Ooh yes. Don't they look incredible?
I thought we had escaped Pastry Heaven with our waistlines intact when we moved home from France.
And then I discovered the Panaderia Y Pasteleria La Estrella.
Uh oh.
Get out the elastic pants.
Mexican/Central American bakeries might be old hat to some of you, but I'm still enchanted/entranced/bewitched by them!
When we first moved home, we missed our French traditions. We missed our weekend walks to the Sunday market in our village. We missed the fresh flowers on the table and the lack of gnats in the air. (The gnat part isn't exactly a tradition but I'm including that anyway. I hate gnats.) I especially missed the way Todd would pack Sam up in the baby backpack, walk to the boulangerie, and come back with a bag full of French pastries, still warm from the oven. Oh how I missed that.
And then one Saturday morning when I was treasure hunting (scouring yard sales,) I drove past by that bakery and became overcome by the most heavenly aroma. I slowed down and stared at the smiling people walking out with bags stuffed full.
I even parked in the parking lot and sat in my car, suddenly shy.
What happened to the adventurous me, wandering all over France, talking to strangers and being brave?
But what if everyone spoke Spanish? The only Spanish I know I learned from a big purple dinosaur on PBS.
And then I remembered what the cookie man at my village market said to me once when I tried to order some Madeleines. "I'm sorry," I said. "My French isn't very good."
"The cookies don't care if you speak French or not," he said.
So the following Saturday Todd and I ventured inside. We came out deliriously happy, with sugar on our chins.
For a while we were regular customers, until soccer games got in the way.
Saturday seemed a perfect day for a return to the bakery.
Why not? My birthday was coming up. (Wasn't that reason enough?)
Also, Sleeping Beauty had come home from college to celebrate!
And she was still snoozing!
Wouldn't she love some pastries for breakfast? Yes, she would!
Also, Ben has been putting in the miles lately and I don't want him to turn into a skinny scarecrow!
If I gave him pastries, he'd have plenty of extra calories to run off, and maybe he'd stop slurping down all my favorite yogurt! ("Stop child, eating all my healthy food! Have these pastries instead!" There goes my Mother of the Year award.)
Also, Sammy, my youngest was having a sleepover and the boys had been up since 6:30, coming in every few minutes, pulling on my eyelids and telling me they were STARVING!
I'd include a picture, but I wasn't exactly in the mood to take their pictures.
So away we went, and I brought along a camera so that you could come along.
Here's some of the selection.
At Panaderia Y Pasteleria La Estrella, you take a tray and fill it yourself.
Be sure to check the stacks of baking sheets. They're straight out of the oven.
There are packages of buns for people to pick up for lunch.
And there are delicious pots of tamales. Don't miss those!
They're so good. But be careful of the green ones. Super hot!
They even have cakes that I'm dying to try.
No Tanner. Not for you.
Have a Wonder-Full Monday, y'all!
And don't forget!
The Give-Aways are all wrapped up and ready and Miss Globe-head is raring to go!
Love, Becky
16 comments:
oooohhhhh.....this post makes me want a cup of coffee.....mmmmmmm
Busy wiping drool off my keyboard now.
Girl, you would love living in AZ. Lots of little bakeries just like this.
A good friend makes homemade tamales on a regular basis. They are sheer heaven.
Have a great day. Glad Sleeping beauty is home!
hugs,
Barb
Ummm...thank you for the 10 lbs that I gained from reading that post! LOL! Todd looks so cute with little Sam bundled up in the baby back pack. What a sweet memory, pun not intended...LOL!
Oh, I just HAD to look at your site while I sit here with a lunch of cottage cheese and peach!
Have a wonderful Labor Day! Thank you for all your prayers and blessings,
kari & kijsa
I'm glad I don't live close to you! I had to talk myself into walking past the ice cream freezer at the grocery store yesterday. I don't need to think about such yummy stuff! I must repeat that sentence over and over.....: )
The pastries are now officially gone!
We ate every last one of those on the plate!
(They were especially good with an afternoon cup of coffee!)
Oh, no! Don't do that to me, Becky. I'm already on Weight Watchers (four weeks now) -- and those pictures have me drooling!
Just got back home from the long weekend...Company coming this week,where is this bakery in Greenville?I need to show up there before Friday...
I ROLLED BY THE PICTURES SO FAST--I THINK I WAS JOGGING HAHA YEAH RIGHT---I AM GETTING SO EXCITED FOR WED. AND I BET I WILL FORGET--I DID THAT ON PW DIARY RECIPES AND IT IS STILL GOING ON----I AM SO MAD AT ME---BUT THEN I WILL FORGET IN A FEW MINUTES THAT I AM MAD AT ME HAHA---I HOPE YOU HAD A GREAT HOLIDAY---WE WERE CAMPING--TALK TO YOU LATER BYEEE
I'm pretty sure I just spent some Weight Watchers points licking my computer screen.
You know what region of the world you should try pastries from next? CHINA.
Since moving to San Francisco I have been eating my way through Chinatown and the pastries are amazing. They have this one called the cocktail bun that is exactly like the Czech kolache (for all you Texan readers out there).
May, I've never had pastries from China. Except the couple I had back when we'd eat dim sum in Washington DC. Those almond buns were incredible.
Hmm. I must investigate!
A Completely random (well almost) comment: I have always wanted to be immortalized in a bobblehead (or globe head as you call them). To me, once one reaches bobblehead status, the top rung, the pinnacle has been reached on the ladder of success.
I see with your globehead likeness you have beaten me to the punch...however I say, STEP ASIDE! MAKE ROOM ON THE LADDER! I'm movin on up (to quote the Jefferson's theme song!)
And, finally, to quote Homer Simpson, "Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm donuts...."
stop it!!!!! no. more. temptations!
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