Carac

This tart-like goodie is found mostly in the southern French-speaking part of Switzerland. The filling is chocolate with a layer of pistachio frosting on top. It's standard fare in bakeries but the quality varies widely. Why? Two reasons. It depends on the quality of the chocolate used and the crust of the tart shell. Many use a thick tasteless crust (probably because the thicker the crust shell the less chocolate they have to use). I've literally tried carac from more than 100 pastries shops. Who has the best? In Switzerland most pastries shops are named after the baker. The carac pictured here is from a bakery in Corseaux called, "M. Charles". Mr. Charles uses a high-quality chocolate AND the tart shells are thin and tasty--with a bit of orange flavor evident. All the pastries in his shop are mouth-watering to look at and taste great. Where is this small village of Corseaux located? It's up on a hillside overlooking Lake Geneva, the city of Vevey and, the head office of Nestle--the world's largest food company (and a not-too shabby player in the field of chocolate).