Where can I find canelles?

Question

I visited the Bassin d'Arcachon area a few years ago and had a daily diet of canelles ( small vanilla cakes almost like overbaked custard). They were sold in supermarkets but the best ones where on the market stalls in great big cakey mounds. In all the other areas of France I've visited I haven't come across them. Does anyone know if they're available in England or other parts of France other than around Bordeaux?

Answer 1

if you can find that in the uk, you'll have to tell me where

Answer 2

The original reason they were concentrated in the region around Bordeaux is that they need a lot of egg yolks. The egg whites were used by wine producers to filter the wines (some still use them, I visited one, excellent wine)... so the eggs yolks needed to be used up - hence the cannelés.

I have found them in gormet shops in Brussels, but severely overpriced and not as good. Guess you'll just have to go back to Bordeaux ;-)

Answer 3

The name is "cannelé bordelais" or "canelé bordelais". I don't know where you can find them in the UK but if you enjoy baking you can find recipes online. You'll need to buy a cannelé pan though:

http://www.cuisine-french.com/cgi/mdc/l/...

You can contact this canelé pastry house and ask if they deliver overseas: http://www.baillardran.com/Commande.htm

Their stores are only in Bordeaux or Paris (click on Nos Points de Vente)

Here is more info and a recipe: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canel%C3%A9 (check the last external link at the bottom of the page, it gives you a recipe in English, by Lenôtre, one of the top pastry houses in France).