The Paris Patisserie Tour, Stop #5: Pierre Hermé.

As I sipped my Angelina’s famous hot chocolate, I meandered through the streets of Paris toward my next destination, enjoying the sights, sounds, and most importantly – the taste – of the city. I eventually found my way to 39 Avenue de l’Opéra, which was not only a few blocks from the famed Opera House of Paris, but also home to:

Stop #5: Pierre Hermé.

reflections of…me in my sneakers.

I had promised myself I wouldn’t pick favorites, but that was before I stepped foot into Pierre Hermé Paris. The shop itself was stylish, clean, and classy – If i hadn’t known any better, I would have guessed it was a  high-end jewelry store – on the very high end of high-end. The employees were dressed in suits and ties; yet were warm and friendly, and welcomed all patrons equally. The macarons were just like you’d imagine – a gorgeous rainbow of colors, displayed impeccably under the counter, with each unique flavor sounding more decadent than the last. I was, of course going to sample them, however, I noticed the word “glace” on the front of the shop – my weakness for ice cream combined with the fact that I hadn’t had any for days made my decision easy. The salesman approached me, and I pointed to the sign behind him, and said only one word: “sorbet.” He smiled, quickly spun around and reappeared with a sorbet menu. I had never heard of combinations such as these – plus they were all sorbet sandwiches, with the “bread” of the sandwich being a large macaron. Oh, yes, you will be mine.  Sadly, I don’t recall exactly what flavor I ordered. But I did also order two macarons, and I do remember what flavor those were – rose (pink) and creme de menthe (green). After taking my order, the salesman disappeared momentarily; then returned, with the most exquisite presentation of purchased desserts I’d ever imagined.

they say you eat first with your eyes – and this made my eyes water.

After soaking in the presentation for a few moments, I paid for my desserts, and exited the shop (it was getting a bit crowded). I couldn’t wait to eat my sorbet sandwich, so I popped open the box the second I walked out the door. What I found inside, was the most beautiful thing I’ve seen.

the lost ark.

It was at this point, I had a perfect moment: I walked along the Avenue l’Opera, eating my Pierre Hermé sorbet sandwich, heading directly toward the Opera House.

sing once again with me.

It was a very good day.

To be continued in the next post: Stop #6: Cafe Pouchkine – the final frontier.

No time for love, Dr. Jones.

Or for blogging. The hecticness of the holidays has begun. Throw in pastry school finals, and some minor family drama, and sadly, my favorite pastime has been sent to the back-burner (I love a good oven pun). But not for long! With graduation a little over a week away, I’m going to have so much free time I’m not going to know where to begin. It’s been so long, I forget how to have free time. But one thing I know for sure, this newly found freedom will definitely include a lot of baking and blogging. So hang tight, young grasshoppers. For every oven door that closes, another one opens. In the meantime, enjoy some photos of plated desserts from my class (that’s almost over!).

Chocolate Marquise (with edible Tuile spoon).

have your dessert and eat the spoon.

 

Chocolate Lava Cake (with mini meringue ice cream sandwich).

you'll lava it.

 

Gingerbread Cake (with poached pear).

what a lovely pear.

 

and finally: Apple Strudel (with cinnamon ice cream).

misconstrudeled.

 

Stay tuned – they’ll be much more to come when I have no class….

A little bananas.

Last night I was having dinner at a restaurant with a few friends. The food (and drink) was amazing, but, not to anyone’s surprise I’m sure, there was just so much of it. Being a self-proclaimed dessert-buff, I make an effort not to over-indulge in appetizers, drinks, and entrees, for the sole purpose of saving room for dessert, because, contrary to popular belief, there is NOT always room for dessert.  The problem was that the food was just so good. I did my best to control the portions, and when it was dessert time, I did, in fact still have some room. I did not, however have room for the gargantuan dessert that I wound up ordering because it was just too tempting – a chipotle cinnamon banana split, complete with two types of ice cream, whipped cream, cherries and who knows what else. I did share it with someone, however it was by no means an equal share. It was just too good. I was angry at myself when I was finished, not for ordering dessert or even eating dessert, but for eating as much dessert as I did.

We got to talking about it, and how upset I was with myself for my gluttonous display. We had been discussing small indulgences earlier in the evening, and one of my dining colleagues brought up something I wished I had thought of myself – a mini banana split.  What a fantastic idea! If only that had been on the menu, I would have certainly ordered it, and all this guilt and beating up of myself would have been spared. I envisioned how this delectable little dessert would look in my mind – mini-bowl, with a slice of banana, teeny-tiny tablespoon size scoops of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream…it made perfect sense! This morning, I was curious to see if others had done anything similar. I found a few, none quite like what I had envisioned, which was great! I did stumble across this one though, from Baker’s Royale, that I really liked:

Aren’t they cute?