I Miss U all my Blog

They are the 'artistes' in the cuisine, with chocolate and sugar...

Of course they adored having their portraits on their own business cards. They really got my food art biz going.

When I received an invite to a screening of KINGS OF PASTRY I was thrilled.
It's about the 3-day competition of carefully selected French pastry chefs, sixteen in fact, all vieing for the much coveted M.O.F. or Meilleur Ouvriers De France award in Lyon. As luck would have it, I went to Maine to paint and missed the screening, but they sent me the video and BOY OH BOY is it fun!
The Guardian said,
"I never saw so many men sobbing at once"
"A culinary HURT LOCKER"
You get to see top pastry artistes pushed to the limit, racing against time and each other to make their super, fragiles creations. You see top pastry judges of France (PH included!) tasting and grading the contender's art works (16 desserts) and their responses. Full of suspense...catastrophes beaucoup...even the judges are in tears.
If you love French pastry, you MUST see KINGS OF PASTRY
Pastry chefs of the highest order are required to make many confectionary sculptures...
Usually made of sugar. These chocolate masterpieces were at the Salon du Chocolat last October. Now I have a better idea of the enormous effort that went into making them.
Oh the torture, oh the sleepless nights.
I attended the Coupe du Monde de la Patisserie in Lyon in '94 - words can not describe the fabulousness of it all. If only I'd had my Canon back then. Last June I returned to Lyon for a macaron class. Instead I ate lunch at Paul Bocuse's Brasserie Le Nord.
Very chaleureuse/warm indeed..
Very much in the old French tradition of quality and simplicity.
Bien sur you know I had une salade...
And then the very traditional cote d'agneau for my main.
Miam-miam
When I asked for the l'addition they said I was an invitee/guest!?
How I wished I had ordered dessert...something on the order of this elaborate chocolate chapeau...
HATS OFF TO THE M.O.F. WINNERS

I have only tasted ONE cannele at Patisserie Jean Martin...je le regrete beaucoup...
Only one crepe too...

THREE sable citron (not all at once).

I'm a sucker for anything with lemon on it and this rich buttery cookie has just a thin icing of lemony-ness...

I have had their croissants...

Before I noticed they had mini versions...

Abricot is another flavor I swoon for. Do you too?

JEAN MILLET
103 Rue Saint-Dominique
7th Arrondisement
Metro: Invalides Pastry chef, Denis Ruffel has received France's highest honor, the M.O.F. or "Meilleur Ouvrier de France" so this little patisserie is well worth searching out.

I did not get to taste this...

Nor did I buy a 'week-end' cake to take as a gift to anyone...

Foie gras? mais non...

But I would LOVE to eat one of their salades for lunch today...
A la prochaine as the French say...next time...

BONJOUR JEAN MILLET!