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864 Madison Avenue, New York City French patisserie Laduree makes world famous macaroons in assorted flavors.  Travelers bring boxes of the gourmet cookies back from Paris, and here in New York City where a shop opened on Madison Avenue (at 7oth Street) last year, lines form daily, stretching all the way around the block, to buy the $3 macaroons, which are flown in from Paris each morning.  So what's all the fuss about? If you can't make it to Paris or New York for a delectable taste, you can still find out by baking a batch in your very own kitchen.  Laduree's master patissier, Philippe Andrieu, shared his coveted recipe with a British newspaper ... and surprisingly, it consists of just a few simple ingredients.  Here is the basic recipe: Laduree's Macaroons Ingredients : 2 cups [480 g] confectioners sugar 1 ½  cups [280g] finely ground almonds 7 egg whites Several drops of food coloring gel [You can use the liquid -- it's a bit weaker and runnier than the gel...

Bohemian Rhapsody from A Night At The Opera I tried to think of a clever reason to feature the rock band Queen this morning, but there isn't one ... other than: I LOVE QUEEN and will never grow tired of listening to their albums.  Their songs never get old. Nothing beats the experience of listening to LIVE music, and Queen could mesmerize an arena.  It's an understatement to say that the band could really play and sing and entertain. Several music critcs claim they were the highlight at Live Aid in 1985 ( see here ). And what style of rock didn't this British band write and perform?:  hard rock { Liar } , glam rock { Killer Queen } , mirror ball funk { Another One Bites the Dust } , white gospel { Somebody to Love } , rock operettas  { Bohemian Rhapsody } , rockabilly { Crazy Little Thing Called Love } , Rock and Roll anthems { We Will Rock You;   We Are The Champions } and sweet ballads { These Are the Days of Our Lives; Love of My Life } .  The list go...

Kate and Pippa Middleton wearing Ted Baker The gold print on a charcoal black invitation read: “Ted Baker, London ... His 5 th Avenue Store is now open.” [at 48 th Street.]  “Ted Baker requests your presence at his grand house on Fifth .  Enjoy ... afternoon tea ... and the chance to peruse Ted's fall collections."  Attached was a brass skull-type key with yellow ribbon to keep as a souvenir.  Clever marketing, no? I anticipated staying home all afternoon to watch the London Olympics.  Really I did, but how many endless hours of beach volleyball can a person take?  Thanks, NBC! So off to the store opening I went.  Upon arrival, waiters passed trays with bangers and lemon tarts.  And, I knew I was in the right place.  Tasty! The British clothing retailer was launched in Glasgow in 1988 by managing director Ray Kelvin, before opening stores in Covent Garden and London's Soho.  The apparel, consisting of menswear, womenswear, shoes and a...

Top side image by the BBC (Equipped with cameras and tentacles to scoop up dirt to be analyzed.) Do you enjoy reading the news?  Many subjects attract my attention, some weighty and serious and others quite superficial and frivolous.  If you are either highbrow or lowbrow and have news, or an entertaining story to tell ... pleazzze come and sit by me. Today I saw two very compelling images in the media.  The first one -- of the Curiosity Rover , which successfully landed on Mars this morning at 1:31 AM.  NASA launched it 8 months ago; it travelled 354.182 million miles (570 million km) and now its 2-year mission is to study the Red Planet for signs of microbial life.  Isn't landing a car/ science lab  on another planet exciting?  Watch here . Beauty Riot Then I spotted these shorts and learned that studs are once again fashionable.  (They went out?)  Adorable, right?  I WANT these shorts and will be out looking -- if not for this exact p...

Photo: Jim P. Summer's long days and mild temperatures make it an excellent season for reading, relaxing and sipping an evening cocktail.  Today I'm featuring an icy, fruity drink, created by Jim P., who has more ripe plums than he knows what to do with.  Having an abundance of fruit is a very good thing.  It's the mother of invention. Here is the rough and easy recipe to make one serving of Jim's refreshing, plum-basil cocktail: 1 big, or 2 small very ripe plums 1 good-sized sprig of basil in a cocktail shaker Add 2 oz bourbon .5 ounces sweet vermouth A dash of bitters (Jim uses Fee's barrel-aged.) Shake and strain over crushed ice. Top off with seltzer. Be sure to find yourself some comfortable seating, where you will feel a summer breeze, relax and enjoy. Cheers! You may also enjoy: Real Italian Cooking A Well-Stocked Bar   Easy Labor Day Fare Drink Bravely With Wine Writer Mark Oldman