FALL JAMS

Our friend Janella Fox, and TofC contributor, is in Paris this month exploring the city's magic during the shift into Winter. She arrived to our home with a special gift. Her homemade Elderberry Jam, featuring berries from her northern California hometown of Twain Harte. The jam is perfectly tart and sweet and has sparked the season of tucking into crafty project ideas while waiting for the first snow.

To honor the arrival of the magical fruit pot, we went to our favorite bakery, Du Pain et Des Idées. We picked up a loaf of their brioche called Mouna, and a piece of their Pain des Amis. Mouna a traditional brioche from north Africa, and it's buttery dough is delicately perfumed with fleur d'orange, orange blossom. I've never had a better brioche combo. My mouth tingles just thinking about it, it was that good. Pain des Amis, friendship bread, is from a centuries old recipe yielding massive round crusty loaves that are then sold in pieces. The thick crust is almost smokey and woody, and the inside is soft and nutty with a hint of sourdough.  It's very complex and delicious. It tastes like no other bread I've had and I feel as if I'm transported to the renaissance period while I'm eating it. The owners have passion and discipline, which is why they take the time to do things the longer way.

It is supposed to snow on Thanksgiving day here in Paris. Lucky for us, we've been invited to two Thanksgiving parties. The first one is here in Paris with our friend Mary Rozzi, and the other is in the countryside where the local butcher has ordered us a turkey. Our village friends there await our festive crew while preparing Tarte Tatin and other new traditions-to-be.