This week over at French Fridays with Dorie we are celebrating Dorie’s birthday by baking treats from her soon to be released book, Baking Chez Moi. I chose to make the Palet des Dames, Lille Style, because I haven’t made cookies in such an awfully long time and these looked just adorable.
As so often happens in the kitchen, my mind started to wander as I was whipping up the 
dough for these cookies and I found myself thinking back over the past 4 years of cooking through Dorie’s wonderful cookbook, Around my French Table, and all of the recipes, techniques, and handy tips that I have learned. But above all of them, the key lesson which I have taken away is just to be bolder in the kitchen. There have been so many recipes in the book which I would have been previously too intimidated to make on my own. Too many steps, too many ingredients, too complicated, whatever the reason, I did it anyway, I was bold and I was rewarded with so many delicious meals. And those who know me well will confirm that the way to my heart is absolutely through my stomach;-)
So, Happy Birthday Dorie! From one expat to another (at least part time from what I understand), thanks for all the delicious recipes and for being such a good sport. I cannot imagine how it must feel to have a whole group of strangers picking their way through your years of hard work, fussing every time we encounter an unloved ingredient. But in all honesty, I’ve loved this book and thanks to you my cooking skills have improved and my larder is now stocked with pistachio oil, cardamom pods, and puffed pastry.
The Palets des Dames were easy and adictive. But I’m not the only one celebrating Dorie’s birthday this week. Check out the below links to see what my fellow Doristas are whipping up.
- Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
- Adriana from Great Food 360º
- Gaye from Laws of the Kitchen
- Sanya from Kitchen Therapy
- Mardi from eat.live.travel.write
- Kathy from Bakeaway with Me
- Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva
- Tricia and Nana from Tricia and Nana Cooking with Dorie
- Katie from Prof Who Cooks
Chocolate Cream Puffs with Mascarpone Filling
- Mardi from eat.live.travel.write
- Cher from The Not So Exciting Adventures of a Dabbler
- Kathy from Bakeaway with Me
- Tammy from Chez Nous
- Mary from Lights on Bright No Brakes
- Betsy from A Plateful of Happiness
- Teresa from One Wet Foot
- Diane from Cafe Mom Cooks
- Susan from Create Amazing Meals
- Emily from Emily’s Cooking Foray
- Eileen from Cookbook Immersion Project
- Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva
- Cher from The Not So Exciting Adventures of a Dabbler
- Teresa from One Wet Foot
- Margaret from Tea and Scones
- Alice from A Mama, Baby & Shar-Pei in the Kitchen
one expat's life 
Lovely post and a wonderful last picture, very lovely plate up! Envy you the perfect icing!
I never thought about how it must feel to have strangers picking through and opining about your life’s work. Yikes. haha. Loved these cookies over here, too. (and I love your rooster jars).
I totally need to make these cookies – they look lovely! And yes, Dorie has been an exceptional sport as folks have worked their way through two books and are about to embark on a third!
What a terrific tribute to Dorie and our group! Your cookies look perfect!!! xo
Beautiful cookies, Rose! And a fabulous tribute to Dorie! I love the charming view from your kitchen window and those very cute canisters! Happy Friday!
These look perfect, Rose. I really think the book is wrong (or I can’t read) because I iced the flat side and they don’t look as nice as yours. Hasn’t this book been a growing experience? (And I love that your husband was chatting with the duck in your fridge!)
I hadn’t baked cookies in a while, either, so I decided to do two recipes (I couldn’t pass up the tourte, since there were still BC peaches around when I made it). I love your tribute to Dorie, too. She’s a wonderfully generous person.
You are right – these cookies are just adorable!
What nice thoughts you shared with us and with Dorie. You’re right about it all but you forgot to add “rosewater” – what to do with it??? Your tea cookies are perfect and just the right size. I made mine a little large, at first. They are such sweet tiny cookies. I will make these again and again. Just delicious and, as we both know, additive.
Beautiful looking cookies! I love how bright and fresh your kitchen looks too. Great expression of our gratitude to Dorie for making our kitchens better places and improving our skills!
I love your very real photo on how I cook most of these days – tablet or laptop propped in the counter. Very twenty-first century! Thank you for that great retrospective of the last four years, and the experience of growing as a home cook through AMFT.
Palets for the win, it seems! I can’t wait to bake my own batch soon.
Your cookies look picture perfect Rose!
So many times I’ve thought there’s no way I’m going to pull this recipe off and then it all comes together beautiful (ok, sometimes it’s just tragic!) but always there’s a sense of satisfaction and achievement that makes it all worthwhile 🙂
Great photos!
your cookies look so happy and perfect! 🙂 We all have grown to be more bold in the kitchen and sure of ourselves now since the beginning of AMFT I think! What a great thing to be addicted to!
A wonderful post, I agree, there were times I would look at a recipe and say No Way, but it
turns out delicious. Your cookies are gorgeous, I definitely want to make them for Christmas,
I think it will be a lovely addition.
Loved your cookies (I am SO making these next…..) and loved the sentiments about FFWD. I too have wondered how Dorie must feel to have a group effectively critiquing her each week on blogs and Facebook. Thankfully her skills and her book on so wonderful !! It has been quite and adventure and I am so delighted to have met you through this online adventure. –Tricia
Your cookies do look perfect. I couldn’t agree with you more about Around My French Table and all the new techniques.
Rose, this is such a lovely post! Everything looks so relaxing and delightful. You are so right about this journey. And I haven’t really thought about how brave one must be to have such a thorough critique of your work (4-1/2 years of many comments every week!!), I’m sure some days wonderful, others… but it has been wonderful so far. Oh, and I made these too. Loved them. I still have more batter in the freezer. Oh to have time to bake them!!
I often wonder what Dorie must think about having her work so picked over – you have to be 1) a good sport and 2) pretty brave to be so exposed.
Great post and sweet cookies 🙂
XO