The 68-Cent Costco Find My French Dad Can’t Live Without

Even though my dad immigrated from France more than thirty years ago, he’s held onto just about every French habit imaginable: watching the evening news from France at 7 p.m. sharp, arguing passionately about the proper way to make an omelet, and, of course, insisting on having a fresh baguette every single day.

That last one was always the trickiest, considering he lives in a Canadian suburb and not in France, where there’s a bakery on every corner. That is, until we discovered that Costco sells frozen Au Pain Dore Demi-Baguettes you can bake off at home whenever the craving hits.

They puff up beautifully in the oven, deliver that crackly crust, and smell like a Paris side street for about 15 glorious minutes.

Why My Dad Loves Au Pain Dore Demi-Baguettes

Baking up golden brown and shatteringly crisp on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside, these baguettes taste bakery-fresh every single time. My favorite way to enjoy them is straight from the oven, with butter melting into the cooling shell.

At $13.59 for a 20-count box, the math comes out to roughly 68 cents per baguette, putting them comfortably below what you’d typically pay at a French bakery, where tradition and competition keep prices hovering around the one-euro mark. 

Eating freshly baked bread, hot from the oven, with no effort on my part, is peak living. All you have to do is preheat your oven to 400°F, take a baguette straight from the freezer, and bake it for 10 to 15 minutes.

I also love that you don’t have to remember to defrost them the day or night before. They’re basically ready when you are, whether that’s right before lunch to eat with a bowl of soup or in the morning to accompany a plate of scrambled eggs. It feels like such a small, luxurious treat, with absolutely no extra work.

How To Enjoy Au Pain Dore Demi-Baguettes

There’s never a wrong time to eat a baguette, at least according to my dad. Sliced in half and stuffed with smelly cheese and cold cuts, it’s his idea of a perfect savory breakfast or an on-the-go lunch.

I prefer half a baguette as a perfect midday snack, smeared with a generous swipe of salted butter and whatever jam happens to be open in the fridge. When I want a little sweet treat, I layer a few slabs of good chocolate instead of jam, a traditional goûter, or afternoon snack in France.

Save a hunk of baguette to go along with every meal. It does double duty: part utensil, bringing crumbly salads to your face, and part cleaning tool, sopping up the last morsels of soups, stews, and sauces. No crumb wasted, no sauce left behind.

_{To learn more about our approach to product recommendations, see HERE.}