LeNotre

I have shared the story of my mad search for LeNotre chocolates when I was in France before, but for those of you who might have missed it, I posted the short version below.

LeNotre Assorted Chocolates 

Years ago, I took a French pastry class given by Bruce Healy, author of "Mastering the Art of French Pastry" here in Boulder. It was a wonderful class, though there was a lady from Dallas who drove our teacher crazy with her long fake nails. She couldn't pick up anything without them getting in the way, and it made us all cringe when we saw the bright red acrylic attachments dip into the cake batter. It also grossed everyone out to see the pastry dough get caught underneath those things.

In the class, we learned more than simply how to create desserts. We attended five morning sessions, each ending with lunch and samples of what we had created. I was injured at the time, so I would ride my bike to class as part of my workout. The teacher taught us about the chemistry behind the recipes and about passion. There's no doubt that strong emotion in creating food translates into a better end product. Like Water for Chocolate comes to mind.

Shortly after the class ended, I planned a trip to France. Knowing how much I love chocolate, Bruce told me that a stop in the chocolate shop LeNotre was a must. He gave me the address in Paris, and told me that he knew the head chocolatier. Of course, finding this place became my mission once I got to Paris, but I couldn't seem to locate the store, even with the address in front of me. Nobody was able to help me, because the address apparently wasn't correct. LeNotre had probably relocated.

My mom was with me, and while seeing the other sights, we continued to search for LeNotre for three days. Late in the afternoon of the third day, we decided it was pointless and aborted the mission, electing to go look at antiques instead. We wandered down a narrow little street, admiring the charming little shops. At one point, I found myself peering through the window of a very tiny pastry shop. I could see a display of beautiful chocolates inside. Just as I stepped back and said to my mom, "Look how cute this place is," I noticed the sign above: LENOTRE! We dashed inside in order to buy some of the most amazing chocolates I have ever eaten.