Drumroll Please ...

In a self-proclaimed “embarrassing” monopoly over this year’s César Awards Ceremony, Jacques Audiard did not skip a beat as he picked up 10 awards for “The Beat that My Heart Skipped.” And the winners are …

Best French Film of the Year
Jacques Audiard’s “The Beat that My Heart Skipped”

Best Director
Jacques Audiard (“The Beat that My Heart Skipped”)

Best Actor
Michel Bouquet (“The Last Mitterand”)

Best Actress
Nathalie Baye (“The Little Lieutenant”)

Best Supporting Actor
Niels Arestrup ("The Beat that my Heart Skipped")

Best Supporting Actress
Cecile de France ("The Russian Dolls")

Best Foreign Film
Clint Eastwood’s “Million Dollar Baby”

Best Screenplay
"Live and Become" (Alain-Michel Blanc, Radu Mihaileanu)

Best Adaptation
"The Beat That My Heart Skipped"

Pastry of the Day:
Tarte Tatin

"Two French sisters, Carolina (1847-1911) and Stephine Tatin (1838-1917), created the tart. The sisters lived in Lamotte-Beuvron, a small rural town in the Loire Valley of France, owned and ran the hotel called l'Hotel Tatin in 1888. The elder sister, Stéphanie, dealt with the kitchen. She was a particularly fine cook but was not the brightest of people. Her specialty was an apple tart, served perfectly crusty, caramelized and which melted in the mouth. One day during the hunting season, during the midday scramble, Stephanie placed her tart in the oven the wrong way round. The pastry and apples were upside-down but, nevertheless, she served this strange dessert without giving it time to cool. The French call this dessert tarte des demoiselles Tatin (the tart of two unmarried women named Tatin)." The tarte tatin is officially my favorite French dessert, and must be served piping hot with vanilla ice cream running down the sides. Picard's version isn't bad although there's nothing like the original, bien sur!

Word of the Day:
cal·li·pyg·i·an
Pronunciation Key (kl-pj-n) also cal·li·py·gous (-pgs)
adj.
Having beautifully proportioned buttocks.

[From Greek kallipugos : kalli-, beautiful (from kallos, beauty) + pug, buttocks.]

Quote of the Day:
"My one regret in life is that I'm not somebody else." - Woody Allen