My heart started racing when I peeked into the Christmas bag...could it be?
Yes it was!
Macarons from Bouchon Bakery! Kirbie and her DH had just recently returned from a trip to Napa and brought back a few macarons for me. That was very sweet and kind of her to remember me (and my obsession with macarons).
This first one was the Espresso. It didn't last long, as in, it was practically finished before I got out of the Horton Plaza parking lot (hangs head in shame)!
For some reason, these macarons seemed bigger than I remembered. I still can't forget the macarons we had at the Bouchon in Columbus Circle in NYC. Then, the Sexy Nurse brought some back a couple of years ago as well. Alas, that was a distant memory UNTIL THIS DAY. It took major willpower NOT to nibble the rest of the espresso macaron's friends. I had to save some for Bert and TC right?
The three "survivors" from front to back: Coconut, Chocolate Covered Pistachio, and Hazelnut (hiding in the back).
Bert liked this one second best, the Hazelnut, while TC's was the coconut. That was the first time I've had a coconut macaron from Bouchon. Usually it's the normal flavors like Vanilla, Chocolate, and Raspberry. This was a pleasant addition!
This is what we both enjoyed! The luxuriously thick dark chocolate covered Pistachio...
It was so special because it was "wrapped". You can see how thick that chocolate layer was too! This was also a first for us, having a chocolate enrobed macaron! They should do that will ALL the flavors, ha ha! No seriously! This was really good chocolate too. Very firm and bittersweet. This is one of the best mac's we've had!
The other gift I received was this beautiful heart shaped Nordic Ware bundt pan. I've always admired the many different cake pans that Kirbie uses to showcase her many treats on her blog! This was so generous of her and I cannot wait to use this pan!
It's so gorgeous...a red velvet cake would look so pretty with this cake mold!
D gave me the boxed trilogy of Stig Larsson's "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" series. Bert and I saw the American film version last month. We just finished the Swedish version last night (much much better than the American version in my opinion) and will be watching the second installment hopefully tonight. I normally read the books first, but was told "to wait" for the trilogy by D! I would love to burn through these before the year is through, but that's probably not going to happen, especially when I'm still trying to power through the first "Game of Thrones" book!
The other gift is from my SIL - she got us the Rocket Blender which made TC really excited. Now she can create her own shakes, like she did at their house with her cousins. Apparently, they made these shakes made out of ice cream and fruit as well as Greek yogurt. I'd try it, but without the yogurt! Well, I'm happy that TC can whip up something healthy for all of us!
Below, a batch of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from my hair stylist...
They came in this cute gingerbread man dish! Love it! The cookies were so good and I'll have to get the recipe from her and make it for the blog. The cookies were not soft, which I like. Too soft kind of icks me out. No, these were firm and had loads of chips in them!
TC liked the juggling set that we gave her. Apparently, she and her classmates in PE have been learning how to juggle and also how to balance balls on sticks. It was part of their "circus unit" she said. Whatever happened to the coach giving the class a bag of balls and then telling the kids to "go and play and come back when the bell rings"? What happened to that, huh? But really, we thought it was cool that they were teaching hand/eye coordination that way, plus Bert actually does know how to juggle. TC has been practicing and so far, she can even juggle two with one hand. We got her a few other "useful" things she'd wanted.
TC was creative with the gifts she gave us, such as two handmade drawings for Bert (one pencil and one pastel), My Shaldan (apple scented!) air freshener for my car (because our neighbor's cat was stuck in our garage one night and did "stuff" to my car which reeked for days), and a Totoro compact mirror. She knew I was always complaining about never being able to find my mirror in my bag. Speaking of losing things, she also gave me a Domokun metal pencil case. I'll have to upload those photos later; they're too cute!
The holidays are winding down. I'm baking my last batch of savory puff pastries to give as gifts to some old high school friends tomorrow...It's almost 2013!
2 comments:
So glad you liked the macarons! My favorite of the flavors was espresso. The Bouchon bakeries in Vegas and LA only have the regular flavors but the Bouchon in Yountville has a lot of seasonal flavors and the chocolate covered ones. I once had a rhubarb strawberry from there that was so good, but they didn't have it this time because it's not in season and they actually use rhubarb in the filling. The chocolate covered ones, they actually cover a few of the flavors. I wish the other flavors and choc covered ones were available at the other locations.
I can't wait to see the shakes TC makes! I love making mango lassi and ice cream shakes with my blender.
Thanks again for the lovely gifts! I liked the espresso as well but oh, that chocolate coating was so good!
Hopefully she will get cracking this week, haha! Gotta buy some fresh fruits!
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