Pastry chef Pierre Hermé did a masterclass during the holiday baking season, demonstrating his recipe for Viennese Shortbreads or Sablés Viennois. This simple cookie looks fancy just by the way the dough is piped onto the sheet pan. In his Instagram Live here, he shows different ways to pipe the shortbread but my favorites are in the above photo.
When I visit Bouchon Bakery, one of my favorite things to purchase is a bag of the shortbread cookies. It may not be as exciting as the tarts, eclairs and macarons, but I love the simplicity of the cookie. It’s so satisfying to sink your teeth into the thick slice. I also love the sprinkling of sugar on top for extra crunch. The vanilla bean flecks are noticeable throughout.
Every fall, I mark the start of the season by ordering pumpkin bread at Starbucks. It’s available year-round, but it feels most enjoyable when the weather starts to turn and I start to crave cozy, spiced treats. This year, I tried a few versions from bakeries in San Francisco to see how they differ. Here are tasting notes.
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I’m excited to share the banana bread recipe, from Chef Dominique Ansel’s new cookbook Everyone Can Bake. It’s the follow up to his debut book, The Secret Recipes, which featured many of his signature bakery items. I made the Cronut, Frozen S’more and Cookie Shots, but the recipes were definitely more technically involved. In his latest offering, the recipes are geared for the home cook, which is very appropriate during this pandemic. He shares takes on classics including pound cake, banana bread, brownies and more. I like how the book is structured. There are base, filling and topping recipes, and within each of those, he offers easy tweaks. Ultimately, I decided to top mine with streusel.
