Or, perhaps more appropriately in this case, the only journey is the one within my mouth and belly. Though that's not really apt either, as I am also journeying around Chicago itself on my bike. Anyways...
Sunday morning I got up nice and early (OK, 8:45am...) after a late night of (occasionally) dominating in StarCraftII with my roommate, and set out towards Artopolis in Greektown. (Sorry Pete. Pierrot Gourmet is still on my list, but I was short for time.)
(note: i need to stop using my cell phone, and start using my actual camera to take pictures...)
After last week, I was quite excited upon my arrival to see that it looked like an actual bakery. Big glass cases of pastries, racks of bread behind that, etc. Of course, they also have a café and a few other things in there as well, but I was pretty focused on the bakery section.
Though at first a bit excited and unsure what to get, before long I spied the pain au chocolat and, as that's what I got last time, knew it was what I needed right then as well. However, given that it was a pretty impressive bakery (at least, compared to last week's trip), I felt like getting a loaf of bread. After last week's disappointment, what better to get than a loaf of sourdough bread?
I didn't see any sourdough on the rack of bread loaves behind the counter, however, so I asked the young woman if they had any. She gestured to a basket labeled 'Levain Sour Dough' (or pain au levain in fancy terms) and said that was all they had. Not really knowing what pain au levain was at the time, and focusing on the word 'sourdough' with laser-like precision, I asked for a loaf.
Due to time constraints (which ended up not mattering, due to my roommate's ability to never wake up before noon), I rode back home before digging in to either of these exciting new treats.
Oh man, what a classy bag! "A rise above and beyond"? Much catchier slogan than last week's trip.
Awesome! Maybe it has to do with how fresh this was, compared to the previous one, or maybe it really was just superior in every way, but it looked great: flaky, crusty, a little sheen, and look at those chocolate sprinkles!
Oh yeah, look at that. Not one, but two beautiful dark chocolate veins running through the middle. Now that's what I'm talkin' 'bout.
There was basically nothing disappointing about this pain au chocolat. It was fluffy, it was flaky, it was buttery, it was chocolaty, and perhaps best of all it didn't have that industrial (or stale) tang to it that a lot of store bought croissants (as well as the one I got at Caffè Baci...) so often have. I don't know what causes it, maybe something to do with the yeast, or the détrempe (that's the flour+water mix), or something else. I'm not really sure, to be honest, but whatever causes it, it wasn't there in this delicious treat.
A bit later in the day Sunday (but before I descended into fevered dreams of depleted uranium ballistae protecting my siege tanks from onslaughts of zerglings), I decided to have some toast. I was eager to try out my new pain au levain of course!
Hmmmm.... doesn't look quite how I expected (I was a little blind while actually at the bakery) but maybe it is a whole wheat sourdough?
Interesting. While technically a sourdough, certainly, it doesn't really have any of the features that are conjured in my mind when I hear the word. It had none of the delicate, complex, sharp tang with I was so desiring. It didn't have the strong, chewy texture that I am used to. Granted, most sourdough plays in a different league than San Francisco's, but this loaf seemed to be playing an entirely different sport.
Turns out, that wasn't too far off. Some quick web searching revealed that pain au levain is a type of sourdough made with (at least some portion of) rye flour. As anyone who has ever eaten rye bread knows, that has a pretty distinct flavor, and some of that flavor comes through in this particular bread. It does have a hint of sour, but it's really subtle, almost nonexistent. Mostly it's a somewhat sweet, very nutty tasting bread. Taking a stab at some new (to me) baking lingo, I would probably describe it as a solidly 'closed crumb' bread, compared to the very 'open crumb' of most sourdoughs.
So, the pain au levain was good, but not really my thing. On the plus side, its denseness and nuttiness means it makes great peanut butter toast!
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