Before I left Ottawa, I had asked Chef H for the names of a few good pastry shops in Paris. Then I set about visiting these shops while I was in Paris. It was not too difficult to visit one shop a day, because most of these shops were close to famous sights in Paris - I even stumbled across a couple of them on my way to various sights. (I stayed in a hotel a few blocks from the Eiffel Tower, and found it quite convenient to get around Paris by metro and on foot.)
What I saw made me so excited about making cakes and pastries because I never imagined cakes and pastries could be so beautiful. I loved the way the cakes and pastries were arranged and displayed in the shop windows too.
I wish I had seen these cakes and pastries before I went to LCB Ottawa to study pastry.
Individual portions of desserts in Ladurée (75 avenue Champs-Elysées). As you can see, the religieuses (nuns) were beautifully-made. I thought they look nice, even with the pink or purple fondant glaze. The ones I made at School (during Basic and Intermediate Pastry) look nothing like this because it takes great skills (and tons of practice) to be able to make them look pretty. I'm still a long way from being this good.
The petits fours frais sold in Ladurée looked so tempting. Don't you just love the combination of colours and the wonderful texture in this display? This is what I mean when I say I love the way they arrange the pastries in their display.
This is, of course, what many customers go to Ladurée for: the macaroons. See how even the shapes and sizes are? Great piping skills!
I bought six macaroons (six different flavours), and found them to be nice enough. The texture was rather similar to what we had learned to make at School -- I guess that's what macaroons should taste like.
Cakes displayed in the Fauchon (located in Place de la Madeleine) shop window. I reckon LCB Ottawa has taught us all the techniques required to make cakes like that, but, until I saw these cakes, I just didn't imagine cakes could look this gorgeous. I was most inspired by the designs.
These were cakes I saw in the Dalloyau (101 rue Faubourg-St Honoré) shop window. I was mesmerized... This was a real feast for the eyes. All I could say to myself was: Wow, the pastry chefs here are soooo artistic!!!
