoise or over steamed potatoes.
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Travel Tip Tuesday | Paris iPhone Apps
To my chagrin, I do not own an iPhone. I have a BlackBerry. Not that I am unhappy about that. I like my BlackBerry. It is a handy-dandy, useful tool.
But, when I hear about all these cool apps for the iPhone (save the annoying there's an app for that commercials) as they relate to travel- I'll admit, I have a little pang of jealousy.
For now, I'll just have to live vicariously through this Travel Tip Tuesday post, where I share iPhone apps that I would download and bring to Paris with me.
If I had an iPhone, that is.
1. Probably the most talked about app is the Metro Paris Subway. This app offers complete maps of the Paris subway system, RER and bus lines, with schedules and the ability to find the closest Metro station to your location. It rocks!
Price: $0.99
2. Leave your guide book home and instead opt for any one of three Paris iPhone apps from Rick Steves. Choose from the Louvre Tour, d'Orsay Museum Tour or the Historic Paris Walks.
Price: $4.99
3. Speaking of guidebooks, another big name is Frommer's. They also have a Paris app, which claims to cover only the BEST of the entire City of Light, from hotels to restaurants and all the activities in between.
Price: $9.99
4. Paris 3D app is just what you'd think it would be – Paris, in 3D. By all accounts, it is a pretty cool app with stunning graphics that allows you to see and visit Paris' best scenes and buildings. You can even find restaurants! And it offers more local info than Google Maps.
Price: Free for a limited time. Then $1.99
5. Paris 2Go app is a high-quality searchable map and guide for Paris, with in-depth historical facts, data, trivia and over 600 articles. Note that this one doesn't include hotel, restaurant or event info.
Price: $0.99
Have you used your iPhone in Paris? Share your favorite Paris apps?
Now let's see what Travel Tips Cherrye is sharing today.
Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes
Today is the first day of my new life. That is the mantra I have been chanting quietly to myself since I decided to make some life changing decisions recently.
And I wanted to tell you all about them.
For those of you who didn't know, I also had a day job. Had is the operative word here.
I have left my day job and will be flying solo as a self-employed individual. Entrepreneur. Whatever label you would like to put on it.
There were some changes in the works before this (like moving my site from Typepad to WordPress) but now there will be so many more that I would like to share.
Let's start with that blog move.
Actually, as we speak my web-designer is almost done with creating a brand new website, which will be a custom design and will encorporate the blog into a larger scale website.
The website will feature not only the blog, but will incorporate my photography, which of course will be for sale, and will showcase all of my travel planning and consulting services, which will be a major focus of my business, but was never highlighted to its fullest potential on the limited blog platform that I have now.
My travel services have always and will continue to include, custom itinerary planning for Paris and Italy- which could include everything from hotel and restaurant recommendations and reservations, private tours, wine tastings, cooking classes, market visits and one day foodie adventures.
But I will also be expanding to create travel workshops and seminars teaching others how they can travel to Europe on a budget or how to travel carry-on. Maybe an e-book or two eventually.
And of course, I will continue my freelance writing.
Whew, that's alot right? Hence the name Mélange, which means a mix of things.
So, what does this mean for those of you who are already regular readers?
Well, if you are already a subscriber (thankyouverymuch!) either through an RSS feed or through email (in the upper right side-bar)- nothing really should change. When the new site goes live, your feed should continue as usual- the only difference being if you click through to make comments or click through to the actual site- it will look very different. It will not be the current site that you see. It will be much better, I hope!
If you are not a regular subscriber (perfect time to sign up!) once the new site goes live- my domain (mymelange.net) will point to a home page, which will encorporate the blog and you will need to click through to a sub-page that will house the blog. Easy-peasy really.
And I have some exciting interviews and giveaways planned for the first week the new site goes live…so stay tuned for that!
One last mention. Since my primary focus will be on the business, from this point forward, the blog will continue to be updated on a weekly basis, but there certainly won't be posts 5 days per week.
I will still be doing my regular Travel Tip Tuesday and Travel Photo Friday columns. I will still post great recipes, photos, restaurant reviews and articles about where my travels take me and will be waxing poetic about France and Italy with the same passion that I always have- just with less frequency.
My goal is to continue with at least 3 blog updates a week- with a bonus 4th day thrown in every now and again. But I won't be sticking to an exact posting schedule- with the exception of Tuesdays and the 1st Friday of every month.
So, if you don't want to miss an update, now is the perfect time to subscribe! (once again, in the upper right-hand corner)
I will be letting you know when we are about to go live with the new site- so no worries about missing that.
And it goes without saying that I thank each and every one you, for continuing to read, support and inspire me to do what I love. As long as there are people who need me, I will always continue to help people travel on a budget, travel smarter, travel light, and travel to France and Italy!
I hope you'll join me on the journey of this scary, but exciting new chapter in my life.
I'm glad you'll be along for the ride!
The Weekly Tweetly | 10-4-09
This week there was so much on Twitter, it was hard to keep up. But as usual I have a great mix of food, travel, France and Italy to keep us busy with some Sunday reading.
Pull up a comfy chair, grab that cappuccino and settle in.
Here is your Weekly Tweetly!
I am a huge fan of gnocchi. Have even made my own. If you are shy and have never tried it ItalyTravel provided a video tutorial and recipe on making homemade gnocchi.
And speaking of delicious food, Cookie Magazine offers up a quick and easy Coq au Vin recipe in their Shortcuts to Classics feature.
Linda of Parisian Salon spent some time debunking myths involving my beloved Paris.
And speaking of Paris, the fashion capital of the world, Teena from A Night in Paris, takes us designer shoe shopping in the City of Light. Don't forget your stacks of Euros!
The Travel Dudes are always getting around. This time they are talking about food and where to eat in Cape Town, South Africa. Oysters and wine- not bad!
And if you are a world traveler who has been simply everywhere, or looking to travel to lesser known places, Brilliant Tips offers up a great list of 10 off the beaten path places to visit in Europe.
Serious Eats shares their results from taste-testing 9 cheap olive oils. Yeah, it's a tough job folks, but somebody had to to it!
For those US citizens (and a few other select countries) looking to gain dual citizenship with Italy, ItaliaNEWS informs us that it may now be possbile.
And by far, the most popular thing I found on Twitter this week was about how archeologist's in Rome have unearthed Nero's revolving dining hall. I had seen this so often, it would be impossible to give credit to just one person. The info is fascinating, none-the-less.
That's all folks!
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Remember, if you visit or comment on the blogs of any of these great Tweets, please make sure they know how you found them! And you can always follow me on Twitter. I am @MyMelange.
Oh, and did you know that I was nominated for the Best Travel Blog in the Blogger's Choice Awards. You can vote for me here, if you wish!
See y'all next week for another edition of The Weekly Tweetly!
Travel Photo Friday : French Fishermen
I can't count how many times I have crossed over a bridge in Paris. I stop and lean on the stone railing every time, both sides, just to take a peak at what I might be missing.
I have seen boat-loads of tourists passing underneath, I have seen lovers with their arms entwined, picnic goers and even musicians.
But imagine my surprise as I came upon the site of several Parisian fisherman, taking a break
from their sport.
And I love the fact that these French Fishermen are drinking none other than….red wine!
Not something I would ever see in the U.S.
The same scene, played out on a boat, complete with ridiculous rubber waders and strange hats wouldn't be complete without coolers full of Schlitz or Budweiser back here in the states.
But in good old France, it is yet another sign that even the smelliest, most mundane of tasks is made into a classy rutual just by the addition of the countries ubiquitous commodity.
Or is red wine just France's version of cheap, bad-tasting beer?
Perhaps it's classier because I can't spot a set of waders or one bad fishing hat!
Either way- it's a travel photo I soon won't forget!
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You can be part of Travel Photo Friday!
Submit your favorite Travel Photo along with a description to mymelange (at) yahoo (dot) com.
