Frederick Vaucamps is the mastermind behind Aux Merveilleux de Fred.  He started out his pastry chef career making merveilleux cakes in the mid eighties.  But later he developed his own smaller, lighter recipe.  In 1997, he opened his first boutique in Lille, a small city in northern France by the Belgium border.  He now has seven shops in Paris; fifteen in France and nine internationally.  Vaucamps has perfected two types of pastries offered in all his stores: the merveilleux (six flavors available) and the cramiques (three versions to choose from).

The Merveilleux is composed of two crunchy meringues "glued" together with rich cream filling.  The outer layers is covered with shaved chocolate that gives it a beautiful, elegant look.  Almost too beautiful to eat!  The other must one to try is the cramique, which is Belgian sweet bread baked with raisins or chocolate.  It is a softer form of brioche that is typically eaten for breakfast in Belgium.  Their chocolate, raisin or sugar flavored cramiques can be eaten anytime of the day!

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Pictured: Le Merveilleux