Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy Recipe

My favorite cake that Romain makes is the Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy recipe, a cake created by Pierre Hermé’s friend Suzy Palatin. I’ll be the first person to admit that I’m an occasional dessert eater. I much prefer savory foods to sweet, but this cake is addictive – it really is one of the best French chocolate cakes ever.

Romain first made the Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy at my going away party before I moved to Paris. We drove all around Dallas searching for the exact kind of chocolate that Romain needed. I think he was being especially picky as it was the first time he was baking for my friends and family, but nothing at the grocery stores was up to his standards.

Finally we went to Chocolate Secrets, a specialty chocolate shop that I’d been to before for a chocolate making class. It must’ve been Romain’s French accent, because they thought he was an actual chef and let us go upstairs to the kitchen to pick out our chocolate. In Romain’s defense, the quality of the chocolate is important for this recipe.

The cake was a huge hit. I couldn’t get over how it stayed so good and so moist for days after he baked it. It completely deserves the title of the best French chocolate cake.

I thought it would be the perfect cake to make for our Easter Sunday in Normandy, especially since the ingredients and equipment required are simple and minimal.

Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy Ingredients

• 70% Cacao Dark Chocolate
• Sugar
• Unsalted Butter
• Eggs
• Flour

Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy Equipment

• Parchment paper
• Round cake pan
• Whisk (even better an electric mixer)
• A food scale
• A metal cooling rack (or an extra oven rack)

Baking has always been a little intimidating to me because it’s so precise. The first time I ever used a food scale was with this recipe and it’s made baking and cooking breads and doughs (and homemade butter tortillas) so much easier. I use this inexpensive food scale from Amazon.

The only other thing to know about this Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy recipe is that the eggs and butter need to be at room temperature, so remember to get those out before you start baking!

How to Make the Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy

Start by preheating the oven to 180°C (355°F). Butter your cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Afterwards, butter the top of the parchment paper and set aside.

Chop or break the chocolate into smaller pieces. Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler (as you can see we made our own). I think using the stove is always the best option, but you can also use the microwave. Set it aside and let it cool – it should be barely warm to the touch when you mix it with the remaining ingredients.

If you have an electric mixer use it. If not, get a fairly large bowl and whisk together the butter and sugar. You’ll mix until the mixture is creamy and smooth and the sugar is completely incorporated with the butter.

Afterwards, mix in the eggs one at a time. You’ll whisk each egg for about a minute – set a timer if you need to. The mixture will become grainy which is normal.

If you’re using an electric mixer, reduce the speed to the minimum. Pour in the cooled chocolate and mix until it incorporates. Keeping with the same low speed, add in the flour. Mix until it just disappears from the batter, but don’t over-mix. You want a thick, smooth batter.

Pour the batter into the cake pan and smooth the top using a rubber spatula. Bake the cake for 25 to 30 minutes. The top of the cake might crack a little and the cake might not look fully baked in the center which is fine. You can test doneness of the cake by sticking a knife blade in the center – you want the knife to come out with a little bit of the batter.

Use a wire rack to cool the cake while it’s still in the cake pan. Once the cake has cooled down, put it in the refrigerator for an hour or two to chill. This will make it easier to get it out of the pan. We didn’t do this step on Easter Sunday because we didn’t have time and it was fine.

When you’re ready to take the cake out of the pan you can use two plates. Put the cake pan upside down on a plate, remove the parchment paper, and put another plate on top. Turn that over and you’ll be good to go. If you chilled the cake, let it return to room temperature before cutting and serving.

Let me know what you think if you make the Pierre Hermé Gâteau Suzy recipe…aka the best ever French chocolate cake!

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