Come Join Our Party, See How We Play

1969. The year when peace, love and music ruled at Woodstock. The year when Charles Manson would gain infamy. The year when the NY Mets won their first World Series, “Midnight Cowboy” ruled at the box office, The Beatles’ “Come Together” rocked the charts, Sesame Street debuted on TV and Penthouse on the newsstands, the Concorde took its first flight and another Kennedy in the news: this time, young Teddy who drove his car off a bridge in Chappaquiddick.

1969. The year when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin captured the attention of millions of TV viewers the world over as they walked on the moon. “That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." It was also the year that yours came truly came into the world.



My mother’s due date was in fact 20 July 1969. I was to be born the day the lunar landing module touched down on the moon’s surface. Thankfully I had hunkered down in the uterus and came out 3 days late...barely escaping a fate that would have had me going by the name of “Luna.” No kidding. It’s the name my mom had picked out. Over the years, I have imagined hundreds of times my walk through the school hallways to the shouts of “Hey, here comes looney Luna!” You know how cruel kids can be.

Thankfully, in the days between the moon walk and my actual delivery, my mother happened to watch a film that starred Catherine Deneuve, and in seeing this beautiful actress grace the screen, she decided that would be a fitting first name. Or at least that’s the story as I have heard it.



What have I learned from this story? That try as you might, life will not always go as planned and you need to be flexible and take it all with a grain of salt. That if you are open to it, inspiration will come from the unlikeliest places. And that “One and one and one is three. Got to be good-looking ‘cause he’s so hard to see.”



I’ve also learned a few other things in the 40 years I have lived and loved and dreamed and done on this planet. And in honor of my 40th birthday, I thought I would share them with you, accompanied by some cupcakes I created specially for the occasion: Snickers Cupcakes – Peanut Butter Cupcakes with a Salted Caramel Center, Caramel/Milk Chocolate Ganache and Chopped Peanuts, & Lavender Loves Lemon Celebration Cupcakes for the IC:E July challenge, Herbs(recipe below). These are Lemon Verbena Poppyseed Cupcakes with a Lavender Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting. And they are delicious! Light, creamy and lemony sweet with a fragrant lavender under-current.



40 Things I Have Learned in My 40 Trips Around the Sun, and Then Some…

1. Childbirth hurts…a lot! Though thankfully the body has a wonderful capacity for forgetting pain. Once they put that bundle of joy down on your chest for the very first time, you’ll be ready to do it all over again.

2. It does get easier the second time around.

3. You can never change a man.

4. Use sunscreen liberally and get that suspicious freckle checked out. It could save your life; it saved mine.

5. Fresh marker can be easily removed from a fabric couch with plain old milk dabbed on the stain with a washcloth.

6. Time really does heal all wounds.

7. Keep xeroxed copies of your (and your family members’) birth certificate, driver’s license, social security card, etc. somewhere safe; it will come in handy one day.

8. If you are renting a property in a remote corner of Italy and you have cat allergies, always make sure to ask if a cat has been living inside the house before reserving and traveling all the way to said location.

9. Nothing brings a smile to someone’s face faster than the gift of cupcakes!



10. It’s true that you can’t pick your family but you can choose your friends. The true ones will be at your side through thick and thin, and when you need them the most. Ditch the others and fast!

11. If a guy can’t be bothered to return your phone calls within a reasonable amount of time, thank you for something nice you’ve done or regularly breaks/”forgets” dates to hang out with his friends, play video games, etc., he’s giving you a hint. Move on!

12. Despite all the tears, time, anguish and nights gone without sleep stressing over your wedding planning, your wedding day will probably be just one long happy blur in the end. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

13. No matter what your age, you can reinvent yourself. If you have a passion, go for it! Realize it on a small scale if a larger scale just isn’t possible. If you apply yourself, you can be anything you dream of being.

14. 20 ounces tomato juice, 6 ounces (pepper) vodka, 2 dashes Tabasco, 1 dash Worcestershire sauce, a pinch celery salt, 2 twists fresh cracked pepper, and juice of 1 lemon. Combine all together with ice and shake. Perfect kick-ass Bloody Mary every time.

15. You can’t always get what you want. But if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need.

16. Never wake a sleeping baby.

17. Those grates you see in the sidewalk all over Paris? The ones where the exhaust from the subway escapes? Don’t walk over those wearing a skirt unless you want to re-enact that famous Marilyn Monroe moment.

18. No matter how much you are drooling over those Manolo Blahniks, Jimmy Choos, (insert your fetish shoe brand here) that you’ve seen all the stars wear in the celebrity pages this season…the ones you have just found on sale for half price….if they don’t fit properly in the store, they never will. Do your feet (and your wallet) a favor and keep walking.

19. In the US, when you receive a negative response like “No, we can’t do that” or “I’m very sorry but it’s just not possible” it’s usually the end of a conversation. In France, it’s the opening salvo in a negotiation where it‘s more than likely you will ultimately get your way.

20. A lot of it boils down to being in the right place at the right time….and who you know. So get out there as often as you can, and schmooze!

21. The book is usually better than the movie. Though the movie better than the Broadway show.

22. When you are wrong, admit it. And learn from your mistakes! There is nothing more annoying than someone who always tries to put the blame on others, or who keeps doing the same stupid things over and over.

23. Learn how to take a compliment graciously.

24. No one will respect you unless you respect yourself. The same goes for believing in yourself.

25. You can’t cram a semester’s worth of lessons into one night of studying. No matter how much NoDoz you ingest or what your roommates may tell you.

26. 20 (hell even 5!) years after the fact, no one will really care what your major was in college. They in fact might not even care where you went to college. A study published a few years back in Fortune demonstrated the only thing that does matter is that you have a college degree, not where it came from.

27. Always remember, there is no reset button in life.

28. There’s nothing like a good night of sleep to give you a fresh perspective on a dilemma.

29. If you are going to lie, maintain eye contact. A sure give-away is looking up and to the right which indicates you are accessing the creative side of your brain.

30. Always have one great perfect dress at the ready. You never know when you may be invited to a last minute party or when that cute guy from the creative department is going to ask you out.

31. A tattoo is forever; choose your design wisely. If you are going to get inked with your significant other’s name or your favorite motto, for god’s sake, check the spelling on the outline before it’s permanently etched on your body.

32. While the occasional shopping spree may be good mental therapy, don’t live beyond your means. I’ve seen too many friends declare personal bankruptcy (some before the ripe old age of 30) to erase their debt. It’s tragic.

33. It’s never too early to teach your kids proper manners, the value of hard work, the difference between right and wrong, to be altruistic, how to practice good personal hygiene, and a love of baking.

34. Learn how to make one good dish and make it well. I happen to like this one. The same goes for a knock-out cocktail. See #14.

35. Liquor before beer, never fear. Beer before liquor, never sicker!

36. Never show up for a party empty-handed. See #9.

37. Love and be loved. Live and let live!

38. Be grateful for what you have instead of looking with envy at that which others possess. Be generous to those who are less fortunate than you -- remember, what you sow, you reap. I’ve always been a firm believer in what goes around comes around.

39. There is only so much you can blame on your parents, or your dysfunctional home life, or the manner in which you were raised, or that “trauma” that affected you as a teenager. (Like your sister stealing your 9th grade boyfriend, I’m not talking about abuse and other sick, serious crimes people commit against children here). Take responsibility for the person you are today; if you’re not happy with the way you look or a certain behavior you have, etc., stop sniveling, get off the couch and change it! TODAY! You are the master of your own destiny.

40. Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow, don’t stop, it’ll soon be here. It’ll be better than before. Yesterday’s gone. Yesterday’s gone.

41. If you have the chance to participate in a study abroad program while in college, do it! If you hate it, you’ll be home when the semester is over but at least you have given yourself the chance to see the world, experience a new culture, learn new customs and flirt in a foreign language!

42. When making baked goods, always use the best quality ingredients you can afford. You really can taste the difference.

43. Strive to learn one new thing every day. Okay, at least once a week if you are lazy like me.



44. Know how to throw a party: invite all your close friends and cool people you want to know better, buy several bottles of bubbly, bake up some cupcakes (or have someone bake them for you!), slip into something sexy and fun, break out your favorite I-pod Playlist and party all night long!



I'm still working on the "learn to age gracefully" bit. My brain is having a hard time processing the fact that I am actually 40 years old today. In my heart and mind, I am still that wild, free-spirited 25 year-old I used to know. Though I guess it is all relative; as my mother-in-law told me yesterday, "Wait until you are 50, 60 or 65 years-old! I would do anything to be 40 again!"


Lavender Loves Lemon Celebration Cupcakes
Makes about 1 Dozen

4 ozs. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 pinch salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup hot water
1 teabag verbena
2 tsps. poppy seeds

1. Place verbena in the 1/4 cup hot water and allow to steep while you prepare the batter.
2. Cream sugar and butter until light and moussey. Add egg and mix.
3. Add baking soda, salt and vanilla and mix again.
4. Add 1/3 flour and mix. Add 1/2 buttermilk and mix. Alternate adding flour and buttermilk and mixing after each, ending on a flour addition.
5. Discard teabag, add verbena infused water and mix.
6. Mix in lemon zest, juice and poppy seeds.
7. Fill cupcake liners 2/3rds full and place in a 350 degree oven for about 18 minutes. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
8. Remove from oven and let cupcakes cool on a grill.

Lavender Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 stick butter
1 8oz package of cream cheese
1/2 vanilla bean
2-3 cups confectioner's sugar
3-4 drops of purple food coloring
1 tbsp. lavender flowers
1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Heat cream over medium heat, add lavender and allow to sit undisturbed for a few minutes while flowers steep. Remove from heat and let cool 30 minutes, strain cream, discard flowers, set aside.
2. Combine softened butter and cream cheese and mix well.
3. Add about half of the confectioner's sugar and lavender-infused cream to the butter/cream cheese mixture and beat to combine.
4. Using the point of a sharp knife, remove vanilla beans from pod and mix in well.
5. Add remaining confectioner's sugar in stages until desired consistency and sweetness is achieved.
6. Add purple food coloring (I like Wilton's gel) and mix until consistent color is reached.

Last but not least, I am competing for the June ETSY PRIZE-PACK:

* A sweet cupcake ID bracelet by INSANEJELLYFISH
* A delicious treat from CIRCLEMONKEY
* a sweet surprise from Sweet Cuppin' Cakes Cupcakery
* PLUS, IronCupcake:Earth can not forget our good friend, CAKESPY who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice - sweet!

Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers: HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS, HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson, JESSIE STEELE APRONS, TASTE OF HOME books, and a t-shirt from UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM. Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers.

Yes, It Is Another IC:E Entry!

Okay, this one is coming late in the game but it's actually the first idea that came to mind when I heard this month's challenge was Summer Berries.



When I first moved to France, I knew of and loved many of the traditional bakery favorites like eclairs, millefeuille and pain au chocolat. Now that I live right above a bakery, I have learned to explore and embrace an ever-expanding assortment of patisseries (unfortunately my backside has expanded with them!). Things like a Tigré, which is a chocolate chip spotted vanilla sponge cake with a fondant chocolate center,



Or a Divorcé, two puff pastries which have been melded together - one filled with a coffe crème patissier, the other with a chocolate one and a squiggly line of whipped buttercream dividing it down the middle (the ones on the far left),



Or a Gland, my husband's favorite which is a cream-filled puff pastry coated with a slightly green tinted sugar icing. Sometimes the icing is subtly tinted like a cool lime but other bakeries do a full-on fluorescent green one. It is often half-dipped in chocolate sprinkles for a two-tone look. Go figure.



One of the more popular bakery desserts at this time of year is the Fraisier. It is made from a genoise cake that is halved; creme mousseline and strawberries are smoothed in the center and then it is reassembled. It is usually topped with a thin covering of marzipan and some decorative strawberries and other objects.



Frequently, when you buy it sliced in the bakery, there is a thin cellophane film surrounding the slice to hold it in place. Thus was my inspiration for my 3rd and final entry in this month's Iron Cupcake:Earth. I call my creation Le Murier cupcake since blackberries in French are called mures. To make them I took a simple vanilla cupcake recipe and threw a bunch of freshly chopped blackberries in the mix. Once they had baked, I sliced them in half, spread home-made lemon curd in the center, popped a few blackberries in too and put the cupcake back together. It is topped with a cream cheese frosting, a marzipan cap, sugared lemon slices and a blackberry. Enjoy!



Le Murier Cupcakes

Take your favorite vanilla cupcake recipe. I'm going to share Amy Sedaris'with you as I keep my vanilla cupcake recipe closely guarded!

Once cupcakes have cooled, you are going to slice them in half. I placed mine in recycled chocolate pudding pots to hold them together but you cause any old container like a coffee cup or empty yogurt pot. Cover the bottom with a dollop of lemon curd and some blackberries. Then cover with a layer of cream cheese frosting and marzipan cap.

Amy Sedaris Vanilla Cupcakes
Makes About 24

1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter
1 ¾ cups of sugar

Beat well, then add:

Add 2 large eggs
2 Teaspoons of pure vanilla
½ teaspoon of salt
2 ½ teaspoons of baking powder
2 ½ cups of flour
1 ¼ cups of milk

Beat well, (I mixed in about 1 cup fresh blackberries that had been picked over and slightly chopped) fill cups, and bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes.


Lemon Curd
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp grated lemon zest
1/4 cup strained lemon juice
3 tbsps. butter
3 egg yolks

Mix together sugar, grated lemon, butter and lemon juice in a small pot over low heat. In a seperate bowl, whisk yolks til liquidy. Once the lemon mixture comes to a boil, very slowly pour half of mixture into yolks, constantly whisking so that the eggs don't cook. Then pour that mixture back into the pot, still whisking, whisking, whisking until fully combined. Continue to cook as curd thickens and almost comes to a boil, whisking all the time. Remove from heat, pour into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap, making sure to press plastic wrap firmly against curd. Refrigerate and use when cool.

Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting

1 package of Philly cream cheese
1/4 stick butter
2-3cups sifted powdered sugar
seeds of 1/2 vanilla bean

Bring cheese and butter to room temperature by letting it sit out for 1 or 2 hours. Beat butter and cheese at medium speed until creamy. Add 2 cups sugar and beat until combined. Add vanilla and beat until combined. Add more sugar until you get to the consistency and sweetness you like.

**Picture Credits** Tigres from www.achat-essonne.com, Divorce from www.terredesaveurs.com, Gland from www.imageshack.us and Fraisier from www.mescoupsdecoeur.com

As a reminder, here's what I am competing for in this month's Iron Cupcake

Say It With Flours

**Spoiler Alert** This post is dedicated to my husband on our 8th year wedding anniversary. It may contain some sappy sentimental gunk so if you don't want to hear it, point your web browser elsewhere....



Upon meeting me, a lot of people wonder how on earth a born and bred New York City gal like me wound up in Paris. Which inevitably leads me to tell the story of how I met my husband. So for once and for all, here goes:

I used to date a really cool guy named Tom. At one point in our relationship it became pretty clear that we would be better off as friends versus boyfriend and girlfriend. Did I happen to mention we worked at the same ad agency? So we still saw a lot of each other and I think did (and still do when he's not too busy with work to talk with me) a pretty good job on the post-breakup friends part. Which is how I came to accompany him to a party one night as his "wingman." You see, Tom was quite smitten with a coat check girl he had met one day while lunching with some Clients. He had returned to the restaurant the very next day to ask her out and she invited him (and he me) to a house-warming party she and her roommate, newly arrived from Paris, were having.



So, we headed on down to her pad - it was a Sunday night (I remember because we always watched X-Files together and that night was no exception) - so not a serious partying night. We walked into the party and while Tom left me to go woo Mademoiselle French Fry, I gravitated towards a group of people at the center of the room who were discussing some such club they had been to the night before. A very tall guy in a beige linen suit immediately caught my eye. He reminded of a cross between Crispin Glover (you know the Thin Man from Charlie's Angels) and Ralph Fiennes, and just exuded elegance and charm. He had a girl on his arm who was regaling everyone with a story about how drunk he had been the night before and that the poor dear was so sick, he had barely slept and was now suffering with a terrible hangover. I of course reckoned she was his girlfriend and didn't think much of it as little by little, I found myself talking with him alone about French literature and culture. His English was so perfect, I didn't at first realize he too was French until he mentioned something about growing up in Paris.



From time to time, his girlfriend strolled over to chat; I was surprised that she wasn't bothered at all by the fact that we had been talking so long - it had been hours - and I mentioned this to him. He started laughing and seemed very amused by my comment. Because you see, she wasn't his girlfriend at all but the other hostess of the party and Mademoiselle French Fry's roommate. Well, that certainly explained a lot and so when he told me he was leaving for a short trip to Paris the next day, but said he'd like to call me when he came back, I didn't hesitate for a moment. For you see, somewhere in that space of our conversation, underneath a horribly colored hand-made patchwork blanket hung on the wall, something had happened to me. Something I had never felt before and couldn't quite explain. When I got home that night, I called up my best friend Jen and inexplicably blurted out : "I just met the man I am going to marry."



We were engaged a few years later during a truly romantic trip to the South of France. We had arrived at a beautiful chateau near Lyon and as we were getting ready to go down for dinner, he said to me, "You look beautiful but I think your outfit is missing something" and got down on hand and knee as he proposed and pulled an engagement ring from his pocket. It was a magical trip and one I will never forget.



We've been through thick and thin, ups and downs, laughter and tears over the years and we're two kids heavier than when we met. A more opposite couple you will likely never meet : he's practically never without a suit (even on a cross-Atlantic flight) while I prefer jeans and my Pumas. He's into opera and classical music, I can spend days watching MTV. He's a whiz with numbers, anything scientific and can speak intelligently for hours on any topic from Nietzsche to the Neolithic Revolution. I'll be the one helping our kids with their English homework...and did I mention I like MTV? Yet we somehow manage to make it work and have fun doing so. Well, except for that time when we were both unemployed and expecting our first child. That was certainly no fun but we got through it!

So to you dear husband I say, Happy Anniversary! I love you and look forward to another 8 to the power of 2 years with you (or 64 years if I am not mistaken -- I learned that the other night while he was teaching something to our 6 year-old!). And for this occasion, I baked up some of his favorites - 1 dozen mini cheesecakes in 3 varieties: lemon, raspberry swirl and pistachio/white chocolate. I think it makes a pretty cool flour arrangement (as my friend Elizabeth would say!) and a sweet way to mark our 8 year anniversary.