Claire Saffitz

Claire Saffitz is an American pastry chef, cookbook author, and video creator. She gained widespread public recognition while serving as a senior food editor and video host at Bon Appétit magazine. There, she created and starred in the popular web series Gourmet Makes, in which she reverse-engineered commercially produced snack foods and candies into elevated homemade versions.

Saffitz earned an undergraduate degree in history and literature from Harvard University in 2009. She subsequently pursued culinary training in Paris at the École Grégoire-Ferrandi and studied history at McGill University, specializing in culinary history and French food history. Joining Bon Appétit in 2013, she worked extensively in the test kitchen before transitioning to freelance work and digital video production.

Following her departure from Bon Appétit, Saffitz launched her own independent YouTube channel, Dessert Person. She has authored two bestselling cookbooks: Dessert Person: Recipes and Guidance for Baking with Confidence (2020), which won the IACP Julia Child First Cookbook Award, and What's for Dessert: The Easy-Going Guide to Every Dessert You Want to Make (2022). She also frequently contributes recipe content to New York Times Cooking and other culinary publications.