On the weekend between my birthday and my mother’s, I felt a sudden pull toward this recipe, a longing for the flavors of my childhood. As I opened the book, I discovered something unexpected—her handwritten notes in the margins. Familiar loops and flourishes, small adjustments, little reminders, all in her hand. With each step, I could almost hear her voice guiding me, her notes offering a sense of familiarity. The scent of butter and rum filled the kitchen, wrapping me in a memory that felt both distant and close at once.

Try making this very simple tarte that allows the flavors of apples to shine through.

If you have been living under a rock for your entire life and never had a Linzer torte before. Linzer tortes are a nut-based cake with tons of jam. They are usually flavored with cinnamon, cloves, and lemon zest which gives them an incredible holiday feel.

Poires Belle Helene is a classic French dessert composed of pears poached in a vanilla syrup served with vanilla ice cream then drizzled with a hot chocolate sauce. It’s a very easy dessert to master and can be easily altered to suit your tastes.

Of all the culinary treats that grace the French Christmas table, nothing inspires more child-like joy than a rich, chocolate Bûche de Noël.

Enjoy this easy-to-bake lemon poppyseed cake. We eat it for breakfast or as an easy dessert. Perfect for when guests are visiting.

Savor the ethereal perfectness of a just-baked madeleine. The slightly warm madeleines with a crispy exterior and a cake-like interior bursting with the bright flavors of fresh lemon.

Tarte Tatin has been very popular worldwide ever since its inception in the 1800s.   The familiar story often retold is that of the Tatin family and their hotel in the small town of Lamotte-Beuvron in Central France, about 100 miles south of Paris. Caroline and Stéphanie (Fanny) ran the hotel and supposedly created the famous tarte by accident, but is this the only truth? 

My apple trees are completely covered with ripe fruit ready to pick. As I started pulling a few off I began thinking about how to best use them. When I was a small child my mother use to make a really simple dessert that I adored. She would peel and core an apple then roll it in cinnamon sugar, stuff it with sweetened butter, wrap it in a thin skin of pie pastry, and bake it. It had all the great characteristics we love about apple pies but was quicker to make.

The most flavorful and moist olive oil cake you have ever tried. The recipe is highly adaptable to what you already have on hand in your cupboards.

Looking for the perfect flourless chocolate cake to impress your guests or indulge in a decadent treat? This recipe takes the traditional flourless chocolate cake to the next level by incorporating buckwheat flour, adding a unique nutty depth that makes it truly stand out. Despite its name, buckwheat isn’t related to wheat at all; it’s a gluten-free seed related to rhubarb and sorrel, making it an excellent choice for gluten-sensitive diets.

Profiteroles are the perfect home dessert and guaranteed to please everyone, from small children to grown adults. And once you master the dough for profiteroles you can easily make several other classics like a feather-light beignet, gougères, and crispy potato puffs known as Pommes Dauphine.

Learn how to make Bostock (a.k.a. Bostok), or toasted almond brioche in English. This is the ultimate dish for a quick and easy breakfast or brunch dish that is guaranteed to impress your guests. In the recipe from my new cookbook, French Cooking for Beginner's, the crunchy, golden-brown slices of rich brioche generously slathered with raspberry jam and velvety almond cream (frangipane) are topped with toasted almonds and fresh raspberries.