One of my greatest weaknesses is beautiful pastry and dessert, so when I heard a new bakery had opened up in Old Strathcona, coffee and a sweet treat was my top priority this past Sunday morning.

La Boule Patisserie + Bakery - 8020 101 Street - Edmonton AB

La Boule Patisserie + Bakery opened it's doors last Tuesday in a quiet area of Old Strathcona among other local independent shops and businesses. Jennifer Strang, former pastry chef at the Shaw Conference Centre, is owner and pastry chef of this new addition to the neighborhood. This information had me especially excited because the Shaw Conference Centre is home to some pretty incredible desserts.

The space is open with a minimalist feel, but is warm and inviting with enough seating for 12-15 customers. The bakery was surprisingly busy for early on a Sunday morning, but I'm sure the residents in the area are happy to finally have a patisserie shop to call their own. -


Petit Pain au Chocolat
Walking up to the counter revealed three different pastry cases - one for eclairs, one for cakes and tarts, and a third smaller one for cookies, croissants, galettes, and scones. All of the options sounded delicious and it took all my self-restraint not to order one of everything. But that just gives me an excuse to return, right?


Pastry Case
On this visit we picked out four different treats to try: the petit pain au chocolat ($1.25), a spiced apple eclair ($4), a white chocolate raspberry tart ($4.75), and a vanilla bean cherry cheesecake ($6). The mini chocolate croissant was the perfect three-bite pastry to have with coffee. Layers of crispy, flaky, buttery dough paired perfectly with the semi-sweet chocolate, making me almost regret not ordering the larger size.

I'm not much of a white chocolate fan as I find it can be too sweet, but it was just right in the raspberry tart. The tart crust held together and was baked perfectly to not crumble apart. Each bite was creamy with just a hint of raspberry, so I found myself wanting more of the fruit flavour to come through.

La Boule plans to eventually feature 9 different flavours of eclair, but during our visit spiced apple was the only one available. The pate a choux pastry had a nice rise, giving lots of space for the pastry cream to sit in. The spices were subtle and the eclair had great texture with the bits of apple in each bite. I can't wait to try out some of their other flavours, but for now, classic, black forest, and tiramisu are the other three available.

The vanilla bean cherry cheesecake (left) was beautiful with a garnishing of dark chocolate and a leaf of edible gold. Breaking into the cake revealed a layer of cherry compote and a thin graham cracker crust. This cheesecake was nice and light, which was a nice change from the usual dense, rich cheesecake that we come to expect.


Chocolate Caramel Tart - $4.75
La Boule serves coffee and espresso using Cafe Monte, a Calgary-based coffee roaster, and their tea blends come from UK-based Tea Pigs. Depending on your drink and choice of pastry, a visit will cost you roughly $5-$10, which is very reasonable given the quality of the cakes and pastries you're paying for.

With just over a week since opening, I've seen nothing but high praise for La Boule on social media. It's definitely well deserved and it's about time the south side of Edmonton got a pastry shop to call their own! Loaves and baguettes will be available in January as the team continues to test their ovens, but the future holds lots in store for La Boule. Stop by if you're in the area for some fantastic pastry!

If you've followed this blog long enough you will know it's no secret that I have a sweet tooth! Pastries, cakes, ice cream...anything sweet at any time of the day is likely to satisfy me. To make things even sweeter, Edmonton's French patisserie, Duchess Bake Shop, is releasing their cookbook today.

The cookbook has been nearly a year in the making, and it's finally here! I was fortunate enough to attend the cookbook preview and launch party over the weekend while nibbling on a few (okay, a lot) of their most popular offerings.


Maple brulee marshmallow macarons
Duchess Bake Shop has always been a dream for Giselle Courteau. Her love affair with the macaron is what lead her to pursue her dreams, and Edmonton sure is lucky to have her living here! Upon opening in 2009, Duchess Bake Shop was a small space and operated with only 4 staff. Five years later, this humble patisserie has expanded in both size and number of staff, opened a retail shop, and has become an afternoon hot spot each business day. That's no surprise, given that the National Post pinpointed that Duchess may just be the best patisserie in Canada.


Chocolate cream puffs
The kitchen is home to two large, hardworking ovens, and staff are working from 4AM - 11PM baking goods to keep up with the demand. The bakery is known for their delicate macarons, and I was shocked to find out that they are made by hand - bakers are churning out an astonishing 2000 macarons each day! The glass display cases are home to 65 different baked goods throughout the year, with seasonal flavour changes every once in a while.

Alongside her business partners Garner Beggs and Jake Pelletier, Giselle's dream to "put Edmonton on the map" with the launch of this cookbook is about to come true. Their self-published cookbook goes on sale to the public today and is available for purchase ($45+GST) at the bake shop, as well as online through the Duchess Provisions website to anywhere in Canada.

It was amazing to see how much hard work was put into making this cookbook and to hear Giselle's passion for her craft. With nearly 90 recipes in the book, everyone can try their own hand at making their favourite Duchess treat in the comfort of their own home. All the recipes in the book have been tested in a home kitchen with readily available ingredients and tools, so there's no fear of failure (hopefully!). So many of my favourite pastries are in this book, and the pictured step-by-step instructions are my favourite part. A huge congratulations to Giselle and her team for this accomplishment!

If you're not running out to get the book yet, I've got a surprise for you. Duchess Bake Shop has graciously provided me with two copies of their cookbook signed by Giselle herself to give away to two of my readers to celebrate the occasion. Follow the instructions below to enter, and hopefully this baby will be yours just in time for the holiday season!


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THE GIVEAWAY

TWO Signed Duchess Bake Shop Cookbooks
($45 value each)

DETAILS

To enter you must leave a comment on this blog post answering this question: What is your favourite treat at Duchess? If you've never visited Duchess before, tell me what you would love to try out of their offerings on their website here. Please make sure you leave a valid email address in the giveaway widget as this is how I will be contacting you.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES

1. Follow me via Twitter (@littlmissandrea)
2. Tweet about the giveaway: "The @DuchessBakeShop Cookbook is here! Enter to win a copy from @littlmissandrea! #yegfood #DuchessBook" and link back to this post
3. Follow me via Instagram (@littlmissandrea)
4. Visit (& hopefully like!) my Facebook page

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway is open to my readers across Canada. All entrants must be 18+ years of age. You have until November 22nd to enter, and the winners will be selected by random and contacted via email. Good luck!