Christophe Felder, along with his longtime collaborator, Camille Lesecq, are back with a new volume that focuses upon the delightful small pastries that are one of the highlights of the art of French baking. Both children and adults adore these often bite-size indulgences. Included here are all the fundamental recipes--the classics and the traditional favorites--along with original, inventive creations. Recipes include amandines, babas, biscuits, bostocks, creams, croquantes, croustillons, financiers, flans, madeleines, Alsatian manderlis, Napoleans, petits fours, sables, tartlets, and much more. The book opens with a section on twenty-seven base recipes from which all others can be made, including pate brisee, pate sucree, sable breton, dacquoise, pate a choux, feuilletee rapide, and creme patissiere. It is then divided into chapters of increasing complexity, with a final chapter on funny cakes--playfully decorated small cakes designed to delight children or for parties. Each recipe comes with precise preparation and cooking times, step-by-step decorating tips, and suggestions for vegan and gluten-free alternatives--this seemingly petite package contains a wide range of sweet and simple pleasures to delight big and small gourmets alike.

Newly updated and expanded with 3,500 step-by-step photographs, all the classics of French patisserie are made accessible for the home cook. For every serious home baker, French pastry represents the ultimate achievement. But to master the techniques, a written recipe can take you only so far-what is equally important is to see a professional in action, to learn the nuances of rolling out dough for croissaints or caramelizing apples for a tarte tatin. For each of the 233 recipes here, there are photographs that lead the reader through every step of the instructions. There has never been such a comprehensive primer on patisserie. The important base components-such as creme patisserie, pate a choux, and chocolate ganache-are presented as stand-alone recipes. Once comfortable with these, the home baker can go on to tackle the famous and more complex creations-such as Eclairs, Saint-Honore, Opera-as well as feel empowered to explore new and original combinations. An entire chapter is devoted to decoration as well as sauces, syrups, and fillings. Whether used to develop skills or to refine techniques, to gain or simply broaden a repertoire, Patisserie dispels the mystery around classic French pastries, so that everyone can make them at home.