Why Are French Patisseries So Good?

Every time I visit a town or village here in France I am irresistibly drawn to the window of the patisserie to admire and to take photographs of the delicious creations before me. Rows of meringues, macarons, fruit tarts, gateau and pastries are placed artistically to tempt you to taste one or two.

.

A Little history

It was during the Middle Ages when you see the first distinction between cooks and pastry cooks giving birth to the pâtissier. Pâte à choux, a light pastry dough, ice cream and macarons were introduced to France by Catherine de Medici who married Henry II. Decadent desserts and buttery pastries were served regularly at the court of Louis XIV who was famous for hosting grand repas late in the evening. It is no surprise therefore that food in France is taken very seriously and its gourmet delights, desserts and pastries are world famous.

.

First Macarons To Be Sold.

The first macarons to be sold were made by nuns in Nancy to help kept their convent financially viable during the French Revolution.

.

An Accidental Dessert.

A favourite of mine is tart Tatin which according to legend was created by one of the Tatin sisters who accidentally dropped an apple tart which landed upside down. However, it was still served with its caramelised apples and pastry topping and was a great success.

.

Artistic Creation.

Another mouth watering dessert is the Opera Cake which was created in 1955 by the great French artisan pastry chef Cyriaque Garillion who worked in the famous Dalloyau shop in Paris making desserts. When inventing the Opera cake he wanted to create something that the first bite would give a taste of the whole cake. He worked on layers and tastes and finally the cake was perfect. Three layers of almond flavoured sponge soaked in a coffee syrup and topped with coffee butter cream and chocolate ganache. The top is then covered with a dark chocolate icing. Cyriaques wife stated that the cake reminded her of the Opera House in Paris. A perfect name for this delicious cake.

.
……………….
.

Open Inside And Out.

A return to near normality:

A month ago restaurants were able to open for customers once more but only in the outdoor seating areas. Which was no problem at all with the temperature rising to the late twenties and low thirties. From the 9^th June everything could fully open, restaurants can accept diners both inside and out, cinemas opened their doors again and concerts could go ahead with a limit on audience number so that social distancing can be observed. In a few cases you will need to prove that you have been fully vaccinated before you may enter the premises.

.

Le Petit Paris, getting ready for customers. It was great seeing the parasols go up once more after the long absence.

.

The Boulangerie in Daglan is also ready to serve their customers with pastries and coffee. It looks stunning with their boxes and pots of flowers.

.

Our first outside table for over a year and where did the other people come from? We have been used to being the only people around when buying a coffee in Sarlat before our weekly shopping trips, so it was rather unusual to see a few other people around.

.

I was saying a few other people! Just two days later and wow, this was Sarlat market last Saturday morning and you could hardly move around the stalls and keep social distance at the same time.

.

Every stall and shop was open once again.

We also noticed while on our way home that the camp sites are open, hotels and the tourist spots of Castelnaud la Chapelle and La Rogue-Gageac are busy.

………………………….

.