First of all, Happy Easter! I've just survived several small children running around looking for and then consuming large amounts of chocolate. Small French children, I should probably add. In France they believe that "les cloches de Paques" (the bells of Easter) bring the chocolate, which is strange as both in Germany and England we have the Osterhase/Easter Bunny. Thanks to the wonders of Easter, many patisseries have been filled with delightful looking treats, in all shapes and sizes. Most popular are hens, eggs, bells and rabbits although almost anything is possible and is accordingly available. The prices are pretty steep - 40 euros per item seems to be about average. A favourite of mine was the French frog as seen in the photo. This particular patisserie at which these photos were taken can be found by the Hotel de Ville and is called Maison Georges Larnicol. I can't account for the taste but it did all look fabulous.
It's no surprise that France, especially Paris, is home to a delicious array of pastries and chocolatiers. I'm sure you could find these things in London, but it would be hard to find and overpriced, and you'd be lucky if they tasted as good as they do here. Laduree is the famous maison de la patisserie which claims to have invented the macaroon. I think if I had to choose, the macaroon would be my favourite French sweet thing, although the pain au chocolats fall closely in second place. Macaroons are crisp on the outside and beautifully soft on the inside. Their flavours range from vanilla and pistachio to rose petal (my personal favourite). I can only think that French women stay so thin thanks to the appreciation of such treats in very small, very rare doses. To give you a taste (so to speak) here's a photo of the average patisserie window display:
Bon appetit, enjoy the Easter chocolate! xxx
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