Ladies and gentlemen, Zürchers, expats and tourists alike: do I have news for you !

The Parisian institution, Ladurée – absolute temple of perfection (according to moi) when it comes to the city’s infamous macaron, also referred to as my second home when I’m on French territory – will have its very own shop here in Zürich! Now now, we must be patient.  The storefront was only just clad with its iconic pastel green logo a few days ago.  You can be sure I’ll be keeping a close eye on the progress though (an empty space for now).  As soon as those doors open, planned for this October, I’ll let you know!

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My first foray into the art of homemade marshmallows brought me mint chocolate squares.  Resembling little brownies, they were just as irresistible.  Readers all shouted – S’mores – and so, I stuck a few on a fork and roasted them over a candle (electric stovetop being the deterrent here).  Not bad at all.  They even got that black outer layer some of us strive for over the campfire.  Next up were espresso marshmallows, and boy did I have fun with those.  Hence part 3, the final in the marshmallow series and by far the most irresistible!

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As I learned in part one of this series, making homemade marshmallows is rather simple.  I am kicking myself for not having tried sooner!  Now the ice has been broken, and this surely won’t be the last time I am up to my ears in cornstarch and sticky deliciousness.  I have a list of different flavors I’d like to try next, fun shapes to make using my cookie cutters, and plenty more creative ideas of how to use them.  First up was chocolate mint marshmallows.  For part two here, it’s marshmallows using the same base of ingredients – sugar, corn syrup, gelatin, water.  And the same basic steps too: mix water with gelatin, heat sugar and corn syrup, pour cooked sugar into gelatin mixture while beating.

This time, no egg whites.  But a whole lot more beating time.  So here’s one recipe where I would definitely say that having a stand mixer is a good thing, if not necessary. You may have arms like Popeye and an unlimited amount of patience, but I am not quite sure a hand mixer would be strong enough to withstand this heavy and thick a mixture.  (I’ll have to give it a go and report back, hopefully with hand mixer still intact!) Fortunately I was with a friend who has a heavy duty stand mixer – and high quality espresso powder.  And so it went, batch two: espresso marshmallows!  Coffee being my very favorite flavor of confections and ice cream and chocolate bars, these were my favorite!  So soft and fluffy too, squishy like the perfect homemade marshmallow should be!

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The 4th of July passed not too long ago, and friends back in the States emailed me their photos of red, white and blue themed BBQ’s, with hamburgers, corn on the cob and homemade pies, along with fireworks and bonfires on the beach.  This last image was my favorite, with thoughts of summer camp and roasting marshmallows around the campfire coming to mind.  Some kids roasted them until they were soft and just slightly browned, but I left them over the fire until they were completely black and burnt on the outside – the exterior crisp and weightless, the middle melted and gooey. Marshmallows are a part of my childhood.  And by that, I mean bags of Kraft’s white Jet-Puffed marshmallows for making S’mores and Rice Krispies Treats.

Then I moved to France and discovered multi-colored guimauve, French style marshmallows.  They are most commonly seen as long strips of delicate confections, proudly on display in the city’s pastry shops.  Fancy chocolate shops sometimes have more familiar cubes too, even with exotic flavors and herbs.

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Even though I went to Vollenweider Confiseur Chocolatier the other day with one particular item in mind (the blue and white Macaron de Zürich below left), and actually went home with only that… you should know that the shop has a whole lot more to offer.  And I don’t mean simply more flavors of macarons either.

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What’s an anniversary without a little celebration, right?  Especially when it’s a first anniversary, one year living in a new city, one for which you have fallen head over heels! That calls for a little something sweet!  July 1st marked one year for us here in Zürich, and I found the most perfect confection to celebrate that with.

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We’ve been together for one year, and I am still head over heels in love.  (7 years with my husband and I feel the same way, but that’s another story!)  I mean with Zürich of course, the city I have called home since last summer.  I walk out my door and still get giddy with excitement when I see the perfect white skyline of the Alps.  I walk through the winding cobblestone streets of the old town, or stroll along the river, looking down at the swans.  That brings me to the lake, sparkling clean and blue.  With the summer heat coming, it will once again appear to be covered with confetti – so many colorful pedal boats and sailboats, and people out on the water.  I don’t see what there is not to love about Zürich.  I have yet to find the answer to that question.

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