A new French micro bakery is bringing a taste of France to Franklin.
Owner Isabelle Roch of La Maison Bleue bakery, a micro bakery that opened in November, wants to share her family recipes with the community.
“La Maison Bleue means ‘the blue house.’ It is the name of the house I grew up in, in France countryside,” says Roch.
Rog since childhood; my grandmother and my dad taught me. I hold some secret family recipes like the chocolate fondant or the lemon tea cake dearly. When I started my own family, my goal was to bake and cook healthy and tasty food for them. I started making bread years ago, with store-bought yeast. And when Covid hit, the shortage of yeast was a real bummer. So I did some research, and I learned the process of sourdough. It took me a couple of months to understand and master the process, and I never went back to regular yeast. Sourdough bread is healthier and tastes better, and the crumb is soft and stays fresh much longer than regular bread. I had so much fun baking and trying and creating even pastry recipes with sourdough; I started to give away my production to my friends and neighbors.”
With the encourch has been baking for almost her whole life, learning the family recipes and most recently sharing her love of baking with neighbors.
“I have been bakinagement of friends and neighbors, Roch worked at two local bakeries in Franklin- Triple Crown Bakery and Franklin Bakehouse.
Now you can find Roch at local farmers’ markets. On Wednesdays, find La Maison Bleue at Westhaven, and on Saturdays, outside of Triple Crown Bakery but get there early as Roch sells out pretty fast.
In talking about the making of sourdough bread, Roch shared, “I enjoy the most making sourdough bread. Every step of the process, the mixing, the smell, the touch, the patience it requires to let it rise and develop all its flavor during the 24-hour process, the planification it requires. And the taste! Nothing compares to a freshly baked loaf of sourdough bread. I am very proud of my products, especially the Artisan loaf.”
“In French culture, bread is the core of our cuisine; we share a loaf of bread at every single meal. I also intend to bring this French touch to all the pastries I make, even the American ones. I use high-quality ingredients; the butter, and the flour is from Europe. It makes all the difference in the final product,” continued Roch.
Roch lives in Franklin with her husband, who works at Nissan, and their family. They moved to Franklin just over three years ago. They have six children, ages 22 to 11. Their son, Pierre is currently at Parris Island for boot camp training with the Marines; they have three children at Franklin Special Schools and one still living in France.
Roch received her green card this year and will begin the process of American citizenship. Stating, “We can’t wait to become Americans; we love this country, the people the mindset, the culture, and especially love Franklin,we call it home now and don’t want to move anymore.”
For the latest updates, visit La Maison Bleue’s bakery website here.
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