A Patron Saint of Confectioners?

Fun fact: Tuesday (May 16th) is the feast day of Saint Honoratus of Amiens. Who's that, you ask? Why, he is the patron saint of confectioners and bakers!

If you grew up Catholic like I did, then you're familiar with the concept of patron saints. Among the famous are Saint Christopher (patron saint of travellers), Saint Anthony (lost articles), Saint Jude (hopeless causes), and Saint Francis of Assisi (environment and animals). And if you sang in the church choir like I did, then you've probably intoned the Litany of the Saints and have heard of the more obscure ones, like Saints Cosmas and Damien (pharmacists), Saint Bartholomew (bookbinders, butchers, and leatherworkers), Saint Kateri Tekakwitha (ecology), and Saint Jerome (archaeologists and librarians). 

Saint Honoratus, I'm afraid, slipped from my memory -- if he was ever there. I've gone back and looked at a few versions of the Litany of the Saints, and he doesn't appear to have made the cut. I (re)discovered he existed during my professional chocolatier program. It was probably in advance of one of the assignments involving cooked sugar, which I find to be terrifying. I vaguely remember wondering if there was a patron saint of chocolatiers to whom I could pray. My quick search on Google revealed there was one for confectioners and I decided that was close enough (perhaps even better given the assignment). 

Saint Honoratus of Amiens (Honoré, sometimes Honorius) died circa 600 CE. He became associated with bakers and confectioners as a result of a baking peel miraculously transforming into a mulberry tree after he was proclaimed a bishop (visit Catholic Online or read the NPR version of the story). Often depicted with loaves of bread and a peel, by the 15th century, he was associated with a guild of bakers in Paris. It is after him that the famous Gateau St. Honoré is named -- a dessert often said to be the ultimate test of a pastry students, with puff pastry, pâte á choux, pastry cream, and caramelized sugar. It was developed in the 19th century at a bakery located on Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris. 

And so, how better to celebrate Saint Honoratus than to make a Gateau St. Honoré‽ 

Just kidding. While I would LOVE to try making this dessert, I would have to do it for a party. It isn't something that will keep more than 24 hours, so it should be eaten shortly after it is made, in one sitting if possible. And as much as I'd like to make a decadent dessert and eat it myself (maybe offering a profiterole or two to Chris), I don't think my Fitbit would be happy with me. Alas, there is no badge for setting a record for fat intake in a day...

So instead I decided to make part of a Gateau St. Honoré -- the profiteroles -- in honour of his feast day. Choux pastry is notoriously finicky, so I prayed to Saint Honoratus before beginning. And then made and baked the pâte á choux. It was easier than expected! I filled a few with some leftover vanilla bean whipped cream that wasn't quite as stiff as it should have been, but was delicious nonetheless. I topped them with some chocolate ganache. 

The result? Delicious!

These are very moreish. I may try filling a few of the choux shells with ice cream on the weekend. Or with pastry cream. Or with chocolate whipped cream. The possibilities are endless!

As for the full Gateau St. Honoré, it will have to wait. But I'm ready for it whenever the opportunity presents itself! In the process of researching recipes I learned that there is a piping tip called St. Honoré, named after Saint Honoratus and used for the famed dessert. Having nothing like it in my piping tip collection, I ordered the tips from Amazon. 

And maybe, on Tuesday, we should all enjoy some good bread from a local bakery.