I found it ironic that I started this blog with a focus on desserts, and then the next Sugar High Friday to come along had the theme of Sugar Low! Usually the only concessions I make in baking are to use low or nonfat milk, perhaps a smidge less butter or sugar, and then cheerfully […]...
Succés Meringue Cake
Since I had some coffee buttercream left over from the opera cake, I decided to make another one of my favorites from pastry class, the succés meringue cake. This is another very traditional French dessert that is quite outrageously scrumptious! It is really a variation of the dacquoise, which is several layers of crisp baked […]...
Chocolates for Christmas
These are some chocolates I made for gift-giving at Christmas – I finally got to document them! I was inspired by Michael Recchiuti’s Chocolate Obsession, a beautiful tome that has recipes for many of his exotic creations, like his Key lime pears and star anise-pink peppercorn chocolates. Candymaking has always made me nervous – the […]...
Opera Cake
One of my favorite things I learned to make in pastry class was the Opera cake. This classic French dessert was created by Louis Clichy, who called it – quite naturally – the Clichy. However, it was popularized by the Parisian pâtisserie Dalloyau as the Opera cake and is now mostly known by that name. […]...
Hello!
Who am I: My name is Anita and I am a Bay Area native, living and working around San Francisco, whose lifelong addiction to all things sweet has developed into a happy baking and photography hobby. Where I’ve been: In 2005 I took a six-month professional pastry course at Tante Marie’s Cooking School, which […]...
Anita Chu, also known as pastrygirl, is a baker, writer, and photographer with a passion for pastry. She trained at Tante Marie's Cooking School and is the author of Field Guide to Cookies, Field Guide to Candy, and Lollipop Love. Anita lives in San Francisco with her husband, daughter, and dog Max. 
