Courteau - Duchess at home: sweet & savoury recipes from my home to yours

TO MY FAMILY, JACOB, BENOT, & ROSE mes amours pour toujours

IF SOMEBODY HAD TOLD ME 25 YEARS AGO that my life would be what it is now, I wouldnt have believed them. Baking has always been with me, but never would I have imagined that it would become my career and lifes work.

As a teenager, I didnt excel at anything specific and my grades at school werent great, but I did know what made me happyit was the time I spent at home, baking. I cherished my mothers copy of Companys Coming Desserts and looked forward to the holidays when I would be helping her make treats. I thought of becoming a pastry chef, but was encouraged to go to university instead. Yet even after several years of study, I was still really only thinking about pastriesand slowly but surely, my skills and confidence in the kitchen were improving.

At 24, I decided that I was going to open a pastry shop. It took six more years for Duchess Bake Shop to finally come into being and nothing could really have prepared me for what it would be like. Overnight, I went from being a home baker to a small-business owner, with all the stresses and responsibilities that come with it. At first we worked 20-hour days, seven days a week. Doing payroll, paying bills, and bookkeeping were all skills I had to learn on the fly. Those first three years were the most exciting and the most difficult of my life.

With the flurry of the Bake Shop, I completely stopped baking at home. It was when Jacob and I had our children, Benot and Rose, that I realized how much I missed it. Im at my happiest when Im in my home kitchen baking for my family.

Its been five years since Duchess Bake Shop was published. In that cookbook I shared the recipes for our most popular pastries at the bakery and tried to bring what we do in a professional kitchen within reach of the home baker. But when I bake at home, the things I tend to make are more often a reflection of me as a person. My French-Canadian heritage, my passion for France, the traditions passed down in my family, and the things I grow in my garden all influence what I like to bake at home.

All of the recipes in this book are truly me, each chapter representing an important part of my life. From old family recipes to new creations, this collection is my heart in a book. I hope these recipes will become your family favourites as well. Bon apptit!

Giselle

How to be

A BETTER HOME BAKER

Whether you are just learning to bake or trying to perfect your craft, baking is a lifelong journey. I still learn something every time I step into the kitchen. I think that the most difficult thing to learn and the biggest area I see people struggle with is when to be precise and when flexibility is needed.

My top tips for every home baker

PREPARE IN ADVANCE

Im easily distracted in the kitchen and have had my fair share of disasters over the years. I find that Im always most successful when I have a plan and Ive taken the time to think through what Im going to make. I always tell my students that before you even start, you can set yourself up for success by doing these simple things

• Read the recipe from one end to the other. That way you have a clear road map of whats ahead, and you can make a plan in regard to how much time each element will take to make, how much waiting time you need to factor in, and whether some ingredients need to be taken out of the refrigerator in advance so they can be at room temperature when its time to use them.

• Weigh out all of your ingredients and get your equipment ready. There is nothing worse than scrambling to find an ingredient (or worse, realizing youre out of it!) halfway through your recipe.

• Be realistic and wise with your time. If you need to whip up a dessert at the last minute, dont try to take shortcuts on something that needs to set in the refrigerator for several hours. And if you have lots of time, plan to make certain parts ahead of time so that you can focus on assembly prior to serving.

BE FLEXIBLE WITH BAKING TIMES AND OVEN TEMPERATURES

Everyones oven is a bit different and will bake things in a different amount of time. I have six identical home ovens in our teaching school, all unpacked brand new on the same day, and two of them run hotter than the other four. We know that and keep an eye on them knowing that things might bake more quickly in them.

Also, the type of bakeware youre using (nonstick or regular) will affect the baking time. Any pan that is dark grey will likely brown your desserts more and bake things a few minutes more quickly. I myself have a variety of both kinds and know to adjust my baking times accordingly.

The moral of the storywhen checking for doneness, always use your senses to decide if somethings done rather than relying entirely on the timer.

All of the recipes in this book have been tested in a standard oven on the regular bake setting. If you have a convection oven, bake everything at about 25F (15C) lower than the recipe says.