The Chocolate Shop in Sarlat

[bazfaz]

Mra Faz and I made a tour round some of the Dordogne's lovely sights today - made even more lovely by the absence of holidaymakers. We saw Belves, Beynac, Roque-Gageac, Domme and Sarlat. Sarlat was where we ate our picnic on a sunny bench in a little park dedicated to the people who had died in the resistance during WW2 or been deported to camps.

After this we wandered around the town and found the most wonderful chocolate shop.


I defy anyone to walk past the shop windows without stopping to stare at all the goodies. And having stared to go inside. The aroma was warm and welcoming.


This little chocolate monkey seemed just right as a present for my daughter. I hope she shares it with us.


A chocolate log. We had already bought two small buches de Noel at a patisserie in Belves so we resisted.


Kugeloff are popular.


Cinnamon flavoured little cakes that have been deep fried.


There are tables where you can sample what you see. We had hot chocolate which came with miniature caneles (the cinnamon jobs above).


This I love. A bottle is placed over a pear flower after the bees have done their job and the fruit grows inside the bottle. When the pear is ripe the bottle is filled with a clear alcohol.

I think visitors to Faz Cottage should demand to be taken to Sarlat and this shop.

[Deleted]

Even during tourist season?

Fantastic photos, Baz (I suppose I should probably thank Mrs. Baz) and a really great way to spend Christmas day!

I'm trying to imagine how many bottles are placed under a given pear tree to make the speciality alcohol. It must look really strange to someone who doesn't know what they are doing. And I also suppose that not every pear is a success so they have to give up on a lot of them.

[imec]

Great post baz! The Buche de Noel looks sensational!

[Deleted]

fabulous Baz! I would have dove head first into those truffles.......the whole plate.!! One of my absolute weaknesses.

[traveler63]

OMG Baz, wonderful and I am trying to lick the screen!!!!!

[Deleted]

Besides the box of "city of Paris" chocolates a couple of weeks ago, my mother received a box of truffles yesterday (from the arrondissement?) -- really excellent ones with orange rind mixed in. I have been digging in with gusto. And today it was the nursing home that gave its gift of sweets, which I have not sampled yet. My tax euros at work! (Meanwhile, my mother prefers the bananas and clementines that I bring her.)

[cristina]

Wonderful photos, Baz (and Mrs Faz). It looks like the two of you had a perfect day today.

[fumobici]

Fantastic glimpse into a little corner of culinary heaven, thank you.

Where else in the world can one find a shop like this in a town that size? It would be completely unthinkable here in the US and I can't really think of anywhere besides France (maybe Belgium too?) where such a thing would be possible. In fact here in the US, it might well be impossible to find a chocolate shop of that quality in a city ten or even fifty times the size of Sarlat.

It really makes me wonder why people in other places are so blissfully content to live with such vastly inferior choices.

[bixaorellana]

Oooo, Baz ~~ with all my quick dipping in & out of the Port, this is the first time I've looked at this fabulous thread! What a wonderful view into another, higher world. The first photo, in particular, could have come from another era. The whimsy and care and quality displayed everywhere are totally charming. That's a charming picture of a very content Baz, as well. Kudos and thanks to Mrs. Faz & to you for this delightful piece of vicarious pleasure.

[lola]

Beautiful, Baz. Thanks.

Compared to US small town standards, a small even non-touristy town can have such beautiful patisseries and similar, to make life more worthwhile.

Do you remember where the shop is in Sarlat?

[bazfaz]

Lola, I do remember where that shop is. I could take you right to it. Describing its location...

It's not on the street that wanders through the centre past the big church to that large square. It is on the long straight road that is parallel to it, towards the north end.

[lola]

Thanks, Baz. I know about where you mean.

[bazfaz]

Are you planning a visit?

[lola]

Maybe possibly in the fall. We love the Perigord/Dordogne area.

[bazfaz]

Put us on your itinerary. You won't find our village Marminiac on your map but you might find Cazals, Salviac or - OK - Cahors. We are 40 kms north of Cahors.

[Deleted]

That's close enough. By autumn, all you will need to say is "Bazfaz" and everyone within a 50 km radius will point you in the right direction.

[lagatta]

Cahors! Now you're talking (I have no interest in Chocolate Shops, except for the beauty and care shown in the preparation and presentation - a kugelof is about as sweet as I'll go, but dark red wine is another matter. To each his or her poison! (I'm sure there is cheese to go with the wine).

I've never been to that part of France (Toulouse is the closest). It looks utterly lovely, in a rugged way.

[lola]

How kind, bazfaz! Thank you. I'd like that.

[tillystar]

What a lovely way to spend the day, that hot chocolate is calling to me!

[Deleted]

I'm trying to remember if I have ever been to Sarlat, since I used to crisscross the region regularly. I think that I may have passed through once, but I know that I never visited it properly.

I read that it has become something like the #2 "non-Paris region" tourist destination in France after Mont Saint Michel, which is certainly a reason to visit off season. I think that's why I just passed through, because it was July or August.

[bazfaz]

It is possible that the Sarlat you see has actually been created by Disney. Certainly the number of tourists there make me suspicious. Winter is the best time to visit.

[tillystar]

We stayed a couple of times near Domme and tried to go to Sarlat twice but being August gve up both times. The people who ran the place we stayed in scared us off! I am glad nowbut bet it is so pretty without all the people!

[lola]

I was there only once, on a Monday in September, and it was not at all overrun. Touristy, yes: exhibits A through D ourselves.

[bjd]

We missed having good chocolate in Colombia. Given that they produce coffee, there should be good chocolate but that is not the case. I took two boxes of truffles as a present but they melted together and solidified again after being in the fridge. It was over 30° all the time so they had to be put in a cold place. We ended up hacking apart one large truffle each time!

By the way, Baz. Cannelés are not cinnamon cakes and are not deep fried. They are made from a milky-eggy batter that sits for 24 hours before being baked. The name cannelé comes from the metal cups they are baked in. They are a specialty of Bordeaux, but have now spread into the rest of France.

[bixaorellana]

Oh dear, Bjd. I would have been tempted to say, "These previously melted truffles are far too homely to serve. I'll have to eat them all myself."

Your comment about coffee and chocolate prompted me to look up chocolate in Colombia, a country that apparently has a thriving chocolate industry. The reason I was curious is that the chocolate available in Oaxaca is dark, non-emulsified, and gritty with sugar. Its real use is for preparing hot chocolate, although I enjoy it straight as well. Commercial candy bars and imported bonbons are available, but I was told that the local stuff is the only Mexican-produced chocolate. Then a friend from San Luís Potosí brought me a lovely box of bonbons from a visit there. When I expressed delight and surprise, he was surprised that I had such a misconception. He said San Luís is known for its fine chocolates.

That's a fascinating item about the cannelé batter. Is it anything like Yorkshire pudding batter, or more in the Belgian waffle family? I wonder if it is fermenting slightly while awaiting baking.

[bjd]

I don't know anything about Yorkshire pudding but the batter for cannelés is thicker than waffle batter. It shouldn't ferment since you have to keep it in a cool place.

[bixaorellana]

I thought of Belgian waffles because the batter is different & because it would probably lend itself to being baked, (sample recipe from internet: allrecipes.com/Recipe/Belgian-Waffles/Detail.aspx )

Then, when I was looking up the waffles, it occurred to me that I needn't badger you for details. Here is a wiki article with a view of the interior of a canelé, and links to a couple of recipes: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canel%C3%A9. There is no yeast, nor any leavening of any kind!

[lagatta]

If you make a clafoutis (a not-very-sweet French cake with fresh fruit, most classically cherries, but also other fruits) the batter is very much a thickish crêpe batter.

bixa, I clicked on your Belgian waffle batter recipe and strangely it gave me a 404 file not found.

[fumobici]

The 404 error is because there was no space inserted between the end of the url and the closing parentheses. Try this: allrecipes.com/Recipe/Belgian-Waffles/Detail.aspx

[bixaorellana]

Thanks, Fumobici. I didn't know that, but will now check for it in the future. I've modified my post so no one else need suffer the cruel disappointment incurred by LaGatta.