Canele de Bordeaux at MarieBette
At a recent holiday party hosted by one of the area’s best chefs, we were turned on to a classic french pastry called Canele de Bordeaux. While swooning over the pastries, we were surprised to learn that among the extraordinary spread of food — mussels, calamari salad, charcuterie, and more — the caneles were perhaps the only things the chef had not prepared himself. What local source had made something the chef deemed worthy of serving to his guests? MarieBette, the new patisserie and cafe on Rose Hill Drive.
If you’ve never had one of these beauties, head over to MarieBette now. A dark, caremelized crust encases an interior that is at once custardy and airy. They are sort of like a hand-held creme brulee. Although the pastries are famously finicky and based on a secret recipe known only to Bordeaux patissiers, MarieBette pastry chef Patrick Evans seems to have mastered them. Perhaps best of all, they pair equally well with coffee and wine, so they can fill the bill any time of day.
