La Fontaine de Mars-Paris

 

La Fontaine de Mars, an old-fashioned bistro in Paris was our propitious pick after a behind-the-scenes tour of the Eiffel Tower in September, and even though described in most guidebooks, we happened upon it on our own.

 

 

The staff was ever so pleasant and patient with our language endeavors and the traditional Parisian food was of course, lovely and divine. Oh, the bread!

 

MP ordered the special entrée, Coq au vin,

and I the Courge Butternut avec Gambas

However, the insanely delightful pastry, Framboise Crème de Pistache Tarte was a magnificent marvel with deux café.

The berry tart was filled with a thin layer of spring green ground pistachio nuts and softly whipped cream with carefully placed raspberries.  Voilà; I was sure it was riffable after a few queries and nods from the super kind waiter.

Last weekend, I set out to prepare the tart; where in the world do you buy green pistachios?  Silly coco…

I shelled fresh nuts (UGH), blanched and dried them which took about forever.  I doubtfully imagined how the pastry chef ever tackled this with efficiency and concluded the reason for the 14 euro price tag.

Do you know you can buy the pistachio stuff?

Yep, duh.

This is the recipe and procedure I used --

In a food processor, pulse ½ cup pistachios (blanched and peeled) with 2 tablespoons sugar to a fine grind (Don’t over process or the oils will turn into a blob). OR use a purchased product.

For the crust, I used my award winning tart recipe and blind baked it until it was 3-4 minutes short of being done.

Spread the nut mixture over the surface of the tart and bake until golden (2-3 minutes).

Cool the tart completely.

Whip 1 cup of heavy cream with 1 tablespoon instant dry milk powder and 3-4 tablespoons powdered sugar (to taste) until peaks form.  Carefully place cream over the nut layer.

Place raspberries in concentric circles over the cream; you’ll need two 6-ounce boxes.

Chill the tart several hours, garnish with lemon or orange zest before serving.

The stunning tart I created was soft, luxurious and o’so fantastically fresh—the Parisian original seemed more structured, uncomplicated, less sweet; both winners.

With pumpkin everything streaming live, this may seem unseasonal.

Springtime in Paris is always fashionable and worthy of a special occasion.

I hope you will bake this and send me photographs!

♥ ♥ ♥