White Chocolate and Strawberry Tarts

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Sweets

Spring is finally here! Oh, New York has just been disgracefully beautiful lately. I spent much of the last two weekends outside, basking in the bright sun, calm breeze, and clear skies. Even the woman in Grand Central who called me an idiot for walking past her at the coffee shop (????) can’t bring me down. I mentioned on Twitter that my supervisors gave me a Williams-Sonoma gift card for Staff Appreciation Week, and along with wedding cake supplies I ordered this adorable mini tart pan. It’s one of those totally useless kitchen items that are good for one thing and otherwise take up room, but I couldn’t say no. Besides, it’s not just good for one thing: I can make mini quiches too. So there.

I have a huge stash of white chocolate as part of Project Wedding Cake, and I just got some gorgeous, in-season strawberries, so let’s get Spring rolling!

White chocolate can be tricky to find, but you have to make sure that the only fat in the ingredient list is cocoa butter, not vegetable oil. Don't use anything labelled "White chocolate-flavored", and don't use white chocolate chips. Lindt, Baker's, and Valrhona (which I splurged on here) all make very good white chocolate.

Good white chocolate can be tricky to find, but you have to make sure that the only fat in the ingredient list is cocoa butter, not vegetable oil. Don’t use anything labelled “White chocolate-flavored”, and don’t use white chocolate chips. Lindt, Baker’s, Callebaut, and Valrhona (which I splurged on here) all make very good white chocolate.

White Chocolate Mousse and Strawberry Tarts
adapted, barely, from Bon Appetit

For the crust:

1 1/4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 c. granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large egg yolk
1 tbsp (or more) ice water

For the mousse:

6 oz. good-quality white chocolate, chopped
1 1/4 c. chilled whipping cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 large egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar

For the topping:

1/3 c. seedless strawberry or raspberry jam
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
16 oz. strawberries, hulled, thinly sliced lengthwise

Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse a few times to blend. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is broken up and evenly incorporated; the mixture will look like coarse, damp sand. Whisk the egg yolk and the ice water together in a small bowl, then add to the processor and pulse to combine, until the dough just begins to come together, adding more ice water if necessary. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll out evenly.

If you’re making one large tart, roll dough out into one large circle, fold it over a rolling pin, and ease into an 8″ or 9″ tart pan, pressing evenly. Fold any overhang over into the sides of the pan to create a double layer around the sides. Prick the crust all over with a fork. Line the pan with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights. If you’re making tartlets, cut out circles slightly larger than the dimension of your pans and press them gently into the pans. Prick the crusts all over with a fork.

Place the prepared tart pan(s) in freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

For one large tart: remove prepared pan from the freezer and bake for about 25 minutes. Remove the foil and pie weights and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes, until crust is fully baked and golden brown.

For tartlets: remove prepared pans from freezer and bake for about 15 minutes, until fully baked and golden brown (no need for pie weights with the little guys).

Cool crusts completely.

Combine chopped white chocolate and 1/4 c. heavy whipping cream in the top of a double boiler over low heat. Stir until melted and smooth, and then allow to cool until lukewarm.

Beat 1 c. cream and the vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer until peaks form. In a separate bowl and with clean beaters, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until thick and stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the white chocolate in three additions, and then fold in the whipped cream. Spoon the mousse into the cooled tart shells and chill for two hours until set (I had a TON left over, which, oh NO, I have leftover white chocolate mousse, I’ll have to portion it into individual ramekins and chill it too, what a bummer).

Top the tarts with sliced strawberries. Heat the jam and lemon juice in a small saucepan and stir until melted and smooth. Brush the tops of the tarts with the jam. Keep chilled until serving.

They’re so tiny!

* * * * *

For my lingerie pairing, I’m just going to tease you a little bit more:

New brand Tutti Rouge has finally arrived, with gorgeous, strawberry-colored Liliana making her debut. Full review tomorrow!

Blackberry Tart and Ginger Ice Cream

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Sweets

I decided at the last minute to travel to Boston this weekend to visit Lady Mary, who is one of my dearest friends. We met in high school and bonded over a shared love of reading, acting, and singing, and that bond was strengthened on a school trip to England to sing in the great cathedrals, during which we subsisted primarily on Cadbury eggs. She and her husband were such wonderful hosts, and even though it was a short visit, I got to see her neighborhood, get a cup of amazing hot chocolate, visit the butcher shop Julia Child used to frequent, attend the Easter Vigil service at her (Lady Mary’s, not Julia Child’s) gorgeous church, and then cook up a spectacular feast on Easter Sunday. We cared about the main course, obviously, but we were pretty focused on making the dessert spectacular (we have our priorities). Lady Mary suggested ginger, I suggested berries, and her husband’s delicious multi-grain scones suggested mixing up the pastry crust with a little something other than white flour. The results were a tender, delicate tart and a rich ice cream, both with the bite of fresh ginger to balance the sweetness.

Ginger Ice Cream
(from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz)

2 c. cream, divided
1 c. whole milk
3/4 c. granulated sugar
pinch of salt
3 oz. fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into thin rounds
6 egg yolks

Bring 1 c. of the cream, the milk, the sugar, the ginger, and a pinch of salt to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat, cover, and allow to steep at room temperature for 1-3 hours. Pour the remaining 1 c. cream into a medium bowl (or, my preference, a quart-sized measuring cup) and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks.

Bring the cream-ginger mixture back to a simmer over medium-low heat. Slowly pour the hot cream into the egg yolks in a very thin stream, whisking vigorously so the eggs don’t scramble. Once the yolks are incorporated, pour the mixture back into the saucepan and continue to cook, stirring, until the mixture thickens and begins to steam, and a candy thermometer reads about 168 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour the custard through the strainer into the remaining 1 c. cream, discarding the ginger rounds. Refrigerate until very cold or overnight. Freeze the ginger ice cream in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Blackberry Tart with Cornmeal Crust

Crust:

1 1/4 c. flour

1/2 c. cornmeal

2 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 c.) flour

4 tbsp. cold water

She made her apron. Lady Mary is very handy.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, and salt in medium-to-large bowl. Cut in butter with fingers or a pastry cutter. If your hands and/or kitchen are very warm, you’ll be better served by using a cutter, as you want lots and lots of tiny, unmelted bits of butter suspended throughout the dough. These will melt in the oven, leaving behind air pockets, leaving you with flaky deliciousness.

Stir in water with a fork, using only as much as needed to get the dough to come together. If dough is sticky, add a sprinkle of flour. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface. Transfer the rolled out dough to a 9″ tart pan and gently press to line the bottom and sides of the pan. Trim the edges of the dough and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork. If you have leftover dough scraps you can roll them out and bake them like cookies.

Trimming the crust. She did it with this ease, grace, and nonchalance that I find totally baffling.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Filling:

3 c. fresh blackberries
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/8-1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
pinch sea salt

Rinse and pat dry the blackberries, then transfer to a medium bowl. Whisk together the sugar, flour, ginger, and sea salt. Sprinkle the dry ingredients over blackberries and mix together gently. Let sit 15 minutes. Gently spread the blackberry mixture over the prepared cornmeal crust. Your baking times will vary depending on your oven, but start checking it around 12 minutes. Bake until the crust is crisp and golden and the fruit is cooked and gently bubbling.

Serve warm with a scoop of ginger ice cream.

Ohhh it was so good I’m dreaming of it today.

***

There are lots of lovely new lingerie and swim pieces starting to hit stores this month, but as I’ve been fitting women and revisiting those first oh-my-god-WHAT-size-do-I-wear? moments, I’m reminded that it might be a good idea to re-introduce some full-bust favorites that are widely available. Cleo’s “Lucy” bra and Freya’s “Deco” bra have been runaway hits ever since they launched, and both have been kind of enough to show up in purple for Spring, which goes so nicely with blackberry tart. I like recommending both these bras, in part because of how different they are. I’ve tried both, and even though neither is my perfect fit, I’m always happy to recommend them, because they are fantastic bras that a lot of new-to-the-full-bust-world women feel comfortable trying and wearing.

Deco Honey in Iris. Available in sizes 28-30 D-GG, 32-36 B-GG, 38 B-G (UK). Brief, short, and thong available in sizes XS-XL. Prices vary. (Image via Freya)

Deco has become a major, major player in Freya’s seasonal lineups. Originally a smooth, molded plunge bra designed to give amazing lift, shape, and cleavage, the line has expanded to include a strapless bra (my personal favorite strapless bra out there), a half-cup bra, and a wire-free bra, as well as different fashion ranges in prints, patterns, and colors. This month sees the launch of Deco Shape, a Deco range designed for maximum versatility under form-fitting clothes, which includes a longline strapless bra, convertible plunge bra, a bra-topped convertible slip, a high-waisted shaping brief, a short, and a thong. Deco Honey is one spin-off range, retaining the same classic shape of the original Deco but offering some sweet ruffled trims on the accessories and bright, vibrant solid colors, like this season’s beautiful Iris.

Deco Honey is available at Figleaves, Nordstrom, Large Cup Lingerie, Bravissimo, FreshPair, Bloomingdales, and Bare Necessities.

“Lucy” by Cleo. Available in sizes 28-38 D-J (UK), price varies. Matching brief and thong sizes 8-18 (UK). (Image via Panache)

Lucy is a great style to introduce women who feel safer in T-shirt bras to seamed bras. The seams lie very flat and give an absolutely gorgeous round, uplifted shape. This is the opposite of the “granny bra” many women think of when they think of non-molded bras, and the dots, lace, sheer mesh, low-rise brief and thong, and bright seasonal colors make it a wonderful option for younger customers as well as older. This Spring’s bright zingy purple is pretty and fun without being fussy. Dezi reviewed Lucy for A Sophisticated Pair here (don’t forget about A Sophisticated Pair’s wonderful special order policy), and check out Fuller Figure Fuller Bust’s review here!

Lucy is available at Figleaves, Nordstrom, Bare Necessities, FreshPair, Butterfly Collection, and ASOS.

Lemon Tart à la Julia

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Sweets

I’ve been wanting a copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking for a long, long time. I owned quite a few dessert/baking cookbooks from an early age, and almost every author acknowledged a heavy and long-standing debt to Julia Child for the way she revolutionized how we think about cooking and food in the USA. When my copy arrived shortly after Christmas this year, I was charmed, not only by how pretty it is, but how utterly unlike the glossy, expensively photographed cookbooks, iPad apps, and cooking blogs it is.

The illustration of “fraisage”, one of the steps Julia describes for making homemade pie, tart, and quiche doughs.

The few images are hand-drawn illustrations of technique, not mouth-watering “food porn” (NOT THAT THERE’S ANYTHING WRONG WITH FOOD PORN). If you’ve never looked at Child’s magnum opus, it’s a crash course in hundreds of years of French culinary techniques, adapted for American grocery stores, butchers, and appliances (Julia endorses the food processor, as do I). She and her co-authors, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, break down French cuisine into a series of master recipes, followed by variations that lead to a full range of dishes. Each recipe’s instructions are accompanied by the relevant ingredients and equipment in the left-hand margin of the page, so no matter where you are in the recipe, the tools you’ll need are only a glance away.

As part of my computer-free-banish-the-burglar week, I found myself one night with a clean kitchen, several hours to kill, and half a dozen lemons. I had envisioned making a big batch of lemon curd and working from there, but I was intrigued by Child’s Tarte Au Citron, which differs distinctly from what I’d always thought of as lemon tart. Instead of a pastry shell filled with rich lemon curd and layered with berries, Child offers up a light, sweet, delicately-lemon-scented soufflé that puffs up beautifully in the oven and can be served hot, warm-temperature, or cold. Seeing as how this recipe would get me from start-to-tasting more quickly than a curd tart, with all of the cooking and chilling curd requires, I dove in!

Gus helped/interfered the whole time. He either wanted to learn at the feet of the master, or he was punishing me for running the vacuum all day. Gus feels strongly that the vacuum is an evil machine of terror.

Tarte Au Citron
from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I, by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Beck

For the pâte sablée:

1 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
3 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/8 tsp. baking powder
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, chilled
2 tbsp. shortening, chilled
1 egg, beaten with 1 tsp. ice water
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Measure the dry ingredients into the bowl of a food processor. Dice the butter and shortening and add to the dry ingredients. Pulse the machine 4 or 5 times to blend and begin to break up the fats. Add the beaten egg and water and pulse the machine off and on until the dough begins to gather together around the blade, adding ice water a teaspoon at a time if needed. Once the dough has just begun to mass around the blade, turn off the machine and dump the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface or pastry board (apparently bakers in ye olden times used giant slabs of marble, which kept the fats in pastry crusts from melting, so if you have a giant slab of marble handy, go to town).

Now you get to fraisage, just like in the picture!

Fraisage, bitches.

Using the heel of your hand (not the palm, which is too warm and will soften the dough too quickly), press the pastry out in small portions away from you and along your work surface “in a firm, quick smear of about 6 inches.” Once that’s done, gather the dough into a ball and wrap in waxed paper. Refrigerate for about 2 hours or overnight.

When the dough has chilled thoroughly, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the dough from the fridge and transfer it to a clean, lightly floured work surface. Working quickly, roll the dough out into a circle (or, in my case, an approximate-square-shape) a few inches larger in proportion than your tart pan (you’ll want a 9″ round pan or equivalent). Fold the dough in half over the pin and use the pin to help transfer the rolled-out tart shell to the pan. Unfold the dough and gently press it into the pan, trimming off any overhang (pâte sablée differs from pâte sucrée in that it has egg in it, so what you’ve essentially got is a light sugar cookie dough. Feel free to bake those scraps, much as you would cookies).

Gently press a layer of aluminum foil into the pan atop the dough. Fill the foil with beans, rice, lentils, or pie weights and bake for about 8 to 9 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and remove the foil and weights. Prick the dough all over with a fork and return the pan to the oven for about 7 minutes, until the tart shell is very, very lightly browned (it will go back in the oven once more, so be sure not to over-bake). Remove the shell from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

For the lemon soufflé:

1/2 c. granulated sugar
4 egg yolks
Grated zest of 1 lemon (2 if yours are small)
3 tbsp. lemon juice

4 egg whites
pinch of salt
1/4 c. granulated sugar

Beat the egg yolks in an electric mixer fitted with a wire whip until thoroughly blended, then add the 1/2 c. granulated sugar and continue to beat on high speed until the mixture is pale yellow, thick, and forms slow-dissolving ribbons when the whip is lifted out of the batter. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Beat in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Transfer the mixture to the top half of a double boiler and set over a pan filled with about 1 inch of barely-simmering water. Stir the mixture gently, either with a wooden spoon or a heat-proof spatula, until the mixture is hot, about 165 degrees Fahrenheit on a candy thermometer, being careful not to overcook the mixture and scramble the eggs (ew). Remove the egg yolk mixture from the heat and set aside until needed.

In a clean stainless-steel bowl, mix the 4 egg whites and the pinch of salt on low speed until well-combined and beginning to foam. Gradually increase the mixer’s speed and beat until soft peaks form when the whisk is lifted out. Sprinkle the 1/4 c. sugar over the egg whites and continue to beat at medium-high speed until the mixture holds stiff peaks.

Like so.

Fold about a third of the egg white mixture into the warm yolk mixture to lighten in, and then gently fold in the remaining whites. Turn the mixture into the pre-baked tart shell. Bake the tart for about 30 minutes. When the tart puffs and begins to brown, sprinkle the top with confectioner’s sugar. It’s ready when a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Mine may have gotten over-brown, but it didn’t affect the taste or texture, so don’t worry too much about your cooking times.

Julia says that she and her colleagues preferred to eat this hot out of the oven, but if you’d rather wait, turn the oven off and leave the tart to cool in the oven with the door open (it will sink and de-puff as it cools). I have to say I kind of liked it best at room temperature. It’s a simple, comforting kind of dessert that doesn’t smack you over the head with richness or frills. It makes a lovely accompaniment to afternoon tea, and a quick dollop of freshly whipped cream, lightly sweetened, would transform it into an elegant special-occasion dessert. Bon appétit!

* * * * *

It’s always so refreshing to see lingerie, in any shape or size, in colors other than black/white/beige/pink/red. I think a lot of women are really coming to think of their lingerie as an extension of their wardrobe and as something they’d like to apply their individual fashion sense to. There are some charming lemon-yellow options beginning to pop up for Spring, but I’m particularly taken with these fun bras from Just Peachy by Figleaves, both for their amazing price points (just $32 regularly, and $24 on sale!) and for their availability in two sets of sizes. There’s a lovely padded balconette bra in sizes 30-38 A-DD and a sweet unlined balconette bra in sizes 30-38 DD-G (all sizes UK), as well as a matching brief and short (8-18 UK), both of which are regularly $16 and are currently on sale for $12.80. While I haven’t tried either style and can’t comment on fit, it’s always such a treat to find pretty lingerie for such a great price!

Chloe Spot Padded Balconette Bra

Chloe Spot Non-Padded Balconette Bra

All styles are available White/Lemon as well as Black/Blush. How sweet it is!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Hearts

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Sweets

Fact: Heart-shaped cookie cutters make everything infinitely more adorable. Everyone at work cooed when I brought these in.

It’s amazing how much I accomplished this weekend without a computer (or a sense of security) to distract me. I mean, I went DOMESTIC on my apartment. Seriously. So much laundry and cleaning and clearing and organizing and planning and shaking out the bad juju. The place is gleaming. I polished wood furniture. I hung pictures. I tidied my desk (a little). I cleaned out the fridge. When 7:00 p.m. rolled around Sunday night, I looked at my shining, spotless, never-been-cleaner kitchen, and I immediately wanted to mess it up.

I confess I also wanted to use my heart-shaped cookie cutter. Just because I hate manufactured/mandatory seasonal displays of affection doesn’t mean I’m immune to cute.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c. creamy peanut butter
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
1 egg
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda

8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
3 tbsp. creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
pinch of flaky sea salt

1 cookie cutter, shape of your choosing. Pick one towards the smaller end of the size spectrum, otherwise you’ll wind up with A LOT of cookie.

For the cookies:

Beat butter in an electric mixer until smooth, light, and creamy, about three minutes. Add the peanut butter and beat until smooth, then add the sugars. Beat the mixture for about 2-3 minutes until well-combined, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl (is there anything that smells better than brown sugar and peanut butter combined? Well, yes, but not in this moment). Add the egg and mix until combined.

Set a sifter on tip of the mixing bowl and measure the dry ingredients into it. Sift the dry ingredients into the wet, and mix on low speed until combined. Dump the dough out onto a sheet of parchment paper or plastic wrap, gather into a loose ball (it will be very crumbly), flatten into a thick disc, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 2-3 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Lightly flour your work surface and break out the rolling pin.

You know it.

Unwrap the chilled dough and place on floured work surface. Deb, in her book, tells you that the dough will be crumbly, and you’ll be all “psh, I am an EXCELLENT baker, I got this,” and then the dough will crumble all over the place, just like Deb said it would, and you will be humbled. I actually recommend using your fingers to press the dough out and then using the rolling pin towards the end to smooth and level things out. You want the dough to be about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out cookies and transfer them carefully to the prepared cookie sheets. An offset spatula or dull knife will help with this process, although there will still be some crumbling. Just press the cookie back into shape, and the oven will fix everything.

Bake the cookies for about 10-12 minutes, until the tops are set and the edges are ever-so-lightly browned. Allow to cool while preparing the filling.

For the chocolate peanut-butter ganache filling:

In a double boiler or a heat-proof bowl set over simmering water, combine the butter, peanut butter, chopped chocolate, and sea salt. Stir over heat until chocolate and butter are completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and let cool until thickened and spreadable. I confess that I got bored/impatient and used the refrigerator to hurry things along, but you must keep an eye on it so that it doesn’t solidify.

Assemble the cookies:

Transfer the cooled ganache to a pastry bag, or do as Sweets did and use a ziplock bag with one of the bottom corners snipped off. Pipe a generous teaspoon (or more, depending on the size of your cookies; I probably used about a tablespoon for each of mine) onto one cookie, top with a second cookie. Repeat. Allow cookies to sit at room temperature about 30 minutes until set.

Share with a loved one, receive pledge of eternal devotion.

I am always single around Valentine’s Day. Always. 28 years of single Valentine’s Days. Fellas, behold what you’re missing.

This is a cookie that is full of delightful contradictions. It’s tender yet sturdy, light yet rich. The flavors are classic and nostalgic, the execution refined. My lingerie pick is perhaps unexpected, yet it perfectly captures the cookie’s many moods, and it’s so, so appropriate for Valentine’s Day. Behold, from Dottie’s Delights:

Bricolage Longline Bra, Garter Belt, and Knickers, Long Sheer Dressing Robe. All by Dottie’s Delights. Bra ($225) 32-34 A-D, Garter Belt ($125) and Knicker ($85) XS-XL, Robe ($170) One Size.

Sophisticated, elegant, retro, and sexy as hell. I will have a robe like that one day, as God is my witness.

Sweet Nothing Du Jour: 2/5/13

Posted on February 5, 2013 by Sweets

First of all, thank you so, so much for your kind words last week. I was incredibly touched and comforted, more than you’ll know. My new computer arrives tomorrow, so we’ll be up and running soon, but the absence of Internet and a full keyboard has meant that I’ve got quite a few new (to me) recipes ready to go! Behold, a preview of my first ever Julia Child recipe! Any guesses?

Avec l’assistance de M. L’Asperge Le Terrible

Holiday Tart, in Chocolate and Caramel

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Sweets

So last year I made this dessert to take to my father’s house for Christmas night dinner. I mean, I knew we’d all like it, as it is primarily composed of chocolate, butter, and cream, but I was wholly unprepared for the almost maniacal passion Dad conceived for this thing. In the lead-up to Christmas 2012, nary a phone conversation ended before Dad let me know in no uncertain terms that if this tart failed to materialize on his table Christmas night, I’d have wasted a plane ticket to Virginia. Bless him, is it any wonder I love chocolate as much as I do? I had also hoped to share the dessert planned for the pre-Christmas party at Mom’s house, but my flight was cancelled and Julia Lambert was forced to make it solo, which she did beautifully. I made it home in time to make the tart, though, and here it is, my last post of 2012.

[Note: remember how I said that I didn't understand why pie crust was such a big deal, and how I never had a problem with it, and how I was the greatest pastry chef of them all? Yeah, making caramel turns me into a STRESS BALL. Don't let that stop you. Take your time, follow your color cues, and at the end of the day, it's just sugar. Let your pan soak overnight and try again. Lady Mary recommends just making jar after jar of caramel until it's second-nature, and I can't help but wonder if she's on to something.]

Chocolate-Caramel Tart with Fleur de Sel
Recipe adapted from Cooking with Rockstars

Crust:

2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs (store-bought chocolate wafers or chocolate Teddy Grahams work beautifully. I used Deb’s homemade chocolate wafers, and I encountered some interesting hiccups, to be explained below)
3/4 c. unsalted butter, melted

Caramel:

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. water
2/3 c. heavy whipping cream
10 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 oz. pieces
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Ganache:

3/4 c. heavy whipping cream
6 oz. high-quality bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

For the crust:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

So, I swore up and down that I had sent Mom a detailed grocery list for all the holiday meals and cooking projects. Turns out I only sent the menus, which are significantly less helpful. As a result, when it came time to make the tart, there were no cookies to be had in the house, and unsurprisingly, none of us wanted to go to the grocery store the morning of Christmas Eve. So I decided to make my own.

The beauty of making cookies only to pulverize them into crumbs is that your cookies can be TERRIBLY shaped, tra la.

Pulverize your cookies into fine crumbs and measure out about two cups of crumbs. Return the crumbs to the bowl of the processor.

Take it from me: if you use homemade cookies instead of store-bought, use only as much melted butter as you need to coat all of the cookie crumbs and make a damp, crumbly mass. Nice lovely homemade cookies are softer and already contain plenty of butter, unlike their drier store-bought counterparts. I made cookies, let them cool, pulverized them, and then merrily dumped all the butter in, creating buttery cookie soup. Don’t be like me. You probably need about 1/4 c. melted butter if you use homemade cookies, and 3/4 c. if you use store-bought.

Once all of the cookie crumbs are coated, transfer them to a 9-inch tart pan or pie pan, pressing them up the bottom and sides of the pan. Bake the crust for ten minutes, then remove and allow to cool at room temperature.

So this is maybe not the healthiest recipe.

Caramel time! Look, it’s not that big a deal. Caramel is just sugar that’s been cooked to not-quite-burning. Drizzle it over a cake or a sheet of parchment paper, and it hardens into to shining golden strands; add butter and cream and you have luscious, smooth, gooey, drippy caramel sauce. Let’s do this thing.

I suggest that this photo is pretty indicative of what it’s like to cook with Julia Lambert. Julia Lambert maintains that she was just reading a text from her boyfriend, and that she was being helpful. I counter that about 1 minute after I took this photo she abandoned her post at the stove to have a private dance party in her pajamas in the middle of the kitchen. She replies that this was to “entertain me”. Members of the jury, how do you find?

Combine the cream, vanilla, and pinch of salt in a measuring cup. Combine the sugar and 1/3 c. the water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture comes to a boil. Cook, swirling the pan occasionally and brushing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush.

I mean, really, how did you ever cook before you had blurry smartphone photos to guide you on your way?

Continue to cook until the color deepens to a rich amber color. The time will depend on your pan and your stove, but for us the whole process was about 20-25 minutes (Lady Mary advises that as soon as the caramel starts to smoke slightly, it’s ready).

Boom. Amber.

Immediately remove the pan from heat and dump in the butter and cream-vanilla-salt mixture. It will sputter and steam and bubble quite a lot, but don’t panic.

More truly breathtaking food photography.

Return the pan to heat and bring back to the boil. Continue to cook until the butter is melted, any hardened caramel bits have dissolved, and the color deepens further, about 8-10 minutes.

Remove the pan from heat and refrigerate until the caramel has cooled but is still pourable, about 45-50 minutes.

HELLO, lovely.

Pour the cooled caramel into the prepared pie crust and transfer the tart to the refrigerator to set. You’ll want a nice deep layer of caramel, but there may be some left over, which, oh no, WHATEVER WILL YOU DO?

Now, here’s the best part: ganache. Ganache, I love you, for being so blessedly simple. Bring cream to a low boil over medium heat, remove from the stove, dump in the chopped chocolate, whisk until smooth. Allow the ganache to cool to room temperature, then pour in a smooth, even layer over the chilled caramel. Refrigerate the tart until chocolate is fully set, at least an hour.

I didn’t get a picture of the final product, because we were busy eating it, but I think you can imagine what’s going on here.

Remove the tart from the fridge about 20 minutes before serving. Garnish with a fairly generous sprinkle of sea salt over the chocolate layer right before slicing. Serve very, very thin slivers, then collapse in a blissful sugar coma. Enjoy!

Last gratuitous cat of 2012, I swear.

Can you even handle my Dad’s cat, Bucky? Dad loves him more than he loves most people. He’s a Siamese. He’s adorable. He’s also brutally, brutally cross-eyed. I mean, holy pants, THIS CAT, y’all.

* * * * *

I have looked at A LOT of lingerie in 2012, thanks to starting Sweet Nothings. I have learned a tremendous amount about the needs, loves, requirements, and desires that lots of different women have when it comes to their lingerie. I have loved a lot of what I’ve looked at. Of everything I’ve looked at, of everything I’ve tried, the most surprising, the most delightful, and the loveliest has been the beautiful pink babydoll by Bijte I won at the Busty Clothing Swap. There’s really nothing else like it out there, especially in the full-bust market. So I paired our tart with the same lovely babydoll, in a chocolate shade rich enough and luxurious enough to hold its own against such sinful sweetness.

Silk Chiffon and Charmeuse Halter Babydoll by Bijte. Available in sizes Small (Plus) through Large (Plus). $95.00. Available on the Bijte website and at Iris Lingerie in Brooklyn, NY.

Thank you for being such enthusiastic readers, for sharing your stories and finds and questions, and for being your gorgeous, talented, sensitive selves. Have a very, very Happy New Year!

Sweet Potato Biscuits

Posted on November 5, 2012 by Sweets

These biscuits have been present at almost every major family holiday and party for as long as I can remember. When I went through my very brief food aversion phases (I didn’t like shrimp or mashed potatoes for a few hot seconds, clearly illustrating that CHILDREN ARE NUTS), sweet potatoes made it onto the “I will not eat this if my life depends on it” list. Despite this firm anti-sweet potatoes position, I wanted to eat these biscuits for every meal. They’re some of the first things I learned to make in the kitchen, and in college I’d insist on driving back from Richmond with a batch wrapped in foil to stuff in my dorm’s mini-fridge. I have made them multiple times in every apartment I’ve lived in in New York, and the recipe is the one people ask for most frequently. They’re awesome, and they’re kind of foolproof: I’ve made them by hand, with an electric mixer, and in a food processer (Mère Sweets’ method of choice). You can make them big for sandwiches or tiny for cocktail parties. You can even make the dough and cut them out ahead of time, freeze them on a cookie sheet for two hours, and then dump them in a freezer ziplock bag to have on hand to pop in the oven at the drop of a hat. If you get a good salty country ham, and you do not slice it thin and eat it on these biscuits, then you are a damn fool (although leftover Thanksgiving turkey is also acceptable).

There are a few things that can, well, not ruin them, but alter them and make them slightly less magnificent, and unfortunately one of them is out of your control: your potatoes. You want the bright, deep orange beauties that I sometimes see called “Garnet Yams”. They have provided the most consistent results for me, as well as the best color. Sometimes, for whatever reason, your biscuits won’t be as moist or flavorful as they’ve been before, and it’s okay. It’s not you; it’s your potatoes (it’s not you; it’s your bra. THIS BLOG COMES FULL CIRCLE!). The one thing that IS in your control, however, is your baking powder, and I will shout this so you always remember it: ALUMINUM-FREE. Check your labels. Clabber Girl is an adorably retro/beloved baking powder brand, and we had it in the house in Virginia once, and when our biscuits tasted bitter and turned kind of green-ish, I read the label on the baking powder. Yep, aluminum. For best baking results no matter what, always make sure your baking powder is aluminum free. And now, the best things ever:

Sweet Potato Biscuits
From Mom, by way of Blue Pete’s Restaurant in Virginia Beach

1 ½ cup mashed sweet potatoes, baked (directions below) and still warm (about 2-3 medium potatoes)
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup unsalted butter
2 tbsp. whole milk, cream, or ½ and ½ (don’t use skim or low-fat milk; it’ll make your biscuits dry)
3 ½ to 4 cups flour
1 tsp. table salt
4 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place sweet potatoes on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil, and bake until they’re quite soft and tender when pierced with a fork, anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half, depending on size. (Mom wraps each potato individually in foil, which I did not realize until this Thanksgiving, but since I’d been baking them unwrapped for about five years before then, I think we can safely say either method works).

Allow to cool for about 15-20 minutes, then peel and mash with a fork. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of mashed sweet potato and reserve the rest for dinner (yum).

Mix the sweet potatoes, sugar, butter and milk in a large bowl, with an electric mixer (paddle attachment), or pulse in the bowl of a food processor until combined.

Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. Blend dry ingredients into the potato mixture. Knead/pulse until the dough just barely doesn’t stick to your fingers.

Gather the dough into a ball and transfer to a floured work surface. Roll out the dough to about ½ inch in thickness. Using a juice glass or a round cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut out the biscuits and place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, very closely spaced together.

You’ll want to go as easy on the flour as possible, just enough to keep the dough from sticking to everything. Use too much, and the biscuits will get tough and dry.

Bake on the middle rack for 14-16 minutes (if your biscuits are coming from the freezer, you’ll need to add a few minutes to the baking time). Serve warm, or allow to cool and store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Biscuits heading from the freezer to the oven. Your guests will be dazzled.

Seriously, these make ham biscuits so good you’ll want to weep. I recommend a good, salty country ham. They’re also delicious with apple butter or honey butter.

The cinnamon gives these a distinctly Autumnal vibe, but if you’re looking for a variation for Spring/Summer, Mom recommends omitting the cinnamon and substituting 1-2 tbsp. finely minced fresh rosemary.

* * * * *

Seriously, how could I not go for this?

“Cracked Cinnamon Jumper” by Zinke. Available at Anthropologie.

Orange-colored cinnamon biscuits, meet orange-colored cinnamon LACY ADORABLENESS. Smaller-busted ladies, please rock the hell out of this for me.

Oh swoon. So pretty, so sexy.

It’s also available in navy and cream on the Zinke website, along with their other beautiful silk and lace lingerie, bralettes, loungewear, and completely amazing swimwear. Go get yourself a treat, and have a biscuit.

*Note: I am neck-deep in a major work project this week, and this post has been pre-scheduled. My responses may be limited or nonexistent until the project is over.

Espresso Bomb Ice Cream

Posted on October 1, 2012 by Sweets

What ho! I have internet again! Let’s GET DOWN TO IT.

[At some point in the future I'm going to provide the recipe for Espresso Bombs, but suffice it to say that they're essentially single servings of chilled coffee ganache, topped with chocolate-covered espresso beans. Chocolate, cream, espresso: an unholy trinity of awesome that inspired this ice cream.]

Julia Lambert and I take our birthday desserts VERY SERIOUSLY, especially when we get to celebrate our birthday together, so I have a zillion intense Gchat conversations in my archives devoted to the discussion of cake and ice cream for this past weekend. We went back and forth on the cake for a while, but once we’d made our decision, the ice cream was a no-brainer: it had to be chocolate. Our dad was also in NYC this weekend, and have I mentioned whence cometh my sweet tooth? This guy. He asked if he could man the blender and make us some boozy mudslide milkshakes, and we realized our chocolate ice cream was going to need a major coffee kick. We may be breaking with mudslide tradition slightly, but I think once you taste this ice cream you’ll forgive us.

There are generally two ways of making coffee ice cream: using instant coffee/espresso or infusing the custard with whole coffee beans. My guess is that most baking gurus would say to infuse (heat cream, milk, sugar, and coffee beans, allow to steep for an hour, then continue making ice cream as usual, straining the beans out of the custard before chilling and freezing), but here’s the thing: I’m hugely caffeine-sensitive. I drink coffee only under the direst circumstances, and with the understanding that my appetite and energy levels will be screwy for the next day and a half. So I don’t have any coffee beans in the apartment, but I do have a jar of espresso powder, because I’m a baker and most things chocolate-adjacent taste richer and deeper with a teaspoon or so of espresso powder tossed in, and for some reason the caffeine doesn’t bug me as much when it’s not served straight-up. So I’m going to be lazy and use that here. Those of you who ARE coffee drinkers will probably thank me for preserving your coffee beans for their intended use.

Espresso Bomb Ice Cream

Inspired by recipes from David Lebovitz and Marcel Desaulniers

2 c. heavy cream
1 tbsp. unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
5 oz. semisweet chocolate
1 c. whole milk
3/4 c. granulated sugar
5 tbsp. instant espresso powder
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks, room temperature
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

I made a double batch, so there are lots of egg yolks here. There was also LOTS of ice cream. All was right in the world.

Place a heavy-duty gallon-size freezer ziplock bag in a large Pyrex measuring cup, set aside. Coarsely chop the semisweet chocolate.

I think the best way to chop chocolate is with a very sharp serrated knife. You’ll break big blocks of chocolate up more quickly, and you won’t dull the heck out of your other cooking knives.

In a medium saucepan, combine 1 c. of the cream, the espresso powder, and the cocoa powder and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the cocoa and espresso. Reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer for about 30 seconds, and then remove from heat. Stir in the chopped chocolate until smooth, and then whisk in the remaining cup of cream. Pour the chocolate mixture into the ziplock bag and set a mesh strainer on top of the measuring cup.

Fill a large bowl with ice and set aside.

Using the same saucepan, whisk together the milk, sugar, and salt and warm the mixture over medium-low heat. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly whisk the milk mixture into the egg yolks in a slow, steady stream. Pour the custard back into the saucepan and heat until it reaches approximately 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit, thickens, and coats the back of a spoon. Pour the custard through the strainer into the chocolate-cream mixture in the ziplock bag, add the vanilla extract, and stir. Press as much air as possible out of the ziplock bag and seal.

Place the sealed bag in the bowl of ice, top with more ice cubes, and then add cold water until bowl is full. Allow the ice cream custard to cool completely, around 40-60 minutes. Freeze in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.

This stuff is STRONG. I advise going for small servings, as I did here (although mostly it was an excuse to show off my adorable juice glass that was just so preciously à propos). Why yes, I DO amuse myself.

For mudslides according to Père Sweets, toss a few scoops of ice cream in a blender with some crushed ice, a splash of Kahlua, and a splash of chocolate liqueur. You can figure out the rest, I daresay. Enjoy!

“Lucia” by Fauve

“Lucia” in Chocolate. Balconette bra 30-40 D-GG, Half-cup bra 30-40 D-G, Brief, Short, Thong and Suspender XS-XXL.

It’s not often that you find beige or brown lingerie that’s particularly elegant, sexy, or thrilling, especially in the full-bust market. More often these colors are reserved for seamless or molded basics that don’t embrace the warmth and depth of rich chocolate shades. Fauve steps up to the plate, however, presenting their Lucia range in a gleaming chocolate satin that perfectly matches the silkiness and depth of our ice cream. While the earlier Ruby and Blue shades (some sizes still available on sale) are, for me, the ones that got away, the subtle glamor of the Chocolate shade has a seductive appeal. The details in the Lucia range are truly stunning: the black lace trim is elegant and sophisticated, I adore the asymmetrically-placed fabric bows that appear on the bras and accessories, and beautiful suspender belts get me every time. The briefs even feature a sexy sheer back with a ruched seam, which is great for curvy rears, topped with yet another sassy bow.

View of the details on the brief.

Fauve is a bit more luxurious than sister brand Freya, and is priced accordingly, but I think the elegant details make it absolutely worth it. A Sophisticated Pair published a great preview of Fauve’s Spring/Summer 2013 line last week, and Autumn/Winter 2012 styles are just beginning to hit stores. I think the A/W 2012 collection was photographed a bit . . . strangely for the brochure, but the lingerie itself is lovely as ever. Check it out!

Sweet Nothing Du Jour:9/16/12

Posted on September 16, 2012 by Sweets

Tonight’s post is NOT brought to you by Time Warner Cable, my current nemesis, who for the last four months has delightfully been charging me for internet despite the hilariously infrequent service and countless hour-long phone calls to Customer Services. They’re sending yet another technician to my apartment. In a week and a half. Ahem. Posts may be few and far between for a while.

Anyway, thanks to the magic of 3G, I want to share with you some awesomeness from my mom’s recent visit. She picked up the most incredible tea towel ever to wrap a present she sent to me a few months ago, not realizing that I would find the towel itself so mind-blowingly wonderful I’d squeal and want it framed and hung in my kitchen. She spent most of her long weekend with me shopping for picture frames, vacuuming my apartment, painting a mirror frame, and helping hang pictures. Because she is really nice to me.

BEHOLD THE MAJESTY.

Yes, that’s correct. A tea towel featuring weight and measurement conversions for everything from inches to centimeters to teaspoons to milliliters to ounces to grams to oven temperatures and basically anything you could ever need to cook anything ever. I love this tea towel SO HARD.

I’M GOING TO COOK ALL THE THINGS. Thanks Mom!

Anise Ice Cream

Posted on September 8, 2012 by Sweets

When I serve this ice cream to other people they usually do a little bit of a double-take upon hearing the name. For some it’s a flavor they’ve never heard of, and for others it’s a flavor that is a little intimidating. Anise, licorice, and fennel can be polarizing; lots of people either love them or hate them. I fall into the middle: I adore roasted fennel, abhor black licorice (Trader Joe’s Strawberry Licorice, on the other hand . . . I can’t buy it anymore. It’s fiercely addictive. Don’t say I didn’t warn you), and I LOVE Anise Ice Cream.

The technique used here is classic and infinitely adaptable: you make a standard French egg-based custard, but you infuse some of the cream and milk with anise seeds and then strain them out before freezing. You can also replace the anise with your favorite herb or spice to create unusual and delicious ice creams. I’d recommend trying dried lavender blossoms (particularly since this recipe calls for a bit of honey, and lavender + honey is a lovely combo), fresh ginger, cinnamon sticks, halved vanilla beans, or fresh herbs like basil, rosemary, or mint. I’ve even used Earl Grey tea leaves to make Earl Grey ice cream that is out of this world (want to make Earl Grey truffles? Same technique (infusion+straining) applies). The end result is rich and creamy, yes, but the sophisticated flavors lend some major elegance. Anise has a delicate, exotic flavor that pairs sensuously with dark chocolate. This ice cream plus Chocolate Wafers from Smitten Kitchen make for delicious homemade ice cream sandwiches, and if you have some good bittersweet or semisweet chocolate on hand, Anise Stracciatella Ice Cream (see tips at the end of the recipe) will rock your world. Promise.

Anise Ice Cream
from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

2 tsp. anise seeds
2 c. heavy cream (divided)
1 c. whole milk
2/3 c. granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. good-flavored honey
pinch of salt
5 egg yolks

In a medium saucepan, toast the anise seeds over medium-low heat until they’re fragrant and lightly toasted (about 2-3 minutes). Add 1 c. cream, milk, sugar, salt, and honey and stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm. Cover pan, remove from heat, and allow the mixture to steep for an hour at room temperature.

Fill a large mixing bowl with ice cubes and set aside. Get out a gallon-size heavy-duty ziplock bag and place it in a large measuring cup or medium bowl. Pour the remaining 1 c. cream into the bag-in-the-bowl/measuring-cup and set a mesh strainer on top (depending on the ingredient you’re infusing, it may help to line the strainer with cheesecloth, just to catch any stray bits). In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks.

Return the anise/milk/cream mixture to the stove over medium heat and re-warm. Slowly whisk the warm milk/cream mixture into the egg yolks, being sure to whisk all the while so the eggs don’t cook. Pour the custard base back into the saucepan and heat until the mixture reaches approximately 165-168 degrees Fahrenheit and coats the back of a spoon, stirring constantly. Immediately remove from heat and pour through the mesh strainer into the ziplock bag with the remaining 1 c. of cream. Discard the anise seeds. Press as much air as possible out of the ziplock bag, seal it, place in bowl with ice cubes, pour a few more ice cubes on top, add some cold water, and leave to chill while you wash dishes/tidy up/make cookies/what have you. Once the mixture is quite cold (about 40 minutes-1 hour), freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Transfer the semi-frozen ice cream to an airtight container and press a layer of parchment paper against the surface (air contact = ice crystals, so you always want to make sure the surface of your ice cream is completely covered) before sealing tightly. Place in freezer for a few hours until firm (or eat right away while it’s a melty milkshakey mess- yum).

To make ice cream sandwiches:

You’ll want to do some prep work while your ice cream is freezing. If I’m making a bunch of these (they make a really fun dinner party dessert), I’ve found it’s helpful to clear out my freezer space so that I have enough room to put my cooling racks in there. Set out several sheets of parchment paper cut to fit either the cooling rack or a cookie sheet. Pair up the cookies of your choice (again, these are SO GOOD with almost any ice cream flavor imaginable) and lay the cookie pairs out on the parchment paper. Once your ice cream is done freezing, immediately and quickly begin spooning generous tablespoons of soft ice cream onto one cookie, topping the ice cream with another cookie and pressing together gently. As soon as a cookie sheet or cooling rack is filled, place it in the freezer before moving on to the next one. Allow the sandwiches to sit in the freezer for an hour or two to firm up before plating, wrapping, or serving (the cookies will soften the longer the sandwiches rest in the freezer, so I like to make mine the day before I plan to serve them).

To make stracciatella ice creams:

“Stracciatella” (stracciatelle is the Italian word for “little flakes”, and “real” Stracciatella is an Italian egg-drop soup that’s made by pouring a stream of whisked eggs into boiling broth, which cooks the eggs) is a fancy way of saying “chocolate chip”, but instead of just dumping chocolate chips into ice cream so that they become hard, frozen, tooth-breaking nuggets, you pour a thin stream of melted chocolate into semi-frozen ice cream, stirring all the while. The chocolate freezes upon contact with the ice cream and then crackles into thin slivers and flakes as you stir it in. This is one of my favorite quick ways to fancy up homemade ice cream: you don’t have to get out more bowls and pots and pans and thermometers to make a fudge ripple or a fruit sauce, you just melt chocolate in a measuring cup in the microwave and stir it into the ice cream. Easy-peasy.

Chop about 5 oz. of good-quality semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate (not chocolate chips). Melt the chocolate, either in a double boiler or in the microwave. There are two ways to tackle the next step, and both are equally messy:

1. While the ice cream maker is still turning, but the ice cream is about ready to transfer to the freezer, pour the melted chocolate slowly into the opening in the lid. You may have to stop the mixer a few times to scrape chocolate off the dasher or lid or to stir a bit with a spatula, but work as quickly as possible. The churning of the ice cream maker will break up the chocolate as it freezes.

2. Transfer a few scoops of semi-frozen ice cream to a container, drizzle some of the melted chocolate over top, stir, and repeat.

Regardless of the method you choose, you WILL get melted chocolate and ice cream all over creation. You will also wind up with a luscious homemade ice cream studded with flecks and streaks of chocolate. It’s so worth it.

Falling in Love Basque. From Fräulein Annie’s Facebook page, a sneak peek of a photo shoot for 2013.

For our lingerie pairing, I’m turning again to Fräulein Annie, a brand I mentioned in the shapewear post. I can’t get the Falling in Love range out of my head. Falling in Love is a Fräulein Annie continuity style, which means it will always be available in certain colors and certain sizes from season to season. This stunning Pearl Grey/Ivory colorway is one of them. Fräulein Annie’s collections are designed to offer multiple pieces to suit different figure types and sizes. For example, there is a shaping suspender, with boning and powermesh, which will fit women with curvy hips and rears, whereas women with straighter figures or narrower hips might prefer the waist cincher. The bra is available in a padded balconette style for sizes 32-38 A-D and an unlined underwired balconette style for sizes 32-38 DD-G (UK). A short, thong, and basque (A-DD cups) complete the set. While the prices are higher than, say, Freya or Panache, they’re extraordinarily reasonable considering the level of thought and care that’s gone into the design, construction, and even business model. All garments are constructed with both beauty and longevity in mind– this is lingerie to treasure and keep. It helps that it looks incredible. The pale colors pair beautifully with our ice cream, and the luxurious, elegant details echo the sophistication of the ice cream’s infused flavor. I’m having a miserable time finding a US retailer with this colorway in stock, but it’s available for purchase at Fusspot Lingerie and Amazon.co.uk, and there should be more US retailers in coming seasons. For more info on Fräulein Annie, go check out Hourglassy‘s and Fuller Figure Fuller Bust‘s interviews with Frauke Nagel, the designer and mastermind behind this exciting new brand.

Falling in Love Waist Cincher and Small-Bust Bra.

Falling in Love full-bust bra, thong, and shaping suspender.

The Autumn/Winter 2012 Collection Film, inspired by Hitchcock

Sweet Nothings

Tag Archives: Baking

White Chocolate and Strawberry Tarts

Blackberry Tart and Ginger Ice Cream

Lemon Tart à la Julia

Peanut Butter Chocolate Hearts

Sweet Nothing Du Jour: 2/5/13

Holiday Tart, in Chocolate and Caramel

Sweet Potato Biscuits

Espresso Bomb Ice Cream

Sweet Nothing Du Jour:9/16/12

Anise Ice Cream

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