Like most of my friendships with fellow Americans in Paris, Amanda Bankert (founder and pastry chef of Boneshaker Paris, a hub for the best donuts and coffee in town) and I can't remember the exact moment we met, but we had too much in common to not be friends. A couple happy hour Aperol Spritzes could fuel endless book ideas, young American in Paris horror stories and lots of baking geekery.
Fast-forward to now and Amanda's debut cookbook Voilà Vegan: 85 Decadent, Secretly Plant-Based Desserts from an American Pâtisserie in Paris will be hitting non-evil bookstores near you on August 22nd! You better preorder. Amanda kindly tasked me to illustrate it and let me go nuts merging Marie-Antoinette and pigeons to my heart's desire.
I asked Amanda a few Qs about her own creative process and how France has challenged her to stay competitive and keep evolving.
Q: Amanda, you first convinced Parisians to love donuts. Then you secretly switched to vegan donuts. What inspired this radical up-taking? Frenchies don't like being taken for a fool.
A: Frenchies don't like being taken for a fool, but sometimes they need a little convincing to try new things! While I was experimenting with recipes to transition the bakery to being 100% plant-based, I noticed that our customers were less likely to order something if I told them it was vegan beforehand. So I (somewhat sneakily) just stopped mentioning it, to see if anyone noticed. We have a very vocal client base, and I knew that if they noticed the donuts tasted differently, I would HEAR ABOUT IT, haha (which is great!) I took my time, working on one recipe at a time, until I felt like each vegan version was indistinguishable from the original - and then I would swap it out.
Around 2019 I started learning more about animal agriculture and realized that continuing to consume animal products really didn't align with my personal beliefs. So I went vegan - and as soon as I made the switch, I got to work making sure that Boneshaker would quickly follow suit. It was imperative to me that the quality of the pastries remained consistent, so I developed my vegan alternatives with the goal being that they taste identical to the traditional versions. And then I wrote a book about it!
Q: Can you talk about your creative process as a pastry chef? Does it feel like a lightning bolt? Or a memory flashback that takes you to another time or place? Or something that happens while your hands are active in the kitchen? Is your creativity something you need to nourish or does it come naturally?
A: It depends!! A lot of my flavors are riffs on food flashbacks. For example, I just did a 4th of July collaboration with Fou de Patisserie (a pastry shop and magazine here in Paris) and I turned my childhood summers visiting farmer stands at the Jersey shore into a donut: filled with corn pastry cream and dipped in a fresh blueberry glaze. Anyone who's spent time in southern New Jersey knows the corn and blueberries are the best! Our cherry pie donut is based on my teenage fondness of packaged vending machine cherry pies. The Breakfast in Bed donut (orange, chocolate, and coffee) was inspired by the classic Parisian café breakfast of orange juice, a pain au chocolat, and an espresso. Fluffernutters (peanut butter and marshmallow) are based on the sandwiches that my Uncle Pat used to make me when I'd visit my mom's family in Massachusetts.
Sometimes, though, I just have an idea of flavors that will work well together: raspberry, sriracha, & white chocolate, for example. This combo became our Valentine's Day donut, the "Love Pump" - inspired by Nigel Tufnel from the movie Spinal Tap. So I guess it's fair to say I get inspiration from a lot of different sources.
Q: I know you have a background in art history. What importance does beauty have in your daily life? Why did you want to include watercolor illustrations in your book Voila Vegan. And what do they add to your narrative?
A: Beauty plays a significant role in my daily life - I'm a Libra, darling! As an art historian, I am obsessed with aesthetic expressions and their historical context - heavy on the history part. I chose to include your gorgeous illustrations in my book "Voilà Vegan" because I knew you would perfectly capture my vibe: a mix of 18th century opulence, vintage Americana, and a little punk rock. And I was right! Your illustrations are the perfect complement to the photos and recipes. Marie Antoinette & co with pastries as headwear?! I'm in heaven!! I wanted to transport readers to "my" Paris, and you nailed it.
Thank you Amanda!
Preorder Voila Vegan here. And add Boneshaker to your Paris destination list.