Malone Global University organizes pastry study around nine clear, practice-focused categories. This expanded system bridges classical French technique with global pastry traditions so students learn both how pastries are made and why they behave the way they do. Each category below includes a short definition, curriculum focus (what students learn), and representative examples. Category links point to the corresponding MGU pastry section where available.
Definition: Doughs built by repeated folding and butter incorporation to create many thin layers that puff and separate when baked.
Curriculum focus: lamination technique, dough temperature control, butter quality, rolling and bench work.
Examples: croissants, Danish, pain au chocolat, palmiers, mille-feuille, kouign-amann.
Definition: Non-laminated sweet and savory pastry shells (pâte brisée, pâte sucrée, pâte sablée) used to contain creams, custards, and fillings.
Curriculum focus: dough binding, blind-baking, creams & custards, tart assembly, and plating.
Examples: fruit tarts, cream tarts, custard tartlets, frangipane tarts, flan pâtissier, cheesecakes, pastéis de nata.
Definition: A water-and-egg based paste (pâte à choux) that puffs by steam to form hollow shells suitable for filling.
Curriculum focus: mixing to the correct consistency, piping, baking and drying, filling techniques, and sugar work for assembly.
Examples: éclairs, profiteroles, cream puffs, Paris-Brest, religieuse, croquembouche, St. Honoré.
Definition: Extremely thin layered dough (phyllo/filo) and related rolled/laminated techniques used across Mediterranean & Middle Eastern cuisines.
Curriculum focus: handling delicate sheets, layering with fats and syrups, working with nut and custard fillings, cultural context.
Examples: baklava, galaktoboureko, börek, spanakopita, and other filled phyllo specialties.
Definition: Quick or laminated-style puff pastry items and portable, convenience-style pastries for retail and home baking.
Curriculum focus: quick puff handling, assembly for retail presentation, filling/storing, scaling recipes for production.
Examples: turnovers, hand pies, vol-au-vents, strudels (when prepared in puff-like technique).
Definition: Yeasted doughs enriched with butter, eggs, and sugar that sit between bread and pastry in texture and flavor.
Curriculum focus: fermentation control, dough enrichment, shaping, proofing, and enriched pastry laminations (brioche, levée feuilletée).
Examples: brioche swirls, brioche à tête, kolaches, cinnamon rolls, sticky buns.
Definition: Pastry and dough items cooked by frying rather than baking; often eaten warm or freshly finished.
Curriculum focus: frying techniques, oil management, dough hydration and proofing for fried products, safety and sanitation.
Examples: beignets, bomboloni, churros, doughnuts and regional fried specialties.
Definition: Desserts and pastry elements built around whipped egg whites (meringue) used as shells, components, or toppings.
Curriculum focus: meringue types (French, Swiss, Italian), stability and sugar cookery, finishing/torch techniques, cold desserts.
Examples: pavlova, meringue nests, lemon meringue tart, Baked Alaska.
Definition: A sturdy, pliable pastry made by blending hot water and fat into flour — traditionally used for molded savory pies.
Curriculum focus: dough temperature and shaping for molded pies, sealing, savory fillings, and long-shelf pastry construction.
Examples: pork pies, traditional molded meat pies, and other hot-water crust savory pastries.
Teaching note: this taxonomy is intentionally technique-and-dough driven so students learn transferable skills (lamination, choux, meringue, phyllo handling, etc.) while also covering regional and product diversity.