Paris for Sweet Teeth

Finally I have made it back to Paris after 18 years! Wow, that just made me feel old...Anyways, let's get back to the subject here. My sister and I got to spend three nights in Paris with our beloved aunt. In anticipation of the trip I went nearly crazy ploughing through books and guides and blogs trying to figure out which patisseries and chocolate shops we would have to visit (since there's nothing else to do in Paris, right?). I spent hours putting together a list and then marking the addresses on the map. The good thing about all that extra work was that once in Paris there was no "uh, where should we go now?". It was more like "well, we could walk down this street a couple more yards and then turn left and check out this place...".

Here are my favorites, all of which have multiple branches in Paris and all of which are meticulously kept. Some department stores, such as the food court at Galeries Lafayette or publicisdrugstore also sell the products of these shops.

Pierre Hermé

We visited the branch on rue Cambon, right near the Jardin des Tuileries. They sold macaroons, chocolates, teas and other goodies, but no pastries. Although none of us three are really big fans of macaroons we decided to give Pierre Hermé a chance and bought a jasmine, a chocolate and an apricot-pistachio macaroon. We ate them later back at the room and all three of us were pleasantly surprised. We all agreed that the chocolate macaroon was the best, but that the delicate flowery taste of the jasmine macaroon was also very good. The apricot-pistachio one was too sour for our taste. On the last day we went back to Pierre Hermé and got some chocolates to try on the train ride back to Switzerland. We got Chloé (raspberry), Infiniment vanille (vanilla), Azur (lime and yuzu), Almera (almond with orange flavor), Ouvre-toi (sesame) and pietra (hazelnut praline). All six chocolates were fantastic. Next time I go to Paris I definitely want to try the pastries, which they carry at the rue Bonaparte branch.

Jean-Paul Hévin

Right near Pierre Hermé we visited Jean-Paul Hévin on rue Saint-Honoré. On the ground floor was the shop and on the first floor the salon du thé, the tea room. We only saw the shop, but I'd like to visit the tea room next time. The shop sold macaroons, pastries, chocolates and other goodies like chocolate covered nuts. We decided to get two pieces of cake, one with chocolate ganache and raspberry and one with chocolate ganache and tonka bean. We tried the cakes later back at the room. Both were outstanding in terms of quality, although the raspberry cake could have had a little more raspberry flavor in my opinion. The tonka bean cake was great because of all the different textures it had. It had the chocolate creaminess of the ganache, the light cakiness and a crunchy layer of nuts. However, I'm not sure I'm a big fan of the tonka bean as it has a sort of oily vanilla taste, the oily part being the problem. Next time I'd like to try the macaroons and the chocolates.

La Maison du Chocolat

At the rue Faubourg Saint-Honoré branch they sell chocolates, chocolate pearls for making hot chocolate, chocolate bars, and also macaroons and refrigerated desserts. They also had a freezer for ice cream, but it was empty. Maybe they only make it in summer. We tried a variety of chocolates: orange (I don't recall the name), Petit Rocher (almond and hazelnut), Anastasia (almond and hazelnut praliné), Cannelle (cinnamon), and Zagora (mint). We liked all of them. The mint was especially surprising because it tasted more like spearmint than peppermint, the usual mint flavor used in chocolates.

For more info check out these books:

The Patisseries of Paris by Jamie Cahill and Alison Harris

The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz

Paris kulinarisch: Einkaufen und geniessen by Pierre Rival and Christian Sarramon

Zuccotto

Finally I made one of the desserts my mom used to make when I was a kid: zuccotto. The reason it took me so long to make was that I was horrified of the shape it has and how I would make it do that shape! Turns out it's not so hard after all as sponge cake is pliable and will retain its form when pressed into a bowl and kept that way for a few hours. This is definitely on my favorite recipes list now!

The recipe I used is the same one my mom used to use. It's from The Great Italian Cookbook by the Italian Academy of Cooking.

Recipe

For sponge cake:

4 eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 c confectioner's sugar

1/3 c all-purpose flour

1/3 c cornstarch

For the filling:

1/2 c blanched almonds

1/2 c shelled filberts (hazelnuts)

scant 4 1/2 c heavy cream

3/4 c confectioner's sugar

1 1/4 c grated semisweet chocolat

2 tbsp cognac

2 tbsp sweet liqueur (I used Grand Marnier--not sure what they use in Italy)

cocoa powder

This is a traditional dessert from Tuscany. To make the sponge, beat the egg yolks, vanilla extract and sugar in a bowl until light and frothy. Whisk the egg whites stiffly and fold carefully into the egg mixture. Gradually add the flour and cornstarch, mixing continuously. Butter and flour a moderately deep cake pan, about 10 in (26 cm) diameter. Spoon in the sponge mixture and bake in a moderate oven (350°F/177°C) for about 40 min until light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

To make the filling, toast the almonds and filberts and roughly chop them. Whip the cream in a bowl with the confectioner's sugar and mix in the chopped nuts and grated chocolate.

Cut the sponge horizontally into slices 1/2 inch thick and sprinkle them with the cognac and sweet liqueur, mixed together. Line a semi spherical mold or basin with well-buttered wax paper and then with some of the sponge slices (I left the lining step out--it turned out to be just fine). Fill up to the brim with the whipped cream, level the top with a spatula and cover the dessert with the remaining sponge slices. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Turn out on to a round serving plate and sprinkle with cocoa and confectioner's sugar mixed, or with first one then the other to give alternate brown and white segments.