Day 7 - The Reader's Digest Version of Paris

Today was our full day in Paris and we took full advantage of it. We managed to hit the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Elysees, the Eiffel Tower, the Seine, Notre Dame and the Louvre. Because we overwhelmingly spent our time in tourist areas, I did not see much in terms of French culture or behavior while in Paris. 

The Arc de Triomphe was our first tourist stop of the day. We all took pictures in front of it along with lots and lots of other tourists. 

Arc de Triomphe

Next up? The Champs-Elysees, which is a mix of Rodeo Drive and a mall in the US. Louis Vuitton and Cartier and Sephora, oh my! 

Louis Vuitton on the Champs-Elysees

We then headed to the Eiffel Tower thinking we would be able to go up it. After some debate between the group, we decided to forego the long lines and head off to another must-see destination. But not before taking a ton of pictures. 

 

We broke off into two groups after the Eiffel Tower. Our group went and did a Boat Tour on the Seine. It was an hour long and we got to see the major sights along with some history about each of them.

Next up was our visit to Notre Dame. The line looked incredibly long but unlike the Eiffel Tower, it only took about five minutes to get through. Notre Dame is an incredible architectural feat. I am always stunned with the buildings from hundreds of years ago that seem like they would be impossible to build without today's technology. Granted, it took 200 years to build, so it was no easy feat. 

Next on our agenda? The Louvre. Once again I was in awe at the sheer magnitude and architecture. 

After the Louvre we were all ready to head back to the hotel for a little pre-dinner downtime. For dinner we headed back towards the Notre Dame where we had pizza for lunch and sat down for a final meal together. Our last supper if you will. 

After dinner half of us headed back to the hotel, while the other half stayed out. And boy am I glad I was in the early group. The others didn't make it back until almost 5 o'clock in the morning. 

Day 6 - The US in Paris

Today we headed to the train station and made our way back to Paris. On the agenda? A visit to the US Commerce Services in the Figaro Building. Then it was free time to take in as many Parisian sights as we could fit in the next two days. 

So we headed to the US Commerce Services and had to go through security on the 4th floor of the Figaro Building. They took our passports, had us go through a metal detector, ran our bags through an x-ray machine and took out any and all electronics. If that was the security in the Figaro Building, where they lease the 4th floor, I can only imagine the security at the US Embassy. 

I had never heard of the US Commerce Services before this meeting and unfortunately so. For a company like the one I work for, this is a service we should be taking advantage of. They make introductions, provide trade leads, set up events and  help with licenses and regulations among many other services. As a US manufacturer doing business abroad, having the right connections and relationships is critical for international success. Unlike the US, which is a transactional business society, many other countries (France included) and relationship focused societies. This means you need to know the right people in order to get the job, or even a foot in the door. There needs to be trust between the parties, as opposed to the lowest price. 

After our meeting we headed to the Hard Rock Cafe Paris for a quick drink, then it was back to the hotel to freshen up before dinner. After we ate, the entire group hopped onto the metro to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. 

Day 5 - The Oceanic Portion of the Trip

Our last full day on the northwestern coast of France was appropriately spent visiting oceanic themed businesses. Our first stop was to algoplus, which is a small business in Roscoff that harvests and processes seaweed. During our talk, I was not too surprised to hear that one of the biggest challenges for algoplus is convincing people to consume algae products because it's seaweed. When I think of seaweed I think of the dried up seaweed that ends up on the Maine coast. Once it's on the beach, it is dead. It needs to be under water to be alive. So for algoplus, changing the public's perception of what seaweed really is is, I think, step one for them to greater success. The tour that was in after ours did not have a single person in it that was under the age of 65 it seemed. So I also think getting the attention of youth and adults in the 18-54 range and attracting new customers and advocates is another step to take. 

Another aspect of algoplus's business that I think they're doing an excellent job at is packaging. When you are selling any product, it is important that the packaging is appealing and representative of your brand and products because it is the first thing you notice about a  product. It is what draws you to one brand over the other when you're browsing through a store. Packaging is one way to create a brand perception and I think they are excelling. 

Not surprisingly, everyone walked out of algoplus with some gifts in tow. That is one thing I wish I had asked about. What percentage of products are for personal use and what percentage are for gift purposes?  

Our next stop was Oceanopolis and I think was the perfect way to wrap up our company visits in Brest. We got to go on a tour of the three pavilions (Polar, Tropical, Temperate), seeing penguins, seals, exotic fish, sharks and lots of other sea creatures. I haven't been to an aquarium in fifteen years, so it was like I was a kid all over again. 

Let's get down to business. The marketing of Oceanopolis that is. Patrick, Oceanopolis' Marketing Manager, gave us some great insight into the business side of things. My interest lies in marketing, so that's where I'll focus. Oceanopolis sends out surveys every two months with 50-60 questions seeking to gain insight into the travelling habits of its visitors. Things like: where they stay on holiday, what airline they fly and what hotel they stay at. The results of the survey are then analyzed to identify the best ways to perform target marketing. This is critical for Oceanopolis, as they are not located in a tourist destination so they really need to seek out visitors in a more targeted manner. 

I was excited to see that Oceanopolis and lots of other businesses in France are using QR codes. This is something we have been implementing in our marketing materials where I work and I think it is going to catch on like wildfire. They are a great way to get more information to your customer without cluttering a print ad, brochure or poster.

Because Oceanopolis is owned by the town of Brest (60%), it has to run everything, and I mean everything, by the town in a very formal and hierarchical manner. This is incredibly different from how things work where I work. We were having an informal marketing strategy meeting and I said that we should have a twitter page to expand our social media presence. Within thirty minutes I had one up and running. Not so at Oceanopolis (and I think most of France). There are so many layers of bureaucracy and hoops to jump through in order to do anything. I think that may be part of the reason why France is not a thriving business hub. They are very much stuck in the past and have a resistance to change, even when it will help them improve. 

Day 4 - When in Quimper Do As the Quimperians Do

Today was my favorite day so far. We got a mixture of interesting company visits and some amazing sightseeing. The best part? My luggage arrived! We got the call while at lunch that two more suitcases had arrived, and I was lucky number eight. Three of my colleagues are still without theirs and we are just hoping the rest arrives tomorrow since we head to Paris Friday morning. The clock is ticking and getting louder by the minute.

So back to business. This morning we drove to Quimper in our caravan of silver cars, which seem very popular in Brest and makes staying together a bit more challenging. Our first company visit? Manoir de Kinkiz, a ciderie. Following in the same tradition as our previous visits, the focus here is on quality. This was a relatively small operation and they’re clearly not focused on churning out products like so many companies do. Now, when I think of apple cider, I tend to think of the non-alcoholic juice. Manoir de Kinkiz makes apple cider brandy and let me tell you it was strong, and possibly even stronger since we were doing our samples at eleven o’clock in the morning. 

Our guide and femme de la residence, Morgan, told us 11 am is the best time to sample. Whether that was true or not, the French do have a very different way of conducting their daily schedule and when it’s appropriate to drink during the day. Alcoholic beverages are not consumed during lunch in the US for the most part. Our lunches are quick and we get back to work as soon as possible. Then French, and even the students, take a two hour lunch that often involves some wine of hard cider. For me, having a drink in the middle of the day feels unnatural because I tend to think of wine or liquor as an evening drink that is only for when you are done for the day and want to slow down. The French slow down right in the middle of the day instead. With our time in Paris fast approaching, I am curious what lunch on a weekend looks like in France.

Our second visit was to Armor Lux, which is a French clothing manufacturer. Our guides were two interns, so I don’t think we got the best view of the company as there were several questions that went unanswered. Yet there was one component of this company’s practices that shocked me. For shirts that get embroidered, they use a floppy disc that has the logo on it. No flash drive, no CD. A floppy disc. I didn’t know they still made those. I don’t know if they’re slow to change  at the company or if the costs to digitize are too high (or maybe a bit of both), but I was really surprised to see a floppy disc in a corporation in the digital age. Another interesting fact was that the intern said they don’t have standard models for sizing. Rather, they have an employee try the clothing on to check size. For a company of that size (30 outlet stores) and quality, I have a hard time believing that is how they check their sizing. But if it’s true, another example of a very low tech implementation. We were there on one of the days of their 2 annual sales and the warehouse was crawling with seniors. We were far and away the youngest people there. And yet their advertisements feature models in their twenties. I felt like there was a real disconnect from the customer base and the image the company is putting out there.

After Armor Lux, we headed to the coast where we walked around, took pictures and got a late dinner. I’ll never get used to how light it stays here in the evenings. It’s still bright out at 10 o’clock at night, which hasn’t made getting to bed early easy.

Day 3 – Logistics, Tomatoes & Some Luggage…but not mine yet :(

Today it was about a million times harder to drag myself out of bed at 7:30 am Brest time (1:30 am at home) and I was by no means the only one struggling. Almost everyone met for breakfast and lamented about their difficulty sleeping. I woke up a few times, completely disoriented of course, and checked my phone (which is still on East Coast time) only to think I had slept through my alarm and our first visit of the day. Looking at my phone which stared back at me with an 8:30 time, I was too tired to figure out what time it was here. So I wound up getting out of bed to check my laptop, where I added the Paris clock, to discover it was 2:30 in the morning. I still had five more hours of sleep thankfully. Granted, I’m still without luggage, so my morning routine has been greatly reduced in time, which allows for more sleep. But I’ll take 45 minutes being shaved off my sleep time for the arrival of my luggage.

So, our first company visit today was to SCARMOR. They are the logistics platform for a large French grocery store. The visit was over 2 hours and our guide only spoke French, so I’ll summarize what were my major takeaways. The first thing that I was surprised by was that SCARMOR is a cooperative factory. What this means for them is they never have turnover. As odd as that may sound, it actually makes sense in this situation. The supermarkets and hypermarkets are the clients, so they only order the inventory they need. No more, no less. I’m sure that keeps their costs down and allows them to get a better profit margin than similar companies that are not co-ops. Another aspect of their business I found really interesting (if not time consuming and possibly wasteful in the eyes of a larger logistics platform) was that they break down every pallet to check the goods for the right quantity, expiration date and quality. As I saw later that day (and you’ll see later this post), the French seem to be incredibly concerned with two things in the workplace: quality and productivity. In fact, at SCARMOR our guide (one of the two managers of the SCARMOR company) told us that if they get a delivery of fish or meat they’ll refuse any other deliveries afterwards (although I didn’t catch for how long) because they don’t want to contaminate other products with the smell. So they get high quality for the end customer and happy retailers due to the quality. While this would likely not win you much repeat business in the United States I would guess, this seems to be par for the course in France. The final aspect I found fascinating was that SCARMOR can be fined by a retailer if the High quality for the end customer and happy retailers due to the quality. While this would likely not win you much repeat business in the United States I would guess, this seems to be par for the course in France. The final aspect I found fascinating was that SCARMOR can be fined by a retailer if they do not deliver goods for a promotion on time, which is actually 10 days before the promotion’s start date. This was, as I understood it, because the retailers spend money on advertising and if the promotional product is not there in time, the retailers lose sales and therefore, profits.

As we left the factory to head back to campus for lunch, our French group leader got a call saying that 5 pieces of our luggage had made it to the campus. Every single one of us was hoping it would be theirs, but that wasn’t the case. So we drove back and went in to find the 5 bags, mine not included. Feeling completely disappointed, we headed outside to see a van with Air Transit on the side of it. Once again I got super excited, only to see a single bag come out of it. Not mine. Apparently Murphy’s Law is still in effect for yours truly. So, 54.5% of our group is ecstatic and the rest of us are still feeling like the unlucky ones. We think the rest of the luggage will arrive tomorrow, so hopefully when we get back from Quimper I will be reunited with my bright blue suitcase once again.

After the luggage debacle, we headed to lunch with some additional faculty members and representatives of the UBO Business School. We were seated at two tables and the one I was at was all students. So, not wanting to behave inappropriately at lunch, we peered at the table with the French to see when they did everything; from eating the bread placed in front of each seat to pouring ourselves water. Etiquette is something the French seem to hold near and dear to their hearts and we’d like to keep our snafus to a minimum.

Couer-de-Beouf Tomatoes

After lunch we headed to Saveol, which is a farm cooperative which specializes in tomatoes. They also have strawberries and cucumbers, but the tomatoes are the bread and butter of their business. If ever you want to see attention to detail and the most stringent quality standards, visit Saveol. I wish I could post some pictures from the tour, but we weren’t allowed to take photos. Let me tell you, these were the best tomatoes I have ever laid my eyes and nose on. They were perfect in every way, and you could certainly tell that Joe, our guide, loved him some tomatoes. We were provided with a pamphlet that describes each of the tomatoes and just about all of them look exotic compared to what we have available to us in the United States. Some of the names are a bit off putting, like Couer-de-Boeuf, which means Heart of Beef, yet they were perfect.

While we were walking through the facility, Joe picked up the Cerise Rubis and said that when going to a dinner party, “Bring this instead of wine.” He made a valid point. They’re the best tomatoes I’ve ever had and I doubt there is a shortage of wine at French dinner parties. We were also sent home with Cerise Rubis. Too bad we don’t have any dinner parties to attend.

Now back to the quality standards. Every single tomato that ends up in a Saveol box is the best of the best. I almost felt like I was in the tomato version of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, although the bad tomatoes got sent to the cows in this version. The tomatoes are also grown without any dirt. They use pebbles and coconut fibers. I’m sure they had a lot more trade secrets that make their tomatoes so delicious, but that combination alone might be worth trying in a home garden.

On a side note, I actually felt like I understood a decent amount of what Joe was saying in French. He was speaking slow enough that my brain could travel back in time to my French classes from high school and grasp what the words were.

Tomorrow we’re off to Quimper, which is supposed to be a quintessentially French town. We’re heading to a cider house in the morning and a clothing manufacturer in the afternoon, with some crepes for lunch in the middle. So expect a picture heavy blog post for day 4 of my French adventure.

Day 2 - Change of Plans & Thankfully Clothes

Our first full day in Brest and second day in Paris started off with some housekeeping. Not the literal kind, but rather the we have no luggage, and much less important but still high on the list, our internet logins aren’t working kind of housekeeping. Since I have Verizon, my phone would not have worked in France. So I was without a means of sending a quick text or email to let everyone know I was alive and made it in one piece.

Our savior in Brest got to work on our luggage and internet issues, while we were treated to a breakfast of French champions: croissants. We then were joined by several business professors from IBO, who presented on a variety of subjects in the few minutes we had. We learned about the university at which we’re staying, as well as the history of Brest, an overview of the companies we’re visiting this week, and human resources in France. Since this is a business course, I’ll focus on the three key points I took from the presentations:


They have a 35 hour work week in France, as well as 5 weeks of vacation. Women also get a 12 week paid maternity leave and new dads get 2 weeks.   France – 1   US – 0


French managers do not want to have interpersonal relationships with their employees. In this case I have to give the point to the US. Since you spend a significant part of most days at work, having a trusting and friendly relationship with your boss and coworkers leads to happier workers. And we all know happy workers are productive workers. They’re also not hanging themselves in the office in a very public suicide, as has been the case in France.   France – 1    US – 1


Another interesting component of the French culture and workforce is that there is very little mobility. The French are incredibly tied to their home and are unwilling to tear up their roots for a bigger and better opportunity. While I can understand ties to home, I’m far more the home is where your heart is type. However, for a lot of Americans, home is wherever there is a bigger paycheck and better opportunities. While we may not get 5 weeks vacation (unless of course you’ve earned it) and 5 fewer working hours, we aren’t frozen in a location because of our roots. Often times a better opportunity means a better life, and few Americans will say no to that.       France – 1    US – 2

This is obviously a snapshot into the French working life and I’m sure it barely scratches the surface. Yet my initial impression is that I am glad to be working in the US. After all, I’m getting my MBA for a higher lifetime earning potential, not because I loved school so much I wanted to keep spending thousands to learn more.

After the presentations, we were treated to lunch in the business building. I was actually pretty impressed with the overall spread. There were even some carnivores eying my vegetarian plate with envy.

The best part of today? Being able to use the internet. Without it, I would not have discovered that they had located our luggage and it is on its way to us. The relief! I’m definitely not a low maintenance girls and I really want my things that I so carefully packed last Friday night. Aaaaaaaaaaand I finally got to email my boyfriend and let him know I was alive after about 38 hours of no communication.

The second half of our day was critical, since we’re still without our luggage. We were supposed to go to ALGO PLUS, but we rescheduled for Thursday morning so we could head out and shop. So we headed off on foot to buy some clothes and other essentials. Trust me, after this I’ll be packing my carryon very differently. In fact, this would have been a trip I really could have used some light carryon packing.

We split up and the girls headed to H&M, where I got a few essentials to get me through the next day or two. Despite having taken 5 years of French, I was pretty useless in the dressing room when the saleswoman starting talking to me. I’m so surprised no one picks up on the blank stares and looks of bewilderment they’re on the receiving end of.

We made our way back to the dorms and headed to the residence hall for dinner. Thankfully they had vegetarian options, but it was cafeteria style food. Bland and not all that appetizing, but it did the trick for the night. I knew I was going to miss our home cooked meals that are infused with so much flavor, but tonight’s dinner reminded me how good I have it at home.

That’s pretty much all for tonight. Tomorrow we head out for two company visits in Brest and dinner out, which surprisingly we have not done yet.

Day 1 - The Murphy's Law of Travel Days

The abridged version:

• ·         No air conditioning on the plane
• ·         Missed connecting flight, switched from BA to Air France
• ·         Luggage lost
• ·         Missed bus to high speed trains to Brest for 2pm ticket
• ·         RER vandalized – stole cables so we had to cab it to the train station
• ·         TGV not until 7:05 pm
• ·         Didn’t arrive until almost midnight to the dorms
• ·         No internet access in the dorms

The Dirty Details Version:

Everyone knows Murphy's Law. And everyone seems to have days where it applies to them in what seems like an unfair manner. Well, my trip to Brest, France trumps any Murphy's Law experiences I have ever had and hopefully any I'll have in the future.

Even on the drive from New Hampshire to Logan International Airport, things didn't exactly go perfectly. The navigation ended up redirecting us to avoid a backup and we wound up stuck in Boston traffic. So I was already freaking out because I was later than the 4:30 meeting time at the airport. But we arrived in one piece at 4:50, a mere 20 minutes late, to a very unbusy Terminal E at Logan. So things were starting to look up, aside of course from the fact that this was the very beginning of my 8 days without my second half. But I got through check-in without any problems, got an aisle seat and my suitcase weighed about half what it does on any other trip. All in all, it looked like a good start to my European adventure. I made my way to my gate, hopeful that I'd be able to find my group of travelling buddies easily, despite only having seen them on Skype. One of our trip leaders, Alice, saw me and said my name quizzically. Was I excited that they found me! I met our group leader and course professor, John, as well as three of the students on the trip, Matt, Ben and Michelle. We went to a restaurant in the terminal and got some pre-flight drinks and chatted about a million things before it was time to board. I got to my seat (36G) on our British Airways flight and managed to have an aisle and no one in the two seats to the left on me. I settled in for our six hour flight, complete with dinner (vegetarian lasagna) and a couple of movies. As we descended into Heathrow, the Captain mentioned the time: 6:40. Our connecting flight to Paris was at 7:25. Definitely cutting it close. Well, it turned out to be too close and this is where the nightmare that felt like it would never end began. Technically it started on the flight, since it turned out the air conditioning wasn’t working for the entire flight. So Murphy was in play long before any of us suspected.

As we rush through the terminal and hit the customs area to head onto our next flight, they turned us away and said we wouldn't make our flight. So we headed over to the customer service desk and wound up all getting onto an Air France flight at 10:10. So we had plenty of time to grab some caffeine and a bite to eat before we had to be at our gate. 

We got onto our Air France flight, which was scheduled to land a little before 1. Our high speed train tickets that had been purchased before the trip were for a 2 o'clock, so we were already thinking we'd have to go on a later train. As we made our way through customs, several of us got stuck with the one of the chattiest customs agent ever. What was taking others a mere 30 seconds was a multi minute ordeal for myself and a few others. 

So we finally made it through customs and hustled to the baggage claim. We waited for a while before it became obvious that our luggage had not made it CDG. Off we headed to the My Bag Didn't Show Up section and proceeded to spend what felt like forever, but closer to 90 minutes, individually filling out claims for our lost luggage. The worst part: since we're staying in Brest, which is a 4.5 hour high speed train ride from Paris, even when our luggage gets to Paris we probably won't get it for another 2 days.

They did provide us with a toiletry kit with a few essentials. By no means to the extent of what I consider my essentials, but it was better than nothing. We got a tee shirt, face wash, deodorant, a brush, makeup remover towel, toothbrush and toothpaste. My critical essentials are still stuck somewhere between London and Paris, so it was better than the nothing I had with me.

So, we headed to the other end of the airport, no luggage in tow, to get tickets for the RER, a slower train that would take us to the train station. Of course after we had purchased the tickets we head down to get on the train, only to discover that the cables had been stolen. So no train to Paris, midnight of otherwise.

So our fearless leader jumped in line for tickets for the high speed train for a 4:05 train to Brest. The line at the airport was so long that we wound up getting 3 taxis and headed to the train station in Paris with plans of buying our tickets here. While I would’ve loved to see the sights, I physically couldn’t keep my eyes open for the taxi ride. So I dozed on and off for the 40 minute ride there, my head dipping then jolting upwards as if I were stuck in a boring lecture with almost no sleep. However, I did get to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance just before we turned into the train station.

Not surprisingly, we did not make the 4:05 train, so we were stuck on the 7:05 since it was the next train that had room for all eleven of us. None of us had slept much by now (I think I had clocked two and a half hours), we were without luggage, hadn’t showered in what felt like forever and now had almost three hours to kill. As much as I want to walk through Paris seeing the sights, I wasn’t about to do so in my current condition. I’ll save that (and the inevitable photo ops) for Saturday.

Almost 24 hours after we first arrived at Logan Airport we got on the high speed train to Brest. Finally!!! Now we had a 4.5 hour train ride to enjoy. It actually was the easiest and most relaxing part of our 30 hours of travel. We played dominos, had drinks and got to know each other.

Finally, at 11:45 pm Brest time (5:45 pm back home) we pulled into our stop and got into our taxis to bring us to the residence halls we were staying in at UBO. We got our keys, said our good nights and planned on meeting at 9:30 the next morning for our first scheduled event of the trip, a conference with some UBO business professors. Unfortunately, we discovered that our dorm rooms do not come with wifi and we can only get an internet connection in the dorm’s lobby. So the daily posts and emails letting everyone know I made it and what I’m up to will be spotty until we get to Paris Friday, where we will have wifi in our rooms.

The rooms. I understand why they’re singles. Two people in a room this size would be a prison sentence. And while I was warned the bathrooms would be different from what I am used to, I was completely unprepared for what I saw.

Exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

I didn’t fall asleep as easily as I had hoped I would my first night here. Not to mention that I was sleeping all alone, which I rarely have to do and never like it when I must. Either way, I was so tired I ended up falling fast asleep after watching some Dane Cook a certain someone put on my computer for me. J  

Spoiler Alert: More details about Day 2 in the next post, but they did find our luggage and it is on its way! 

No Passport Required: A Culinary Trip to France With a Splash of Asia

Changing things up completely from what we normally do, last night we went with a French-Asian themed meal. 

Szechuan Ratatouille 
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Sesame Oil
Yellow Onion
Garlic
Ginger Root
Mirin
Rice Vinegar
Hoisin Sauce
Black Bean Garlic Sauce
Cilantro
Fenugreek
Citric Acid
Tomato Sauce
Low Sodium Soy Sauce
Vegetable Stock
Mushrooms

Zucchini

Summer Squash

Fresh Green Beans

Bean Sprouts

Brown Rice


Cook brown rice. We use a rice cooker, but cook however you prefer.

Finely dice up one yellow onion and 5-6 garlic cloves. Mince ginger root. Add to wok with a dash of sesame oil and EVOO. Sauté  for about 5 minutes.

Dice up mushrooms, zucchini, summer squash and green beans. Toss into wok with onion and sauté for about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Add bean sprouts, hoisin sauce, black bean garlic sauce, 3 oz. tomato paste and about 1/6 cup tomato sauce to the wok. Add about 1/6 cup of mirin to the wok. Let simmer for about 15 minutes. 

Add fenugreek leaves to the wok and let simmer. Add a pinch of citric acid, which will add a bit of tang to the dish. Let simmer for 10 minutes. About a minute before serving, toss chopped cilantro into wok. 

Chili Mirin Chicken

Chicken Breast

Sriricha Hot Chili Sauce

Mirin

Tomato Sauce

Dice one chicken breast into one inch cubes. Coat in Sriricha. Toss into pan and cook on medium heat. Add a splash of mirin. Add 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Let cook for about - minutes.

No Passport Required: A Culinary Trip to Italy

Pizza is something that we make about once a week. It has definitely evolved from the  original pizzas we made, which consisted of store bought dough, pizza sauce and pre-shredded mozzarella. We make our own dough from scratch, use fresh cheeses from mozzarella to Gouda, and incorporate pesto, garlic, fresh basil and whatever toppings we feel like for the night. Here is last night's culinary creation.

Pizza Dough

Bread Flour

Rapid Rise Yeast

Water

Pour one cup of bread flour into bowl. 

Add 1/2 cup of warm water to a measuring cup. Mix into one packet of rapid rise yeast. 

Combine bread flour and yeast/water, stirring with a spatula.


Let rise for one hour (the longer the better) Then roll out small circles of dough and let rise for another 20 minutes. 

Veggie Mini Pizza

Fresh Mozzarella 

Smoked Gouda

Parmigiana

Goat Cheese

Low Fat Ricotta

Pizza Sauce (Casa Visco is our favorite)

Bell Peppers

Orange Vine Tomatoes

Fresh Basil

Pesto

Shred mozzarella, Gouda, parmigiana and goat cheese. 

Dice bell peppers. Slice super thin slices of an orange tomato. Chop fresh basil. 

Turn grill onto medium low heat.

Spread pizza sauce on rolled out dough on a pizza peel. Spoon pizza sauce onto rolled out dough. Top with cheeses, peppers, tomatoes and basil. Spoon pesto on top. You'll want to do this quickly, as the dough (especially on larger pizzas) will stick to the peel if you leave it on too long.

Put pizza onto a pizza stone on the grill and spray crust with water. Close the grill and let cook. Every 2-3 minutes rotate the pizza until fully cooked. This can take anywhere from 10-15 minutes depending on the size of the pizza and number of toppings. 

No Passport Required: A Culinary Trip to India

The first time I had Indian food was while I was in my freshman year at Emory. I was taking a yoga seminar (I still can't believe I got 4 credits for that class by the way) and our class was going to a yoga studio and then to a nearby Indian restaurant together. Being my first time in an Indian restaurant and completely unfamiliar with the cuisine, I took a shot in the dark and ordered a vegetarian curry dish. I think I took a few bites to be polite and decided to call my relationship with Indian cuisine a good try but we should go our separate ways. Fast forward six years. My boyfriend, convinced I would like Indian food if someone who knew my flavor preferences ordered for me, took me to Taste of India. I ended up with the Saag Paneer, as well as some garlic naan and a vegetarian appetizer plate with samosas, vegetable & paneer pakoras and onion bhaji. Well I'll be damned I actually loved it. All of it. I couldn't believe I had been living without Indian food for the first 24 years of my life. We wound up getting Indian pretty regularly and after a few times I decided to switch up my order. I got the Shahi Paneer and it was love at first taste. The dish I now eat on a weekly basis stems from the Shahi Paneer but is so much healthier than the restaurant version. No ghee or cream in our Indian dishes, which means we can spoon more onto our plates without feeling stuffed. 

Let's get to the Indian dishes of the from last night. We make our own garlic naan, shahi paneer and chicken tikka masala that rivals any restaurant in flavor and beats them hands down in healthiness. Everything gets served with rice, mixed together and tossed onto a piece of naan. We also use tamarind chutney, which is my favorite Indian chutney. Both dishes start off with the same tomato base, so we make that all together and then separate and create two very distinct dishes.

Garlic Naan

Bread flour

Rapid Rise Yeast

Fat Free Strained Greek Yogurt
Garlic
Cilantro
EVOO

Combine one packet of rapid rise yeast with 1/2 cup of warm water. Add 3/4 cup of flour to a bowl. Pour yeast/water mixture into the bowl and stir using a spatula. Add a pinch of salt and stir. Then add 1/4 cup of yogurt to the mixture and stir. This should have a gluey type of consistency. 

Next, you will add about 1 cup of flour, a small amount of a time to the mixture, stirring often. Eventually you will end up with a doughy consistency. At this point you can knead by hand. Make sure there is enough flour so that the dough does not stick to your hand. Spray with a very small amount of olive oil and let sit under a lamp for an hour to rise. The longer you can let it rise the better, so if you have a few hours, two or three hours are great for this.

Mince garlic and chop fresh cilantro. Add a dash of extra virgin olive oil to a small dish, then add the garlic and cilantro. 


Take dough out of bowl and cut into 4 round pieces. Place under heat lamp and let it rise for 20 minutes. Turn oven on to 350. If you have a panini press, turn it on to high.

Put naan into the oven for about 4 minutes. Then take it out and put it on the panini press for 2-3 minutes. Then it goes back in the over for another 2 minutes. If you don't have a panini press, putting it on a grill or in the oven for about 8-10 minutes works. Just keep an eye on it.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Onion 

Garlic

Ginger Root

Cilantro

Strained Tomatoes

Tomato Paste

Chicken Stock

Chicken Breast

Fenugreek Leaves
Hot Curry Powder
Citric Acid
Garam Masala
Paprika

Dice an onion using a food processor. Cook with a small amount of EVOO on medium high heat until soft. Add minced ginger and garlic to the pot, stirring frequently. 

Add about 12 oz. of strained tomatoes and half a can of tomato paste to the onions, turning the heat down to medium. Add 1/2 cup of yogurt and stir. Put a cover on the pot and let simmer for about 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, chop chicken breast into small pieces, sized at about 1" cubes. Put chicken in a mixing bowl, pour in lemon juice and add salt, and push chicken around until thoroughly coated in the juice. The acid in the lemon juice tenderizes the chicken and leaves it very juicy.


Next add hot curry powder, a pinch of citric acid, garam masala and paprika. Let simmer on medium low heat for about 15 minutes with the cover on. 


Add the chicken to the tomato base and turn the temperature down to low (2-3). Put cover back on and let cook for 30-40 minutes. Before serving, add a pinch of Fenugreek Leaves. Serve with white rice and naan.

Shahi Paneer

Onion 

Garlic

Ginger Root

Cilantro

Strained Tomatoes

Tomato Paste

Milk

Paneer

Chickpeas

Sweet Peas

Cashews

Garam Masala

Cardamom

Turmeric

Tandoori

Allspice

Fenugreek Leaves


Dice an onion using a food processor. Cook with a small amount of EVOO on medium high heat until soft. Add minced ginger and garlic to the pot, stirring frequently. 


Add about 12 oz. of strained tomatoes and half a can of tomato paste to the onions, turning the heat down to medium. Add 1/2 cup of yogurt and stir. Put a cover on the pot and let simmer for about 20 minutes.


Turn heat to low and add garam masala, cardamom, turmeric, tandoori, allspice and fenugreek to the tomato base. Let simmer on low for about 5 minutes. Add about 1/4 cup of milk (I use skim). Let simmer for another 5 minutes.

Add the paneer cubes, peas and chickpeas. I only do about 1/4 cup of a peas & chickpeas combination. Put the cover of the pan and let cook slow and low (turn heat down to 1) for as long as possible. We normally let it cook on 1 for about an hour, but 20 minutes is fine if you're in a hurry. Towards the end, crumble some cashews up and toss in the pan. Simmer for a few more minutes and it is ready to serve.