well. since we’re talking zumbo…

the plump raspberry heralds its lineage. this saucy daughter of the envie (remember? chocolate ganache and squishy raspberries in a fine pate sucree shell) goes by the name, envious. but take your cue from the bite-sized yellow macaron: yes, a passionfruit-chocolate tart. how can it be, you wonder.

as did i.

i’d take a bite, and the fleeting tang of passionfruit would be almost imperceptible. the next bite would be an intense burst of sunshine, and then the ganache would melt away, fast and chocolate, and i’d be left wondering… did i just –? and on it went.

i hear they make this by straining passionfruit pulp and stirring it through the ganache. while there are no hidden surprises in the crisp pastry shell, no squishy bits of fruit to tease your tongue, i love that the passionfruit component is not quite homogenised; you get a different passionfruit-chocolate experience with each mouthful.

today i saw a big tart, for sharing or sheer spectacle. it was festooned with many a small yellow macaron, and spears of vegetation, truly a tiny garden of eden.

next down the runway, barbados: a moulded wall of palm sugar mousse, and then sticky rice pudding, a thin layer of coconut jelly, and one of mango with bits of pineapple, all on a biscuit base.

the first time i saw this, it was a lopsided construction. i seem to remember it did not have the rice pudding (any counterboys reading today? please set me straight!), and it looked like a soft, pastry version of a soviet era factory building. i was intrigued.

the first time i ate it — a couple of months ago — i was leaning up against the counter at adriano zumbo patissier, eating spoonfuls of the velvety mousse from the cake that had just been slid across to me. the rice pudding had, by then, been incorporated into the structure, and — fine, i have come to terms with the fact that the pastrychef likes a little bite in his grains of rice, fine — and that aside, it shot right up to one of my very favourite things from the zumbo kitchen. i think it was the mousse that done it, the faint caramel flavour, the way it felt full and fat — yet light — on my tongue before it swiftly dissipated. or maybe it was the summery thrill of tropical fruit. or hell, it was the sticky rice. oh how i love it, al dente and all.

this one here, that i finally brought home with me last week, seems different again. the rice pudding tastes more complex than i remember, with shades of lime and… basil? is it possible? it’s almost savoury, certainly, and plays off the medley of sweet things in a most satisfying manner. the pastry base is a little sodden; perhaps i have left it too long before eating it, but i don’t expect it was ever meant to be the star of the show. barbados is at least two desserts in one, maybe even four! it is possible that you may feel like you’ve had an island holiday after you’ve eaten it. and like a holiday, it will make you feel like you need another one.

it is fun, is it not, being able to follow the evolution of these beautiful cakes? to see them through gawky adolescence to their final splendour? a few weeks ago, there was a row of nascent religieuses behind glass. they were somewhat garish, a little clunky, but not without charm. this afternoon i caught a glimpse of the elegant poufs they had become, all dainty, detailed piping, and a promise of roses and lychees. this religieuse exerience, i think, will be the one i have next.