and then, a million things happened.

• i said it; NPR confirms it: the macaron is set to surpass the cupcake in popularity. it's the next fashionable dessert. america, do not ruin this pastry.
  
• if we wanted, we could make it so that the animals don't feel pain when they are killed. apparently, this will make the humans feel less bad about factory farming. wait. what? and why must we factory farm? nytimes op/ed here.
• i plan for my government class to participate in this contest, sponsored by GOOD. they seem to think that taking the junk food out of school cafeterias is like taking away one's civil rights. we know that kids eat better when the options are better.
• "The Bulgarian Parliamentary Committee on the Environment has agreed that GMOs will not be allowed within 7 kms of organic farmland, and 10 kms away from permanent, registered beehive clusters. They also adopted a five-year ban on the cultivation of GMOs for commercial and scientific research in the field." way to go, bulgaria. rock it. full article here.
• new, REAL rules for organic dairy. such an improvement. says the nytimes, "The new regulations, which go into effect in June, are much more specific. They say that animals must graze on pasture for the full length of the local grazing season. The season will be determined by local conditions and agriculture authorities, like organic certifiers or county conservation officials, not by the dairy alone. While the grazing season must last at least 120 days, in many areas it will be much longer. The rules also say that animals must get at least 30 percent of their food from pasture during the grazing season." yes.
• some of my students are reading my twitter. and maybe this blog. oh god. maybe they will learn something from me in some format. even an unconventional one.
  
• manhattan borough president scott stringer continues to amaze me. you can read his "blueprint for a sustainable food system" here. marty markowitz, what are YOU doing to change the way we eat? at least for the kids?
  

macarons, i love you so.

i've been to france many times, but i have only been to ladurée once, with ludo and blanche. it involved some very fancy fragrant tea in a formal setting, and frivolous desserts made for marie antoinette (or at least the film). but, ladurée is REALLY famous for its macarons.

i have just finished reading au revoir to all that, the book i began months ago about the decline of french food. of course, author michael steinberger mentions ladurée; it's a spectacular, incredibly french experience that one cannot miss in their lifetime. in the book, one learns that mcdonald's (which is part of the reason for the fall of french food) sells macarons. and! they are made by holder, the company that bought ladurée in 1997. it's distressing in a way that i cannot actually describe, though at least mcdonald's knows what is good for it.

and i not going to believe that the era of french food is really over, maybe just plateaued for now.

i love macarons. and i will not be able to return to france any time soon, but almondine is opening a location in park slope. michelle and i have been anticipating its arrival for some time, as the dumbo location is just too inconvenient for any person who doesn't live on the waterfront. almondine is the closest a new yorker can get to a ladurée macaron. in walking distance. yes.

day of fun.

michelle and i embarked on a "day of fun" yesterday. this was apparently "day of fun 2.5." (for those paying attention, this is "burrito" michelle, my colleague.) we went to grimaldi's. i had never been. i was possibly the last resident of new york who had never even tasted their pies. even my parents have.

it was incredible. quite possibly the best pizza i have ever had. i cannot think of better. thin, baked, crispy crust, fresh mozzarella, a bit of basil and perfect tomato sauce. really. and i never gush about pizza.

so we looked at whimsical french children's books and travelogues in the lovely powerhouse bookstore. and then. voila! almondine. we bought both passionfruit and pistachio macarons. the passionfruit was so tasty that we had to go back for more. and then! we bought black currant and raspberry as well.
and then, of course, beer. michelle drank a beer called mother's milk. i am not kidding. it's made in new york by keegan ales. she loved it. and she's got good taste (and takes great photos).