This Summer in Paris...

(I dedicate today's post to our friend Al, who now lives in Heaven after losing his battle with leukemia at the end of May.  He loved reading my blog and once commented that he liked reading the posts where I talked about "all of those little cakes".  I'm glad to have brought some light into his life.  He was a neighbor and childhood friend of my Mr. V and more recently, brought joy to my life when I got to know him.  We miss you, Al.)

Dearest Friends of The Tearoom,
It has been sometime since I gave an update on what is new in the lovely pastry houses of Paris.  This summer seems to be full of invention and innovation there, much of which seems to have been inspired by the Heavens Above!

First of all, from Fauchon, who are always innovators in the art of patisserie, comes their line for summer entitled "Fruit Fiction" and clearly the imagination that has gone into this collection is just amazing!  So many gorgeous and delicious-looking pastries and gift items!  I wish were there to see it in person this summer!

From their website:
"From the 8th of July to the 3rd of September 2014, FAUCHON is inviting food lovers to discover previously unexplored taste universes. Seasonal fruit and vegetables are the basis for pairings and recipes that you could never have possibly imagined. So get on board for a sophisticated and playful journey through the tangy flavours of fruit and the unsuspected sweetness of vegetables. Our destination is the Fruit Fiction galaxy."

The collection includes such temptations as:

"Unlimited" Strawberry and Red Pepper Éclair 

Cherry Constellation

"Enjoy a truly fantastic gourmet dessert. A light cherry mousse conceals a Morello cherry compote and a pistachio pain de Gênes cake on a crushed shortcrust pastry base. A chocolate cherry-tail tops the dessert while an unbelievable dark chocolate disk delicately rests atop as a ring. A spherical delight, kept in place as if by magic.  Audacity and expertise. One for all food lovers."

Peach Constellation

"This constellation of gourmet pairings is impossible to resist. The dexterity of FAUCHON’s chefs lends itself to a range of fruity constellations. In this specific case, the pink sphere of the dessert combines white peach mousse and compote with a delicious Madagascar Bourbon vanilla biscuit. The creation sits atop a crushed shortcrust pastry base, encircled by a white chocolate ring. A truly enticing new creation from FAUCHON."

Apricot Constellation

"Apricot constellation. An apricot surprise. Incredible and irresistible. Our third destination is the apricot constellation. A delicious apricot mousse contains apricot compote and a little pain de Gênes almond cake, surprisingly seasoned with olive oil. The apricot constellation sits on a sweet shortcrust base and is encircled by a white chocolate ring."

Fruit Fiction Collection Macaron Box

Fruit Fiction Biscuits made of 

milk chocolate and fruit essences

And before you leave the Fauchon site, be certain to check out their savory pastry creations for summer as well.

One of the newer patisseries in Paris is Patisserie Ciel.  True to its name (the word "ciel" means both sky and Heaven in French), their little sponge cakes are called "Angel Cakes".  These beautiful creations come in a dazzlingly creative range of flavors including chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, raspberry, sakura griottes (cherry and cherry blossom), yuzu, matcha tea, earl grey, rose praliné, mango, black sesame seed, sunset (a combination of passionfruit, banana and pineapple), even a savory one with basil and olive oil.  They also serve their own soft serve ice cream in such flavors as green tea and orange blossom.  During the day, they serve tea, these lovely cakes and even their own creative sandwich creations; in the evening, Japanese-inspired cocktails.  Their website is just gorgeous and you can take a peek at it here.  They are located in the 5th Arr., so they will be on our list for the next time we visit Paris.

And lastly, Christophe Adam of L'Éclair de Génie (formerly with Fauchon, now on his own), has two concept stores in Paris, one in Le Marais (only a few blocks away from our beloved Musée Carnavalet) and one in Passy.  His creativity is truly mind-boggling as he continues with his line of amazing éclairs (work which made him so famous in his time at Fauchon) and other creations.  His site is here and is just incredible!  Today, I'm showing you his range of chocolate "bonbons", which to my eyes, look like a galaxy of delicious little planets of chocolate! They are only numbered, not named, like some as-yet- undiscovered solar system!

No. 14

Caramel and passionfruit, enrobed in dark chocolate

No. 15

Caramel Yuzu, enrobed in milk chocolate

No. 17

Vanilla caramel, enrobed in dark chocolate

No. 18

Vanilla pecan praliné, enrobed in milk chocolate

Pistachio, enrobed in dark chocolate

For more on what is new in the universe of pastry in Paris, please check out this great online article in the Wall Street Journal, written by Lindsey Tramuta, who writes the fun blog Lost in Cheeseland.