As a sort-of celebrity baker Ptak is webbed across continents and industries; what seems like name-dropping can also be true to the author’s experience. Harry and Meghan’s wedding cake baker Claire Ptak at the Love is a Pink Cake launch party at Rochelle Canteen Marco Bahler

Delightful . . . Claire has also given us a very delicious recipe for a dessert of muscat wine and raspberries, which I have already bookmarked for my own Easter lunch.--Nigel Slater "Guardian" Ptak grew up in California and was Chez Panisse trained. She's a seasonal baker and an artist. An endearing reference to Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cookbook with illustrations by Warhol. I love that Vanderbilt book just for the illustrations alone.Claire Ptak's recipes are generous, intuitive, and beautiful. This is a celebration of life, and the bounty of the earth. You will feel as though an old friend is taking you by the hand and teaching you how to make the perfect fluffy blueberry muffin. Pull up a chair. Claire is the friend everybody needs in their life.--Laila Gohar Stir in the chopped almonds, flour and baking powder just to combine. Dollop this over the jam—don’t worry about spreading it evenly as it will melt into place in the oven and spreading it can cause the jam to get mixed in rather than remaining its own layer. Return to the oven for 30-40 minutes, or until golden and set. Allow to cool for 20 minutes. Ptak’s love for nature’s bounty shines through in this collection for fans of farm-to-table baking." Booklist - Jessica S. Levy The story behind one of the most influential restaurants in the world, situated in the picturesque Aubrac region of France

When ready to finish the cake, unwrap it, turn out onto a turntable or cake plate and cover the top and sides with the remaining coconut icing, then lightly press desiccated coconut to cover. Indispensable . . . Not only is Ptak’s book compelling—her baking is excellent." Eater - Rachel P. Kreiter Add half of the dry flour mixture to the creamed butter and sugar and mix well. Then add the coconut milk and vanilla and mix again. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the remaining dry ingredients to the bowl. Mix well to incorporate all of the ingredients, but do not overmix or this will make your cake tough.For royal watchers, Claire Ptak will forever be known as the London-based California ex-pat who made the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding cake : an Amalfi lemon and Sandringham elderflower confection adorned with clusters of peonies. And yet the Violet Cakes founder had established a reputation in food circles for revolutionizing the world of baking with her seasonal approach to ingredients long before 2018. As she prepares to release her latest cookbook , Love Is A Pink Cake , Vogue caught up with Ptak about cutting her teeth at Chez Panisse, falling for British baked goods, and why she takes a West Coast mentality with her wherever she goes. Claire is my favourite baker. I know so many of these recipes will become favourites baked again and again. A Violet recipe always works perfectly. Anna Jones, author of 'One: Pot, Pan, Planet' In her follow-up cookbook to Salad for President, artist, chef, and social media star Julia Sherman explores how artists entertain, with recipes and ideas for inspired get-togethers Whether it's for ourselves, to show love for a child, friend or partner, or to celebrate a rite of passage, there is no denying the incredible effect that cakes can have. Claire Ptak has been running her West-London bakery, Violet Cakes, for nearly two decades, using her harvest-led philosophy to create incredibly flavourful and beautiful cakes, puddings and savoury treats.

I know that all I’ve pretty much done is shout recipe titles at you, but it’s hard to temper my excitement, and I’m not sure I’d ever want to. I regard the happiness I get from Love is a Pink Cake as a real gift, and I’m so grateful to Claire Ptak for it. It remains for me to do no more than tell you that the recipe I’m sharing with you today is her mother’s Lemon Meringue Pie Bars. Love Is a Pink Cake offers glimpses of Ms. Ptak’s personality, as well as of her personal life . . . Rich in color (a pistachio-green plum cake with candied violets) and texture." New York Times - Emilia Petrarca For the topping, beat the butter and sugar together until creamy but not fluffy. Add the extracts, salt, eggs and egg white, then beat well. Because not only is Ptak’s book compelling — her baking is excellent. Violet sells the best birthday cake in London, at least to a Chicagoan born in July with a raspberry buttercream preference; the rye brownies in her last book have become my go-to, along with its flourless chocolate cake. What’s in Pink Cake is more specific, less twist-on-a-staple and more out-there (for a given value of “there”): Find not one but two riffs on traditional British summer pudding, or a standard coffee-walnut with Fernet in both the cake and the frosting. Ptak, a Northern Californian who was a pastry chef at Chez Panisse before moving to London, started off selling cakes from an East London market stall and opened her cafe, Violet, in 2010. In key ways, Ptak and her bakery typify an East London style that I’ve been describing to my friends for the past year. It’s a post-industrial space softened by the memory of a country house you’ve never been to: a little gingham and a lot of linen; terra-cotta pottery; dried flowers; sponge painting; enamelware; natural wine; white-washing; candlelight. The food in this paradigm, especially as shot for Love Is a Pink Cake, is unfussy, neutrally and pastel-colored, and showcases big, ripe hunks of whichever fruit’s now in season, all arrayed in rustic interiors nobody’s swept up before the shoot.From simple sweets to complex confections, create dazzling desserts with this beautifully illustrated chocolate cookbook from a baking "legend" ( New Yorker). Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/200°C/400°F/ gas mark 6. Butter and line an 18×30cm (7×12in) baking tin with baking paper.

Read More Chef Ruth Rogers and photographer Matthew Donaldson on breaking new ground with The River Cafe Look Book Claire's desserts are more than just a conclusion to a great meal; they're bites of special memories for me . . . Her cakes have been at the center of some of our most cherished family moments.--Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex "New York Times" This ravishing trove of recipes and baker's lore is a testament to years of practice and endeavour ... a marvellous achievement Jeremy Lee, author of 'Cooking' It’s the transferable wisdom that makes Love Is A Pink Cake invaluable . . . And you will find that even the classics—yellow sheet cake with chocolate frosting, treacle tart with whipped cream—can be improved upon by following Ptak’s advice." Vogue - Hayley MaitlandClaire Ptak is the coolest girl I know. She makes baking sexy ... in a wolrd of saccharine this is the antidote Fiona Leahy London's East End meets Northern California in 75 indulgent bakes from the author of The Violet Bakery Cookbook. Love Is a Pink Cake offers glimpses of Ms. Ptak's personality, as well as of her personal life . . . Rich in color (a pistachio-green plum cake with candied violets) and texture.--Emilia Petrarca "New York Times" It is auspicious (if not intentional) timing that both Claire Ptak’s Love Is a Pink Cake and a revised and updated reissue of Mary Berry’s Baking Bible are now out in the U.S., right on the heels of the coronation of the earnest if stilted King Charles III. The two books, published within a week of each other, are authored by ambassadors of British baking, representative perhaps more so of the idea of it than individual recipes — although they both have some great ones, and Pink Cake in particular is indispensable. Not to say this undermines the book. For a hobby baker wanting to sharpen my skills, the challenge is part of the allure. Meanwhile, other recipes offer failsafe reliability. A Big Sur cookie uses up leftover granola; it’s not only a great cookie, but an exciting paradigm: Any recipe using up the dregs of my cupboard is a winner, and the final product will vary greatly by granola. Ptak’s bakewell bars are buttery, nutty, and laced with tart jam. They cut beautifully, look great on a stand, and make a traybake out of the most British possible tart. It was Violet that first opened my eyes to the potential of bakewell, a U.K. bakery case staple that can be stodgy, gummy, or bland. These, on the other hand, are now on my roster, along with those rye brownies.