The History Of French Pastry And Confectionery

Everybody loves a French dessert but those desserts did not happen overnight, it took centuries of perfecting recipes and a lot of passion to create the French pastry and confectionary we love today.

French Pastry & Confectionary – The History

Everything started with the desire to serve something sweet after a meal and it evolved into the decadent world we know today. Fruits and cheese were not enough for the French people so a new type of art – the art of pastries and confectionaries – was born and a whole new world of cakes, pastries, and delicious confectionaries has come to life.

In 1270 when Régnaut-Barbon decided he wants to make oublies (confectioners’ ancestors) and pastries. And from there, everything started to develop and to grow into the amazing industry that French pastry and confectionary is today.

Important Moments In The History Of French Pastry & Confectionary

The puff pastry was created in 1540 by Popelini.

26 years later, in 1566, the oublies were renamed confectioners.  

It is believed that the foliated pastry was invented in 1630 by a French painter.

In 1638 France tasted tartelettes amandine for the first time.

1660 was the year whipped cream was invented by Vatel, the cook of the Prince of Condé.

1686 was the year that started the French café culture in France. Le Procope, the first Parisian café, served coffee, tea, ice cream, and chocolate.

1778 is the year the first nougat factory was founded.

Macarons were invented in 1793.

1808 is the year brioche became a very popular pastry in Paris.

12 years later, the piping bag was invented.

In 1830 the ice cream machine was born.

The ganache was invented in 1850 by a Parisian confectioner.

In 1879 the first Christmas log was made by Charabot.

Candied chestnuts became a thing in 1882.

In 1890 tarte bourdaloue (French pear tart) was created.

In 1919 France decided to create professional courses for confectionary apprentices.

The first ice cream factory in France opened its doors in 1924.

French Pastries And Confectionary Characteristics

Now that you know the most important moments in the history of French pastry and confectionary, it is time to talk about what makes French pastry and confectionary so special. What’s the secret? Or is there a secret that the world doesn’t know?

You might have noticed that French pastries are very flaky and that’s because French cooks use a lot of butter to make them. Not to mention the fact that it takes a lot of time and effort to create that perfect flaky texture and amazing taste.  

Some French desserts such as chocolate mousse or fruit-based mousse are very fluffy and light but meringues can also be characterized as fluffy and light even though the texture is completely different.

French desserts are also creamy and rich and that’s usually because French confectioners know how to make the best custard cream.

The French desserts we love so much incorporate at least two of the characteristics mentioned above. Creating the amazing French pastries and confectionaries is a long process that takes several hours and it involves a lot of dedication and attention to details so you can say the secret lies in the technique and passion, not in the ingredients. We can also say that during all the centuries of experimenting with recipes and techniques, French confectioners discovered how to combine various textures and tastes to obtain the best pastry or the best dessert.

The Best French Pastries And Confectionaries

From amazing fruit desserts to decadent chocolate desserts and rich cream desserts, here are the best French pastries and confectionaries:

Crème Brûlée

Crème Brûlée is a very simple dessert if you look at the ingredients – vanilla custard and sugar toppings but, when you take a bite of a Crème Brûlée, simplicity is not the first word that comes to mind. The caramelized sugar on top makes this custard cream dessert so special and we are very thankful that French confectioners decided it’s a good idea to burn the custard in order to create this amazing dessert.

Recipe to try at home: Creme Brulee from Martha Stewart

Dacquoise

Layered desserts are very popular in the French pastry and confectionary world. Dacquoise is a layered cake made with layers of hazelnut-almond meringues, buttercream, and ganache. This cake is a chocolate heaven that tastes amazing and is very decadent, however, the texture is very light and airy despite the buttercream and the ganache.

Recipe to try at home: Hazelnut-Almond Dacquoise from Fine Cooking

Mille Feuille

Mille Feuille, also known as Napoleon, is another French layered dessert that is loved by numerous people. Mille Feuille is made with three layers of puff pastry filled with pastry cream, topped with almonds and a delicious icing. Whipped cream is sometimes used in mille feuille as well and so are other non-traditional ingredients such as cheese or fresh berries.

Recipe to try at home: Classic French Napoleon (Mille-Feuille) from Confessions of a Confectionista

Choux Pastry

Choux pastry is a wonderful pastry used in many French desserts. It is made with basic ingredients – flour, water, eggs, and, of course, butter. This is not the typical flaky French pastry, this pastry is more puffy than flaky and it is used for cream desserts such as choux à la crème, eclairs, and profiteroles.  

Recipe to try at home: Profiteroles from Jamie Oliver

Mousse

Whether we’re talking about fruit-based mousses or chocolate mousses, we have to admit that nothing beats the French mousses. The airy and fluffy texture of the mousse is the result of mixing together egg whites, sugar, and egg yolks. There’s no other secret even though you might think there is considering it is very hard to obtain the perfect texture. However, if you want to be able to make the perfect chocolate mousse or the perfect fruit mousse, you’ll have to learn how to whisk all the ingredients together – how fast to whisk, for how long to whisk, and how to know when to stop and when to whisk more.

Recipe to try at home: Indulgent Chocolate Mousse from Nicola, our foodie

Madeleines

The small butter cake shaped like shells are soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. They are the perfect treat to enjoy with tea or coffee.

Recipe to try at home: How To Make Classic French Madeleines from The Kitchn

Tarte Tatin

It is believed that Tarte Tatin was created by accident but this tart became the signature dessert of the Hotel Tatin. Traditionally, the amazing Tarte Tatin is made with caramelized apples, however, you can make this tart with pears as well.

Recipe to try at home: Pear Tatin from Anna, our foodie

If you want to explore the Parisian pastry and confectionary world, take a look at our A Foodie Guide To Paris' Best Patisseries article.