Let yourself be silently drawn
by the strange pull
of what you really love.
It will not lead you astray.
~ Rumi ~
Does food count? It’s one of the things I really love. On occasion it does, however lead me astray. The twice-baked chocolate almond croissants from Bakery Nouveau left me way off course.
It was on the ‘Must Do’ list left by my friends whilst here in Seattle. They’re away on an ‘active’ vacation. Crossing multiple bridges, waiting close to an hour in a jammed up four-lane highway, cutting across three lanes of snarled traffic within half a block, the traffic cop exclaiming, “You gotta be kiddin‘ lady” and I was on my way! Yes, the call of the croissant.
The line of patient shoppers spilled out onto the street alerting me to the correct location. Didn’t need that carefully recorded street address after all.
The multi-coloured macaroons welcomed, followed by an array of lunch-ready baguettes, “brown paper packages tied up with string”, confirmed this place was loaded with a few of my favourite things!
Saving the best for last, the croissant display, the pièce de résistance, left me contemplating a possible new life in France. It occurred to me that not all calories are created equal, rather like men and wine. Surely croissant calories must be in a different category from those of broccoli or yogurt! More like calories on hormones.
Intrigued at first as to the ‘how-to-itness’ of twice-baked croissants, my curiousity quickly melted away and my eyes took over. To come this far the extra-super caloric punch was the way to go. Maybe this is what they mean by listening to your inner voice? I chose the one with the most words on the label.
“I’ll have one of those please,” I stammered as the croissant tray laden with flaking almonds, chocolate and icing sugar was seductively drawn out onto the counter. Mine to hand pick, kind of like getting a new puppy.
I can’t really begin to explain the love-fest thereafter, the continual line-up of les amoureux de la boulangerie française said it all, only better. Something akin to warm chewy, buttery, flaky, exquisitely layered, not too sweet and thank God I only bought one.
I can’t really begin to explain the love-fest thereafter, the continual line-up of les amoureux de la boulangerie française said it all, only better. Something akin to warm chewy, buttery, flaky, exquisitely layered, not too sweet and thank God I only bought one.
It’s great to be led astray. It’s what makes us feel alive, usually guilty, but always certain of our human foibles. “To be constantly strong is a weakness” I recall a lovely man once telling me, and at once feel vindicated. I plan to be led astray again next week when a dear friend comes to visit. Bakery Nouveau needs to be on her ‘Must Do’ list, and I’m the driver!
Bakery Nouveau is at 4737 California Street in West Seattle.
I love your description of the bakery and all its treats – my mouth is watering and I think I just put on a couple of lbs just looking at the pictures!
Please keep up your great blogs, you make everything sound so interesting – Sarah
Oh hurray – I'm so glad you made the trek! LOVE your choice of keywords on this one 🙂