Pies, Trépaïs, Madeleines and other delicacies

Pies

Having travelled extensively, I can assure you of one thing that is 100% certain, 100% true and 100% gaudy... We are a land of bread. There's a culture and a local emulation of the good country pie. Often made with flour from our own mills, it's important to remember that even when bakers buy from elsewhere, they transcend the raw material to prepare baguettes, firm yet soft loaves, country-style bread and excellent pies. Sometimes they even tend to bake them well, for extra crispness... Treat yourself by spreading them with rillettes, jams, fresh cheeses or by sautéing the juices from your meat to enjoy your meal to the end...

Trépaïs

This cake is a relatively recent creation which brings together in one recipe the patisserie specialities of the departments making up the former Limousin region. Corrèze with Galette Corrézienne, Creuse with Creusois and Haute Vienne with Bourgou. Trépaïs means "three countries" in the Limousin dialect...
A triangular cake that points in the direction of the three departments, Trépaïs is made up of a chestnut mousse, a dark chocolate mousse, a hazelnut dacquoise (a kind of meringue) and a crunchy hazelnut praline.
The mousses are placed on top of the praline, set with the dacquoise, and topped with a chocolate glaze.

You can find this cake all year round in Brive (pâtisserie Ernst) and Objat (pâtisserie Chevreux), at these craftsmen who are members of the Pâtissiers du Limousin association.

Madeleines

We often travel in the company of authors in the land of the Gaillards... In parallel with the Brive Book Fair, if you'd like to take a little tour of the works of Proust, we invite you to sample some of the little gourmet jewels that are produced here, our madeleines. To be honest, there's no real connection between Combray, which is located near Swan's, and Brive or Saint-Yrieix in the Limousin... On the other hand, many anonymous people feel the same way, the same pang in their hearts, when they let a Bijou madeleine or a Golfier madeleine (Boulangerie Golfier in Brive) melt in their mouths.... One of these bakeries has been baking delicious pastries and cakes since the 19th century... And who knows, maybe Proust's madeleines came from our region?