Biscuit Rose de Reims

The biscuit rose de Reims is a long, slender pink biscuit known in Reims, France. Beneath a thin white film of powdered sugar covering the surface, the pink dough continues all the way through to the broken edge. Because it is dried through two rounds of heating, it has a dry texture when eaten on its own. Dipped in champagne or red wine, it absorbs the liquid and softens while holding its shape for a while. Making use of its color and absorbency, its uses have expanded beyond ways of eating it to pastry making as well.

“Rose” Refers to Color, Not Fragrance

The core ingredients of this sweet are eggs, sugar and flour. In the recette (the proportions of ingredients and the method) that has been handed down, egg whites are added, the dough is flavored with vanilla, and it is tinted pale pink with carmine. Here, “rose” is a word describing the color of the sweet; it does not mean that the fragrance of rose flowers must be added.

Because the dough is tinted before baking, the color also appears at the broken edge. The dough is poured into rectangular molds and baked once, and powdered sugar is sprinkled over it before the second heating. The thin white film that forms on top pairs with the pink beneath it. The interior, which contains fine air bubbles, is light; although it looks close to a small sponge cake, it has a dry texture.

A production scene at Fossier. Pink dough is being taken out of a machine. Photo: ADT Marne, 2015-09-15, location unknown. Original image / CC BY-SA 4.0. Reduced-size version from the distributing source. Any processing at the time of original publication is unknown; no additional processing this time.

Shaped in the First Bake, Dried in the Second

For this sweet, a short first bake sets the shape of the dough, which contains egg foam, and the second uses gentle heat to drive further moisture out of the interior. A local origin story says that the residual heat of the oven after the bread had been taken out was used, which corresponds to this slow drying process. Because the result is a dough with little moisture, it crumbles lightly when eaten on its own, but when it touches wine it draws the liquid into its fine air pockets and softens without falling apart right away. Baking twice not only improves keeping quality but is also the process that creates a dry dough able to absorb wine and cream.

A broken biscuit rose. Fine holes are visible in the pale pink cross-section. Photo: Cherry, 2011-12-23, location unknown. Original image / CC BY-SA 3.0. Reduced-size version from the distributing source; no additional processing.

Dipped in Wine, Paired with Cream

The best-known way to eat it is to dip it lightly in champagne. Traditionally, it is also paired with red wine. Because the dry dough with its fine air bubbles does not immediately lose its shape even when it absorbs liquid, celebratory wine and the biscuit can be enjoyed together. It can also be eaten on its own with tea or coffee.

In charlottes and tiramisu, it absorbs cream or syrup and turns into a soft layer. It is stood upright around the inside of a mold, or crushed and used for bases or decoration. Ground into a powder, it also becomes a pastry ingredient. Unlike sablés, which use a lot of butter, it is a light egg-based dough baked twice to dry it, so when combined with drinks, fruit or cream, it absorbs their moisture and melds with them.

A biscuit rose with one end dipped in liquid. The dipped part looks darker in color. Photo: Cherry, 2011-12-23, location unknown. Original image / CC BY-SA 3.0. Reduced-size version from the distributing source; no additional processing.

The Tradition of a White Biscuit and How the Pink Name Took Hold

The manufacturer Fossier traces the biscuit’s origin to drying in the residual heat of an oven used to bake bread at the end of the 17th century, and presents 1691 as the year of its creation. The company also passes down an origin story that the biscuit was white at first and was made pink to hide the black specks of vanilla. Which artisan began tinting it, and when, is uncertain.

According to a company history from a regional products organization, what a Houzeau parent and child made in 1756 was mainly a dry keeping sweet called “biscuit de Reims.” Fossier took over the shop in 1845, and the name “biscuit rose” is said to appear around the end of the 19th century. There is a gap between when the shop was taken over and when the name referring to its pink color became established.

In the 20th century, REM, another Reims maker, also produced pink biscuits. Besides Fossier, which is well known today, several shops in Reims have baked pink biscuits. A piece that holds its shape even when dipped into a glass is still served with celebratory drinks today.

Glossary