Feel good, French style

Espresso and mini-desserts at Fuxia, Paris

A moment on the lips is of little consequence for the hips. I put a new twist on the old saying while enjoying the fresh Italian bites at Fuxia, a terrace on the Marché St. Honoré, a stone’s throw from Colette in Paris.

The Marché St. Honoré is a calm, adorable square off of the Rue St. Honoré’s boutiques, making it a perfect pit-stop for lunch and seeing what’s new at rock chic boutique The Kooples.

But back to the table. We ended our meal at Fuxia with the increasingly popular French offering of the café dégustation or café gourmand. Like macarons and mini-cupcakes, the French have come up with the perfect solution to avoid calorie over-load without giving up on dessert. They accompany espresso with a couple of mini-desserts, to sample and share. At Fuxia, this came as a small verrine of tiramusu and another of panna cotta.

Enjoying a few spoonfuls of dessert reminds us that good things tend to come in small packages. The first few bites of any dish tend to be the ones you appreciate the most.

This light and light-hearted approach to maintaining your figure is a good remedy to the draconian regimens we’re often prescribed. In the last issue of Gwyneth Paltrow’s GOOP, nutritionist Oz Garcia advises “Staying slim and fit is always a challenge but maintaining your girly figure after age forty can be an all out battle. Even maintaining an exact diet and fitness regimen will not beat the penalty of aging.”  Garcia reminds us with the good humor of an army general (sic) that we must work-out, every single day, lest wrinkles and sagging muscles overtake us.

Shoot me now! Since when was feeling good in your body a matter of waging war? Rather, embrace mini-desserts, listen to your body, and engage in the daily activities you enjoy. You don’t need to restrict in order to take care of yourself. I’m savoring life’s delights with each little bite.

Live épanoui*

Elisa

* in full bloom