For the Love of Pumpkin, Cheesecake, Whipped Cream, and Gingersnaps.

Last week, my husband sent me an email. There was no personal message, no story; there was only this link:

http://www.saveur.com/article/recipes/pumpkin-cheesecake-tart-with-gingersnap-crust

I read over the recipe and thought to myself, “hmmm…this sounds pretty good…maybe I should try and make that….in fact, I think I will make it!”

My husband knew exactly what he was doing. His diabolical pumpkin-cheesecake-tart-with-a-gingersnap-crust-making plan had worked out exactly as he had envisioned.

I bought the ingredients that evening, and got down to business the very next day. It baked up real nice.

Pretty in pumpkin.

The gingersnap crust was the ringer though. I never would have thought to use gingersnaps, but they made all the difference. We went to dinner at my mom’s house that next night, and brought the tart. It was the perfect compliment to my mom’s beanless chili.

A good compliment goes a long way.

We sliced it up, and topped each piece upon serving with a hefty dollop of my homemade cinnamon whipped cream. The only thing missing was my dad. He wasn’t a dessert guy, but this one he would have liked – he loved gingersnaps. I wish he could have enjoyed it with us.

For you, Dad.

As I took my first bite, I raised my fork to my Dad – a man who’s taste in desserts was as unique as he was.

And it was delicious.

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Cinnamon Whipped Cream.

What you’ll need:

1 cup heavy cream

1 tblsp confectioner’s sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

What you’ll do:

Whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Add the sugar and cinnamon. Whip until stiff peaks form. Chill, and serve.

The Paris Patisserie Tour, Stop #6: Cafe Pouchkine.

So this was it – the last leg of the tour. And from the looks of the map, my last stop was very close to my previous one, Pierre Hermé. So I walked, and looked at the map; and walked some more, and looked at the map; and walked some more, and turned the map in all sorts of directions. I could not for the life of me, find this place. I walked back and forth up the same street. It started raining (but I really didn’t mind, after all I was in Paris). I started wondering if the map was wrong. Clearly I was on the right street at this point. I happened to look over and even saw a street number. So i counted in my mind where the cafe should be, and found nothing but a giant department store. I walked past the store and reached the end, and knew I’d gone too far. I didn’t come all this way and get this far on the tour to be thwarted. So I headed back and gave it one more try. I walked back, counting numbers again, and reached the corner where the cafe “should” be. I happened to glance down the street, and lo and behold, there it was – hidden on the side street, with not-so-eye-catching signage. Regardless, I had found it, and I practically ran through the rain to finally get to my last stop on the tour:

Stop #6: Cafe Pouchkine.

you can’t hide from me.

I made my way inside – they did have an adorable little sidewalk cafe seating area, however it was raining steadily at this point, so I decided to go in, and at least dry off while I ordered. Turned out, they also had a counter with seating inside, however it was somewhat cramped. There seemed to be a couple of empty seats though, so I thought I’d try to snag one. I ordered a Tutti Frutti, which at first I thought was a fruit tart, with frozen pieces of fruit piled on top.

Bop bopa-a-lu a whop bam boo.

I ordered, and as I was paying, I asked if I could sit at the counter. At first, the madame behind the counter seemed agreeable to this suggestion; until she offered me a drink, and I declined. I could see her face change – it was as if I was breaking a cardinal rule of counter-sitting by eating and not drinking. Reluctantly she pointed me over to the counter, and eventually delivered my Tutti Frutti. I will say that it was delicious – however it wasn’t a fruit tart. It was more like a slice of cake, with a gelatinous blob of melon-y fruit filled with strawberry syrup on top, piled high with frozen fruit globes.

inside edition.

I ate the entire thing, without drinking, and left. It was tasty and refreshing, and really was the perfect ending to my tour, even if the cafe itself wasn’t  the most personable. I’d definitely go back for the desserts – and just hope that Miss Congeniality was off that day. Or maybe, next time I’ll just order a drink.

So, this concludes my Walking Patisserie Shop Tour of Paris. It was worth every step and calorie. My only regret was not getting to all 11 original shops on the list. That just gives me a really good reason to go back (as if I needed a reason). 🙂

Bon Appétit!