The End of Summer...

Dearest Dear Friends of The Tearoom,
Welcome!  Even though Halloween is one of my favorite holidays of the year and here at The Tearoom, happy scramblings have begun to happen to prepare for it, I DO so hate when summer ends!  I love spring and summer the very best and honestly, Halloween may be the only thing that keeps me from digging a hole and hibernating in it until spring!

But, nonetheless, there are treats for us (because we always deserve treats, don't we?)

I still think it is so fun to bring to you the newest flavors from our favorite Houses of Haute Patisserie in Paris!  And I like it even better that so many of the lovely things they make are made with citrus or tropical flavors!  Is it just me or are they like eating sunshine?  Which will you try first...?

Perhaps one of the new flavor for autumn from The House of Ladurée:  Orange Sanguine Gingembre (Blood Orange Ginger)...

Which of the flavors like stored sunshine would you choose from the macarons from The House of Pierre Hermé?

(from left to right)...This is the Metissé macaron with the surprising, but intriguing combination of orange, carrot and Ceylon cinnamon!  I would definitely give this a try!  I used to love drinking orange and carrot juice combined and the cinnamon could only make it better!

Or would you try Monsieur Hermé's Huile d'Olive à la Mandarine (Olive Oil with Mandarin Orange).  An unusual combination to be sure.  Would you try it?  I would!  I have been experimenting with cooking with olive oil and have been adding extra virgin, not the lighter sort, to many baked goods with fruit and there is an extra depth of flavor to them thanks to it.  Remember, olives are fruit too!)

If lemon is your favorite citrus flavor, perhaps the Médélice (Lemon & Flaky Hazelnut Praline) or the Infiniment Citron (Infinite Lemon) would entice you?

I find tropical flavors like passionfruit and pineapple to be just as cheery as citrus ones.  The House of Dalloyau has new flavors of religieuses each season and their newest sweet flavor is their Religieuse Exotique filled with a cream bursting with tropical flavors!  Oh yes, please!!

...and what tea to have with all this sunshine?  I think...yes...that's it...Thé Satine by Pierre Hermé, a black tea scented with the lovely flavors of passionfruit and orange....

Oh, won't you stop for a bit and have a cup of tea and a treat with me?

And just to prepare you for Halloween, may I share with you a poetry reading from one of my favorite poets, Edgar Oliver, reading his poem "The End of Summer"?  I just love his voice and I'm so glad to have discovered him, if only recently.  I learned of him, as many have come to know him, from the fun and creepy show Oddities on The Science Channel (it is not to everyone's taste, but perhaps it speaks to my boredom with the area in which I currently live.  I miss living in the city and seeing so many different kinds of people...)


Video of Edgar Oliver "The End of Summer" by straw2gold pictures.

There are many more videos of his readings on YouTube, which I will be posting as our Halloween season draws ever nearer....

And as for Halloween...