Frédéric Cassel: Saint Honoré Fraise Vanille

Ran to Mitsukoshi to visit Frédéric Cassel and got the Saint Honoré Fraise Vanille (756 yen). I can report that it was 6.2 km there (not a very direct route) going down 69 m and up 40 m (Google Maps now shows an elevation chart: neat). Too many long runs this week, so the speed was only 9 km/h. Going back Google says approximately flat, because I took a direct route that rose less gradually, so apparently 30 m over 5 km isn't enough to interest it in making a graph, so this is the output it usually gives me. I'll have to experiment with routes to see what the rules are. Speed was only slightly slower.

The cake, a saint honoré with vanille custard and strawberry cream, as well as strawberry slices, was definitely excellent as expected. This is despite having no chocolate, caramel, or nuts,

so my tastes are not completely narrow. I notice that I did designate it great, but I may need more experience with this type of cake to make that determination. I may have it, because I've given up on Henri le Roux ever having cake again, so they are off my cake index system and Frédéric Cassel joins Dalloyau in the Quite Superb category, where actually it has already passed it (not sure when that happened). Actually, I have about the same number of cakes from both, but I have more non-cakes from Dalloyau and fewer unsampled cakes (currently, two available, which somehow I have not managed to get to, though the month is half over). Now I'll figure out who to bump up to Superb from Quite Excellent, and I have an extra one there, but the top contenders are still under visited, so first I have to rectify that, which is going to take some time.

Note, one reason the return trip was shorter is, since I was carrying cake, I decided to use the tunnel system as far as Hibiya Park, since it's much less crowded than the street level.

Full disclosure, yesterday was a 17 km round trip run with no fresh cake, but rather just research and a pastry-type cake, a Canelé from Clair de Lune (it was a more specific type of canelé, a region of France I think, but I'm not confident so I'll check or ask when I go back next).

Two trains passing at night on Chuo Line

Between the canal and main road.

Another 9 km/h run, about half along the train line/canal.








Also, I baked an apple tart again. Unfortunately, it leaked, but I verified that there was no problem cooking it the full hour, that I could make the glaze better than the previous time (too runny then), but that the apples shrink so much, that the overhanging crust creates a hollow. Since there's a pause in the apple season, according to my local supplier, I plan to move on and try a cheese-cake tart with the same dough and also try another dough.