Patricia Austin began her lifetime love of baking as a young child helping her father make doughnuts. At age seventeen, she became a croissant maker, and later worked as pastry chef assistant to Jeffrey Hamelman in Brattleboro, Vermont. From 1989 to 1996, she co-owned and operated the Bread Tree Bakery in Keene, New Hampshire. In 2005, Patricia founded her cottage industry, Wild Flour Vermont Bakery. She also works as a baking consultant and recipe developer and tester. Her most recent projects include recipe testing for world-renowned pastry chef Pierre Herm's book Pierre HermMacarons, as well as dessert testing for the MasterChef series cookbooks. While Patricia follows a gluten-free diet, she continues to create both traditional and gluten-free French, European, and American-style pastries. She lives in southern Vermont.
“Pâtisserie Gluten Free is remarkable in many ways. First because it brings together in one place dozens of delectable cakes and pastries that have been painstakingly crafted by the hands of a dedicated chef (and thoroughly explained by her excellent and clear writing). Patricia presents us with an expansive array of flavors and textures, and in the aggregate these offer us the potential of months if not years of exploration in our kitchens as we savor the recipes.” —Jeffrey Hamelman, King Arthur Bakery director, from his foreword “Using all five senses, Patricia Austin is changing the way home cooks learn how to bake classic French favorites. Patricia’s knowledge of French pastry and her ability to adapt her recipes to a gluten-free format is not only brilliant, but also revolutionary! Having worked closely with Patricia on my own book, I know her attention to detail, and it shows clearly in the pages of this book.” —Shaun O’Neale, MasterChef Season 7 winner “This is a cookbook that every baker should have in their collection. Patricia’s work is beautiful and memorably delicious, and she has accomplished it all without gluten, gums, or GMOs!” —Laila Ali, world champion boxer, fitness and wellness expert, and television personality