• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

HealthyHappyLife.com logo

  • about
  • RECIPES
  • LIFESTYLE
  • BLOGGING
  • VIDEO
  • SHOP
  • Cookbooks
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Lifestyle
  • My Books
  • Videos
  • About
  • holiday
    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » recipes » appetizer » Le Pain Quotidien Lover! My Fire & Ice Appetizer + Fave Goodies.

    by Kathy Patalsky · updated: Mar 27, 2020 · published: Jul 9, 2014 · About 7 minutes to read this article. Leave a Comment

    Le Pain Quotidien Lover! My Fire & Ice Appetizer + Fave Goodies.

    Amazing vegan appetizer Fire and Ice Cracker and a Le Pain review
    If you follow me on Instagram, or have been reading my blog for a while you have probably noticed that I am a bit obsessed with the restaurant brand Le Pain Quotidien. Today I want to share my favorite LePQ menu items, products and goodies and a favorite party cracker appetizer recipe.

    My Fire & Ice Appetizer combines a slathering of warm and spicy tomato harissa spread with cool thinly sliced cucumbers, fresh basil, lemon, cracked black pepper, a drizzle of fine extra virgin olive oil, a nibble of rich vegan jack cheese and some nutty sprouted pumpkin seeds, all sitting on a bed of the most amazing light and airy 100% buckwheat cracker of all time. Serve this spicy gem and hang out at the snack table (along with everyone else) at your next party or gathering. These snackages taste DIVINE when paired with fizzy sparkling wine, kombucha or a fresh OJ-infused mimosa. Let the Le Pain Quotidien fun begin..

    Fire and Ice Snack

    Vegan Party Appetizer recipe

    Harissa appetizer

    Psst. This is not a sponsored post. I just adore Le Pain Quotidien. Why, you ask? Mostly because when I first moved to New York City in 2006, it was one of the first restaurants that my husband and I fell in love with, the SoHo location to be exact. On cold snowy mornings or brisk fall days, we would bundle up to visit our fave cozy spot to nibble and sip soy lattes and cappuccinos. I personally loved it because though LPQ is not a 100% veg restaurant, I quickly noticed how every vegan item on the menu has a little carrot symbol next to it, to let diners know that it is vegan, plant-based or as they call it, “botanical.” Love that.

    My favorite menu items are: (menu items vary, seasonally and regionally)
    * Love this entree: Seared Quinoa Cake (savory item for lunch or dinner)
    * Best Oatmeal Ever! Any of the vegan oatmeals. I love the Omega Berry Oatmeal with flax seeds and berries swirled in to make a purple color.
    * Fruit. Always. The fruit salad or bowl of berries.
    * The soy lattes! I seriously do not drink much coffee anymore, but whenever I sit down to a Le Pain brunch I have to order a latte.
    * Discover Tartines. Any of the vegan Tartines. They do not serve sandwiches, but tartines! Tartines are open-faced sandwiches that you can each like pizza or an open-faced bagel, or with a fork if you’d prefer. They are served on yummy fresh spelt bread and are amazing. I adore the one with avocado, chickpeas and a nice squeeze of lemon!
    * Seasonal farro porridge. I am in LOVE with the seasonal farro porridge with cranberries and pecans. I get so excited when I see it back on the menu.
    * Muffins. Most (almost all) of the muffins are vegan. Not the chia seed muffins though, FYI. I adore the blueberry muffins. The seasonal matcha green tea muffins are also a favorite.
    * Soups! All the soups are vegan. I love every flavor. My favorites are the sweet potato (when they have it), mushroom and any of the creamy veggie soups. They also serve a delicious, protein-rich lentil soup.
    * Breads! I love the spelt bread and the hazelnut flutes. The walnut bread is also super dreamy. And the fresh baguettes are light as air and perfect for pairing with soups, salads or slicing into rounds for crostini for bruschetta or other appetizers.
    * Desserts! I am in love with the new hemp seed blondie. Vegan!
    * They have a delicious hummus side dish as well. And the pesto sauce they make is amazing. Also, the spicy tahini sauce served with the black bean tartine is delicious.
    * Salads! I love the tofu salad with miso dressing when I want a light, crunchy, protein-infused lunch. I also love the lentil and avocado salad – it is my favorite!
    * Tofu Scramble. My husband’s go-to brunch item is the warm and flavorful tofu scramble entree, it comes with a side salad and two slices of bread.

    Some of my Instagrams..










    Fave products: Harissa, EVOO, any of the jams, agave, salt and pepper grinders, any of the to-go bakery breads! You can shop online for select items.

    Favorite locations? Well I am simply dying to visit the locations in Europe like Belgium (where the original location is!) and more! But from the places I have been:

    New York City: The Soho (100 Grand st) and NoHo (65 Bleecker St) — SoHo was my first LePQ, so it will always be my favorite. But the Bleecker location has a bakery on site and in clear view! They have the best bread I have ever tasted! The freshly baked flutes blew me away.
    Los Angeles: Beverly Hills (9630 S Santa Monica Boulevard), Melrose (8607 Melrose Avenue) and Brentwood (13050 San Vicente) locations are my faves.
    Washington DC: I love the Georgetown and Clarendon locations.

    Fun Story: One time I was in the SoHo location grabbing a coffee and muffin on a weekday morning. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a man cheerfully rearranging the cookbooks on the product display. I looked at his face and realized it was indeed the man who wrote those cookbooks! It was Alain Coumont, founder and Chef of Le Pain Quotidein. I looked at the cashier and whispered, “It that HIM?” She nodded back with a smirk on her face becasue it was so hilarious that he was rearranging his own cookbooks to look just right. I wanted to say hi, but instead I just gawked for a minute and felt happy to have spotted him for a moment. I later tweeted about my foodie-celeb sighting of course 🙂

    Past LPQ posts:
    * Picnic in Central Park with LPQ
    * Curried Tofu Tartine Review (seasonal)
    * Hummus with pesto review
    * Fire and Ice Panini recipewith LPQ harissa
    * Ginger green tea muffin review
    * Oatmeal on the go review
    * Snow Day Brunch with Gena, Choosing Raw

    That farro porridge I love..

    I guess you can say I am a LePQ expert and superfan. This appetizer was made using their brand of harissa, pepper, extra virgin olive oil and some crackers they sell at select stores.

    Fire and Ice. Party snacks. Grab one before they disappear.

    I use the Le Pain Q black pepper grinder. They sell it in their stores. And online.

    le pain quotidien pepper grinder

    le pain quotidien harissa spread

    Party Appetizer recipe

    Party Appetizer recipe

    Party Appetizer recipe

    Vegan Party Appetizer recipe

    Fire and Ice Appetizer Crackers

    By Kathy Patalsky
    Published 07/01/2014
    Banana Soft Serve Blender Ice Cream

    This spicy meets cool vegan appetizer cracker combines harissa, cucumbers, lemon, basil and more for a flavor sensation that you will want to nibble again and again. Vegan party snack winner.

    Ingredients

    • 10 buckwheat crisps, Riega brand – bought at LePQ (or substitute with another long cracker)
    • 10 teaspoon harissa spread, Le Pain Quotidien brand
    • 10 slices seedless cucumber, thinly sliced
    • 1 sprig of fresh basil, sliced into strips
    • 10 thin strips of red bell pepper, thinly sliced
    • 10 small slices of vegan cheese, Daiya jack cheese used
    • 1 lemon, ½ used for garnish slices and the other half for spritzing the crackers with
    • a few drizzles of good extra virgin olive oil + freshly cracked black pepper to serve (LePainQ brand used)
    • 2 teaspoon sprouted pumpkin seeds

    Instructions

    1. Spread the harissa on each cracker.
    2. Add the thinly sliced cucumber, followed by te red bell pepper slice, bit of vegan cheese and basil.
    3. Add a spritz of lemon and drizzle of oil to each cracker. Freshly grind black pepper over top. Serve right away or place in the fridge until time to serve.

    Yield: 10 crackers
    Prep Time: 00 hrs. 15 mins.
    Total time: 15 mins.
    Tags: appetizer,easy,spicy,dining,snack,le pain quotidien,harissa, party,vegan

    Side note: PLEASE vote for me! I am a Sambazon acai bowl finalist! My bowl is the Brazil bowl. It takes two seconds to vote via Facebook. My bowl looks like this, made with fresh BRAZIL nut butter:

    And this. A Sochi kitten sleeping..



    Sambazon Finalist.
    Don’t forget to VOTE for me! Thank you so much in advance. vote via Facebook

    More recipes you may enjoy

    • Banana Blender Ice Cream. Video How-To. Pink, Banana and Blueberry.
    • Easy Vegan Magical Shell Chocolate Topping + How-to Video.
    • Sweet, Spicy, Easy, Amazing Curry Chickpea Cool Cucumber Wraps.
    • Ginger Snappy Crinkle Cookies

    About Kathy Patalsky

    Hey there! I'm Kathy, lover of kitty cats, weekend baking, 90's movies, travel, beach fog and foamy lattes. Since 2007, I have been sharing my vegan recipes and photos. My goal is to make your cooking life a little easier, delicious - and plant-loaded - while sharing some LIFE and conversation along the way.

    Vegan Linzer Cookies

    5 Ingredient Vegan Chocolate Pie

    Vegan Pumpkin Bread with Streusel Topping

    Vegan Oatmeal Cookies, Lunchbox-Ready

    Primary Sidebar

    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    newsletter:

    Trending

    my cookbooks

    my cookbooks

    Disqus Latest Comments

    1. s

      s: Absolutely one of the best things I've ever baked. Used dairy butter…

      Commented on: Cinnamon Toast Morning Muffins, gluten-free and vegan

    2. JanetS

      JanetS: Neither of those non-grain flours will substitute for oats or wheat. As…

      Commented on: Cinnamon Toast Morning Muffins, gluten-free and vegan

    3. disqus_LfP7ofaP87

      disqus_LfP7ofaP87: Earth Balance brand HAS PALM OIL, as do most of the vegan…

      Commented on: Sticky Banana Bread Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

    about kathy

    kathy patalsky

    featured: peach coconut water smoothie

    browse recipes

    Breakfast  |  Entrees  |  Desserts  |  Smoothies  |  Sandwiches  |  Salads  |  Beverages  |  Soups |  Appetizers |  Snacks  |  Sauces  |  Sides   /  Cooking Videos  |  Round-Ups  |  Fan Favorites  |  Holiday  /  All the Recipes

    browse:

    • reviews
    • travel
    • vegan topics
    • people
    • videos
    • beauty
    • wellness
    • Mom Life

    my ttc + baby journey

    Footer

    BROWSE BY:

    Category:

    DATE:

    looking for something?

    contact   |   about   |   kathy’s cookbooks  |  press  |  findingvegan  |  meal plans  |  shop  |  vegan recipe index  |  privacy policy  | start a blog

    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Services | Work with me