Yes Let’s Catch Up Before Christmas

The real Christmas miracle this week was that my gym was closed to install new machines, and as the planned 2 days morphed into a week I counted my blessings and spent the extra time either napping, baking or people watching through the windows of a small local cafe. I’m all for more muscle mass as I bound through my 40s but I’m also for Netflix in bed.

On Tuesday while strolling down Boulevard St Michel I noticed a commotion on the bridge and my curiosity was rewarded as I saw some brave firefighters (my favourite emergency service if I had to choose) lined up on the parapet, psyching themselves up to dive into the Seine. With a rescue boat on standby and the crowd cheering them on they leapt in one by one and were swiftly delivered by the current to a ladder downstream to climb out.

We had friends in town this week which meant seeing the city through fresh eyes, which is always a joy. We strolled through Montmartre where I taught them how to change a nappy on a park bench Parisian mum style (you can take a child anywhere but changing tables are few and far between), before wandering over to the Christmas market in Place de la Concorde for mulled wine topped up with amaretto. We waved at the lego Santa, got to see Père Noël himself and took many photos of what the kids called the “rocket ship” (the Eiffel Tower).

I took them to the Pantheon to see the 17 enormous Christmas trees that students from two local schools like to steal for fun (the town hall has taken to putting concrete in the bases to stop the hi-jinks) and across Île Saint-Louis to the Marais to peek through the Hôtel de Sully (such a hidden delight) on the way to Place des Vosges, which never fails to impress.

I’ve largely failed to honour all the “yes let’s catch up before Christmas” promises I’ve strewn about town but I did manage to meet up with pastry queen Molly J Wilkinson as we shopped for stocking stuffers in Le Bon Marché (caviar flavoured crisps anyone?) and ingredients for spaghetti carbonara, where after a few minutes of trying to remember the name of the dish the poor sales assistant finally put us out of our misery. We paused for coffee and she had me in fits of laughter as she recounted the making of her festive croquembouche plus other holiday baking stories, and we compared notes on our menus for the 25th.

I baked Liz Prueitt’s gluten free gingerbread with the children which was a total hit, although my youngest daughter and I differed in our creative vision as I leaned towards traditional forms while she wanted to bake Easter bunnies and Noisette shaped biscuits. While decorating we got icing on the bench, the table, the floor and the dog which confirms it was a successful activity but unfortunately there seems to be none left to leave out for Santa. We also transformed the orange slices it took me four days(!) to dry out into a eucalyptus leaf wreath which is now proudly on our dining table smelling gorgeous.

I set an arbitrary goal of 10000 steps a day which I achieved last year and I’m close to again but it’s a hard push to the finish line so I spent Sunday power walking through the Louvre, mixing business with pleasure. When the museum closed and kicked us all out I then continued over to Smith and Son to stock up on books for everyone as a Christmas Eve gift, leaning into the Icelandic tradition of Jólabókaflóðið (book flood) of gifting books on Christmas Eve to curl up with and read into the long night, with a cup of hot cocoa. How delightful.

10 Things You Don’t Need To Do This Christmas

As Christmas really ramps up in some parts of the world I debated the pros and cons of socialism with some tour guests, who were ardent capitalists, which led me to writing the article 10 Things You Don’t Need To Do This Christmas. If you were thinking of getting me a gift this year 😉 I have two small requests: please follow my new newsletter and follow my friend’s instagram account (they’re setting up a new business and need a few followers to get them going).

I’m sorry I’ve nothing to give to you all except my undying gratitude that you read here each week, it truly means the world to me that I can occasionally whisper (when I’m feeling very brave) that I’m a writer. Mille mercis et gros bisous!

Have a great week and if you’re celebrating, joyeuses fêtes!

- Emily

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Cheese we’re eating this week:

• Mimolette - a hard cow's milk cheese that was produced by defiant French subjects in response to the banning of products from Holland in the 17th century.

• Morbier - a cow’s milk cheese with a distinctive layer of ash separating it horizontally in the middle, which separates the layer made with morning milk and the layer made with evening milk.

• La vache qui rit - a mild, smooth, spreadable cheese wedge wrapped in silver foil. It’s a combination of cheeses and made to be eaten on the go.

The Mimolette and Morbier were from Manu at Marché Maubert and La vache qui rit was from the local supermarket.

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Panforte Ice-cream

I've made this panforte ice-cream by

David Lebovitz

for Christmas Day (to be served with this sticky toffee pudding) and highly recommend it. I left out the candied peel and almonds to appease my small children but you should definitely keep them in.

Panforte Ice Cream

Bon appétit!

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Real Life Paris Photo

First time I’ve seen a boat trailer driven through the streets of Paris. Shame they broke down.