tarte flambee.

do you know tarte fambée? it's a french pizza from alsace. traditionally with crème fraîche, bacon and onions on an extra thin crust. it's super simple to make and so delicious. i know, i probably say that about all the recipes i share with you. but don't we all just like easy recipes that are super yummy? i usually have everything on hand what i need to make a traditional tarte flambée. but sometimes i like to add a couple extra things to change it up. my personal favorite these days is the asparagus version [pictured above].

For the dough

[makes one extra thin baking sheet sized crust or one regular thin/thick pizza pan crust ø 11-inches - half toppings for the round pizza sized tarte]

• 1 cup + 2 tbs flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tbs olive oil
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 tsp dry yeast
• 1 pinch sugar

1. dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water - let it sit for 5 minutes
2. in a bowl mix 1 cup flour and salt. add oil and water/yeast mixture and knead together with your hand mixer with the dough hooks. add 1-2 tbs extra flour if dough is too sticky. knead well - by hand - and form dough into a ball.
3. place dough back into bowl, cover it and let it rise for 45 min in a warm draft-free place.
   
   
   

For the asparagus topping

• 1 lb. asparagus
• 1/2 lb pork sausages, crumbled
• 2 spring onions, cut in thin ringlets
• crème fraîche or sour creme
• 1 tsp sugar
• salt and pepper
• oil

1. wash and dry asparagus. cut off the dry ends. slice it diagonally.
   in a medium sized pot, bring some water to boil. add sugar and asparagus and cook for about 2 minutes. drain and rinse with cold water.
2. in a pan, heat oil and brown crumbled sausages in it. add spring onion rings at the very end of the browning process. 
3. preheat oven to 450°F | 230°C 
4. roll out dough onto a baking sheet covered with baking parchment.
5. spread dough with crème fraîche and sprinkle with salt and pepper. evenly spread asparagus slices all over it and sprinkle with browned sausages and spring onions.
6. bake in preheated oven on the lowest rack for 10-14 minutes.
   voilá... tarte flambée avec asperge. bon appétit!

For the smoked salmon topping

• 1 bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced 
• a couple slices smoked salmon, cut in stripes
• crème fraîche or sour creme
• a couple fresh dill springs, minced
• salt and pepper

1. preheat oven to 450°F | 230°C 
2. roll out dough onto a baking sheet covered with baking parchment.
3. spread crème fraîche and sprinkle evenly all over dough and with salt, pepper and minced dill, mix it in a bit with a spoon. evenly sprinkle sliced bell pepper and onion all over.
4. bake in preheated oven on the lowest rack for 8-10 minutes,  sprinkle smoked salmon stripes all over the tarte and bake for another 5 minutes.
   voilá... tarte flambée avec saumon. bon appétit!

For the traditional topping [not pictured]

• crème fraîche 
• bacon, cut in stripes
• 1 medium white onion, finely sliced

1. preheat oven to 450°F | 230°C 
2. roll out dough onto a baking sheet covered with baking parchment.
3. spread crème fraîche on dough and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
4. sprinkle with onion slices and bacon.
5. bake in preheated oven on the lowest rack for 10-14 minutes.
   voilá... tarte flambée. bon appétit!

EXTRA TIPS:

• you can also use store bought tarte flambée dough or even regular pizza dough. for the thin crust, i'd roll out the pizza dough to probably half it's regular thickness.
• other toppings i like are: sliced mushrooms, shrimp, thinly sliced zucchini, pancetta and parmesan topped with fresh arugula after baking, blue cheese, goat cheese, thinly sliced tomatoes and basil, ...
• for a quick dough alternative - a non-yeast-no-need-to-rise pizza dough, check out my pizza post here. that recipe yields either one regular pizza crust for a 11-inch | 28cm pie or one extra thin tarte flambée on a baking sheet - just like the dough above.
• i recommend using the conventional oven setting for a crunchy crust. if you only have convection, lower the temperature to 400°F | 200°C and use the middle rack. 

au revoir.
bisous.

mint and coral ombre.

last wednesday i had to kill 45 minutes while waiting for my cousin taking his driving test. the closest store from were i was at was the home improvement store. so that's where i went. as i strolled through the paint section i saw the display of paint chips. oh all those pretty colors. i always wanted to do some kind of diy with paint chips so i picked out a couple in the color peppermint and paprica [yap, it was spelled with a c on the paint chip] in all their pretty hues. a mint and coral ombré style project was on my mind. still not sure what i wanted to do exactly. anyway, i picked them and sneaked out of the paint section. after i got some stuff at the plant section i left the store and stuffed the paint chips into my purse [= black hole, that swallows everything]. as i was going through my purse on sunday, i found them again. yeah! so what to do with them?

i saw a couple of paint chips calendars on pinterest a while back and i actually always wanted to have a white board calendar that i can personalize every month. but most of them looked to »calendar-y«. i wanted something more »artsy« looking. something that i could use as a calendar or just as a piece of art.

so this is what i ended up with =)

everything i used, i already had at home.

• a picture frame [40x50 cm]
• a large sheet of white paper
• paint chips [i used peppermint and paprica - in 14 hues each]
• tools: exacto knife, cutting mat, ruler, adhesive roller or glue

1. cut out 2 squares of each color/hue
   [4.6 x 4.6 cm - or any size that fits 7 in a row into your frame]
   
2. lay out your 49 paint chip squares and arrange the colors the way you like them best.
   i started with the darkest color in each top corner and went downwards diagonally to the lightest colors in the center of the bottom row.
   
3. cut your white paper to fit your frame.
   
4. time for measuring.
   of course it depends on the size of your frame - these are my measurements:
   white sheet is 40x50 cm - squares 4.6 cm - space between each square 0.5cm. so to center everything i started my first row of squares 7.4 cm from the bottom and 2.4 cm from the left.
   
5. glue each square to the white sheet of paper, leaving 0.5 cm space in between each.
   
6. frame it and tada... done! pretty piece of art that easily turns into a calendar with the little help of a dry erase marker. 

fun fact about me: i love white boards. i love the way the dry erase markers write on the board. i love scribbling on white boards and erase it again. also it reminds me of that one scene in »le fabuleux destin d'amélie poulain« where amélie writes the menu on that glass wall in the little café she works at in paris. i am always fascinated that she can write mirror inverted so fast.

i would love to have a big white board next to my desk for planning projects, scribbling, making lists, etc. guess there is another diy due at a later date. maybe a colored acrylic glass board to write on with white dry erase markers. but actually there is no space to hang one next to my desk right now anyway.  i will see. for now i have my mint and coral ombré piece of art/calendar to write on and erase.

xo.

day 30.

| * |

letting go is something i am not good at. not at all. in fact letting go is one of the hardest things to do for me. i like holding on to things, memories, habits, people, places. everything.

i am a creature of habits. i don't like change a lot. that's why i don't like letting go. change means to let go of something. the new and unknown always scares me a bit. surprisingly on the other hand, it is not hard for me to adjust to new things. i am open to new adventures. but i am still holding on to the old and am still scared of the new. i am weird sometimes.

it is hard for me to leave places. places where i had amazing times. my home. my host families home. my appartment aka home at my university town. home is something very important for me. my safe place. my comfort place. my hiding place. letting go of a place like that is always hard. it means leaving something behind. letting something go that was important to me.

i didn't have to let a lot of people go in my life yet. some where actually easy to let go. they weren't good for me. these so called friends tried to get me into things i didn't want to get into. i let them go. that was easy. but there was one person, that was pretty hard to let go. it took me a long time to realize it was better to just let go. it was hard but the best thing to do. for both of us.

i do develop a bond to things too. i connect memories with things. i get emotional if things brake. i want to keep things. i don't want to let things go. i am a hoarder. i do keep a couple really valuable things in a little memory box. really silly things - like a bottle cap, a stone with a hole, a screw. there are stories behind each little thing. i want to treasure them forever. it's more about the memories that i connect with these things that i want to keep. never letting them go.

*that little chick in the picture is with me ever since i was probably 4. i made it in preschool. until a couple years, my mama took good care of it. it lived in an egg carton all year round and only made an apperance when easter decorations came out to play. a couple years ago it is my turn to take care of this little chick again. i just found it again a couple days ago and as i took it out of the box i dropped it and it cracked a little. i almost cried. i need to fix it. don't know how yet. because i am not willing to let it go.

xo.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 29.

i love music and listen to it all day. and ever since i discovered spotify, that's where it all happens. isn't it just the best that when a song comes on and brings back great memories. well some bring back not so good ones. but you know me, i am one to concentrate on the positive things in life. i banned a couple songs because the bring back bad memories. can't even remember some of these songs to be honest. i recognize them when i hear them, but i can't tell you right now which songs they are.  as the may challenge is to share five songs that bring back memories i went through my itunes song list and also tried to remember those songs from the old days before itunes existed - even way back to the good old tape. ha ha. kids these days don't even know these anymore. funny story, one of my little friends was over the other day and wanted to play nintendo ds while i did the dishes. i told him it's in my drawer and that he could get it. he came back with my super old walkman and asked: what is that weird thing for? ha ha. i cracked up.

five seven songs that bring back memories.

the sign | ace of base
happy nation [the sign in the US] by ace of base was my first ever album i bought ever. it was on tape. that was seriously 20 years ago -  in 1993. the sign was my favorite song on that tape. i listened to it over and over and over again. all day. this was exactly my set up - that pink cassette player and the ace of base tape - i was kind of freaking out when i found this pic on pinterest about a year ago. ha ha. 

bitter sweet symphony | the verve
i was obsessed with the movie cruel intentions. i had a major celebrity crush on ryan philippe and reese witherspoon was/is one of my favorite actresses. and which songs screams cruel intentions more than bittersweet symphony? none! it is just brilliant. let's be honest, the cruel intentions soundtrack is just the best. i still love it. 14 years later. it has to be good. 

the middle | jimmy eat world
high school is all i have to say. jimmy eat world, green day, the offspring, blink-182, no doubt, new found glory ... anything alternative rock, pop punk, punk rock was my thing. actually still is. 

the worst day ever | simple plan
i didn't know about simple plan until i went to a avril lavigne concert in philadelphia with a couple friends. simple plan was suppoting act and i was hooked from the first song they played. the no pads, no helmets...just balls album was the soundtrack of our time in philly. 

the rising | bruce springsteen
the boss. he is my hostdad's favorite. whenever he was in his office, he listened to bruce and sang along from the top of his lungs. the rising must have been his favorite song. just thinking about it... it's like i can hear him sing it right now. he also took me to see the boss in yankee stadium. oh what an experience.

the conversation | motion city soundtrack
this is one of the songs i have a bit mixed feelings about. it reminds me of one night, i walked home through my university town. i had my ipod with me and listened to that song. not realizing i accidentally had it on repeat. i was to confused. all those thoughts and mixed feelings. 
the story behind this feelings: i was at a friend's dorm. all the dorm people had a bbq that day. he invited me over as i wasn't going home over the weekend. we were best friends. but that evening... oh my... i suddenly was feeling jealous because he talked to that girl. but why was i jealous. i realized i kind of had feelings for him - out if nothing. we were friends. it wasn't right. i couldn't have fallen for him. no no no! i was so confused. i decided that night on the way home, i was never going to tell him and that i had to get rid of these feelings again. and i am so glad i could. we are still friends and that's what we are meant to be.

the adventure | angels & airwaves 
there can't be a list of songs without that song. it is my favorite. i listened to it in so many situations as whenever i create a playlist, this song is sure to be on it. every road trip, every plane and train ride... every adventure... this is my song. 


by the way, can you find that one song that doesn't fit? i actually just realized it myself. 
xo.  

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 27.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 26.

where to start? i pretty much read everything online. if it wasn't for the internet, i wouldn't know about anything that's going on.

the most recent thing i read, which i am so so so super happy about, is that one of my best friends welcomed her second girl to this world. welcome, little emilia.

xo.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 25.

| * |

something someone told me that i will never forget.

there are so many things that people said that i won't ever forget. but the first thing that came to my mind when reading today's topic was something very little but yet so special. yet again it has to do with me being an au pair. this year, as you can see plays a big role in my life.

it was my last day of my au pair year at my host families house. right before my hostmom, my oldest girl and i left for the airport when i said my good-byes to everyone else. a very sad moment.

my little 4 year old girl said in tears: i love you and i will miss you so much. you will always be in our family. just remember to come home to me, ok?!

i never forgot. my second family in the US will always be in my heart. i will always come back home to them. i did a couple of times already. it always felt like coming home. they are my family too. their home is my home too. and i can't wait to show them my home away from home this summer. can't wait to see them again.

*the picture is one she gave me on my last day while visiting a year later. she said the following:
that's you with your suitcase and there is your airplane. And there is me waving good-bye. and see i am very sad because i will miss you so much. and there is a heart for you because i love you.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 24.

three worst traits

oh no, who wants to point out their 3 worst traits? are you serious, jenni? but as it is part of the game/challenge, i got to go with it.

i am a procrastinator par excellence
i do push things to do until the last minute like nobody's business. well actually only things that i don't like to do that much even if these are important. in my head everything else is more important than that certain thing and needs to be checked of my to do list first.
hello self-discipline, where are you hiding?

i am the worlds most insecure person alive
i am pretty good at hiding this trait from the world though. a smile and goofiness can hide a lot. i am good at hiding. when i am around friends and family i am fine and more outgoing and more confident. but put me in a room of strangers and i pretty much want to hide from everyone. back in school or university, standing in front of my class presenting something - a nightmare! always scared to make a mistake, people laughing at me, hated everyone starring at me, didn't like to be the center of attention. not my thing.

i am a perfectionist at it's worst
whatever i do, i want to do the best way possible. i want it to be perfect. my kind of perfect. when thinking about it, it is perfect in my head and that's what i want it to be in the end. if on the way it doesn't go well, i get frustrated. if i see that it'll not turn out the way i want it to, i sometimes tend to give up. but i am working on that part pretty hard. i keep telling myself: do not to give up! it doesn't have to be perfect all the time! little flaws are fine! it is fine to fail sometimes! work harder and find a solution to make it work! asking for a little help doesn't hurt! and most of the times it turns out that others love it either way or think it is perfect even though all i can see is it's flaws.

so here you have them. my three worst traits. they are out. and so am i.
off to ikea i go now. on a friday late afternoon? not sure if it is the best idea. hope it won't be that packed.
xo.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 23.

things i've learned that school didn't teach me. some of them i've learned the hard way. some of them took me a while to realize. some of them are just little. but all of them matter. 

embrace the little things.

be kind.

ask for help if you need some.

not everyone who claims to be a friend is a friend.

there is nothing better than family.

don't think you'll come back for that pair of shoes later. it won't be there anymore.

always take a moment for someone special even if you are in a hurry. it might be the last one you get.

always do a little dance. just because.

try new things even if you are scared. you might like them after all. 

be positive.

life is not always fair. but life is pretty good anyway.

never give up the dreams you have.

always believe in yourself.

xo.


this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 22.

i guess today i am officially allowed to rant about something. ha ha. not that i have just been waiting to do so. if you know me, you probably know that i am not someone who rants a lot. 

there is something that really annoys me though. why is it so hard for so many people to be polite? my parents raised me to be polite to others. to say please, thank you, excuse me and sorry... why is that so hard for some people out there? is it so hard to say please if you want something? is it so hard to say thank you if you got something? or how about a sorry if you maybe hit me with your shopping cart? and an excuse me doesn't hurt if you want to get through. and it is not only the words also the gestures. why can't some just not hold that door for the lady with the stroller? a second of politeness can change the whole situation and make someones day. why not take that second?

a couple recent situations...

i was in the grocery store and there was this elderly lady trying to reach something on the top shelf but was too small to reach it. there was a woman standing next to her looking for something. but instead of helping that old lady she was almost pushing her aside to get something off the shelf mumbling something i couldn't understand as i was too far away and making an annoyed face. what's with that? of course i helped that elderly lady. she thanked me and said that it was nice of me to offer my help, that sure doesn't happen a lot anymore.

another time at the grocery store - that seems to be the place for impolite people. i was at the checkout and unloading my cart when someone hit me with his cart - twice. it really hurt. i turned around and it was a little boy bushing the cart back and forth all the time. he had a big grin on his face and i could just see he did it on purpose. i told him to please stop it because it hurts. his mom just said: ooops! looking at me, rolling her eyes. what?

two of my little friends came over on saturday after they've been to the soccer field. my place is on their way home and they just stopped because they saw that i was home. i asked them if they wanted something to drink and they just said: yes and you have to make us popcorn. first of all i hate when anyone tells my that i have to do something. and no please? nope, i don't want to do it. and i think an 8 and 13 year old should know that if you want to have something, it is nice to say please. they started saying: popcorn. we want popcorn. you have to make us popcorn! still no please. i asked them if they don't think it is a bit rude to come in and tell me i have to make them popcorn and if there isn't something missing? they thought it was fine. ok. i told them i was fresh out of popcorn kernels [which was actually the truth]. so they quickly decided to head home. hellooo? now i know why you came over! and not even asking politely? totally annoyed me that day. is that me being a bit over? 

there are a million more situations in that i think being polite and nice to others wouldn't have hurt a bit. but i can't think of more right now and i am sure you had plenty of these as well.  this whole ranting isn't my thing anyway.

but one more thing... can i just rant about the weather for a second?! it is the middle of may and it is freeeeezing cold. i even got out my down vest yesterday. and my mom told me that we might even get some snow on friday. what's wrong with you, weather? spring, where the heck are you hiding? come out and play, please! thank you!

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 21.

totally unrelated picture of some violets in our front yard. aren't these just so pretty? oh my and they smell so good. 

today i am supposed to share a list of some of my favorite posts from my archive. 
i loved doing my birthday series last year. these are some of my favorite posts i did.
i love my birthday. it was a nyc themed birthday party. i love nyc.
there was yummy food. i love baking and cooking. 
"big apple" pie | ny cheescake | magnolia bakery cupcakes | apple sugar cookies  | mini pizzas

there were party decorations. i love crafting and decorating.  
candle jar | buttons | garland | silverware and napkin wrapper | subway route candy
and of course there was a i would wear post too. i love matchy matchy everything.
[for the whole series, click here ;)]
xo.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 20.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 19.

this is still my favorite breakfast. egg in a hole. i have it whenever i don't have my all in one breakfast smoothie. this happens mostly on sundays. sometimes i have it with bacon. sometimes i have it with avocado. sometimes i have it with tomatoes. usually i have a cup of joe with it. almost always i go through my blogroll on feedly. 

today i am suppposed to tell you which ones are my five favorite blogs and why. i have so many i love and follow. oh my, how could i possibly pick five favorites. so let me hop over to my feedly and see which ones show up first and these will be the ones ;)

the pioneer woman  |  i love her recipes. all of them. they are simple but so delicious. 

elise blaha cripe  |  elise is just a huge inspiration. i love her writing. i love her creativity. 

love taza  |  naomi has just the cutest family. seeing her two kids always gives me major baby fever.  

sometimes sweet  |  nothing not to love about danielle's blog. i love her writing. and henry is just the coolest little dude ;)

kelli murray  |  i love her art a lot. love her photos.     

there are a million more. actually more like 140 more. but i love them all. 
xo. 

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 18.

about carrots, green cars and me

when i was looking through my photos looking for the favorite picture of me yesterday, i also found this one up there. i instantly thought about the story about me and the green cars.

it started as i refused to eat my carrots i had on my plate for lunch or dinner. i told my mom and dad that i don't like them. they told me to at least try them but i didn't want to. so a bit later, still during that meal...

dad: hey, have you just seen that green car out there?
me: no!
dad: if you don't eat your carrots you can't see green cars.
me: oh!

still didn't eat my carrots.

another meal time...

dad: look at that green car out there!
me: there is none. i can't see it.
dad: i told you, you can't see them if you don't eat your carrots.
me: ok!

i ate some carrots and looked outside...

me: oh loooook! a green car!
dad: see, i told you!

well, i guess my dad was just lucky that day. that after i ate some carrots, there was actually a green car driving by our house.

but... as you can see in that picture, my dad had a green car. but it never occurred to me that i was able to see his car - without eating my carrots. oh silly little me! i just trusted and believed my dad. whatever he told me. he was my dad after all. my hero. he just had to be right. #daddysgirl.

he still tries things like that now. i don't believe everything anymore. but i got to say, he can be pretty serious about things.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.

day 17.

this is part of the "blog every day in may" challenge i am doing. 
it was created by jenni of story of my life.