by Noelle Love
29
December 31st – Tali stretched her arms as she woke up, looking out the window to a giant terrace overlooking the Seine. It was better than she had ever pictured in her dreams. Looking over at Parc, who was still asleep beneath the white cotton sheets, she smiled. He was the man of her dreams, the true love she had been waiting for. The night before, as her and Parc were walking hand-in-hand through the tree-lined path in front of the Champs-Elysees, Tali felt the presence of her mom and dad. Looking over her shoulder, she could have sworn she saw them walking behind her, hand-in-hand. Tali took it as a sign that her parents approved of Parc and that he was, indeed, the one. She and Parc walked all over Paris that night, ending up at the door of Parc’s apartment for the very first time.
“It’s not much,” he said as he opened the door, “but someday soon I’ll be able to buy a bigger place for us… for me,” he corrected, not sure if it was okay to say something like that so soon. As Tali walked through the front door her eyes went directly to the French doors that lead out onto a terrace, a terrace where she would paint the landscape below for years to come.
Parc met Tali out on the terrace with a bottle of champagne, letting the cork fly over the edge and into the night sky. They clinked their glasses and leaned over the ledge counting the stars together in silence.
“I’ve dreamt of this moment for years,” said Parc, deciding that he couldn’t keep his feelings for Tali to himself anymore.
“You have too?” said Tali, studying Parc’s face, happy to see that he was doing the same with hers.
“I’ve seen your face for years, whenever I close my eyes, but I was starting to think you didn’t exist.”
Tali’s smile made Parc’s eyes light up. He went in for a kiss.
Tali, who was leaning in too, knocked her glass of champagne off the ledge with her elbow, sending the glass tumbling through the air and into the river below. As Tali and Parc kissed, the people of Paris enjoyed a river of champagne that flowed for hours, the entire city coming to the river's edge, dipping in their glasses, and toasting to the generous couple on the terrace above.
Looking over now at Parc on New Year’s Eve morning, Tali decided to surprise him with a special treat for breakfast. Slipping on a blue button-down shirt of his, Tali snuck into the kitchen and began making the dough for one of her favorite desserts, chocolate frosted éclairs.
Tali put the finishing touches on, smoothing her knife over the freshly made frosting. She set the éclairs on a tray and began to carry them towards the bedroom, but Parc was already up, coming into the living room in nothing but tight gray briefs.
“I thought you left,” he said, happy to see that he was wrong.
“Leave?” said Tali, unable to imagine why a girl would leave a man like Parc without being forced. “I can’t leave until you taste these,” she said, setting the tray of éclairs down on the coffee table in front of his sofa. Parc sat down next to her, amazed that she could make such an incredible breakfast in such a short amount of time.
Looking at Tali this morning Parc decided that he never wanted her to leave and decided to tell her so. Tali, who knew this moment was inevitable, threw her arms around Parc, showing him, rather than telling him, that she agreed. They made love again that morning and then feasted on the éclairs.
The chocolate frosted éclairs quickly became a favorite weekend treat in the home of Parc and Tali, enjoying them nearly every weekend, sharing them with family who came to visit, children who woke up early on Sundays to watch TV, and, of course, with each other. Before Parc’s final day on earth, he would have enjoyed Tali’s éclairs exactly 3,642 times. And when the met in heaven again, Tali made sure that the tradition continued, her only request to God at the gates of heaven that she have her ingredients, a kitchen, and her beloved Parc to share them with.
Chocolate Frosted Éclairs
Serves 12
Ingredients
1 cup cold water
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 large brown eggs
For the filling
2 cups whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
5 tablespoons cake flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 large brown egg
2 large egg yolks
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream
For the glaze
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Directions
Set your oven’s temperature to 400 degrees F.
Place the water, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil. Take the pan off the heat and add in the flour, stirring quickly with a wooden spoon for 2 to 3 minutes until a dough forms. Place the dough in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium for 1 minute. Then, one at a time, add in the eggs, beating well after each.
Place the dough in a large pastry bag with a round tip, about 1”. Use the bag to pipe 12 long logs, about 5” long, onto a baking sheet. Set the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven’s temperature to 325 degrees F. and bake the éclair shells for another 30 minutes or until they are golden brown in color. Place the baked shells on a wire rack to cool.
Place the milk for the filling in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
While waiting for the milk to boil, combine the sugar, cake flour, and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Then whisk in the egg and egg yolks. Once the milk is hot, slowly add to the bowl, whisking to combine. Add the vanilla extract. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and heat over medium – continue whisking. Bring the filling back to a boil, whisking for another 30 seconds until thick. Strain the filling through a sieve into a medium-size bowl and then cover with plastic wrap. Set the filling in the refrigerator to cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Place the heavy cream in a medium bowl and whip with an electric mixer until it holds soft peaks. Take the filling out of the refrigerator and whisk. Then fold in the whipped cream.
Combine the melted chocolate with the butter in a medium bowl, stirring until smooth.
Use a sharp serrated knife to split the cooled shell in half lengthwise. Place a large amount of the filling into the bottom of each. Dip or pour the glaze onto the top portions of the shells before placing on top of the cream-filled bottom.
30
Margot and Jules celebrated New Year’s Eve in the kitchen of The Two Macarons, sipping champagne between kisses and conversation.
“Well, you did it,” said Jules, toasting Margot.
“We did it,” she said correcting him. “I don’t know what I would have done without you. You really are my knight in shining armor.”
Margot laughed after saying this, recognizing how silly it sounded coming from the mouth of a grown woman.
But it was true. Jules had rescued Margot from a very dark place, somewhere much worse than any dungeon she could remember from the stories her father read to her as a little girl. Margot really believed that she could spend the rest of her life with Jules. He was the kind of man every woman wanted, but too afraid to look for. She was done with meaningless sex, but, looking at Jules leaning against the door of the oven, she realized not done with good sex. Not ever, but especially not tonight.
“Do you want to know what happens next in this story?” Jules asked her, taking another sip from his glass.
“I think I already know,” she said as she unbuttoned his pants and slid them down to the floor.
Margot pulled Jules’s shirt over his head, realizing that despite all of the sex she had over the last several months she had never had a naked man in her kitchen. She was glad – the bakery maybe the one sacred place left in all of Paris. Margot reached her arms above her head, allowing Jules to l
ift her shirt off. He unhooked her bra and caressed her breasts while he kissed her neck and collarbone.
They made love for the first time on a bed of pastries, their sweat mixing furiously with the sugar below.
Exhausted but ecstatic, Margot collapsed on Jules’s bare chest. Jules, wanting to add his writer’s perspective to the situation opened his mouth, only to be stopped mid-sentence by a spoonful of chocolate soufflé Margot had magically just pulled out of the oven. His mouth full of warm soufflé, Margot covered it with her finger before he could try to speak again. “I know how this story is going to end too,” she said grinning. “But right now, let’s just enjoy the chapter.”
Resting naked in Jules’s arms on the floor of her bakery Margot realized that heaven must be mind-blowing if it can beat this – lovers in a bakery.
Chocolate Soufflé
Serves 8
Ingredients
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
9 large egg yolks
½ cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 large egg whites
Directions
Set your oven’s temperature to 350 degrees F. Butter a 5-cup soufflé dish or 8 individual dishes and dust with flour.
Over very low heat, melt the chocolate and butter in a large saucepan, stirring constantly.
In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with ½ cup of sugar for 4 minutes or until the mixture thickens and lightens in color. Use a spatula to fold in the melted chocolate and butter mixture.
In a clean mixing bowl, beat the egg whites on high speed until they hold soft peaks. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar a little at a time, beating for another minute. Use a spatula to fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and then transfer into the prepare dish/dishes.
Bake the soufflé in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes or until the soufflé rises and cracks. When finished, the center should still be a bit jiggly. Serve immediately.
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