Grand Livre de Cuisine: Alain Ducasse's Desserts and Pastries

In this magnificent volume, the second in the Grand Livre de Cuisine series, celebrated chefs Alain Ducasse and Frédéric Robert comprehensively cover the art of making desserts, pastries, candy, and other sweets. Everything is here— mousses and fondants; cookies and cakes; ice creams and sorbets; bonbons and nougats; fruit tarts, profiteroles, and sweet crèpes.

The book’s 250 mouth-watering recipes range from traditional treats such as peach melba, candied apples, and oeufs à la neige to audacious concoctions such as tropical fruit– stuffed ravioli and coconut-encrusted lollipops. Decidedly French yet international in flavor, the book presents the authors’ masterful takes on American cheesecake; Italian cannolis, zuppa inglese, and tiramisù; and the Austrian confections known as viennoiseries.

Organized by main ingredient, the Grand Livre’s structure epitomizes Ducasse’s philosophy of cooking and baking, which holds that culinary techniques should accentuate and enhance an ingredient’s true nature—not mask it. The book features more than 650 color photographs, including a full-page, close-up photo of each finished dish. Cross-sectional drawings clearly display the internal “architecture” of some of the more complex creations.