Tarte Chocolat Caramel

Ever since CocoCook opened last fall, I’ve wanted to try it. But more for its savory dishes that were said to be as good as any gourmet New York take-out joint. With our sunny afternoon picnic lunch of Cornet Vegetariens in hand, it gave Bennie and I the perfect excuse to pop in and pick up dessert. We happened to be walking by, after all.

From the black sesame panacotta and carrot cake and triple lemon cake and chocolat fondant, we chose well.

One slice of chocolate caramel tarte, divided by two. Half the guilt. Total pleasure.

Down to the little graham cracker-crumbly bits from the deliciously moist crust.

How can something be this good?

Boulangerie Julien has one of the best baguettes in town. But as good as they are—and trust me, they are incredible—I can’t say they outshine the viennoiseries.

Bennie, a trusted New York sweets companion, has a good eye. Now stuck here in Paris (and aren’t there worse places to be stranded??) he noticed Boulangerie Julien on his first day and I dutifully accompanied him to pick something up for breakfast. We opted for a classic almond croissant.

Fresh and flaky, slightly chewy and caramelized at the edges, dusted with powdered sugar and almond slivers and, best of all, pumped full of almond paste. Having something this delicious for breakfast on a warm spring day is one of the greatest pleasures in life.

The Parisian cupcake brigade continues

It’s clear. The Parisians have a devotion to macarons that is akin to New Yorkers’ obsession (albeit waning) with cupcakes. Ironically—or inevitably, I don’t know which—New Yorkers are now enamored by macarons, while cupcakes are infiltrating Paris.

The latest proof: Miss Cupcake, a two-week old cupcake cafe tucked into a little corner of Montmartre.

The view from the outside persuaded me to go inside.

Which is where baker Laurence Kreitmann, and her crew were busy frosting and decorating the next batch of goodness.

Mocha, chocolate, strawberry and more…



They have a wonderful homemade quality to them. They’re professional, but not perfect, topped with everything from jelly beans to berries to sprinkles, some puffing out of their paper carriers, others politely staying inside.

Now the question becomes, for the rest of my time in Paris, where do I invest my sweet calories: cupcakes, or macarons?

22, rue la Vieuville, 18eme

Easter mice

From the master chocolatier/sculpture Patrick Roger.


I prefer to believe these are mice, not rats.

Stohrer prepares for Paques

And you thought the U.S. got a little crazy with candy holidays?

All over the city, chocolatiers and patisseries are creating giant eggs, bunnies and baskets and setting up mini-shops to peddle their Easter goods.

Not that I'm complaining.

March Tour: Sweet madeleines, savory pâtes and all kinds of deliciousness in between

Just as there are many under-the-radar restaurants that pepper the 11th and 12th arrondisements—Bistrot Paul Bert, Le Square Trousseau, La Gazetta, to name a few—there are also some killer sweet spots straddling le Faubourg Saint Antoine.

Start your sweet explorations with the most notable on the list, Blé Sucre (7, rue Antoine Vollon), founded by ex-Bristol patissier Fabrice Le Bourdat. The patisserie is petit but it has a massive selection of viennoiseries, cakes, chocolates, breads and other douceurs that make the decision of what to try very painful. I ended up settling on the madeleine, which—moist and light; dense but crispy along the ridge; coated with a thin layer of sugar glacage—seemed like the right choice.

A couple blocks to the east, La Ruche à Miel (19, rue d'Aligre ), a North African patisserie/salon de thé offers a small selection of very small sweets. The Cigare, for example, flavored with almond and orange, is shaped like a cannoli, but can be put away in a mere three bites. Maybe that’s why the giant pâtes de dattes caught my eye. Heftier than an American Pop Tart, it was as savory as it was sweet, with a course and exotic texture that I found addictive.

Venture north into the 11th, where the scent of chocolate will greet you inside Pause Détente (98, avenue Ledru-Rollin). There's a whole case of bonbons in the back—milk and dark, ganache and praline, vanilla, cassis and mint—but to get there, you have to pass all kinds of other delights, including macarons, viennoiseries and beautiful, elaborate gateaux.

Finish with a tinier, but no less lovelier, piece of gateau at Cupcakes & Co (25, rue de la Forge Royale). With over 20 varieties, split amongst buttercream and cream cheese frostings, fruity and savory toppings, and several cake flavors—all made with natural and organic products—it’s next to impossible to choose just one treat. Coffee and hazelnut? Poppy seed with orange cream cheese frosting? Vanilla bourbon cake with glazed figs and pine nuts? An impossible choice, indeed, but one we could all be so lucky to have to make.

Breakfast of certain champions

Seriously.

Chocolate-raspberry sweet bread from Boulangerie Julien.


This is one of two killer boulangeries near the office. I often get une demi-baguette (still warm, award-winning, amazing) on my way home from work. And each time, I gaze longingly at viennoiseries such as this one.

So once in awhile, I feel it’s my responsibility to dip in, to know just how good they are.

They are really, really, really good.

47 macarons later

I did it. Today was Pierre Hermé’s Jour du Macaron, and, oui, mesdames et messieurs, I did the full circuit. I could have returned chez-moi with a ridiculous cache of 53 macarons. But because I’m a woman of restraint, and I came home with only 47. Actually, 43, since I ate four along the way.

So the premise of le Jour du Macaron is you can go to any one of Pierre Hermé’s six boutiques in the city, and get three free macarons of your choice. (While there, you’re encouraged to drop some coins into a box for a couple different charities—a very nice gesture.) But if you go to all six boutiques, and get a card stamped to prove it, you’re rewarded with a box of 35 macarons. What does one girl do with 35 macarons, much less 53?! Well, I’m eating as I type, for one thing…

I intended to do something like the Tour du Chocolat and Velib to all six boutiques. But they’re spread pretty well across the city so I alternated between bike, foot and Metro.

At 10:15, the madness began. There was already a line out the door of the rue Bonaparte location, having just opened at 10.


I started there because I knew it would be the craziest, being Hermé’s first boutique and being in Saint-Germaine. But after a relatively swift move through the line, I got my three: milk chocolate and Earl Grey tea, vanilla and le Magnifique: raspberry and wasabi.

Yes, they are as delicious as they sound.

Then I pedaled onto the rue Vaugirard location. Not as crazy, not at all. My three choices?


Pistachio, caramel and an unbelievable mélange of peach, apricot and saffron.


A few metro stops later, I was in the 16th arrondisement, at avenue Paul Doumer.

There, I scooped up chocolate, the mind-bending white truffle and hazelnut and apricot and pistachio.


At Publicis Drugstore, my fourth location, there was a pretty serious line and the employees were coming through it to stamp cards. Once my stamp was added, I decided to save myself the 10-minute wait in line and forgo those three free macarons. Really. How gluttonous can one be?

The next stretch of the circuit was fun as it took me on my old commute from the Champs-Elysée down to the first arrondisement. I pulled right up to the Velib station in front of the rue Cambon location and hopped in line.


By now, it was after noon and the waits were taking awhile. But I figured I was still on target to finish by 2.



I got my card stamped, excited that I had just one more stop, and ordered up the Médélice, lemon and hazelnut praliné; Fragola, raspberry and balsamic vinegar; and the much-acclaimed olive oil and vanilla. Trust me, it’s delicious.

I left the Galeries Lafayette location to last, which was a mistake: it was the craziest scene. I stood in line for 45 minutes, hungry for proper nourishment, having only eaten a banana and another macaron. I was anxious to have the circuit done. Still on track for my 2pm goal, but I hate waiting for food.


Finally, I got up to the counter and surprised the guy when I told him I’d skip the three freebies and just get to my free boite.

Have you ever created your own assortment of 35 macaron flavors? It was crazy. I just kept ordering more and more. And more.

Lemon, jasmine, coffee, milk chocolate and passionfruit, chocolate and cassis, just plain old chocolate, more vanilla, more pistachio, more caramel, two more of my favorites… more, more, more!

I have to find out how many macarons they went through today.