Dana Facaros

Dana Facaros investigates the historicand sometimes peculiar confectionarychronicles of France.The weird andwonderful world ofFrench sweets& pastriesWhen you look in apatisserie windowin France – you’relooking at a slice ofFrench history!Marmoutier Abbey just outside Tours in theLoire Valley was where one of the mostunusual cakes of France was born in the16th century. The nuns were busy preparinga feast for a visiting archbishop when, asJean-Camille Fulbert-Dumonteil wrote inFrance Gourmande: ‘Suddenly, a strange,loud, rhythmic, prolonged noise, like the dyingmoan of an organ, then the dying wail ofthe breeze sighing in the cloisters, struck theindignant ears of the nuns with astonishment.’The nuns all turned to stare at Sister Agnès,who in her embarrassment, tripped and let flya spoonful of her chou pastry dough straightinto a pot of boiling fat, and the doughnut-likepet de nonne, ‘nun’s fart’ or the polite version,‘nun’s puff’ was born.Probably only the French would so joyfullycommemorate a prodigious breaking of wind(or make up such a good story about it). Andthere have been many other moments ofcurious serendipity: there’s the sister who leftthe apples on the stove until they caramelizedand invented Tarte Tatin, the apprentice whoaccidently dropped mint in the lozenge doughand created Bêtise de Cambrai bonbons, anda malfunctioning machine in Margaux thattwisted up the chocolate bâtonnets meant togo inside pains au chocolate and producedinstead Bordeaux’s ‘vine cuttings’ – Sarmentsde Médoc.Betises deCambrai, originallymade by amalfunctioningmachine and nowa much-lovedclassic!Tarte Tatin, created by a serendipitous accident!Paris-Brest, round like a bike wheel, named after a famous bike race from – youguessed it, Paris to Brest in Brittany!A bike race, marvellousladies and popesAside from happy accidents, France’spâtissiers and confiseurs have often beeninspired by events or people, so that (if youknow the story) there’s a morsel of history inevery bite; Legendary French chef Escoffiercreated Pêche Melba in 1892 for Australiansoprano Dame Nellie Melba after hertriumphant performance of Lohengrin, and it’snow served around the world.And many sweet souvenirs are almostexclusively French, starting with the Savarin,54 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 55