La Mie Bakery
& Café
841 42nd St., 255-1625
Monday through Saturday,
7 a.m. - 4 p.m. |
La Mie Bakery & Café
Long perceived as frilly and
unfit for the Middle American
ethos, French cuisine is actually
one of the great triumphs in the
history of human coping. The French
invented all — sauces, stocks,
braising, charcuterie and much
of contemporary cookware when
their country lacked the natural
resources of its neighbors. France
possessed neither the fuels of
heavily forested Britain and Germany
nor the natural fats of olive-rich
Iberia and Italy. So French cooking
developed as an exercise in doing
more with less. Now, about 220
years after the French invented
restaurants (as a means of coping
with massive unemployment), French
cafés have debuted in Des
Moines with a genius for changing
American perceptions. Django and
Le Jardin were named modestly,
to evoke gypsy culture and the
garden respectively, but Joe Logsdon’s
place goes furthest to deny the
pomp of old misconceptions. After
all, what could be more humble
than a breadcrumb (La Mie)?
La Mie is an ersatz-free zone.
There are no travel posters, no
French language menus and no overpriced
French wines. Its ambiance lacks
pretension, particularly on Saturdays
when the self-serve tables are
stacked with every treat in the
baker’s repertoire. Since opening,
La Mie has demystified French
names, making things less intimidating
to non-foodies. Gone are the “Croque
Monsieur” and the “Salade Nicoise,”
though one can still find a grilled
ham and cheese made with Emanthel
or Gruyere cheese, as well as
a salad made with tuna and olives,
potatoes, green beans and hard
boiled eggs. La Mie’s authenticity
is based in techniques that are
employed invisibly. This is a
real scratch bakery. Logsdon would
rather eat Velveeta than use pre-mixed
flour. Since he apprenticed with
an international cheese importer,
he’s not about to do either. La
Mie’s bakers break their own butter
and fold it in, carrying their
dough from sheeting to usage —
a two-to-three hour process that
very few American bakeries bother
with anymore. They also roll baguettes
by hand and practice true lamination
— two lost arts.
Their results rank among the great
food discoveries in Iowa — six
to eight fresh artisan breads
and about 30 fresh pastries (the
textures of which can produce
tears of gratitude) a day. After
eating La Mie cinnamon rolls,
there is no going back to others.
The same is said, frequently,
about their scones, brioches,
croissants, pecan rolls, caramelized
apple Danish, rhubarb cream puff
pastries, tarts of seasonal fruits
and almond cakes drenched in marzipan.
I could go on, and on. The sticky
pecan rolls no longer sell out
by 10 a.m. each day, something
that plagued their addicts back
when Logsdon was operating more
than one store and serving three
meals a day.
He’s focused now, and La Mie is
open only for lunch and breakfast.
The kitchen has just two burners,
so preparations are subsidiary
to the store’s main mission as
a French bakery. My quiches were
served in perfect pastries, with
bruleed eggs and layers (rather
than immersions) of spinach and
Lorraine treatments. I liked a
Roquefort salad dressed with roasted
beets, nuts and greens, but a
red pepper and carrot soup stood
out by balancing the flavors of
both vegetables. A leek and potato
soup made me long for a stronger
stock or some cream. A creamy
mushroom soup was divine and true
to its simple name. Logsdon’s
French onion soup, the best I’ve
had in town, only appears when
he has time to make a true brown
stock, which is rare now that
he doesn’t serve dinner. Sandwiches
star because of the breads. Logsdon
has invented one that is developing
a cult following — the “Tuskegee”
— an open-faced egg sandwich on
ciabatta with peanut butter, bacon,
red onions and Dijon mustard.
It’s not just for Elvis anymore.
Side Dishes
Bistro Montage’s calves brains
are developing their own cult
following, both as cutlets (served
with foie gras and pesto) and
sautéed with homemade noodles…
Cochon 555, a heritage hog feast
and competition will include Des
Moines on its ten city culinary
tour of America — http://www.amusecochon.com.
CV
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