A cake that has nothing to do with breasts. Paris-Brest

It was one day, more than ten years ago, when I posted an Instagram post praising my undoubtedly favourite pastry of all—Paris-Breast. It was the first one I  ever made, and in my happiness, I made a mistake. Those who know something about the iconic cake Paris-Brest know that it has nothing to do with Breasts, yet all with Brest.

Invented in 1910 in Maisons-Laffitte by the pastry chef Louis Durand in honour of the famous race between Paris and the port city of Brest, the cake was prepared in a round shape resembling a bike wheel if looked at from the top. 

Nothing much has changed since, as classical Paris-Brest is still made with pâte à choux and filled with hazelnut mousseline cream. Although most pastry chefs stick to this formula, in the ever-competing world, some chefs take an extra step forward and either add an extra dose of praline or some other surprise, while others go even further, offering not only hazelnut but also pistachio and other flavoured Paris-Brest. 

Paris-Brest has been a staple in French patisserie, and for anyone in an intense relationship with this stunning creation, finding the right one is no easy job, as is choosing between fillings. They are in almost every patisserie and boulangerie, but there is a big difference between A Paris-Brest and THE Paris-Brest. If the first one, beautiful by looks, is most probably overly sweet and made even with a touch of something other than butter, the latter is a pure, heavenly gift to us - the pâte à choux is crunchy on the outside and even juicy inside. The cream, with hazelnut notes, is full of depth and character yet light in structure, being more light and soft rather than dense and sticky. And then there is that praline that is made to perfection - hard enough to stay on the cream, light not to feel like you are chewing candy.