My favorite way to spend a Saturday is to go to La Patisserie Chouquette, buy one of everything "for later", then shamefully eat half the box in the car. After the guilt wears off, I hop back on the highway and go to Salume Beddu for lunch and do the same thing, substituting pastries for pork. I think Chouquette's creations speak for themselves, so I'm going to let them. Here's a collection of recent purchases I've made there. Chouquette, Early Spring, 2015.

Peach and raspberry coffee cake // White Forest Gateau: Cherry yogurt mousse, cherry citrus gelee and kirsch soaked joconde (almond sponge cake) and gold leaf

Tiramisu // Calling it now, the "Pastry of the Year": Canele

Lemon Thyme and Traditional Caneles

The Damiano: Tiramisu Cream Puff. Dark Cacao Barry Extra Brute Cacao Powder, Sweet Mascarpone Mousse and Espresso Meringue

Roasted Peach Frangipane

No, it's not a donut. This is their Choux-nut, a modern take on the classic Paris-Brest. This one was filled with an apple cream.

Chouquette's recent collaboration with Sump Coffee to create a striking black macaron made with Sump's coffee. The coffee is subtle but outstanding.

Coffe Macarons at La Patisserie Chouquette

Food photography note: if you're an aspiring food photographer/instagrammer, Chouquette is perfect to work on technique. A few of these were shot in the shop, but most were taken home so I could play with different lighting, backgrounds, etc. The frangipanes, tiramisu, and coffee cake were all taken with a studio light (I hate the wood background, but I had already eaten everything by the time I realized that). The Sump macarons, last two canele shots, and the choux-nut were all taken with natural lighting. Working with beautiful products makes your photos instantly look better.

La Patisserie Chouquette

1626 Tower Grove Ave

St. Louis, MO 63110

314.932.7935

Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.

La Patisserie Chouquette