Paris Pastry Club: A collection of cakes, tarts, pastries and other indulgent recipes (12 page)
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Authors: Fanny Zanotti
Tags: #ebook
This tart is one of my sister’s favourite desserts. One day, when I was still in Paris working for Pierre Hermé, I told her how good his lemon curd was. And as soon as I landed back in the south of France, guess what she asked me to make?
Since that day, I’ve been making lemon meringue tarts by the dozen. At times for the restaurant, most of the time for my sister, and each time using Pierre Hermé’s lemon curd (or crémeux citron).
Yes, it’s that good. Creamy to the point of no return, it melts in your mouth with the perfume of freshly squeezed lemons.
The base is not a pastry tart case, as you might have thought, but a crumbly shortbread base which makes for the perfect balance of creamy and crunchy.
Serves 10–12
FOR THE LEMON SHORTBREAD
100 g (3½ oz) butter, diced
40 g (1½ oz) icing (confectioner’s) sugar
1 egg yolk from a hard-boiled egg,
finely grated
zest of 2 lemons
100 g (3½ oz) plain (all-purpose) flour
2 tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch)
½ teaspoon sea salt
FOR THE LEMON CURD
200 g (7 oz) caster (superfine)sugar
finely grated zest of 3 lemons
4 large eggs
180 g (6⅓ oz) freshly squeezed lemon juice
(from 4–5 lemons)
300 g (10½ oz) unsalted butter,
at room temperature, cubed
FOR THE LEMON SPONGE
120 g (4¼ oz) ground almonds
80 g (2¾ oz) caster (supefine) sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch)
zest and juice of 1 lemon
FOR THE ITALIAN MERINGUE
2 egg whites
185 g (6⅓ oz) caster (superfine) sugar
5 g (¼ oz) dehydrated egg whites (optional)
50 g (2¾ oz) water
First make the shortbread. Cream the butter, icing sugar, egg yolk and lemon zest for a few minutes. Add the flours and salt, and mix until the dough just comes together.
Roll out the dough between 2 sheets of baking paper until it’s around 4 mm (¼ in) thick. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, or for up to 3 days.
To make the lemon curd, rub the sugar and lemon zest together between your fingers in a large heatproof bowl until it is moist and aromatic. Whisk in the eggs followed by the lemon juice.
Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring constantly with a spatula. Cook the lemon cream until it reaches 85°C (185°F). It will take a long time, so turn on the radio and stir away for around 20–30 minutes. As soon as it reaches temperature, remove the curd from the heat and allow to cool down to 60°C (140°F). Gradually incorporate the butter, whisking well after each addition.
When all the butter has been added, blitz the lemon curd using an immersion blender for 8–10 minutes. It might sound long, but it will give the cream a too-smooth-to-be-true texture.
Pour the curd into a container, lay clingfilm over the surface and refrigerate overnight, or for up to 3 days.
On the day you’re planning to serve your tart, preheat the oven to 160°C (320°F) and generously butter a 24 cm (9½ in) metal ring.
Lift the shortbread onto a baking tray, remove the top piece of paper and bake for 18–24 minutes or until golden-brown. Remove from the oven and immediately press the tart ring onto the shortbread to cut through. Leave to cool slightly, then trim the excess shortbread, leaving the tart ring in place.
While the shortbread base is cooling down, make the lemon sponge. Mix all the ingredients, except the lemon juice, in a large bowl until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a 9 mm (½ in) nozzle and pipe onto the shortbread in a spiral shape, starting from the centre and spiralling outwards to the edge.
Bake for 8 minutes, then cool down completely and gently lift the ring off. Using 2 palette knives, transfer the tart to a large plate. It will be very crumbly and fragile so take care.
Scrape the lemon cream into a plastic piping bag fitted with a 10 mm (½ in) nozzle and pipe the lemon curd on the shortbread in a spiral, as with the sponge, but this time leave a 1 cm (½ in) rim around the edge. Chill while you make the meringue.
Whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt in a stand-mixer on a slow speed until foamy, then add 35 g (1¼ oz) of the sugar, gradually increasing the speed until the mix holds soft peaks. Reduce the speed while you make the syrup.
Heat the water and remaining sugar to 115°C (240°F) in a small pan over a medium heat.
With the mixer still on slow to medium speed, pour the boiling syrup down the sides of the bowl to mix with the egg whites. Increase the speed and whisk until the bowl no longer feels hot to the touch.
Scrape the meringue into a plastic piping bag fitted with a 15 mm (⅔ in) nozzle and pipe on top of the lemon curd. Smooth into curls and peaks with a small palette knife.
Gently caramelise the meringue with a blowtorch.
The lemon tart will keep for a day in the fridge but is definitely best eaten on the day it’s made.
This is a classical entremet (dessert cake) that looks stunning with its many layers and grated chocolate topping. It’s a darling choice for birthdays as it’s so easy to make and will please your favourite chocoholics.
A flourless chocolate sponge is topped with three different kinds of chocolate mousse, and each mousse takes barely more than ten minutes to come together. The longest step is the chilling time. And the great thing is that you can make it way ahead of the big day as it will keep in the freezer for up to a month.
Serves 10 – 12 people
FOR THE SPONGE
120 g (4¼ oz) dark chocolate
60 g (2 oz) butter
2 eggs
100 g (3½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar
1 teaspoon ground almonds
FOR THE MOUSSES
550 g (1 lb 3 oz) whipping cream
FOR THE CRÈME ANGLAISE
270 g (10 oz) whole milk
6 egg yolks
60 g (2 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
FOR THE DARK CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
1⅓ gelatine leaves
⅓ batch Crème Anglaise (quantities above)
80 g (2¾ oz) 70% dark chocolate,
chopped into chunks
150 g (5 oz) chilled whipped cream
(see above)
FOR THE MILK CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
1½ gelatine leaves
⅓ batch crème Anglaise (quantities above)
80 g (2¾ oz) 40% milk chocolate,
chopped into chunks
190 g (6¾ oz) chilled whipped cream
(see above)
FOR THE WHITE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
2 gelatine leaves
⅓ batch Crème Anglaise (quantities above)
80 g (2¾ oz) white chocolate,
chopped into chunks
190 g (6¾ oz) chilled whipped cream
(see above)
TO SERVE
100 g (3½ oz) 70% dark chocolate,
finely grated
Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F). Line a baking tray with baking parchment.
First make the sponge. Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water and set aside.
Whisk the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the ground almonds, then gently fold in the melted chocolate using a rubber spatula. Pour the batter onto the prepared baking tray and spread into a 1 cm (½ in) thick rectangle.
Bake for 8 minutes. Allow to cool down on a wire rack, then freeze for at least 1 hour well wrapped in clingfilm.
Once frozen, remove from the freezer and gently peel off the baking paper. Press a 22 cm (9½ in) metal ring onto the sponge to cut through it. Place the metal ring onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper and line the ring with a strip of rhodoid (or strips of baking parchment). Arrange the sponge disk in the bottom and place back in the freezer.
Now make the mousses. Start by whisking the whipping cream to soft peaks and keep it in the fridge while you make the crème anglaise. This way you’ll have a supply of ready-whipped cream to add to each mousse.
The method is the same for each mousse. Place each type of chopped chocolate in a large bowl and set aside.
Soak the gelatine leaves in 3 separate bowls of ice-cold water (see
soaked gelatine in 3 easy steps
) while you make the crème anglaise.
Bring the milk to the boil in a small pan. Combine the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and when the milk has boiled, slowly pour it over the egg mixture, whisking as you go. Pour the mixture back into the pan and cook over a low heat until the anglaise thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon or the temperature reaches 80°C (175°F) on a probe.
Pour the hot crème anglaise onto the chocolate and whisk until smooth and shiny.
Squeeze out each portion of gelatine leaves and add to the 3 different chocolate crème anglaise mixtures. Stir until incorporated.
From this point, continue to make each mousse one by one. Start with the dark chocolate crème, and keep the other two set over barely simmering water to ensure they stay warm (at around 36°C/97°F).
Measure out 150 g (5 oz) of the chilled whipped cream and gently fold into the dark chocolate crème using a whisk. When the mousse seems smooth, finish folding with a spatula then scrape it onto the frozen sponge in the prepared ring. Tap the tray gently on a work surface to even out the surface. Return to the freezer for at least 30 minutes before continuing.