Foodies in Amsterdam

This afternoon a friend and I checked out the New Food Fair in Amsterdam. The Haarlemerstraat and the Haarlemerdijk are bursting with specialty shops where you can pretty much find anything your heart would desire, and today most of the stores took their wares outdoors for all to sample. We wandered in and out of gorgeous little shops, chatting about goat's cheese, tasting wine and every so often examining jars of jam for the right consistency. We oggled crusty breads, tasted fig 'sausage', admired barrels of oil and fancy vinegars and eventually sat down at a table in a quaint little bookshop specializing in cookbooks to discuss famous food writers and talk about our favorite kitchens. I picked up a copy of Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escapes after having drooled my way through his latest series.

Before hitting the fair though, we met at Cafe Winkel on the corner of Noordermarkt and Westerstraat for a slice of one of the most decadent apple pies ever, served still slightly warm, with a huge dollop of whipped cream. I particularly loved how the chunks of apple still had a bite to them. Blisfully sated, we walked through the organic market where I came across a French woman selling just a few, well selected treats. After tasting her exquisite green anise seed infused olive oil, I vowed to become one of her regular customers.

To me, there's no such thing as too much food talk! It's days like these that make me realize how lucky I am to have made food one of my biggest passions.

PS: Notice my foot shaped cookie cutter! Funny how you search everywhere for something only to find it when you least expect it.