Archi Fondant: Coulant, Fondant, Degoulinant, 50 Recettes qui ont du Coeur

After exploring pastry through the lens of texture in his first book, Architextures, Paris-based pâtissier Aurélien Cohen turns his attention to a singular obsession: fondant in all its forms. Or almost all. (What’s missing is the fondant icing which drapes cakes.)

Here, Cohen emphasizes fillings and toppings which resemble something molten or melting. This volume is as design-forward and technically sharp as his first, with 50 clearly structured recipes that demonstrate the various degrees of melt, drip, and ooze that define great pastry today.

The recipes are grouped by type of fondant effect, with some examples listed below:

• Coulant (molten): a praline-filled brioche or an intricate entremets called Fleur d’Orient, which incorporates an orange-flower ganache

• Dégoulinant (dripping): a choco-hazlenut flan or rhubarb-streaked cruffins

• Fondant (soft and yielding): including caramel peanut cookies and chocolate-coated vanilla bears

• Crémeux (creamy): with examples like a mocaccino cream puff and a hazelnut tart

• Compotée (jammy/compote-style): such as a rum baba with tropical fruit or raspberry croissants

With lush photography and highly detailed instructions, Archi Fondant builds on Cohen’s architectural approach to pastry: refined, playful, and rich in both technique and visual identity.

A book for pastry lovers who think about mouthfeel as much as flavor.

Hardcover. Color photographs and drawings throughout. In French.