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France

France, in Western Europe, is a cultural titan known for Paris—the City of Light—with its Eiffel Tower, Louvre, and café culture, alongside a countryside of vineyards, châteaux, and lavender fields. Its history spans Roman ruins to Revolution, shaping art, fashion, and cuisine like baguettes and Bordeaux wine. France’s economy blends luxury goods, aerospace, and tourism, while its overseas territories extend its global reach. From the Alps to the Riviera, France’s allure lies in its elegance and diversity.

France

Featured Dishes from France

Charlotte Russe cake

Charlotte Russe cake

A charlotte is a type of bread pudding that can be served hot or cold. It is also referred to as an "icebox cake". Bread, sponge cake, crumbs or biscuits/cookies are used to line a mold, which is then filled with a fruit puree or custard. The baked pudding could then be sprinkled with powdered sugar and glazed with a salamander, a red-hot iron plate attached to a long handle, though modern recipes would likely use more practical tools to achieve a similar effect. The variant charlotte russe also called charlotte parisienne, created by the French chef Antonin Carême, uses a mold lined with ladyfingers and filled with Bavarian cream. Classically, stale bread dipped in butter was used as the lining, but sponge cake or ladyfingers may be used today. The filling may be covered with a thin layer of similarly flavoured gelatin.

Avocado toast

Avocado toast

Avocado toast is an open sandwich consisting of toasted bread topped with mashed avocado, plus any of a variety of spices and flavorful ingredients; the most popular include salt and black pepper, lemon juice or other citrus flavors, olive oil, hummus, vinegar, red pepper, feta, duqqa and tomato. Avocado toast became a food trend in the 2010s; however, the preparation has appeared on café menus since at least the 1990s. There have been several debates about where the dish first appeared on menus. Following avocado toast's elevation to trend status, the act of ordering avocado toast at a café was criticized as a symbol of frivolous spending, along with the environmental impact of shipping the fruit from subtropical growing regions.

Bacon

Bacon

Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish , used as a central ingredient (e.g., the BLT sandwich), or as a flavouring or accent. Regular bacon consumption is associated with increased mortality and other health concerns. Bacon is also used for barding and larding roasts, especially game, including venison and pheasant, and may also be used to insulate or flavour roast joints by being layered onto the meat. The word is derived from the Proto-Germanic *bakkon, meaning "back meat".

Baghrir

Baghrir

Baghrir or beghrir , also known as ghrayef or mchahda, is a pancake consumed in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. They are small, spongy, and made with semolina or flour; when cooked correctly, they are riddled with tiny holes (which soak up whatever sauce they are served with). The most common way to eat baghrir in Algeria and Morocco is by dipping them in a honey-butter mixture, but they can also be cut into wedges and served with jam. Baghrir is popular for breakfast, as a snack, and for iftar during Ramadan. On the 9th day of Ramadan, the Mozabite people of Algeria exchange baghrir as a form of tradition, which they call m'layin; they are also distributed to the poor. In the Maghreb, this type of pancake is also known under other names: gh'rayf, in Tunisia and eastern Algeria (Constantine, Collo, Skikda), kh'ringu in Morocco and Algeria, [grifa, gh'rayf]; [m'layn, s. m'layna]; [gh’rayf]; [gh’rayf]; [kh’ringu, kh’ringu]; [khringu] in Algeria. This lexical diversity undoubtedly denotes a rich and ancient regional tradition. As for the word baghrir, it seems to be typical of Maghrebi-Western Arabic dialects (Morocco, Algeria), in any case it is unknown to us elsewhere. The lexicographer Mohamed Sbihi considers, in his Mu'djam, that the word baghrir is in some way an alteration of the Arabic baghir of the verb baghara; the baghir, according to the classic Arabic dictionaries, is the one who drinks without being able to quench his thirst (generally said of an animal). It is possible that the word was used in this case by allusion to the great absorbability of these pancakes, which have holes like a sponge.

Baguette

Baguette

A baguette is a long, thin type of bread of French origin that is commonly made from basic lean dough (the dough, not the shape, is defined by French law). It is distinguishable by its length and crisp crust. A baguette has a diameter of about 5 to 6 cm (2–2+1⁄2 in) and a usual length of about 65 cm (26 in), but can be up to 1 m (39 in) long.

Beignet

Beignet

Beignet is a type of deep-fried pastry of French origin. It is commonly made from pâte à choux, but can also be made using rice flour (rice beignets) or yeast-leavened batters. Beignets can be served in a variety of preparations, the most common being dusted with confectioner’s sugar. The pastry is popular in French, Italian, and American cuisines. A traditional way beignets are prepared is using choux pastry dough. Otherwise known as the French-style beignet, this type of dough is typically made using butter, milk or water, sugar, flour, and salt. Choux pastry is versatile and is prepared differently by culture. The pâte à choux method is also the style of beignets that were introduced to New Orleans by French immigrants in the 1700s. Variations often include banana or plantain – popular fruits in the port city – or berries. Other variations include savory fillings such as meat and cheese fillings.

Bouillie

Bouillie

Red millet porridge

Brioche

Brioche

Brioche is a pastry of French origin whose high egg and butter content gives it a rich and tender crumb. The chef Joël Robuchon described it as "light and slightly puffy, more or less fine, according to the proportion of butter and eggs". It has a dark, golden, and flaky crust, frequently accentuated by an egg wash applied after proofing. Brioche is considered a Viennoiserie because it is made in the same basic way as bread but has the richer aspect of a pastry because of the addition of eggs, butter, liquid (milk, water, cream, and, sometimes, brandy) and occasionally sugar. Brioche, along with pain au lait and pain aux raisins—which are commonly eaten at breakfast or as a snack—form a leavened subgroup of Viennoiserie. Brioche is often baked with additions of fruit or chocolate chips and served on its own or as the basis of a dessert, with many regional variations in added ingredients, fillings, or toppings. Brioche has numerous uses in cuisine and can take on various forms, served plain or filled, as coulibiac, or with many other different savory fillings, such as fillet of beef en croute, foie gras, sausage, or cervelat lyonnais. Brioche can also be served with sweet fillings, especially fresh fruits, vanilla cream, or jam. Stale brioche can be topped with frangipane to make bostock [fr].

Brioche suisse

Brioche suisse

Brioche pastry filled with custard and chocolate chips

Café

Café

Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially available. There are also various coffee substitutes. Typically served hot, coffee has the highest sales in the world market for hot drinks. Coffee production begins when the seeds from coffee cherries are separated to produce unroasted green coffee beans. The "beans" are roasted and then ground into fine particles. Coffee is brewed from the ground roasted beans, which are typically steeped in hot water before being filtered out. It is usually served hot, although chilled or iced coffee is common. Coffee can be prepared and presented in a variety of ways (e.g., espresso, French press, caffè latte, or already-brewed canned coffee). Sugar, sugar substitutes, milk, and cream are often added to mask the bitter taste or enhance the flavor.

Cereal

Cereal

Breakfast cereal is a category of food, including food products, made from processed cereal grains, that are eaten as part of breakfast or as a snack food, primarily in Western societies. Although warm, cooked cereals like oat meal, corn grits, and wheat farina have the longest history as traditional breakfast foods, branded and ready-to-eat cold cereals appeared around the late 19th century. These processed, precooked, packaged cereals are most often served in a quick and simple preparation with dairy products, traditionally cow's milk. These modern cereals can also be paired with yoghurt or plant-based milks, or eaten plain. Fruit or nuts are sometimes added, and may enhance the nutritional benefits.

Chausson aux pommes

Chausson aux pommes

Cheese

Cheese

Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk . During production, milk is usually acidified and either the enzymes of rennet or bacterial enzymes with similar activity are added to cause the casein to coagulate. The solid curds are then separated from the liquid whey and pressed into finished cheese. Some cheeses have aromatic molds on the rind, the outer layer, or throughout. Over a thousand types of cheese exist, produced in various countries. Their styles, textures and flavors depend on the origin of the milk (including the animal's diet), whether they have been pasteurised, the butterfat content, the bacteria and mold, the processing, and how long they have been aged. Herbs, spices, or wood smoke may be used as flavoring agents. Other added ingredients may include black pepper, garlic, chives or cranberries. A cheesemonger, or specialist seller of cheeses, may have expertise with selecting, purchasing, receiving, storing and ripening cheeses.

Confitures

Confitures

A confiture is any fruit jam, marmalade, paste, sweetmeat, or fruit stewed in thick syrup. Confit, the root of the word, comes from the French word confire which means literally preserved; a confit being any type of food that is cooked slowly over a long period of time as a method of preservation.

Cramique

Cramique

Sweet raisin bread, top with butter, chocolate paste, speculoos paste, serve with coffee or chocolate milk

Croissant

Croissant

A croissant wæsɒ̃/, French: [kʁwasɑ̃] ⓘ) is a French pastry in a crescent shape made from a laminated yeast dough similar to puff pastry. It is a buttery, flaky, viennoiserie pastry inspired by the shape of the Austrian kipferl, but using the French yeast-leavened laminated dough. Croissants are named for their historical crescent shape. The dough is layered with butter, rolled and folded several times in succession, then rolled into a thin sheet, in a technique called laminating. The process results in a layered, flaky texture, similar to a puff pastry.

Croissant aux amandes

Croissant aux amandes

Croissants covered with shaved almonds

Eggs Mornay

Eggs Mornay

Pan-fried bread topped with poached eggs and Mornay sauce, some recipes use hard boiled eggs

French toast

French toast

French toast is a dish of sliced bread soaked in beaten eggs and often milk or cream, then pan-fried. Alternative names and variants include eggy bread, Bombay toast, gypsy toast, and poor knights . When French toast is served as a sweet dish, sugar, vanilla, or cinnamon are also commonly added before pan-frying, and then it may be topped with sugar (often powdered sugar), butter, fruit, or syrup. When it is a savory dish, it is generally fried with a pinch of salt or pepper, and it can then be served with a sauce such as ketchup or mayonnaise.

Harcha

Harcha

Harcha is a griddle- or pan-cooked semolina flatbread native to the Middle Atlas in Morocco. It is also found in Algeria. The cakes are made from a dough of semolina, butter, and milk or water, and leavened with baking powder. The dough may also contain some sugar. The dough is formed into rounds and then cooked on a hot griddle or flat pan. The use of semolina gives harcha a crumbly texture comparable to cornbread. In the Rif, Morocco, buttermilk or yogurt, thinned with water, can be used instead of milk. Harcha can be made into small breads, or large ones the size of a truck tire. Harcha is commonly smeared with honey and butter, and served with mint tea during breakfast or as a snack. It is also one of the breads consumed during Ramadan. It can also be served like a sandwich, stuffed with cheese or with meat confit. It can be crumbled and used as a tender bed for stew.

Juice

Juice

Juice is a drink made from the extraction or pressing of the natural liquid contained in fruit and vegetables. It can also refer to liquids that are flavored with concentrate or other biological food sources, such as meat or seafood, such as clam juice. Juice is commonly consumed as a beverage or used as an ingredient or flavoring in foods or other beverages, such as smoothies. Juice emerged as a popular beverage choice after the development of pasteurization methods enabled its preservation without using fermentation . The largest fruit juice consumers are New Zealand (nearly a cup, or 8 ounces, each day) and Colombia (more than three quarters of a cup each day). Fruit juice consumption on average increases with a country's income level.

Méloui

Méloui

Msemmen or rghaif (رغايف), is a traditional flatbread originally from the Maghreb, commonly found in Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. It is folded into square pancakes with multiple internal layers and cooked on a griddle, usually served with honey or a cup of aromatic morning mint tea or coffee. M'semmen can also be stuffed with meat (khlea) or onion and tomatoes. The small msemmen pancakes are of Berber origin. There is a variety that is made from pulling the dough into strands and forming a disk that is also called mlewi in Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.

Miel

Miel

Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants or the secretions of other insects, like the honeydew of aphids. This refinement takes place both within individual bees, through regurgitation and enzymatic activity, and during storage in the hive, through water evaporation that concentrates the honey's sugars until it is thick and viscous. Honey bees stockpile honey in the hive. Within the hive is a structure made from wax called honeycomb. The honeycomb is made up of hundreds or thousands of hexagonal cells, into which the bees regurgitate honey for storage. Other honey-producing species of bee store the substance in different structures, such as the pots made of wax and resin used by the stingless bee.

Muesli

Muesli

Muesli is a cold Swiss breakfast dish, the primary ingredient of which is rolled oats. Traditionally, it is set to soak in water overnight ("overnight oats") and eaten the next morning with fresh fruit, nuts, lemon juice, and cream sweetened with honey. Additional ingredients, such as other grains, seeds, and dried fruits are sometimes added, and other citrus juice may be used. Yogurt, milk or other milk products, or milk substitutes are now commonly added to both homemade and commercially packaged muesli recipes. Developed around 1900 by Swiss physician Maximilian Bircher-Benner for patients in his hospital, it has become a common breakfast cereal dish. In Switzerland, it is also consumed for supper as Birchermüesli complet – muesli with Café complet (milk coffee, accompanied by Butterbrot (bread, butter and jam)). In addition to being prepared raw, muesli can be toasted. Muesli can also be processed further by adding sweetener and oil to bind the ingredients together and baked to produce granola.

Oeufs

Oeufs

Humans and their hominid relatives have consumed eggs for millions of years. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especially chickens. People in Southeast Asia began harvesting chicken eggs for food by 1500 BCE. Eggs of other birds, such as ducks and ostriches, are eaten regularly but much less commonly than those of chickens. People may also eat the eggs of reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Fish eggs consumed as food are known as roe or caviar. Hens and other egg-laying creatures are raised throughout the world, and mass production of chicken eggs is a global industry. In 2009, an estimated 62.1 million metric tons of eggs were produced worldwide from a total laying flock of approximately 6.4 billion hens. There are issues of regional variation in demand and expectation, as well as current debates concerning methods of mass production. In 2012, the European Union banned battery husbandry of chickens.

Œufs brouillés

Œufs brouillés

Creamy, slow-cooked scrambled eggs

Omelette

Omelette

An omelette is a dish made from eggs, fried with butter or oil in a frying pan. It is a common practice for an omelette to include fillings such as chives, vegetables, mushrooms, meat (often ham or bacon), cheese, onions or some combination of the above. Whole eggs or egg whites are often beaten with a small amount of milk, cream, or water. The earliest omelettes are believed to have originated in ancient Persia.: 65 According to Breakfast: A History, they were "nearly indistinguishable" from the Iranian dish kookoo sabzi. According to Alan Davidson, the French word omelette ( French: [ɔm.lɛt]) came into use during the mid-16th century, but the versions alumelle and alumete are employed by the Ménagier de Paris (II, 4 and II, 5) in 1393. Rabelais (Gargantua and Pantagruel, IV, 9) mentions an homelaicte d'oeufs, Olivier de Serres an amelette, François Pierre La Varenne's Le cuisinier françois (1651) has aumelette, and the modern omelette appears in Cuisine bourgeoise (1784).

Pain au chocolat

Pain au chocolat

Pain au chocolat , also known as chocolatine ( French: [ʃɔkɔlatin] ⓘ) in the south-west part of France and in French speaking parts of Canada, couque au chocolat in Belgium, or chocolate croissant in the United States, is a type of Viennoiserie pastry consisting of a cuboid-shaped piece of yeast-leavened laminated dough, similar in texture to a puff pastry, with one or two pieces of dark chocolate in the center. The chocolate usually has a slight bite to the texture. Pain au chocolat is made of the same layered doughs as a croissant. Often sold still hot or warm from the oven, they are commonly sold alongside croissants in French bakeries and supermarkets.

Pain aux raisins

Pain aux raisins

Pain aux raisins , also called escargot ( pronounced [ɛskaʁɡo] ⓘ) or pain russe, is a spiral pastry often eaten for breakfast in France. Its names translate as "raisin bread", "snail" and "Russian bread" respectively. It is a member of the pâtisserie viennoise family of baked foods. In France, it is typically a variant of the croissant or pain au chocolat, made with a leavened butter pastry with raisins added and shaped in a spiral with a crème pâtissière filling. However, in many areas of Northern Europe and North America, it is generally made with sweetened bread dough or brioche dough, rather than pastry. It is often consumed for breakfast as part of a continental breakfast.

Pain beurré

Pain beurré

Bread and butter

Pain grille

Pain grille

Toast is sliced bread that has been browned by radiant heat. The browning is the result of a Maillard reaction altering the flavor of the bread and making it crispier in texture. The firm surface is easier to spread toppings on and the warmth can help spreads such as butter reach its melting point. Toasting is a common method of making stale bread more palatable. Bread is commonly toasted using devices specifically designed for such, e.g., a toaster or a toaster oven. Toast may contain more acrylamide, caused by the browning process, which is suspected to be a carcinogen. However, claims that acrylamide in burnt food causes cancer have not been proven. Butter or margarine, and sweet toppings, such as jam or jelly, are commonly spread on toast. Regionally, savory spreads, such as peanut butter or yeast extract, may also be popular. Toast may accompany savory dishes such as soups or stews, or it can be topped with ingredients like eggs or baked beans to make a light meal. Toast is a common breakfast food. A sandwich may also use toasted bread.

Pain viennois

Pain viennois

Sweet bread shaped like a long baguette, may contain chocolate (viennois au chocolat)

Riz au lait

Riz au lait

Rice pudding is a dish made from rice mixed with water or milk and commonly other ingredients such as sweeteners, spices, flavourings and sometimes eggs. Variants are used for either desserts or dinners. When used as a dessert, it is commonly combined with a sweetener such as sugar. Such desserts are found on many continents, especially Asia, where rice is a staple. Some variants are thickened only with the rice starch, while others include eggs, making them a kind of custard. Rice puddings are found in nearly every area of the world. Recipes can greatly vary even within a single country. The dessert can be boiled or baked. Different types of pudding vary depending on preparation methods and the selected ingredients. The following ingredients are usually found in rice puddings:

Saucisse

Saucisse

A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or extenders.

Thé

Thé

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of Camellia sinensis, an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and northern Myanmar. Tea is also made, but rarely, from the leaves of Camellia taliensis. After plain water, tea is the most widely consumed drink in the world. There are many different types of tea; some have a cooling, slightly bitter, and astringent flavour, while others have profiles that include sweet, nutty, floral, or grassy notes. Tea has a stimulating effect in humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. An early credible record of tea drinking dates to the third century AD, in a medical text written by Chinese physician Hua Tuo. It was popularised as a recreational drink during the Chinese Tang dynasty, and tea drinking subsequently spread to other East Asian countries. Portuguese priests and merchants introduced it to Europe during the 16th century. During the 17th century, drinking tea became fashionable among the English, who started to plant tea on a large scale in British India.

Viennoiserie

Viennoiserie

Viennoiseries are French baked goods made from a yeast-leavened dough in a manner similar to bread, or from puff pastry, but with added ingredients (particularly eggs, butter, milk, cream and sugar), which give them a richer, sweeter character that approaches that of pastry. The dough is often laminated. Viennoiseries are typically eaten at breakfast or as snacks.

Yaourt

Yaourt

Yogurt is a food produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. Fermentation of sugars in the milk by these bacteria produces lactic acid, which acts on milk protein to give yogurt its texture and characteristic tart flavor. Cow's milk is most commonly used to make yogurt. Milk from water buffalo, goats, ewes, mares, camels, and yaks is also used to produce yogurt. The milk used may be homogenized or not. It may be pasteurized or raw. Each type of milk produces substantially different results. Yogurt is produced using a culture of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus bacteria. Other lactobacilli and bifidobacteria are sometimes added during or after culturing yogurt. Some countries require yogurt to contain a specific amount of colony-forming units (CFU) of bacteria; for example, in China the requirement for the number of lactobacillus bacteria is at least 1 million CFU per milliliter. Some countries also regulate which bacteria can be used: for example, in France, a product can only be labeled as "yaourt" or "yoghourt" if it has been fermented exclusively by Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus, a requirement that aligns with the international definition of yogurt in the Codex Alimentarius on fermented milk (CXS 243-2003.

Baba au rhum

Baba au rhum

A rum baba or baba au rhum is a small yeast cake saturated in syrup made with hard liquor, usually rum, and sometimes filled with whipped cream or pastry cream. It is most typically made in individual servings but sometimes can be made in larger forms similar to those used for Bundt cakes. The batter for baba includes eggs, milk and butter.

Babka

Babka

A babka is a sweet braided bread which originated in the Jewish communities of Poland and Ukraine. It is popular in Israel and in the Jewish diaspora. It is prepared with a yeast-leavened dough that is rolled out and spread with a filling such as chocolate, cinnamon, fruit, or cheese, then rolled up and braided before baking. Babka developed in Poland and next in the Jewish communities of Central and Eastern Europe in the early 19th century.[citation needed] Extra challah dough was rolled up with fruit jam or cinnamon and baked as a loaf alongside the challah. Chocolate was not originally used, as it was not generally available; the chocolate babka was likely a mid-20th century American development. Its name (though not necessarily the dish itself) may be related to a type of Easter cake popular in Poland and Ukraine known as baba or the diminutive babka, which means "grandmother", related to the Yiddish bubbe. Although the Polish and Ukrainian babka are mutually synonymous with their Jewish counterparts, the appearance and preparation of each babka is drastically different. The Eastern European babka is known for its tall, stout, fluted sides formed in a traditional pan, and reminiscent of a grandma's skirt. In comparison, the variant introduced by émigrés to New York consists of strands of rich yeasted dough interwoven and baked in a loaf tin.

Banane au four

Banane au four

Baked bananas or plantains

Beignet

Beignet

Beignet is a type of deep-fried pastry of French origin. It is commonly made from pâte à choux, but can also be made using rice flour (rice beignets) or yeast-leavened batters. Beignets can be served in a variety of preparations, the most common being dusted with confectioner’s sugar. The pastry is popular in French, Italian, and American cuisines. A traditional way beignets are prepared is using choux pastry dough. Otherwise known as the French-style beignet, this type of dough is typically made using butter, milk or water, sugar, flour, and salt. Choux pastry is versatile and is prepared differently by culture. The pâte à choux method is also the style of beignets that were introduced to New Orleans by French immigrants in the 1700s. Variations often include banana or plantain – popular fruits in the port city – or berries. Other variations include savory fillings such as meat and cheese fillings.

Berliner

Berliner

A Berliner or Krapfen is a German jam doughnut with no central hole, made from sweet yeast dough fried in lard or cooking oil, with a jam filling, and usually covered in powdered sugar. Sugar was very costly until the 16th century, and early doughnuts were usually stuffed with savory fillings like cheese, meat and mushroom. When imports from Caribbean sugar plantations made sugar more affordable, fruit preserves gained in popularity. In 1485, the first German-language cookbook to be published in printed form Kuechenmeisterei was published in Nuremberg and remained in print at least until 1674 with 20 editions . It was one of the first cookbooks printed using the Gutenberg press and contains the first known recipe for a jelly doughnut, called Gefüllte Krapfen made with jam-filled yeasted bread dough deep-fried in lard. It's unknown whether this innovation was the author's own or simply a record of an existing practice. The yeast dough contains a good deal of eggs, milk and butter. For the classical Pfannkuchen made in Berlin the dough is rolled into a ball, deep-fried in lard, whereby the distinctive bright bulge occurs, and then filled with jam. The filling is related to the topping:[citation needed] for plum-butter, powdered sugar; for raspberry, strawberry and cherry jam, sugar; for all other fillings, sugar icing, sometimes flavoured with rum. Today the filling usually is injected with a large syringe or pastry bag after the dough is fried in one piece.

Bizcocho

Bizcocho

Bizcocho is the name given in the Spanish-speaking world to a wide range of pastries, cakes or cookies. The exact product to which the word bizcocho is applied varies widely depending on the region and country. For instance, in Spain bizcocho is exclusively used to refer to sponge cake. In Uruguay, most buttery flaky pastry including croissants are termed bizcocho, whilst sponge cake is called bizcochuelo. In Chile, the Dominican Republic, and Bolivia bizcocho refers to a sweet dough (masa) baked with local ingredients, similar to the bizcocho from Spain. In Ecuador the dough of a bizcocho can either be sweet or salty. The US state New Mexico is unusual in using the diminutive form of the name, bizcochito, as the name for a locally developed and very popular cookie. The word bizcocho comes from the Latin bis coctus, which means "cooked twice", that is why it was often soaked in wine, due to the low humidity it had. The Uruguayan sponge cake is frequently related to the German pastry. It is argued that it is a derivative of krapfen, which was brought by the German immigration that went to the Río de la Plata region.

Blancmange

Blancmange

Blancmange is a sweet dessert popular throughout Europe commonly made with milk or cream and sugar, thickened with rice flour, gelatin, corn starch, or Irish moss (a source of carrageenan), and often flavoured with almonds. It is usually set in a mould and served cold. Although traditionally white, blancmanges are frequently given other colours. Blancmange originated at some time during the Middle Ages from the older Middle Eastern muhallebi, and usually consisted of milk or almond milk, rice, and sugar; it was considered to be an ideal food for the sick.[citation needed]

Bombe glacée

Bombe glacée

A bombe glacée, or simply a bombe, is a French ice cream dessert frozen in a spherical mould so as to resemble a cannonball, hence the name ice cream bomb. Escoffier gives over sixty recipes for bombes in Le Guide culinaire. The dessert appeared on restaurant menus as early as 1882. By extension, the term has been used to refer to any ice cream confection shaped through molding, not necessarily hemispherical. It has also been used to include dishes made with other frozen desserts, such as sherbet, sorbet, or mousse. This dessert originated in France during the 18th century. Among Agnes Blackwell Herrick's papers was a copy of the Paris Embassy's Dinner Party Record from 1921 to 1922. There were 16 different bombes in the collection of recipes, many with geographic names like Alhambra, Muscovite and Cleopatre.

Brownies

Brownies

A chocolate brownie, or simply a brownie, is a chocolate baked dessert bar. Brownies come in a variety of forms and may be either fudgy or cakey, depending on their density. Brownies often, but not always, have a glossy "skin" on their upper crust. They may also include nuts, frosting, chocolate chips, or other ingredients. A variation made with brown sugar and vanilla rather than chocolate in the batter is called a blond brownie or blondie. The brownie was developed in the United States at the end of the 19th century and popularized there during the first half of the 20th century. Brownies are typically eaten by hand or with utensils, and may be accompanied by a glass of milk, served warm with ice cream , topped with whipped cream, or sprinkled with powdered sugar. In North America, they are common homemade treats and they are also popular in restaurants, ice cream parlors, and coffeehouses. One legend about the creation of brownies is that of Bertha Palmer, a prominent Chicago socialite whose husband owned the Palmer House Hotel. In 1893, Palmer asked a pastry chef for a dessert suitable for ladies attending the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition. She requested a dessert that would be smaller than a piece of cake, and easily eaten from boxed lunches. The result was the Palmer House Brownie, made of chocolate with walnuts and an apricot glaze. The Palmer House in Chicago still serves this dessert to patrons made from the same recipe. The name was given to the dessert some time after 1893, but was not used by cookbooks or journals at the time.

Bûche de Noël

Bûche de Noël

A Yule log or bûche de Noël is a traditional Christmas cake, often served as a dessert, especially in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Vietnam, and Quebec, Canada. Variants are also served in the United States, United Kingdom, Cambodia, Scandinavia, Portugal, Spain, and Japan. Made of sponge cake, to resemble a miniature actual Yule log, it is a form of sweet roulade.

Cake pop

Cake pop

A cake pop is a form of cake styled as a lollipop, and was created by Angie Dudley in 2008. Cake crumbs are mixed with icing or chocolate, and formed into small spheres or cubes in the same way as cake balls, before being given a coating of icing, chocolate or other decorations and attached to lollipop sticks. Cake pops can be a way of using up leftover cake or cake crumbs. The cake pop increased in popularity between 2009 and 2011. The cake pop peaked in popularity during the late 2010s and early 2020s due to Starbucks' famous cake pops and gender reveal parties using them to reveal their child's gender. Cake pops use many of the ingredients used in baking a traditional cake and can be made from cakes of any flavor.

Calisson

Calisson

Calissons are a traditional French candy consisting of a smooth, pale yellow, homogeneous paste of candied fruit and ground almonds topped with a thin layer of royal icing. They have a texture similar to that of marzipan, but with a fruitier, distinctly melon-like flavour. They are often almond-shaped and are typically about five centimeters (two inches) in length. Calissons are traditionally associated with the town of Aix-en-Provence, France, and most of the world's supply is still made in the Provence region.

Canelé

Canelé

A canelé is a small French pastry flavored with rum and vanilla with a soft and tender custard center and a dark, thick caramelized crust. It takes the shape of a small, striated cylinder up to five centimeters in height with a depression at the top. A specialty of the region around Bordeaux in southwestern France, today it is widely available in pâtisseries in France and abroad. The canelé is believed to originate from the Couvent des Annonciades, Bordeaux in either the 15th or the 18th century. (Though the article about this same pastry in the French Wikipedia Canelé says "Différentes théories tentent de construire une histoire plus ancienne mais manquent totalement de fondement." "Different theories attempt to construct a more ancient history but lack any foundation whatever.") The modern word "canelé" originates in Gascon, which was spoken in Bordeaux and a large area of southwestern France until the 19th century. In Limoges, there was a food called canole, a bread made with flour and egg yolks, which may be the same item as that sold in Bordeaux since the 18th century under the name of canaule, also written canaulé or canaulet. Artisans known as canauliers who specialized in baking them registered a Corporation (or guild) with the Parliament of Bordeaux in 1663, which allowed only them to produce several specific foods: Blessed bread, canaules, and Retortillons. Since they were not a part of the Pastry Corporation (Guild), which had a monopoly over baking with milk and sugar or mixtionnée dough, they were prohibited from using those ingredients. The canauliers disputed the Pastry Chefs' privileges and on 3 March 1755 the council of State in Versailles ruled for the canauliers and ended the Pastry Chefs' monopoly. An edict of 1767 limited the number of authorized canaulier shops in a city to eight. It created very strict requirements for joining the profession. Nevertheless, in 1785 there were at least 39 canaulier shops in Bordeaux, at least ten of which were in the district (faubourg) of Saint-Seurin. The French Revolution abolished all the Corporations, but later census rolls continue to show shops of Canauliers and bakers of "blessed bread".

Carac

Carac

Carac is a tart-like Swiss dessert pastry traditionally made of ingredients such as chocolate, cream, fondant, and shortbread pie crust, usually found in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. It consists of a pie crust filled with a light ganache of blended cream and chocolate that is covered with green colored icing or fondant. Size varies from around 6 centimetres in diameter for single person tartlets to 25 centimetres (9.8 in) for a larger version of the carac more suited for large gatherings, served in slices, much like cake or pie.

Caramel au beurre salé

Caramel au beurre salé

Salted butter caramel

Carrot cake

Carrot cake

Carrot cake is cake that contains carrots mixed into the batter. The origins of carrot cake is disputed. Published in 1591, there is an English recipe for "pudding in a Carret [sic] root" that is essentially a carrot stuffed with meat, but it includes many elements common to the modern dessert: shortening, cream, eggs, raisins, sweetener (dates and sugar), spices (clove and mace), scraped carrot, and breadcrumbs (in place of flour). Many food historians believe carrot cake originated from such carrot puddings eaten by Europeans in the Middle Ages, when sugar and sweeteners were expensive and many people used carrots as a substitute for sugar.

Chausson aux pommes

Chausson aux pommes

Chebakia

Chebakia

Shebakia or Chebakia, also known as Griwech or Griouech, is a Maghrebi pastry made of strips of dough rolled to resemble a rose, deep-fried until golden, then coated with a syrup made of honey and orange blossom water and sprinkled with sesame. It is typically consumed during Ramadan and religious celebrations. Chebakia is from the Ottoman desserts culture. Chebakia is made using yeast spiced with anise, cinnamon, and saffron. The dough is made from ground sesame seeds mixed with flour and maybe squeezed through a pastry tube or twisted by hand to achieve the flower-like shape. It is then fried like a donut. The pastry is often produced in large batches at the start of Ramadan. Although it is sweet and is often paired with coffee and tea, Moroccans also eat chebakia with spicy food such as harira.

Chichi fregi

Chichi fregi

Chocolat soufflé

Chocolat soufflé

A soufflé is a baked egg dish originating in France in the early 18th century. Combined with various other ingredients, it can be served as a savoury main dish or sweetened as a dessert. The word soufflé is the past participle of the French verb souffler, which means to blow, breathe, inflate or puff. The earliest mention of soufflé is attributed to the French master cook, Vincent La Chapelle, in the early eighteenth century. The development and popularisation of the soufflé is usually traced to the French chef Marie-Antoine Carême in the early nineteenth century.

Chocolate

Chocolate

Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring in other foods. The cacao tree has been used as a source of food for at least 5,300 years, starting with the Mayo-Chinchipe culture in what is present-day Ecuador. Later, Mesoamerican civilizations consumed cacao beverages, of which one, chocolate, was introduced to Europe in the 16th century.

Choux à la crème

Choux à la crème

A profiterole , chou à la crème ( French: [ʃu a la kʁɛm]), also known alternatively as a cream puff (US), is a filled French choux pastry ball with a typically sweet and moist filling of whipped cream, custard, pastry cream, or ice cream. The puffs may be embellished or left plain or garnished with chocolate sauce, caramel, or a dusting of powdered sugar. Savory profiterole are also made, filled with pureed meats, cheese, and so on. These were formerly common garnishes for soups. The various names may be associated with particular variants of filling or sauce in different places. Choux pastry dough is piped through a pastry bag or dropped with a pair of spoons into small balls and baked to form largely hollow puffs. After cooling, the baked profiteroles are injected with filling using a pastry bag and narrow piping tip, or by slicing off the top, filling them, and reassembling. For sweet profiteroles, additional glazes or decorations may then be added.

Churro

Churro

A churro is a type of fried dough from Spanish and Portuguese cuisine, made with choux pastry dough piped into hot oil with a piping bag and large closed star tip or similar shape. They are also found in Latin American cuisine, Philippine cuisine and in other areas that have received immigration from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries, especially in France and the Southwestern United States. In Spain, churros can either be thin (and sometimes knotted) or long and thick, where they are known as porras, jeringos, or tejeringos in some regions. They are normally eaten for breakfast dipped in coffee, or in hot chocolate for an afternoon snack. There are also two slightly different snacks in Portugal, called porra and fartura, which are filled with jelly instead of the doce de leite traditional to Brazilian churros.

Clafoutis

Clafoutis

Clafoutis , sometimes spelled clafouti in Anglophone countries, is a French dish of fruit, traditionally unpitted black cherries, arranged in a buttered dish, covered with a thick but pourable batter, then baked to create a crustless tart. The clafoutis is traditionally dusted with powdered sugar and served lukewarm, sometimes with cream, as a dessert. It can also be served as a breakfast or brunch main or side dish. It originates in the Limousin region. One proposed derivation of the dish's name is from the Occitan clafotís, from the verb clafir, meaning "to fill" (implied: "the batter with cherries"). Another is that clafir comes from the old French claufir, meaning "to fix with nails," explained as the cherries having the appearance of nail heads. A traditional Limousin clafoutis contains both the flesh of the cherries and the nut-like kernels. Cherry kernels contain benzaldehyde, the compound responsible for the dominant flavour in almond extract. They also contain a small amount of amygdalin, a cyanogenic glycoside - a compound potentially capable of releasing cyanide if consumed, but non-toxic in small quantities.

Conversation tart

Conversation tart

Puff pastry with frangipane cream and royal icing

Crème brûlée

Crème brûlée

Crème brûlée , also known as burnt cream, Cambridge burnt cream, or Trinity cream, and virtually identical to crema catalana, is a dessert consisting of a rich custard base topped with a layer of hardened caramelized sugar. It is normally served slightly chilled; the heat from the caramelizing process tends to warm the top of the custard, while leaving the center cool. The custard base is generally flavored with vanilla in French cuisine, but can have other flavorings. It is sometimes garnished with fruit. The earliest known recipe of a dessert called crème brûlée appears in François Massialot's 1691 cookbook Cuisinier royal et bourgeois, but its ultimate origins are unclear.

Crème Chantilly

Crème Chantilly

Whipped cream, also known as Chantilly cream or crème Chantilly , is high-fat dairy cream that has been aerated by whisking until it becomes light, fluffy, and capable of holding its shape. This process incorporates air into the cream, creating a semi-solid colloid. It is commonly sweetened with white sugar and sometimes flavored with vanilla. Whipped cream is often served on desserts and hot beverages, and used as an ingredient in desserts. Cream with high butterfat content—typically 30%–36%—is used for whipping, as fat globules contribute to forming stable air bubbles. During whipping, partially coalesced fat molecules create a stabilized network that traps air bubbles. The resulting colloid has about twice the volume of the original cream. If whipping is prolonged further, the fat droplets stick together, destroying the colloid and forming butter. Low-fat cream, or milk, does not have enough fat to whip effectively.

Crème chiboust

Crème chiboust

Crème chiboust is a crème pâtissière lightened with meringue, though whipped cream is sometimes substituted for the meringue. It is the filling for the gâteau St-Honoré, supposedly created and developed in 1847 by the pastry chef M. Chiboust of the pastry shop that was located on the Paris street Rue Saint-Honoré. It is sometimes called "Crème Saint Honoré". The recipe given by Jules Gouffé in Le Livre De Patisserie begins by gradually adding flour and milk to egg yolks, heating the custard mixture, and gently folding in meringue. Crème chiboust can be flavoured with vanilla, orange zest, or liqueurs.

Crème glacée

Crème glacée

Gelato is the common word in Italian for all types of ice cream. In English, it specifically refers to a frozen dessert of Italian origin. Artisanal gelato in Italy generally contains 6–9% butterfat, which is lower than other styles of frozen dessert. Gelato typically contains 35% air (substantially less than American-style ice cream) and more flavoring than other types of frozen desserts, giving it an intense flavor with creamy, smooth texture, density and richness that distinguishes it from other ice creams. In Italian, gelato means simply 'frozen' and is the generic word for any type or style of ice cream. In English, however, the term has come to be used to refer to a specific style of ice cream derived from the Italian artisanal tradition.

Crème patissière

Crème patissière

Pastry cream, used in many desserts

Crepe

Crepe

A crêpe or crepe is a dish made from unleavened batter or dough that is cooked on a frying pan or a griddle. Crêpes are usually one of two varieties: sweet crêpes (crêpes sucrées) or savoury galettes (crêpes salées). They are often served with a wide variety of fillings such as cheese, fruit, vegetables, meats, and a variety of spreads. Crêpes can also be flambéed, such as in crêpes Suzette. The French term "crêpe" derives from crispa, the feminine version of the Latin word crispus, which means "curled, wrinkled, having curly hair."

Crêpes Suzette

Crêpes Suzette

Crêpes Suzette is a French dessert consisting of crêpes with beurre Suzette ( pronounced [bœʁ syzɛt]), a sauce of caramelized sugar and butter, tangerine or orange juice, zest, and Grand Marnier, triple sec or orange Curaçao liqueur on top, flambéed tableside. The origin of the dish and its name is disputed. One claim is that it was created from a mistake made by a 14-year-old assistant waiter, Henri Charpentier, in 1895 at the Maitre at Monte Carlo's Café de Paris. He was preparing a dessert for the future King Edward VII of the United Kingdom (then Prince of Wales), whose guests included a beautiful French girl named Suzette. This story was told by Charpentier himself in Life à la Henri, his autobiography, although later contradicted by the Larousse Gastronomique. Different sources (like the Larousse Gastronomique) however doubt that Charpentier, rather than the head waiter, was serving the prince, because he would have been too young. A less fantastical version emerges from Elsie Lee's interview with him in the 1950s. There, Charpentier explained at length that "his complicated version began as the dish of pancakes with fruit sauce his foster mother made on very special occasions." The addition of liqueur was common among chefs in Paris at the time.

Croquembouche

Croquembouche

A croquembouche or croque-en-bouche is a French dessert consisting of choux pastry puffs piled into a cone and bound with threads of caramel. In Italy and France, it is often served at weddings, baptisms and First Communions. The name comes from the French phrase croque en bouche, meaning '[something that] crunches in the mouth'. A croquembouche is composed of (usually cream-filled) choux piled into a cone and bound with spun sugar. It may also be decorated with other confectionery, such as sugared almonds, chocolate, and edible flowers. Sometimes it is covered in macarons or ganache.

Crumble

Crumble

Stewed fruit dessert topped with a crumbly mixture, can also be savory

Cuberdon

Cuberdon

A cuberdon is a cone-shaped Belgian candy and a popular local delicacy in Ghent. In Dutch it is also known as a neus , Gentse neus ("Ghent nose"), or neuzeke ("little nose") for its likeness to a human nose. In French, cuberdons are also called chapeau-de-curé and chapeau-de-prêtre (priest's hat). Cuberdons are traditionally made with gum arabic candy crust with a soft, raspberry-flavored filling. Their color is purple, though more recently differently colored and flavoured variants have been available as well. They are traditionally about 2.5cm (1 inch) wide and weigh approximately 10 to 18 grams (0.35 to 0.63 oz), although smaller versions are also produced. The outside is relatively hard, whereas the inside is gelatinous. In recent years, various derivative food products have been made, including cuberdon-flavored jenever, ice cream, dessert sauce, and cookies.

Cuernos de gacela

Cuernos de gacela

Crescent-shaped cookies filled with almond paste

Dacquoise

Dacquoise

A dacquoise is a dessert cake made with layers of almond and hazelnut meringue and whipped cream or buttercream. It is usually served chilled and accompanied by fruit. The term dacquoise can also refer to the nut meringue layer itself. It takes its name from the feminine form of the French word dacquois, meaning 'of Dax', a town in southwestern France.

Dame blanche

Dame blanche

Dame blanche is the name used in Belgium and the Netherlands for a sweet dessert consisting of vanilla ice cream with whipped cream, and warm molten chocolate. In Germany and in Switzerland, the same type of dessert is known as a Coupe Dänemark. The dessert is similar to the American sundae. The original dish that was created by Auguste Escoffier actually consisted of almond milk ice cream, poached peach, lemon sorbet and white currants.[citation needed]

Dragée

Dragée

Small confections such as candied almonds, Jordan almonds, almonds coated with chocolate, candied pecans

Éclair

Éclair

An éclair is a pastry made with choux dough filled with a cream and topped with a flavored icing. The dough, which is the same as that used for profiterole, is typically piped into an oblong shape with a pastry bag and baked until it is crisp and hollow inside. Once cool, the pastry is filled with custard (crème pâtissière), whipped cream or chiboust cream, then iced with fondant icing. Other fillings include pistachio- and rum-flavoured custard, fruit-flavoured fillings, or chestnut purée. The icing is sometimes caramel, in which case the dessert may be called a bâton de Jacob (lit. 'Jacob's staff'). A similar pastry in a round rather than oblong shape is called a religieuse. The word comes from the French éclair, meaning 'flash of lightning', so named because it is eaten quickly (in a flash); however some believe that the name is due to the glistening of the frosting resembling lightning. The éclair originated during the 19th century in Lyon, France where it was called pain à la Duchesse ('Duchess-style bread') or petite duchesse ('little duchess') until 1850. The word is first attested both in English and in French in the 1860s.

Fekkas

Fekkas

Biscotti, traditionally made with almonds, raisins (fekkas msseoues)

Financier

Financier

A financier (formerly known as a visitandine[clarification needed] ( French pronunciation: [vi.zi.tɑ̃.din])) is a small French almond cake, flavoured with beurre noisette, usually baked in a small mold. Light and moist with a crisp, eggshell-like exterior, the traditional financier also contains egg whites, flour, and powdered sugar. The molds are usually small rectangular loaves similar in size to petits fours. The financier originates from the French region of Lorraine. Originally made by the Visitandine order of nuns in the 17th century, the financier was popularized in the 19th century. The name financier is said to derive from the traditional rectangular mold, which resembles a bar of gold when the Swiss reinterpreted the financier and baked it in this form. Some French bakeries still sell this cake under the name of "visitandine".

Flan

Flan

Custard dessert topped with a layer of caramel sauce, variations include coconut, chestnut, chocolate

Flan de coco

Flan de coco

Flan custard with coconut

Flan pâtissier

Flan pâtissier

Floating island

Floating island

A floating island or île flottante is a dessert consisting of soft meringue floating on crème anglaise (a vanilla custard). The meringue used is baked in a bain-marie. It may be served at room temperature or chilled. Œufs à la neige ("eggs in snow", [øz‿a la nɛʒ]) is a similar dessert where the meringue is in egg-sized pieces and poached, rather than in one large baked piece. The earliest known English language reference to the dessert is in The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy (1747) by Hannah Glasse. Her recipe, entitled The Flooting Island [sic], is made with sweetened thick cream, sack and lemon peel whipped into a froth, then layered with thin slices of bread alternating with jelly, piled high with the stiffened froth. Fruits and sweetmeats are arranged in a ring around the edge of the dish that is presented as a centerpiece for the table with candles all around it.

Fondant au chocolat

Fondant au chocolat

Molten chocolate cake or runny core cake, is a French dessert that consists of a chocolate cake with a liquid chocolate core. It is named for that molten center, and it is also known as mi-cuit au chocolat, chocolat coulant , chocolate lava cake, or simply lava cake. It should not be confused with fondant au chocolat, a recipe that contains little flour, but much chocolate and butter, hence melting on the palate (but not on the plate). French chef Michel Bras said that he invented the cake in 1981, after two years of experimentation, with his original inspiration being a family group warming themselves up after a skiing trip by drinking hot chocolate. French chef and chocolatier Jacques Torres confirms that such a dessert existed in France in the 1980s. French chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, for his part, said that he invented the dish in New York City in 1987. He recalled pulling a chocolate sponge cake from the oven before it was done and finding that the center was still runny, but warm with both a good taste and texture. He has been credited with popularizing the molten chocolate cake in the United States, where it became an almost de rigueur inclusion on high-end restaurant dessert menus in the 1990s.

Fraise mille feuille

Fraise mille feuille

Layered puff pastry with strawberries and whipped cream

Fraisier

Fraisier

Layered sponge cake (genoise) with fresh strawberries and mousseline (pastry cream mixed with butter)

Frangipane

Frangipane

Frangipane n) is a sweet almond-flavoured custard, typical in French pastry, used in a variety of ways, including cakes and such pastries as the Bakewell tart, conversation tart, Jésuite and pithivier. A French spelling from a 1674 cookbook is franchipane, with the earliest modern spelling coming from a 1732 confectioners' dictionary. Originally designated as a custard tart flavoured by almonds or pistachios, it came later to designate a filling that could be used in a variety of confections and baked goods. It is traditionally made by combining two parts of almond cream (crème d’amande) with one part pastry cream (crème pâtissière). Almond cream is made from butter, sugar, eggs, almond meal, bread flour, and rum; and pastry cream is made from whole milk, vanilla bean, cornstarch, sugar, egg yolks or whole eggs, and butter. There are many variations on both of these creams as well as on the proportion of almond cream to pastry cream in frangipane. On Epiphany, the French cut the king cake – a round cake made of frangipane layers – into slices to be distributed by a child known as le petit roi (the little king), who is usually hiding under the dining table. The cake is decorated with stars, a crown, flowers and a special bean hidden inside the cake. Whoever gets the piece of the frangipane cake with the bean is crowned "king" or "queen" for the following year.

Galette des rois

Galette des rois

A king cake, also known as a three kings cake or a baby cake, is a cake associated in many countries with Epiphany, the celebration of the Twelfth Night after Christmas. Its form and ingredients are variable, but in most cases a fève such as a figurine representing the Christ Child, is hidden inside. After the cake is cut, whoever finds the fève in their slice wins a prize. Modern fèves can be made of other materials, but always represent the King or Baby Jesus. The origin of the cake tradition was popularly believed to be related to the Roman Saturnalia. These were festivals dedicated to the god Saturn so that the Roman people, in general could celebrate the longer days that began to come after the winter solstice. For this reason, Margaret Hasluck disputed as well the Greek tradition commemorating St. Basil's feast day with vasilopita, saying both customs had a common origin in the Saturnalia and Kronia. In the Middle Ages, it was said that the king who was chosen had to pay the assembly a general round of drinks. To prevent cheating, the edible bean was replaced by a porcelain bean. In Christian tradition the cake commemorates the witness of the "Three Kings".

Gâteau à la banane

Gâteau à la banane

Gateau au yaourt

Gateau au yaourt

Gâteau aux pommes

Gâteau aux pommes

Gateau coco

Gateau coco

Coconut cake is a popular dessert in the Southern region of the United States. It is a cake frosted with a white frosting and covered in coconut flakes. Typically, the cakes used in coconut cake are either white or yellow cakes. While some recipes do not call for coconut flavor in the cake itself, there are others that replace the milk with coconut milk and/or use coconut extract. It is also common to brush the cakes with a simple syrup to make it more moist. Often the cake layers are filled with either a white frosting or coconut pastry cream. Traditionally, the cake is frosted with a 7-minute frosting, but cream cheese icings and buttercreams are not uncommon. Like the cakes, coconut flavor is not always a must in the frosting. One constant characteristic of coconut cake is the use of shredded coconut to cover the frosting. One popular variation of coconut cake is coconut poke cake. While traditional coconut cake is round and multi-layered, coconut poke cake is either a white or yellow cake that is rectangular and single-layered. What makes it a "poke" cake are the holes made into the cake to act as pores to absorb a coconut liquid mixture or cream of coconut, such as CoCo Lopez. Afterwards, the cake is frosted with a whipped topping.

Gateau de Savoie

Gateau de Savoie

A light sponge cake

Gâteau magique

Gâteau magique

Custard-like cake that separates into three layers while baking, many flavors, for example, chocolate, vanilla, carrot, pumpkin

Gâteau opéra

Gâteau opéra

Opera cake, an almond sponge cake with a coffee and chocolate filling

Gaufrette

Gaufrette

Thin, crisp waffle, similar to a pizzelle or stroopwafel

Gingerbread

Gingerbread

Gingerbread refers to a broad category of baked goods, typically flavored with ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon and sweetened with honey, sugar, or molasses. Gingerbread foods vary, ranging from a moist loaf cake to forms nearly as crisp as a ginger snap. Originally, the term gingerbread referred to preserved ginger. It then referred to a confection made with honey and spices. Gingerbread is often used to translate the French term pain d'épices (lit. 'spice bread') or the German and Polish terms Pfefferkuchen and Piernik respectively (lit. 'pepper cake' because it used to contain pepper) or Lebkuchen (of unclear etymology; either Latin libum, meaning "sacrifice" or "sacrificial bread," or German Laib for loaf or German for life, Leben). Pepper is also referenced in regional names like Norwegian pepperkaker or Czech perník (originally peprník). The meaning of gingerbread has evolved over time. For centuries the term referred to a traditional European pastry, very like a modern cookie, traditionally used to make gingerbread men. In the United States the first known recipe for "Soft gingerbread to be baked in pans" is found in Amelia Simmons' 1796 cookbook, American Cookery.

Grand Marnier soufflé

Grand Marnier soufflé

Soufflé made with Grand Marnier liqueur

Halva

Halva

Halva is a type of confectionery that is widely spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa, the Balkans, Central Asia, and South Asia. The name is used for a broad variety of recipes, generally a thick paste made from flour, butter, liquid oil, saffron, rosewater, milk, turmeric powder, and sweetened with sugar. The word halva entered the English language between 1840 and 1850 from Romanian, which came from Ottoman Turkish: حلوى, romanized: helva, itself ultimately derived from Arabic: حلوى, romanized: ḥalwā, a sweet confection. The root in Arabic: ح ل و, romanized: ḥ-l-w, means "sweet". The original name for the confection was Persian: روغن خورديگ, romanized: rōɣn khordīg, meaning "oil food".

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