Goodbye Paris Picnic Party

I’m writing these lines back in my old room in Tel-Aviv, Israel, after living one year in Paris, finishing my culinary school program. Leaving my life in Paris behind was not easy at all. Throughout this year I grew fonder and fonder of the city and I left after falling desperately in love with Paris. It was’t “love at first sight”, as some of my best friends already know, it took time for the city to “grow on me”. I struggled quit a bit at first. Slowly I got to know all the best places, made many friends, learned so much and without noticing, I called Paris ‘home’.

It was a great year for me, and I’m planning on writing further about it in the near future, but first I have to write about my last weeks which I spent in Paris, London, Lyon and Rennes. Although it’s not the right order, I want to write about my “Goodbye Paris Picnic” before everything else.

It was such a nice weather in Paris, I decided to say goodbye to my Parisians friends with a picnic by the Seine, cooking some dishes I like to prepare, drinking a lot of wine, listening to music and than go everyone together to a party. This night was very successful and so many of my friends showed up and made me so happy. After this night, I really didn’t feel like leaving Paris.

The preparation for the picnic begun with some shopping the day before. Last visit to China-Town, you can imagine, I bought a lot, thinking about what I can  take back home with me to Israel. It was raining and my poor cart almost didn’t make it, after surviving a hike in the mud last camping, but luckily I made it home. The morning of the event I went to buy all the regular shopping in the supermarket and started cooking around noon. Oh, can you imagine trying to cook for 30 people in my small kitchen? It was a challenge. The electrical stove was too weak, I couldn’t put two big pans at once, only a small one and a big one could fit, so I had to cook one thing after another and it took longer than expected. I took some pictures while cooking, but it was such a mess that you can only get a glimps of what was going on on the stove. It took around 5 hours to finish cooking and I got some very appreciated help from Hajar last hour before leaving home with everything.

Cutting the white turnip

Pouring over it apple vinegar boiled with rice vinegar, water and sugar.

The help of my best friends in the kitchen…

I bought turkey legs, boned them and cut to small cubes.

Washed the baby octopus, first time trying to cook octopus!

Cooked a big pot of rice

The octopus, pre-cooked in salt water for about 50 minutes.

So cute 🙂

Pork in one pot and octopus in the other

Washing some chinese vegetables in the sink

Frying a lot of garlic for the greens

I pre-steamed the greens, too much to just toss in a pan.. Drained the octopus and started cooking a red curry sauce with coconut milk.

The greens with some butter and the fried garlic

Reducing the butter-garlic sauce while searing the turkey in three batches.

Mixed the turkey with chinese fresh noodles, peanut-green curry sauce and cilantro

Tasting a leg to find out if the octopus is well cooked

Octopus in red spicy sauce, zucchini just tossed with olive oil

This is how I brought all the food to the picnic site, everything packed in plastic boxes.

White steamed rice

Baby octopus in red curry and coconut

Pork in sweet soy sauce and ginger

Chinese noodles with turkey, peanut green curry sauce with cilantro

Chinese greens in butter and garlic (Thanks Emma for taking this lovely pic)

White turnip pickles

The picnic begins!!

In the end more than 30 people showed up and the late comers didn’t get to try everything (or nothing at all…)

The tasting plate I made for some good friends

Samy enjoying the food!

Emma and I, behind us the Notre Dame

So many friends, thank you so much for coming to say goodbye!

Good thing it was all eaten, and I only had to take empty boxes back home. It’s a miracle it made it all the way to the party and back home with me, as we were all very very drunk. So fun!! Thanks everyone!

And thank you Paris for being so beautiful!