dans l'amour de macaron....une magnifique expérience à L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon

There is no need to explain further on our love with the French macaron....there are no pâtisseries like the macaron, a visual and sensual enlightenment in a minute elegant package. A macaron is a traditional French pastry from Nancy, a commune of the Meurthe et Moselle département, in northeastern France. Dating back to the 18th century, the macaron is made of egg whites, almond powder, icing sugar and sugar. This sweet pastry came out of the French courts' baker's oven as round meringue-like domes with a flat base.

In the early 1930 the tearoom and pastry-shop Ladurée in Paris started selling the new creation of Pierre Desfontaines, grandson of Louis Ernest Ladurée: two traditional dome halves sandwiched with a sweet filling between: the ganache. This resulted in giving the new macaron a larger size, the possibility of flavored garnishes, and a newfound moistness that came from the garnish. Whereas the traditional macaron was sweet and dry and crunchy, the new macaron had the added attraction of being delicately crunchy on the outside, while moist, chewy, and flavourful on the inside.


Apart from the most well known Paris pâtisseries Pierre Hermé and Ladurée for their French macaron creations, it was the jewels at L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon in Hong Kong, that turned my love into a devotion. Unlike the macarons at Pierre Hermé and Ladurée that come in grandes variétés of seasonal flavours, and are not shy to display their vibrant characters, there are only 8 flavours featured at L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon, each with a soft pastel colour that complements the delicate texture of this prized French pâtisserie. The sweetness was much milder than those I savoured in Paris, allowing each of the signature flavours plus the backnote of almond to trigger a more complete and intense chemoreception.


My affair with L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon was not meant to end with just their macarons, when my gaze was redirected towards a pâtisserie featuring no other teas but The Earl Grey....I was sold simply from its stunning presentation - en forme de dôme de mousse gently kissed by a thin dust of sprayed chocolat blanc. It was unimaginable that its taste could be more phenomenal....it was the perfect representation of the marriage between Earl Grey and citron, and tasting it on the rocking Star Ferry ride between Central and TST just gave the extra edge. The flavourful mousse was expertly formed to create a fluid mouth feel, and to heighten the textual experience, the skillful chef added petites pastilles de chocolat croustillant.


Leaving this treasure chest with une boîte de macaron, I knew it was enough to bring forth the jealousy from my strange companion on a dreadfully long flight.

A little taste of Hokkaido - Nouvelle Pâtisserie Japonaise Kitakaro 北菓楼

Nouvelle Pâtisserie Japonaise Kitakaro 北菓楼

One of the notable pâtisseries from my southern Hokkaido trip....and being situated in Otaru 小樽, the history and hospitality of the location only made Kitakaro that much more memorable. This gem hides within a gray stone complex, and if it wasn't for the honey floral aroma that disbursed from within, I would have mistaken it for a historical Japanese bathhouse, grand but eccentric....


As I walk inside the tunnel that spanned the broad walls, the welcoming lights emerged into sight, followed by elegant displays of their signature sweets. The aroma intensified....unique combination of fragrance from honey, eggs and flour could only be the results of on-premise baking! With a few broken Japanese phrases, and a little squeezing through the immense crowd waiting to exchange their gold for the delectable, I have arrived to the kitchen for the demonstration of their most priced item - Baumkuchen 妖精の森, which translates to "The Fairy Forest"....the tree-ring pattern of the cake represents the forest, whereas the golden sheen on the cake, the inviting aroma, and the exquisite flavour of this signature piece could certainly live up to the enchanted beauty of fairies.

With just one tasting, I was sold....the delicate flavour of maple and honey balanced well with the sweetness and buttery richness of the cake. It was moist yet light in texture....delightful with a cup of Earl Grey and lemon *will speak more about my devotion to Earl Grey as an ingredient later....

The Japanese are known to have intricate inspirations for their machinery designs....and they have done it again....a special oven just to achieve the perfection of 妖精の森....words alone wouldn't do justice here....heh....please check out the video featuring the making~!

The Puff that Rises....

....yet when it reached Boston, Mass, it has fallen flat.


After chatting with my friend Jen, whom has recently visited Beard Papa's "ビアード・パパのパ" in SF *feeling envious*, and written an entry on her blog, here is my tribute to this amazing store....and for those whom enjoy the puff as much as I do....


I stumbled upon the late Boston location when I first visited Boston for the interview of my current job....well....I spent 2 hours for the interview, and 2 days visiting the city. As a person whom spent her high school years in Hong Kong, Beard Papa's wasn't a nouveau icon....but with the sign in sight, rushing towards the custard clouds was the natural reflex. What attracted me more was the intense aroma of fresh vanilla bean... one of the staff started extract the minuscule seeds from the second most expensive spices after saffron. My cooking instincts then attracted me to a plastic cup filled with the spent pods used for display. With a brief hesitation, I spoke with the manager, and the soon after, the cup of spent pods ended up in my bag.


As Alton Brown puts it....nothing is worth more than a cooking tool that can multi-task. I would say the same for ingredients. The spent vanilla pods would be a waste if they do not end up in your jar of castor sugar, or a good bottle of potato vodka!

It was sad to see Beard Papa's disappear from the Faneuil Hall....I always ponder from the thought of whether there is just a lack of demand for great pastisseries in Boston. It was determined not to miss out on them when I headed back to Hong Kong this past June....and I was surprised by the diversity this company has incorporated to their stores....stay tune for my new Asian experience of the "ビアード・パパのパ"!


Jen's blog: http://rhymeswithhungry.blogspot.com/