Am I the only one who will peer in the windows of French bakeries and sit in awe? There are times where I honestly don’t believe an actual human created such delicate morsels. Learning how to make French pastries is a baking landmark – it is incredibly intimidating, but I think we all would love to make them.
With Petite Patisserie : 180 Easy Recipes for Elegant French Treats (via Amazon; affiliate link) French pastries should be a breeze.
The key is that many of these desserts appear to be complicated, but the ingredients are all very simple. I appreciate the fact that they open with a section on twenty-seven base recipes from which all others can be made, including pâte brisée, pâte sucrée, sablé breton, dacquoise, pâte á choux, feuilletée rapide, and crème pâtissière. The book starts to build the complexity as the cookbook progresses. These complicated techniques are broken down simply so that all of us can make these light and beautiful desserts. The instructions are clear and you feel like the author, Christophe Felder, is in the room with you.
Not only are there tips for decorating, but also suggestions for alternative ingredients and how to incorporate them into these classic desserts. For me, this is important, because I cannot eat gluten. It is nice to know that we won’t be left out of the experience!
There are 180 decadent recipes in this cookbook. It would be a fantastic gift for any Francophile or classic baker in your life. I would just love to be able to make a choux pastry or really any of the classics. What showstopper are you excited to try out from Petite Patisserie : 180 Easy Recipes for Elegant French Treats? (via Amazon; affiliate link)
~Kaiti
