Wedding Sweets

Once I saw the beautiful pieces montée de macarons {macaron tower} in the window at Ladurée, I knew it was perfect for the wedding instead of cake. With caramel, pistachio, and vanilla macarons, it was quickly devoured by our guests and a perfect end to the evening. Just for good measure, we also had chocolates boxes from La Maison du Chocolat as favors.

Ladurée, 21 rue Bonaparte

Fleurs

Our wedding weekend started with a traditional ceremony in a beautiful church overlooking the Seine. I wanted the flowers to be chic and simple, so the morning of the ceremony I popped into a flower shop I spied the day before. My bouquet was filled with ranunculus, anemones, and freesia, wrapped with silver ribbon.

Le Jardiń Saint Honoré, 56 Rue Colisée

Au Revoir

I'm off to Paris. I'll be back next week with wedding posts.

Belgique Gourmands

Gruuthuse Hof, Mariastraat 36

Belgian cuisine is often called gourmands {big} over gourmet {fine}, as restaurants serve food of French quality in German quantities {from Michael Jacksons, Great Beers of Belgium}. This summed up my experience perfectly. Whether it was rack of lamb with raspberry sauce, rabbit with prune sauce and apple compote, or Flemish beef stew cooked in beer, it was the perfect meeting of complementary flavors and huge portions.

Cambrinus, Phillipstockstraat 19

De Drie Zintuigen, Westmeers 29

Chocolat

While a St. Honoré or millefeuille are my standard favorite sweets, I’ll never pass up good chocolate. In Bruges’ chocolate shops, I loved to peek behind the counters to see chocolatiers pouring chocolates into molds. Dumon and Pralinette won me over with their traditional caramel and praline-filled confections. For exotic fusions, The Chocolate Line’s flavors included dark chocolate with ginger and caramel ganache with Cabernet Sauvignon and pine nuts.

Dumon, 6 Eiermarkt

The Chocolate Line, 19 Simon Stevinplein

Bruges

Bell Tower, Markt

Bruges might be one of my favorite European cities. With winding cobblestone roads, narrow canals, and chocolatiers on every block, it makes for the perfect fairytale town. Amidst the grandeur of the Markt, it is easy to imagine its former self, a jousting arena.

Canals, Groenerei

Former Court of Justice, Burg

Iron Door Detail

Other Bruges Sights and Shops

Sights

~Basiliek van het Heilig-Bloed for ancient relics, 15 Burg

~Church of Our Lady for Michaelangelo’s Madonna and Child, Vrouwekerkhof Zuid

~Sint-Janshuis for a historical windmill

~Minnewater for lake swans in a picturesque park

Shops

~Bier Tempel for the world’s best beers, 7 Phillipstockstraat

~Deldycke for specialty foods, 23 Wollestraat

~Dille & Kamille for inexpensive homegoods, 18 Simon Stevinplein

~Maison Pickery for handmade lace, 8 Briedelstraat

A Love Affair with Liège Waffles

While the term, “Belgian waffle,” is pretty mainstream, last weekend in Brussels I discovered there are actually two types of waffles. The gaufre de Bruxelles is the light, airy version most familiar to Sunday brunchers. The other is the liège, a dense version with a caramelized exterior and chewy interior. I even scoured Brussels to find the special pearl sugar used to make these lovely waffles. Next, finding a 20-lb. professional cast iron waffle maker. In between devouring waffles, I managed to taste some other traditional Belgian foods. For a rustic meal, the boulettes and stoemp fit the bill. Who could resist hearty meatballs accompanied by creamy mashed potatoes and leeks. And on a laid back Sunday evening, I had a cast iron pot filled with moules and frites {mussels and fries}. Simple and fresh, steamed in white wine.

Elisabeth, 43 rue au Beurre

Les Brassins, 36 Rue Keyenveld

Chez Léon, 18 rue des Bouchers

Other Brussels Eats and Sweets

Eats

~L’Esprit de Sel for traditional Belgian and French dishes, 52 place Jourdan

~La Quincaillerie for a brasserie once frequented by Catherine Deneuve, 45 rue du Page

~Maison Antoine for frites, 1 place Jourdan

Sweets

~Le Pain Quotidien for baguettes and almond croissants, 11 rue des Sablons

~Maison Dandoy for butter cookies, 31 rue au Beurre

~Pierre Marcolini for chocolate-covered marshmallows, 1 rue des Minimes

~Wittamer for dainty cakes, 13 place du Grand Sablon