Chic Parisians love the English- style delicacies of Rose Bakery in the ninth arrondissement. Marie-Claire Digby pays a visit and selects some mouth- watering recipes from the owner's new cookbook
Rue des Martyrs in the ninth arrondissement of Paris is one of my favourite streets in a city where, if it's good food you're after, you're spoiled for choice. It's best experienced on a Sunday morning, when, as the rest of the city slumbers, food lovers in search of the makings of a delicious lunch congregate on the narrow street that winds uphill from the church of Notre-Dame-de-Lorette and ends near the Place des Abbesses in Montmartre.
Queues forming out the doors signal which are the best providers of seafood, meat, and poultry (with heads attached and farmyard dirt still clinging to their feet, or ready-roasted from one of the many rotisseries; just make sure you pick a "poulet fermier"). There are several traditional traiteurs on the street, and more charcuteries than you could shake a pig's leg at. Then there are the pâtisseries, where you make your selection from the jewel-like creations, which are lovingly wrapped and ribboned.
You'll be ready for a break by the time you spot a queue - yes another one - snaking out the door of number 46, on the right-hand side of the street as you climb uphill. Be thankful for the queue, for without it Rose Bakery is difficult to spot, even when you know what you're looking for. Twice I walked past the unassuming doorway of the former chartil, a place where traders at the local markets once stored their fruit and veg barrows.
Today the pushchairs parked outside, and the unreasonably high percentage of "yummy mummies" in the queue indicate that you've found the bakery, tea shop and lunchtime favourite of the "bio" brigade.
It was opened four years ago by Anglo-French couple Rose and Jean-Charles Carrarini. The pair, who established the well-known deli, Villandry, on the Marylebone Road in London in the late 1980s, have been championing the merits of organic, locally-produced ingredients since moving to Paris. Their salads, quiches and pizzas, soups and cakes are all made on the premises, and demand often exceeds supply. Their produce has a wholesome appearance, and a quirky Britishness, which the French think is the last word in cool.
The day's offerings are lined up on a counter to the right, just inside the door, opposite the small array of organic produce that the bakery also sells. A variety of quiches, baked in individual square tins they had made specially, are bestsellers. "We can never make enough," Rose says. Salads are displayed in giant bowls, and like much of the menu, can be purchased to take away.
The selection of cakes and biscuits is vast, and they have the "made-by-granny" look that makes you feel they might even be good for you. Carrot cakes baked in attractive individual round tins are the most popular, but the size-zero French mamans have also found a voracious appetite for shortbread, ginger cake and Eccles cakes.
Following critical acclaim and commercial success for its 2005 cookery book, The Silver Spoon, Phaidon next week publishes Breakfast, Lunch, Tea, 100 recipes from Rose Bakery, by Rose Carrarini. Photographs by Toby Glanville capture the quirky, feel-good atmosphere of the shop, and the creativity of the people who work in it. On these pages and overleaf, we publish a selection of these images, alongside the recipes.
RICOTTA, TOMATO AND THYME TART (Serves 6-8)
6 tomatoes, halved
salt and ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
100g grated Cheddar cheese
1 x 28cm tart case (see below)
350g ricotta cheese
1 quantity cream mixture (see below)
1 handful chopped fresh thyme
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/gas four. Bake the tomatoes skin-side up for about 45 minutes, until the liquid has gone and the skins can easily be removed. Season the tomatoes with salt and pepper and drizzle a little oil over them.
Scatter the Cheddar cheese over the base of the tart case. Place the tomatoes on top of this and spoonfuls of ricotta over the tomatoes.
Pour in as much of the cream mixture as you can, without it spilling over the top. Sprinkle with the thyme. Transfer carefully to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes till the filling has set and is lightly golden.
TART CASE
(makes enough for three 28cm cases)
500g plain flour
½tsp salt
250g cold unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
1 egg yolk
250ml cold water
If you are using a food processor, process the flour, salt and butter for about five to eight seconds, so that some pieces of butter are left, then put the mixture into a bowl. Otherwise, put the flour and salt in a bowl, cut the butter into pieces and work it into the flour with your fingertips. Now make a well in the middle of the flour and butter mixture and add the egg yolk and half the water (use only a third on a very hot day - it's only in the coldest months that we use up all the water). Stir quickly with a fork to start bringing the dry and wet ingredients together.
When the fork can't do it any more, use your hands to bring the dough together. There is no kneading or pressing, all you have to do is gather up the dry parts as quickly as possible. Make sure you don't have a sticky mess or a dry, crumbly mound. If your hands get too warm, put them under cold water for a few minutes. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, or up to eight hours.
When you want to make the tarts, preheat the oven to 180 degrees/gas four and grease three 28-centimetre (11-inch) tart tins with butter. Take the dough out of the fridge and divide it into three pieces. Dust your work surface and rolling pin with lots of flour and roll out one of the pieces, lifting and turning it all the time so that it does not stick to the surface.
When it reaches a thickness of about four millimetres - less if possible - use it to line a tart tin. Make sure you don't stretch the dough to make it fit. Just ease it in with a little extra to spare - this will stop the pastry shrinking.
Repeat the process with the remaining pieces of dough. Chill again for about 30 minutes. Bake the tart cases blind with any weight system you have (we use foil, filled with beans), for about 25-30 minutes. The pastry must be dry and just turning golden. Cool for a while.
CREAM MIXTURE
(makes enough for one 28cm tart)
500ml single cream
4 eggs
1 egg yolk
pinch each of salt and ground black pepper
pinch of grated nutmeg
Beat all the ingredients together in a bowl until they are well mixed.
SALMON FILLETS AND BROCCOLI (Serves 4)
The salmon we use comes from the west coast of Ireland and is organic. This recipe is inspired by the Japanese restaurants we often go to, and I think it is one of the nicest ways to eat salmon, which is a very rich fish. You will need a wide, shallow pan with a heavy base. And make sure it is ovenproof - the salmon is cooked in the oven as well as on the hob.
12 broccoli florets
sesame oil, for frying
4 salmon fillets
toasted sesame seeds, to garnish
FOR THE SAUCE
120ml shoyu (soy sauce)
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 dried red chilli
5mm piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp sesame oil
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees/gas five. Put all the ingredients for the sauce into a saucepan with 50ml water and bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for about 15 minutes till slightly reduced. Set aside.
Meanwhile, blanch the broccoli florets till they are al dente. Now cook the salmon. Heat a little sesame oil in a pan and put the salmon fillets in, flesh-side down. Cook for about five minutes till golden. Turn the fillets over and put them in the oven till they are just cooked through - another five minutes. Take them out of the pan and keep them warm.
Strain the sauce, pour it into the pan and boil over a medium heat until it has reduced - it needs to be thick enough to glaze the fish - and is nearly caramelised.
To serve, place the fillets on individual plates, skin-side down, with the broccoli florets on the side and the sauce poured over the fish. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve immediately.
PIZZETTE
Like the vegetable tarts, our pizette sell out within the hour at lunchtime. And, as with the tarts, the toppings vary according to what's in season and available, so it all comes down to selecting your favourite combinations, whether it's tomatoes and rocket or onions, courgettes and mozzarella, and so on. The recipe calls for the dough for the pizzette to be left to rise overnight, but if you want to avoid this step you can leave the dough to double in size in a warm place for about 1 and a half hours.
PIZZETTE DOUGH
(This makes about 14 pizzette)
500g strong white flour (bread flour), preferably unbleached, plus extra for dusting
1 handful wholemeal (wholewheat) flour
20g fresh yeast
½ tsp brown sugar
50ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for greasing
2 tsp salt
80g semolina
The day before you want to make the pizzette, put both flours into a bowl. Make a well in the middle, crumble in the yeast and add the sugar and 100ml hand-warm water.
Mix a little of the flour into the yeast-and-water mixture and leave to rest for about 15 minutes. When the mixture begins to bubble, add the oil, salt and 200ml hand-warm water to the bowl. Mix well, then turn out on a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes till it is smooth and soft, but not sticky. Add more flour if necessary. Place in an oiled bowl, cover with cling film and place in the fridge overnight.
The following day, take the dough out of the fridge and let it rise further for about one hour. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees/gas six. Punch the dough down and divide it into about 14 pieces. Dust the work surface with a mixture of flour and semolina and roll the pieces out to make 10-12-centimetre circles.
If you have trouble making the circles look nice, take them in your hands and keep turning them, holding the edges, till you get decent shapes. Don't worry if they are not perfect. This is rustic food after all.
Brush a baking tray (or trays) with oil. Spread your chosen topping ingredients over the circles and place the pizzette on the baking tray. Bake for about 10-15 minutes.
PIZZETTE TOPPING
We make two pizzette-base mixtures:
Finely diced tomatoes (when they are in season and full-flavoured) with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and fresh oregano or basil.
Thinly sliced onions stewed in olive oil, with salt, pepper, garlic and thyme or oregano.
Both mixtures are moist. Spread them lightly over the pizzette leaving a one-centimetre margin around the edges. Then you can put any vegetables you like on top of the pizzette, but keep it simple. Some of our favourite combinations are:
Sliced roasted courgettes, a couple of halved cherry tomatoes and a dollop of ricotta cheese.
Sliced artichokes, Parmesan cheese shavings and lots of chopped fresh parsley.
Extra tomatoes added to the tomato base and, when they are cooked, a handful of rocket leaves, a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of Maldon sea salt.
COLD BEETROOT SOUP WITH A HOT POTATO
(Serves 6)
This soup is based on the classic Lithuanian borscht, and our customers find the combination of hot and cold surprising but delicious. It needs to be chilled overnight, so remember to prepare the borscht the day before you plan to serve it.
2 onions, diced
2 sticks celery, diced
1kg raw beetroot, peeled and diced
salt and ground black pepper
1 tbsp red or white wine vinegar, or lemon juice
2 tbsp caster sugar
6 medium potatoes, washed but not peeled
sour cream, to garnish
Put the onions, celery and beetroot in a large saucepan and cover well with about two litres of water. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and simmer for about two hours till the beetroot is soft. Transfer to a food processor and liquidise to make a very thin puree. If the soup is too thick, add more water. Chill it overnight.
Next day add the vinegar or lemon juice, and sugar. Check for seasoning. The soup must have a slightly sweet/sour taste.
Boil the potatoes until soft, then halve them. Pour the cold soup into bowls, put two hot potato halves in the middle of each bowl and add a good spoonful of soured cream to each serving.
CARROT CAKE (Serves 8)
This has to be our number one seller and probably got Rose Bakery noticed and talked about when we first opened.
unsalted butter, for greasing
4 eggs
225g caster sugar
300ml sunflower oil
9 medium carrots, finely grated
300g plain flour, sifted
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 rounded tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
150g finely chopped walnuts
FOR THE ICING
125g unsalted butter, softened
250g cream cheese
½ tsp natural vanilla extract
50-75g icing sugar, depending on how sweet you like your icing
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/gas four. Butter a 23-centimetre (9-inch) cake tin and line its base with parchment paper. Beat the eggs and caster sugar until they are light and fluffy but not too white and meringue-like. Pour in the oil and beat for a few more minutes. Fold in the carrots and then the flour with the cinnamon, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Finally fold in the walnuts. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool the cake in the tin before taking it out.
To make the icing, beat the butter with the cream cheese for a few minutes till the mixture is smooth. Add the vanilla extract and icing sugar. When the cake is cold, ice the top with the icing - it can be as smooth or rough as you like.
PISTACHIO CAKE (Serves 6-8)
I call this Tilly's Cake as we worked on it together when she was working with us for a while, on a break from Trinity College, Dublin. Our first attempts, without flour, shrank a lot and were difficult to control, so we finally gave up and added the flour. But the cake remains moist and delicious all the same. Thank you, Tilly.
250g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
225g caster sugar
grated zest of one lemon
2 tbsp natural rosewater or ½tsp natural vanilla extract
4 eggs
100g ground almonds
100g ground pistachios
50g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
FOR THE TOPPING
50g pistachios, whole or chopped
50g caster sugar
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/gas four. Butter a 25-centimetre (10-inch) cake tin and line its base and sides with parchment paper. Beat the butter and sugar until they are very light and creamy. Mix in the lemon zest and rosewater or vanilla extract. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Now fold in the ground almonds, ground pistachios, flour, baking powder and salt.
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 40 minutes or until a knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool the cake in the tin before taking it out.
To make the topping, gently heat the pistachios, sugar and lemon zest and juice in a saucepan and pour over the cake.