Call Your Girlfriends

Before moving to Paris, a lot of people back home in NYC warned me about how “rude”, “mean-spirited” and cold Parisiens are. Especially Parisiennes-women from Paris

There were very few people that had anything actually nice to say about Parisiennes and, at the time, I naively kind of believed them. I didn’t know any better. My idea of a Parisienne was a cliche mix of Amélie and Julie Delpy in Before Sunset. Ridiculous, yes I know and am very well aware.

But do you want to know who’s even more ridiculous? The people that judge and give Parisiennes a bad name based on one, or two, unfortunate experiences.

Yes, Parisiennes can be rude and mean-spirited and cold, but they can also be selfless, engaged, trustworthy, loyal and encouraging. Like any other human being, all Parisiennes are not just one thing and act a certain way.

My theory is that a lot of people feel uncomfortable with Parisiennes, in particular, because they wear 350% of who they are on their sleeves. They don’t strive for perfection, it’s either take it or leave it. They accept the messy bits of themselves, so you have to accept that too. They’re not trying to fix your life, they are just along for the ride and mostly focused on experiencing it.

I realize that I am speaking in huge generalizations here because I do not know every single Parisienne living in Paris, but this is the feeling I get. And this is what I love about my girlfriends , which is why I invited them on the last episode.

Although my friend group in reality, is more diverse with Americans, Brits, French etc they all have that Parisienne confidence and sense of self that saved me and helped me believe that everything would be OK…au finale.

I invited this group of bad-ass ladies to join me in a very special dinner as we dissect the first year of Dinner For One and welcome you even more into my world.

The Call Your Girlfriends dinner 

Salmon Roasted in Butter

If you listen to the podcast then you know I’m 100% not a fan of lime, citron, etc on fish so this guy was right up my alley. However, I did make a few changes to my version.

Ingredients 

• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter

• 4 tablespoons minced fresh herbs ( chervil, parsley or dill)

• 1 salmon fillet, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• Red pepper flakes

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Place the butter and half the herb in a roasting pan just large enough to fit the salmon and place it in the oven. Heat about 5 minutes, until the butter melts and the herb begins to sizzle.

2. Add the salmon to the pan, skin side up. Roast 4 minutes. Remove from the oven, then peel the skin off. (If the skin does not lift right off, cook 2 minutes longer.) Sprinkle with salt and pepper and turn the fillet over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper

3. Roast 3 to 5 minutes more, depending on the thickness of the fillet and the degree of doneness you prefer. Cut into serving portions, spoon a little butter over each, garnish with the remaining herb and sprinkle a little bit of red pepper flakes over the fish

Potatoes with herb butter

I made my own herb butter for this part of the meal. I was very proud of myself, if I may say so myself.  The recipe is from bon appetit and it’s essentially idiot-proof. The best thing about this is that it goes with everything.

Ingredients

• Potatoes

• Salt

• Pepper

Preparation

1. Add potatoes to a pot of cold water and then bring the potatoes a boil

2. When the potato can be pierced with a .fork it is pretty much finished

3. Remove potatoes from hot water, add salt and pepper

4. Take as much herb butter as you want and slather it all over the potatoes