Chocolatine Boutique's French Style Jacket for Free!

Hello Chocolatine Boutique's fans!  "Hello Wonderful", a great Web site that featured Chocolatine Boutique's shop and products recently (see Chocolatine's previous blog post), is running a giveaway on its Facebook page and the lucky winner will receive Chocolatine Boutique's very popular French style little kids jacket with Liberty of London buttons ($38.00 value)

French Style Jacket

French Style Jacket

In love with the jacket to keep your little one warm?  Then don't wait any longer (you have until Monday February 17th, 2014 - 1 p.m. PST to enter the contest) and rush to the "Hello Wonderful" Web site for all the details by clicking here.

The Art of the Brick

The Art of the Brick is the exhibit we saw yesterday at the Brussels former Stock Exchange.  I have to admit that I agree with CNN who said that it is One of the "Top 10 Must See Global Exhibitions."

Both my girls aged 4 and 8 years old enjoyed it very much, especially because they could relate in a lot of ways and mostly because the 70 impressive objects displayed were created with hundred of thousands of LEGO® building blocks!

The exceptional works of art by artist Nathan Sawaya were simply amazing, some even breathtaking.  Among the most stunning and unexpected 3D creations were Degas’ “The Little Dancer”, the “Venus de Milo”, "The Kiss" by Gustav Klimt, "American Gothic" by Grant Wood, the North transept rose window of Chartres Cathedral, a Buddha or huge sculptures like this 6 metre long T-Rex skeleton made out of 80,020 bricks. 

Other works are completely new creations from the artist’s imagination : a female swimmer, a man opening his chest to reveal a treasure of LEGO® bricks.

Overall, an amazing exhibit that leaves young and old visitors speechless...

For more information about the artist and his exhibitions, please visit: http://brickartist.com/

When Old Books Pop Up!

Hello everyone!

Today I wanted to share the work of an artist I just discovered recently, Thomas Allen.  For all the book lovers out there, please check out his beautiful art work inspired by mid-century books and pulp fiction.  Allen creates vivid three-dimensional illustrations by using figures cut and folded from old books and placing them in a new display of meaningful interactions.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Artwork and photo by Thomas Allen

Artwork and photo by Thomas Allen

Artwork and photo by Thomas Allen

Artwork and photo by Thomas Allen

Artwork and photo by Thomas Allen

Allen is represented by the Foley Gallery in New York, the G. Gibson Gallery in Seattle, and the 1000 eventi Gallery in Milan.

You can also visit Allen's blog at: thomasallenonline.com

Kids Sailor Shirt Armor Lux For Sale (Unisex)

Sailor Top Armor Lux (French brand) for Sale

Sailor Top Armor Lux 2T

Beautiful sailor striped cotton jersey shirt from Armor Lux

Also called "La Mariniere" in French, its origin comes from Brittany, France. From Coco Chanel to Brigitte Bardot, the sailor shirt has rocked the fashion world for decades. Everyone in France has at leat one in his or her closet, including little kids (I personally have five).  I am selling this one because it is too small for my kids but I can tell you that I bought them new ones.  This is everyone's essential must-have!  This model is unisex.

A little bit about Armor Lux:  The brand was set up in 1938 in Brittany and is known for its traditional nautical styled ‘Breton clothing’ made famous by its blue and white stripes.

Price: $25.00 (+ shipping).  Size: 2 years.  Condition:  Gently Worn.

Original: $65.00

Please send me a message at nathalie@chocolatineboutique.com and I will reserve the item for you and send you a PayPal invoice.  Thanks!

Please read Chocolatine Walk-In Closet's policies BEFORE you make your purchase by clicking here

Kids Superga Floral Sneakers For Sale

Kids Superga Floral Sneakers for Sale

Kids Superga Sneakers Size 24 EU - 8 US

Kids Superga Sneakers Size 24 EU - 8 US

How cute are these floral Superga sneakers?!!!  My little one barely wore them as they were too tight when I bought them for her...  They will be perfect for Spring and Summer.

Price: $20.00 (+ shipping).  Size:  24 EU - 8 US.  Condition:  Gently Worn.

Original: $65.00

Please send me a message at nathalie@chocolatineboutique.com and I will reserve the item for you and send you a PayPal invoice.  Thanks!

Please read Chocolatine Walk-In Closet's policies BEFORE you make your purchase by clicking here

Greek Yogurt Blueberry Cookies with a Zzzzing!

1 cup of granulated sugar
1 and 1/2 cup of Greek yogurt
1 egg beaten
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 cup of fresh or frozen blueberries
1 tsp of vanilla essence
1 lemon, zested
1 tsp of fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp of salt

Have all your utensils and ingredients ready before your start.

Pre-heat your oven at 375 degrees Farenheit for at least 10 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, the baking powder and the salt.

In another mixing bowl, combine the sugar, the yogurt, the egg, the lemon juice and the lemon zest, and the vanilla.

Blend the dry mixture (flour, baking powder and salt mix) into the wet mixture. Stir until all the lumps are gone.  Once you've reached a smooth mixture, gently fold in the blueberries.

Grease two baking sheets or line them with parchment paper or silicon mats and drop two table spoonfuls of mixture.  Make sure you leave enough space between them so they don't "join" during baking.

Bake for approximately 10 minutes.  Once the cookies get slightly brown around the edges, you can take them out of the oven and let them cool down on a cooling rack.

Enjoy!  You will be amazed at how soft and delicious these cookies are...  And did I mention they were healthy and nutritious?  My girls love them and take them to school for their afternoon snacks.  

If you don't like the zing of the lemon, you can totally remove the lemon zest and the lemon juice from the list and end up with blueberry cookies, just as soft and delicious.

Like an Angel...

From the Chocolatine Boutique Spring Summer 2014 Collection

The Angel Dress

Now available in the shop

Today is Crepe Day in France!

I totally forgot about this until my Mom sent me an email reminding me, that today is La Chandeleur (Candlemas) or Crêpe Day.  

The Catholic holiday of Candlemas, on 2 February, is a feast to commemorate the purification of the Virgin Mary and the presentation of baby Jesus. In France, this holiday is called la Chandeleur, Fête de la Lumière, or "jour des crêpes." 

Not only do the French eat a lot of crêpes on Chandeleur, but they also do a bit of fortune telling while making them. It is traditional to hold a coin in your writing hand and a crêpe pan in the other, and flip the crêpe into the air. If you manage to catch the crêpe in the pan, your family will be prosperous for the rest of the year. So what is your favorite crêpe? 

There are all kinds of French proverbs and sayings for Chandeleur; here are just a few. 

Note the similarities to the Groundhog Day predictions made in the US:

À la Chandeleur, l'hiver cesse ou reprend vigueur
On Candlemas, winter ends or strengthens

À la Chandeleur, le jour croît de deux heures
On Candlemas, the day grows by two hours

Chandeleur couverte, quarante jours de perte
Candlemas covered (in snow), forty days lost

Rosée à la Chandeleur, hiver à sa dernière heure
Dew on Candlemas, winter at its final hour

For the occasion, I would like to share one of my family's "crêpe" recipes that kids and big kids alike are sure to enjoy! (includes a French secret...  shhh...)

Ingredients:

2 eggs

2 cups of milk

1/2 cup of light beer (yep!)

1 cup of flour

3 Tbsp of melted butter

1 Tbsp of sugar

Coconut oil or butter for coating the pan

How to make the crêpes:

In a mixing bowl, place the flour and make a little dome.  Push your finger through the top to make a "hole" (we call it the well).  Place the eggs, the sugar and the melted butter in the "well" and mix with a whisk.  Add the milk little by little while whisking making sure you eliminate all the lumps (this could also be done in a blender by pulsing 10 seconds).  Finally, add the beer.  The beer will make your crêpes lighter...  The batter shouldn't look too thick, nor too liquid.  A good way to know if the consistency is the right one, is to take a ladle and spoon a little bit of the batter, then, slowly pour the batter back into the bowl.  It should look like a ribbon when being poured.

The ribbon

Place the batter in the fridge for about an hour (to eliminate all the bubbles formed during mixing). 

Heat a small non-stick pan (not too shallow), add a bit of butter or coconut oil (I put it on a folded paper towel and wipe the pan evenly), pour some batter in the pan but not too much so your crêpes aren't too thick and quickly move your pan around so the batter covers the whole surface with a thin layer.  

Cook about 1 minute or until the edges of the crêpe start peeling off from the pan and some air bubbles appear at the surface (the entire crêpe is slowly peeling off).

Flip the crêpe and cook the other side for about 30 seconds.

Repeat these steps until you are out of the batter, stack the cooked crêpes on a plate and enjoy!

Serving ideas:

Top with granulated sugar, or powdered sugar, or your favorite jam, or your favorite chocolate paste, or honey, or anything you like!

You can then fold it in half and then fold in half again.

You can also roll it up like a tortilla (kids like that version a lot...)

Happy Chandeleur!  Happy Crêpe Day!

New in Chocolatine Walk-In Closet

Zara Kids Dress for Sale

Zara Kids Dress - Size 3-4T

Adorable Zara Kids dress with gorgeous floral prints.  Perfect for summer days.  Pair it with cute little sandals or ballerina flats and your little princess will look like a gem in it.  

Price: $22.00 (+ shipping).  Size:  3-4 years.  Condition:  Immaculate.

Original: $40.00

Please send me a message at nathalie@chocolatineboutique.com and I will reserve the item for you and send you a PayPal invoice.  Thanks!

Please read Chocolatine Walk-In Closet's policies BEFORE you make your purchase by clicking here.

Thank you Hello, Wonderful for the nice feature!

Chocolatine Boutique was featured on the really cool Web site "Hello, Wonderful."  The feature, entitled "French Inspired Style For Tots and Kids" shows a few items from the current collection and a link to the shop.  Very nice!

You can access the article by clicking here.

Thank you to Agnes Hsu, the founder of Hello, Wonderful for the nice write-up.

Please don't hesitate to visit her Web site, as it offers super cute DIY ideas, super delicious recipes and styling tips.

Hello, Wonderful

www.hellowonderful.co

The Chocolatine Sunny Veggie Soup

Today was a pretty cold day here in Brussels.  I am not complaining though as  winter has been pretty mild in Europe compare to last winter, and compare to the nasty frigid temperatures that have been hitting most of the US lately.  So soup was on the menu tonight (like pretty much any winter dinner meal in our household).  I have to admit that I absolutely LOVE soup.  Any soup, cold or hot, chunky or mixed, mild or spicy, you name it.  Both my girls love it too and as a matter of fact, my four-year-old daughter gets soup every day at her school.   Little ones in all  Belgian public schools enjoy a bowl of hot soup every morning.  I find it very good, especially for the little ones who don't eat breakfast.  Hot and nutritious, a good way to last until lunch time.

So tonight I decided to enhance one of my staple soup recipes (the healthy veggie soup recipe my Mom taught me to make and that my Grandmother passed onto her) to give it a little zing!  The result turned out to be great as both my daughters loved it and "ze man" was ecstatic! (he always found the base recipe to be a little blah).  I named it the Chocolatine Sunny Veggie Soup because of the nice and warm color of the soup. 

So here we go, here is the recipe!  

This recipe serves 6 people and is suitable for vegetarians.

Ingredients:

- 2 leeks

- 4 carrots

- 4 celeri branches (you can keep the leaves if you'd like)

- 2 tomatoes

- 2 garlic cloves

- 1-inch of ginger root

- 1 tsp of curry powder 

- 1 Tbsp of coconut oil

- water (approximately 4 cups) + 1/2 Tbsp of Kosher salt

- salt and pepper to taste

How to:

Chop the leeks and the celeri and put aside.  Peel the garlic and the ginger and crush.  

In a large pot, warm up the coconut oil on medium heat and throw the crushed garlic and ginger.  Stir with a wooden as the garlic cooks really fast and you don't want it to get brown or burn.  

Toss the leek and the celeri and cook until translucend.  Don't forget to stir so they don't attach to the bottom of the pot.

Meanwhile, chop the rest of the veggies and toss in the pot with the garlic and ginger mix.  Add the 4 cups of water and bring to a boil.  Once it starts boiling, turn the heat down and simmer until the veggies are cooked through.  As my Mom says when I ask her for a recipe: "when the carrots are cooked, your dish is cooked!"

Add the curry and cook for 5 more minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Put everything in a blender or use an immersion hand mixer (be careful not to burn yourself!) and blend until all the "chunks" are gone and you obtain a smooth soup.

This very healthy soup will give you tons of nutrients and vitamins and keep your bodies warm on cold winter evenings.

Trend Alert! Be prepared for Spring and Dress Your Little One With Mood Booster Outfits!

Good news everyone, despite a gloomy economy and an extremely cold winter in most part of the US (looks like we are not over yet...), the forecast for Spring is bright and sunny, at least for kids fashion...  Trends for the new season have been announced a few months back already as the world of fashion moves very very fast, but for most moms, shopping for spring/summer 2014 is slowly starting.  Here are a few hints that will help the fashionistas in you pick and choose the right outfits for your little people.  

Dolce & Gabbana SS/2014

Plenty of yellow, aqua, hot pink, orange, turquoise, splashes of neon and touches of metallic.

Livly SS/2014

Bold graphics, special print fabrics, intricate embroideries, ethnic fabrics, you name it.  

Agatha Ruiz dela Prada SS/2014

Chocolatine Boutique SS/2014

Think vibrant, think bright, think polka dots and florals, think animal prints and sea creatures.  

Beau Loves SS/2014

Now of course, the shoe lover in me had to check what little feet were going to wear to complete those trendy summer outfits, and the verdict is... lots of fun with wingtips and oxfords, slip-ons and hi-tops, loafers, desert shoes, and sandals with a retro feel.  

Rachel Riley SS/2014

Castell SS/2014

Mini Boden SS/2014

And please, don't think that the shoes will be dull in comparison with the explosion of colors.  Nope. They will showcase their metallic and neon accents, shiny patent leather and their shimmer and glitter.  Sooo, what do you think? Aren't Spring and summer going to be fun and colorful for your little ones?!!!