A new way to bake

Healthier, but without sacrificing taste

I baked a lot when my daughter lived at home. Having an office under my own roof allowed me that luxury, so I always made it a point to have something delicious and homemade ready for her as an after-school snack. Though we live in the Netherlands, we happily adopted the French tradition known as le goûter (also called le quatre-heures or la pause gourmande). The word goûter means ‘to taste,’ and this lovely little ritual encourages children (and adults) to take a break and relish something special. It’s such a shame that in our hurried society, eating together, even if it’s just a snack, is becoming more and more of a rarity, when, in fact, it is essential to the family’s well-being. Making time to experience and appreciate these petits bonheurs, or ‘little pleasures’ means passing on a few important life lessons.

All that baking also allowed me to hone my skills in creating the perfect, classic French bakes, such as madeleines, financiers and canelés. I endlessly experimented with recipes until they were exactly right. And by that, I mean as good or even better than the best versions I tried in France. I admit, I’m a perfectionist, especially when it comes to honoring French classics. I can’t help but wince if I see a madeleine recipe that doesn’t call for the batter to be chilled. How else will you get that characteristic bump (‘la bosse’)? And canelé recipes that insist you can use silicone and achieve authentic results? Absolument pas. If you’re interested, my recipe for madeleines and canelés can be found in my book Dishing it up (the canelé recipe is free in this article I wrote). The financier recipe is available for exclusive subscribers here.

Fear not, French baking isn’t complicated. But some recipes do call for mastering certain techniques. You can’t just toss some ingredients into a bowl, stir and voilà! I promise, however, that you will achieve success if you diligently follow my recipes.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s not just fiddly French bakes that emerge from my oven. Most of the time, it’s actually the kind of recipes that only require a bowl and a spoon. And truth be told, now that it’s just the two of us, I don’t bake as much as I used to. Since we started eating plant-based, my recipes have changed, too. There has been a lot of experimenting in my kitchen, and the focus now is on giving recipes a healthy, more nutritious makeover, without sacrificing taste. In a sense, I’m learning to bake again. With cooking, you can pretty much wing things, adding a little more of this or a little less of that, and tasting as you go. Unfortunately, this doesn’t apply to baking. Most of the time, when developing a new recipe, you simply have to keep your fingers crossed. My first plant-based chocolate cake tasted like wet cardboard, but my raw brownies and truffles were absolutely divine. I’m trying my hand at another brownie recipe today, this time with avocado to replace the butter. If the results are good, you’ll see it on Instagram! If there’s no brownie post, it’s probably because the recipe was a failure. Trial and error is the name of the game. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I’m trying to work out how I’ll make my pumpkin pie without eggs. Stay tuned!

This week’s video recipe, which will be sent to paid subscribers separately, is for one of my recent successes: my walnut and cranberry cookies. They’re fully plant-based, made without fat or refined sugar and include healthy ingredients like oats and cacao nibs (not to be confused with chocolate, they’re raw, crushed cacao beans, loaded with antioxidants and phytonutrients). These cookies are great as an afternoon treat (I love them with a turmeric latte), but I will happily have them for breakfast, too. They’re super easy to make (no fancy techniques or equipment required) and you can tweak them by using different nuts, dried fruits and spices.

I’m really excited to share this recipe, so don’t hesitate to upgrade your subscription. You’ll also have immediate access to all my other exclusive posts and video recipes (plant-based and classic French).

Bon week-end et surtout – bon appétit!