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Gateau: The Surprising Simplicity of French Cakes Hardcover – September 27, 2022

by Aleksandra Crapanzano (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 288 ratings
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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.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    384 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Scribner
  4. Publication date
    September 27, 2022
  5. Dimensions
    7.38 x 1.2 x 9.13 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1982169737
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1982169732
  8. See all details
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From the Publisher

Editorial Reviews

Review

“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

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.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Scribner; First Edition (September 27, 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1982169737
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1982169732
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.29 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.38 x 1.2 x 9.13 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 288 ratings

About the author

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Aleksandra Crapanzano

Aleksandra Crapanzano

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Aleksandra Crapanzano is the recipient of the James Beard Foundation M.F.K. Fisher Award for Distinguished Writing. Her work has appeared in several anthologies, including Best Food Writing, and she has written extensively for the New York Times Magazine, Gourmet, Food & Wine, Saveur, Departures, Travel & Leisure and the Wall Street Journal, where, for the last six years, she has written the dessert column “A Little Something Sweet.” Aleksandra has spent much of her life in Europe. She now resides in Brooklyn with her husband, the novelist John Burnham Schwartz, and their son.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
288 global ratings
Simple Recipes - No photos
4 Stars
Simple Recipes - No photos
I made 10 or 11 cakes from this book and must say, they really are straightforward to make (more straightforward than simple..). My absolute favorite was the Breton Butter Cake. It was incredible.Most of the recipes have no frosting or icing (which my husband prefers). The flavors are different and mostly ingredients that were easy to get. I enjoyed this cookbook and will probably go back time and again to remake some of them. The pictures are of the Breton Butter Cake, Gateau Concorde, and Walnut Espresso Cake. Very enjoyable.
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Top reviews from the United States

G1354
5.0 out of 5 stars if you love baking you'll love this
Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2023
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I love baking no-nonsense recipes like Tollhouse cookies and I also love the challenge of a really complicated, precise cake or dessert recipe that looks impressive and tastes great. The recipes in this book are in a whole different world - a 3rd dimension, a parallel universe. They're not complicated, in fact they're simple, but neither are they what most of us in the US would regard as everyday baking in the sense that each in their own way these cakes taste more exotic or more subtle than regular everyday recipes. Everything I've made from this book has turned out great. Also unlike most cake recipes, there are a bunch of recipes here that lay out options - they give you set parameters you can change to personalize a recipe to your own taste which exponentially increases the number of receipes. I bought this for myself but it would make a great gift for someone who loves to bake.
7 people found this helpful
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laura
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy and delicious
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2024
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Julia and julia-ing my way through this cake book! So far every one I have made has been simple and delectable! I love the little story and details about every cake and how theres different recipes and flavor options for almost every recipe! The first one- the yogurt cake- amazing- i like to say its different recipe for angle food cake, but easier, ALOT less eggs!
2 people found this helpful
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Maria Del Fabro
5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful book!
Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2024
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I swore I would not buy another cookbook but I am so glad I purchased this one. I do a lot of baking and the recipes in this book are simple and reliable. The anecdotes that go along with most of the recipes add to the books charm. I especially like the yogurt cakes.
4 people found this helpful
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Biogyro
4.0 out of 5 stars Great cake book
Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2024
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A standout book in a crowded field of good books on baking. Lots of variety.
2 people found this helpful
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dance & science
5.0 out of 5 stars Always have success baking with this cookbook
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2023
Verified Purchase
Wonderful French baking cookbook. The cakes always come out delicious when I follow the instructions exactly. The recipes are very easy and clearly written. I love the use of rose, orange, olive oil, almond, and cardamon in these cakes. They never come out too sweet. I could eat cakes every week.
3 people found this helpful
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Leone
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written and illustrated
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2023
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I heard the author interviewed on NPR and even though I am purging clutter in my life, I ordered it. I’m so glad; I did, it’s lovely. The recipes are written in a pragmatic yet gregarious manner that provides advice on balance and thoughts on adjustments to taste. But not only that, the writing is beautiful as well as the graphics. You don’t always see that in a cookbook. This publication is a joy.
Highly recommended! Not only a good gift cookbook, but a useful cookbook.
4 people found this helpful
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M. Burkey
5.0 out of 5 stars Not for beginners
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2023
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Many elegant cake recipes within. No pictures to guide you along, this book expects the reader to have some baking basics in their apron.
5 people found this helpful
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sn
5.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly delicious
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2023
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If you love cake (not to be confused with high-end patisserie, an exacting art form in itself ) you will love this book. The recipes are carefree, elegant and, as far as I can tell so far, flawless. The author writes beautifully about different types of cakes, sometimes presenting master recipes with many (fascinating!) variations. The weights and measurements are not stated with consistent numerical accuracy, but given the types of cakes they are, it doesn't matter. I know what you're thinking - that cannot be! But it is.
So far I have make the a simple yogurt cake, a dinner party yogurt cake with orange and Grand Marnier, an apple clafoutis and an apple and rum cake - all absolutely delicious and quietly spectacular.
These are cakes to make and share at home, with friends, at the office. I think this is a book to treasure.
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

BW
5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious and easy
Reviewed in Canada on October 17, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is a fabulous book for real home cooks. For people who just want to drool over pretty pictures, this isn’t for you because there aren’t any. But if you want to develop a repertoire of easy, foolproof desserts, this book will become a well-used reference.

The reviewer who gave this book a poor review and complained about the measurements (lack of them in their opinion) was either mistaken OR didn’t bother to read the book. The author explains exactly what she means by a “jar”: it’s a yogurt container available in France. Then she also gives a weight and a measure so that North Americans can recreate the recipe here. She even explains exactly what kind of yogurt to purchase. I had no trouble at all making that particular cake and it got rave reviews from my guests.

It’s a wonderful book; highly recommend.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely recipes
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 10, 2024
Verified Purchase
Reading the recipes made me want to eat cake and lots of it. I cannot wait to try them out but will need to expand my pantry items a little to make them, by e.g. buying French butter, as recommended, which is currently very expensive in the UK (I am sure the cakes will be worth it though from a flavour aspect).
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Mara Swen
3.0 out of 5 stars Needed a better editor
Reviewed in Australia on December 28, 2022
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It's a nice enough book and the recipes are lovely, but the measurements are an unholy mish-mash of metric and Imperial. Baking temps are universally in Fahrenheit, and measurements are sometimes in grams but inconsistently so (egg weights are mentioned twice but cup or tablespoon sizes are not). I don't want to pay a premium hardback price when I've got to sit down with Google and re-write a recipe so that it works in Australia.
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Larissa
5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious and fuss free cakes
Reviewed in Mexico on January 16, 2023
Verified Purchase
I adore this cookbook. Have made several cakes now, all to great acclaim. They’re simple and quick to prepare and delicious. Some of the cook times have been off, but that’s easily addressed with a check. excellent, honest, delicious recipes - a lot of fun.
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Peter Cox
4.0 out of 5 stars Recommended
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 5, 2022
Verified Purchase
First impression, great cake book, so much choice.
So far I have only baked one, following the recipe precisely yielded a beautiful tasty cake. And I see at least a dozen more I want to do soon. I think it will become my standard go-to cake book.
My only complaint, and it is a pity, there are no photographs. I mean none!
Looking for ideas or inspiration I like to flick through a cookbook and photos make that so easy and quick. Plus a photo gives you some confidence that somebody has actually cooked/baked it.
11 people found this helpful
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