Pastry School: 100 Step-by-Step Recipes

The chefs at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school distill their baking expertise into this comprehensive collection of exquisite recipes coupled with succinct instruction. The book includes 85 confections along with recipes for 15 key preparations for French pastries. Recipes span the classics, but also include modern creations, and all recipes include illustrated step-by-step instructions to guide cooks through the entire process. Each recipe lists times for preparation, baking, chilling, freezing, and cooling; a difficulty rating; and details on how long the item can be stored. Each component in the finished products has its own ingredient list, including decorations, and a note of necessary equipment. The school offers mouth-watering recipes for cakes (Black Forest gateau), pastries (chocolate and raspberry eclairs), tarts (rhubarb and saffron), and cookies. Mango fruit jellies and soft-centered chocolate fondants are on the easier end of the spectrum, while chocolate tonka bean–and–berry prestige and tropical fruit tart with raspberries are more complex. Chocolate and blackcurrant domes, apricot shortbread biscuits, and fig tartlets with sugared almonds round out the volume. This is a stellar array of confectionery options for home bakers of any level. (Nov.)