Gateau: The Surprising Simplicity of French Cakes

by Aleksandra Crapanzano

Overview

James Beard Award–winning writer Aleksandra Crapanzano shares the secrets of the cakes Parisians bake at home, from the simplest yogurt cakes to a deceptively easy bûche de Noël, from yuzu madeleines to boozy flourless chocolate confections.

When we think of French desserts, we tend to imagine ornate creations and confections. Perhaps we envision a tarte Tatin, but rarely a homemade cake, whipped up on a weeknight with little fuss. But that is exactly what Parisians make and eat. Gâteaux are simple, delicious cakes, both sweet and savory, served to family and friends.

As food-columnist Aleksandra Crapanzano spent time in Parisian home kitchens, she realized that the real magic is a certain savoir-faire, that distinctly French know-how that blends style and functionality in every aspect of life. By and large, the French do not try to compete with their chefs, nor with their boulangeres and patissieres. But many Parisians are natural cooks, and most finish dinner with a little something sweet, effortlessly made and casually served. The trick is having an arsenal of recipes that, once mastered, become blueprints, allowing for myriad variations, depending on what’s in season and what’s in the cupboard. It is a practical approach, and the French are nothing if not practical. That is the savoir-faire—from tying a silk scarf just so to popping a gateau in the oven without anyone even noticing. When you know what you’re doing, there’s no need to overthink it. It looks easy because it is easy.

While the Paris culinary world is experiencing a fresh vibrancy, certain traditions remain intact yet may surprise in their modernity. For example, French cakes have less sugar. The pure taste of apples is not masked by cinnamon, and vanilla is never a given. A gateau may be lightly glazed, dusted with cocoa or confectioners’ sugar, drizzled with rose water, but rarely heavily iced. A splash of brandy, a squeeze of lemon or a thin blanket of ganache elevates even the easiest of cakes in mere minutes. And then there are savory cakes made with cheese, herbs, ham, baked into a delicious loaf. These cakes salés are ideal for picnic lunches, accompanied by a salad and a glass of Sancerre. Gâteau includes cakes for birthdays, summer feasts and winter holidays, last-minute dinner parties and school lunches, as well as beloved regional recipes and guest contributions from superstar Parisian bakers.

Practical, simple, and filled with over 100 rigorously tested recipes and charming illustrations, Gâteau celebrates every day and sometimes fanciful French cakes in all their glory.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781982169732
Publisher:	Scribner
Publication date:	09/27/2022
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	124,352
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Aleksandra Crapanzano is a James Beard–winning writer and dessert columnist for The Wall Street Journal. She is the author of The London Cookbook and Eat. Cook. LA., and her work has been widely anthologized, most notably in Best American Food Writing. She has been a frequent contributor to Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Food52, Saveur, Town & Country, Elle, The Daily Beast, Departures, Travel + Leisure, and The New York Times Magazine. She has years of experience in the film world, consults in the food space, and serves on several boards with a focus on sustainability. Aleksandra grew up in New York and Paris, received her BA from Harvard and her MFA from NYU, where she has also taught writing. She is married to the writer John Burnham Schwartz, and they live in New York with their son, Garrick, and Bouvier des Flandres, Griffin.

Table of Contents

Introduction xi

Equipment xvii

Ingredients xxi

Spirits xxv

Critical Intel, aka Cheat Sheet xxviii

The Simplest of the Classics 1

Gâteau au Yaourt

Gâteau au Yaourt Citron-Thym

Gâteau au Yaourt pour le Dîner

Gâteau au Yaourt à la Farine d'Amande

Gâteau au Yaourt et aux Poires

Gâteau au Miel et à la Fleur d'Oranger

Gâteau au Yaourt, à la Verveine et aux Pêches

Le Gâteau au Yaourt avec des Fraises, de l'Eau de Rose et un Zeste de Citron

Quatre-Quarts

Gâteau Weekend Parfumé à la Lavande

Gâteau au Miel

Le Weekend Cake au Yuzu

Gâteau au Citron

Cake au Yaourt d'Avoine d'Apollonia

Gâteau au Sucre Roux, au Rhum et aux Pépites de Chocolat

Cake à la Farine d'Épeautre au Chocolat et au Café

Gâteau Simple au Noisette

Gâteau à la Cardamome

Apple, Pear, Berry, Stone Fruit and Citrus Cakes 47

Gâteau aux Pommes Classique

Gâteau Normand aux Pommes et au Calvados

Gâteau aux Baies

Gâteau Tropical à l'Ananas Caramélisé

Gâteau au Citron et à la Menthe

Gâteau de Semoule, à l'Huile d'Olive, Yaourt et Mandarine

Gâteau aux Figues sans Farine

Un Grand Gâteau a l'Orange

Gâteau Polenta à l'Orange Sanguine et au Romarin

Gâteau Renversé à l'Orange Sanguine, à la Semoule et aux Amandes

Gâteau aux Bananes Moelleuses

Gâteau Ispahan de Dorie et Pierre

Regional Classics 73

Gâteau Breton

Gâteau Breton aux Amandes

Far Breton

Gâteau de ton Enfance

Gâteau à I'Huile d'Olive

Clafoutis aux Framboises

Clafoutis aux Pommes à la Normande

Clafoutis aux Poires et au Chocolat

Les Nonnettes

Gâteau de Savoie

Gâteau de Nantes

Gâteau Basque

Nut Cakes and Tortes 101

Pain de Gênes

Gâteau Simple aux Noix

Gâteau aux Noix et au Café

Gâteau aux Noisettes sans Farine

Gâteau au Gianduja

Gâteau à la Noix de Coco sans Farine

Gâteau à la Pistache

Gâteau aux Marrons

Gâteau Purée de Châtaignes

Gâteau Weekend aux Pignons de Pin

Chocolate Cakes 121

Gâteau au Chocolat Mi-Cuit de Pierre Hermé

Bouchons au Chocolat

Les Cupcakes

Gâteau Marbré au Chocolat et à l'Orange

Gâteau Suzy

Gâteau Tout Simple au Chocolat Amer et au Café

Gâteau au Chocolat Moelleux

Marquise au Chocolat

Gâteau aux Poires et au Chocolat

Moelleux Chocolat Framboise

Gâteau au Chocolat et aux Framboises

Gâteau au Chocolat Marbré

Gâteau au Chocolat au Vin Rouge sans Farine

Gâteau au Chocolat et au Whiskey

Cake Chocolat Orange

Fondant Baulois

Le Fondant Baulois au Caramel Beurre Salé

Fondant Caramel Brûlé Chocolat

Cakes to Layer 161

Les Génoises

Génoise Classique

Génoise Riche à la Vanille

Les Classiques

Fraisier

Rouleau Fraise-Rhubarbe, Glaçage au Citron

Grand Gâteau aux Pêches, Rhum et Mascarpone

Génoise au Chocolat

Génoise Fourrée au Chocolat

Gâteau Chocolat-Menthe

The Chic, Delicious and Playful 197

Les Dacquoises

Gâteau Concorde

Tiramisu Français

Tiramisu mi-Français, mi-Italien

Tiramisu aux Framboises et au Limoncello

Pavlova

Gâteau Revani

Gâteau à la Rose et à la Cardamome

Baba au Rhum

Charlotte à la Crème de Marron et à la Mousse au Chocolat

Madeleines, Financiers, Visitandines 229

La Madeleine Classique

Madeleines au Miel

Madeleine Variations

Madeleines au Miel Épicé

Madeleines au Chocolat

Madeleines au Chocolat Fourrées de Ganache au Chocolat Noir de Jean-Paul Hévin

Financiers

Financiers aux Noisettes

Financier au Chocolat

Gâteau Financier aux Framboises

Visitandines

Holiday Cakes 259

Pain d'Épices Moelleux

Mocha Bûche de Noël

Bûche de Noël au Chocolat

Bûche de Noël au Bourbon

Bûche de Noël à la Noix de Coco et à la Crème de Yuzu

Bûche de Noël Pistache, Cerises Morello, Ganache

Bûche de Noël Pistache, Chocolat Blanc et Framboise

Galette des Rois

Galette des Rois au Chocolat

Savory Cakes 289

Cake Croque Monsieur

Cake d'Alsace

Gâteau Roquefort et Noix

Cake Salé aux Tomates, Mozzarella et Basilic

Cake Salé à la Feta, aux Tomates Séchées et aux Olives

Cake Chorizo, Piquillo, Chèvre

Madeleines aux Noix, Poire et Roquefort

To Soak to Sauce to Coat to Fill to Ice to Drizzle to Spoon to Glaze and Perchance to Dollop 305

Crème Chantilly

Chocolate Ganache

Coulis

Caramel Sauce

Soaking Syrups

Glazes and Drizzles

Buttercreams

Praliné

Buds and Petals

Mousse au Chocolat

Acknowledgments 337

Index 339

Editorial Reviews

06/27/2022

James Beard Award–winning writer Crapanzano (Eat. Cook. L.A.) demystifies the art of French baking at home in this delightfully illustrated guide. Drawing on the lessons she’s learned while living in Paris, she offers recipes that aim to assure readers that “Parisian culinary ease... is a choice, not a genetic superpower.” Indeed, her yogurt-based cakes prove to be quick and pantry-friendly, while a simple pound cake recipe is accompanied by dozens of variations for flavor mix-ins. Headnotes offer enticing commentary on the food culture; in a recipe for hazelnut cake, she notes: “The French are rightly loath to eat processed cereal and packaged granola bars, preferring instead to have a taste of something made by hand.” Chocolate cakes and genoise merit their own chapters, with creations inspired by notable bakers, Dorie Greenspan among them. A simple syrup that substitutes red wine for water enriches Crapanzano’s flourless chocolate cake, while an effortless genoise recipe—consisting of eggs, sugar, and cake flour—comes with surefire “tricks of the trade” that include the right length of time for beating the eggs, and proper storage of the cake. Even Crapanzano’s more aspirational cakes, such as the pistachio roulade with morello cherries, seem undaunting, thanks to her thoughtful instructions. Home bakers take heed—even a brief perusal of this excellent book may lead one to acquire large quantities of butter. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Offers up over 150 French cake recipes, from savory to sweet, each one eminently do-able...wherever you are. Aleksandra really understands French home baking.” —David Lebovitz

“If, like me, you get a little giddy around French cakes, take a look at Gateau. My copy has so many stick notes that I can barely close it.” —Melissa Clark

“Channel your inner Parisian and serve simple, yet stylish cakes with these tips.” —Martha Stewart

“Delightfully charming . . . featuring beguiling illustrations . . . [the cakes are] unfussy and easy to throw together, and as delicious as promised.” —The Washington Post

"Goes beyond recipes to make a bigger argument about how ease and simplicity define French baking culture.” —The Atlantic

“A smart, charming new book on French cakes... Got an urge to bake and simultaneously submerge yourself in French culture? Gateau will enchant you.” —The Boston Globe

“Crapanzano has the secret to confidently, casually chucking a cake in the oven while you pour yourself another glass of wine and get back to the table... In Gâteau, she shares her Rolodex of fantastic French cakes that you won’t spend three days psyching yourself out over.” —GOOP

“While the recipes are serious and many, the mood is every bit as playful and enchanting as the Paris afternoon of your frilliest fantasies.” —Fodors

“Want to make stunning French pastries at home with little fuss?... Flip through whimsical illustrations and charming anecdotes, and learn how to make a simple gâteux sing.”—Epicurious

“Aleksandra nails what's so inimitable about the French and how they just casually throw together a showstopper.” —Edible LA

“Shares the secrets to culinary savoir faire in charmingly illustrated pages... streamlined recipes rooted in classic techniques serve as blueprints for myriad variations based on the season or what’s in the cupboard.” —Atlanta Journal Constitution

“Charming... endlessly adaptable.” —Jenny Rosenstrach, Cup of Jo

“Her fabulous recipes will have you wooing your friends with a whole range of sweet delicacies.” —Nancy Silverton, chef and co-owner of Mozza Restaurant Group

“Chic, charming, and delectable... Everything about it—delicious writing, lyrical illustrations, and the recipes for cakes simple and seductive—conspires to bring joy. Gâteau is enchanting.” —Dorie Greenspan, author of Baking with Dorie

“An utterly delightful compendium of simple French bakes.”—Garden & Gun

From the Publisher

10/01/2022

French bakery cakes are often awe-inspiring but may be beyond the skill of an average baker and can be pricey to buy. Crapanzano (The London Cookbook; Eat. Cook. LA.) lived in Paris for many years and offers the recipes that French home bakers know well and make in their kitchens. Some she even describes as being learned by small children in school. The scope of the book is broad, from the schoolchild's basic yogurt cake to elaborate Pavlovas, Charlottes, and bûches de Noël. There are recipes for cakes for all occasions and all sizes, introduced with long and informative descriptions that give encouragement and extra instructions. The author claims that anyone can bake these, but however confident she may be in the abilities of her readers, this book is not for rank beginners, as there is an imprecision in the ingredient specifications that might throw novices into a tizzy; however, experienced bakers should be okay. VERDICT Full of charming gouache illustrations and a wonderful friendly tone to the text. Public-library patrons will like this one.—Danise Hoover

Library Journal