Paris Pastry Club: A collection of cakes, tarts, pastries and other indulgent recipes (17 page)

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, caster sugar, vanilla seeds and extract for a minute. Sprinkle with the flour mixture and whisk for another minute.

Take a third of this mix and whisk vigourously with the olive oil, until smooth, then fold back into the batter.

Scrape into the prepared tin and bake for 30–40 minutes or until golden-brown and the point of a knife inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool down slightly, then unmould.

THE ROASTED FIGS

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Arrange the figs, cut-side up on a baking tray and place a small piece of butter onto each. Drizzle with honey and bake for around 18 minutes. Set aside at room temperature.

THE CURD

Whisk all of the ingredients together for around 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Keep refrigerated until needed.

THE OLIVE OIL JELLY

Soak the gelatine leaves in ice-cold water.

Bring the water, sugar and glucose syrup to the boil in a small pan. Squeeze out the gelatine leaves, remove the pan from the heat and whisk in.

Slowly pour in the olive oil, whisking with a hand whisk or an immersion blender as you do so. Pour into a container and chill for at least a couple of hours.

THE TOASTED PINE NUTS

Heat a small frying pan over high heat. Add the pine nuts and cook until fragrant and golden, stirring at all times.

Take off the heat, add the olive oil and the salt, shake well and tip into a bowl to cool down.

TO SERVE

To serve, spoon a big dollop of goats’ cheese curd onto the left-hand side of 4 dessert plates and use a spoon to drag it around the edge of the plate. Arrange 3 roasted fig halves on the curd.

Use your fingers – because that’s how it should always be – to crumble the cake into rough 4 cm (1½ in) pieces and place 3 pieces and some crumbs onto the plate. Sprinkle with a small handful of pine nuts. Stir the olive oil jelly to loosen it and spoon little dollops here and there.

AVOCADO &
CHILLI,
HORCHATA
FOAM

Serves 4

FOR THE CHOCOLATE ICE-CREAM

400 g (14 oz) whole milk

100 g (3½ oz) whipping cream

125 g (4 oz) caster (superfine) sugar

20 g (¾ oz) dehydrated glucose

20 g (¾ oz) skimmed-milk powder

5 g (¼ oz) ice-cream stabiliser

100 g (3½ oz) 70% dark chocolate

20 g (¾ oz) 100% dark chocolate

FOR THE AVOCADO CURD

2½ gelatine leaves

200 g (7 oz) whole milk

3 egg yolks

50 g (1¾ oz) caster (supefine) sugar

100 g (3½ oz) avocado flesh, roughly chopped

FOR THE CHILLI JAM

100 g (3½ oz) water

50 g (1¾ oz) glucose

1 red chilli, finely sliced

50 g (1¾ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

1 teaspoon jam pectin

a pinch of citric acid,

or a squeeze of lemon juice

FOR THE HORCHATA FOAM

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) whole milk

30 g (1 oz) caster (superfine) sugar

1 stick cinnamon

50 g (1¾ oz) pudding rice

100 g (3½ oz) whipping cream

TO SERVE

rice crispies

THE CHOCOLATE ICE-CREAM

Bring the milk and cream to 40°C (105°F) in a medium pan. In a small bowl, combine the caster sugar, dehydrated glucose, milk powder and stabiliser and sprinkle on the milk, whisking constantly. Bring to the boil, then pour over the chocolate. Stir well and transfer into a plastic container. Cover the surface with clingfilm and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight. Reserve a few tablespoons of the mix to brush on your dessert plates later. Churn the rest according to your ice-cream machine manufacturer’s instructions.

THE AVOCADO CURD

Soak the gelatine leaves in ice-cold water.

Bring the milk to the boil in a small pan. Mix the egg yolks and sugar until combined. When the milk has boiled, pour over the egg yolks, whisking as you do so, then transfer back into the pan and cook over low heat until it reaches 80°C (175°F) or the custard coats the back of a spoon.

Transfer to a bowl and add the squeezed gelatine leaves and the avocado flesh. Use a stick-blender to blitz until smooth and pipe into small half-sphere silicone moulds. Freeze overnight, then unmould and keep frozen until ready to use. Defrost an hour or 2 before serving.

THE CHILLI JAM

Place the water, glucose and chill in in a small pan, and bring to the boil over low heat. Turn the heat off and allow to rest for 30 minutes, with a lid on.

Combine the caster sugar and pectin and whisk into the chilli water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 3 minutes.

Off the heat, add the citric acid and transfer in a small jar. Chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.

THE HORCHATA FOAM

Place all of the ingredients except for the cream in a pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the cinnamon stick and blitz in a blender until smooth. Pass through a fine-mesh sieve, add the cream and allow to cool completely. Transfer to a canister. Charge with 2 cartridges of nitrogen and shake well. Keep in the fridge.

TO SERVE

Brush each plate with some of the reserved ice-cream mix. Arrange 2 half-spheres of avocado curd on each plate, together with a quenelle of ice-cream and a few dollops of foam. Dot with chilli jam and sprinkle with rice crispies.

ELDERFLOWER
SUMMER
PUDDING

Serves 6

FOR THE ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL

1.25 kg (2 lb 12 oz) water

250 g (9 oz) caster (superfine) sugar

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh elderflowers,

stems removed

200 g (7 oz) lemon juice

FOR THE ELDERFLOWER SORBET

280 g (10 oz) water

75 g (2½ oz) glucose syrup

100 g (3½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

100 g (3½ oz) dehydrated glucose

9 g (⅓ oz) sorbet stabiliser

900 g (2 lb)
Elderflower Cordial

FOR THE BERRY COMPOTE

200 g (7 oz) strawberries, halved

160 g (5½ oz) raspberries

120 g (4¼ oz) blackberries

80 g (2¾ oz) blueberries

100 g (3½ oz)
Elderflower Cordial

70 g (2½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

seeds from 1 vanilla pod

FOR THE SOAKING SYRUP

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) strawberries, hulled

50 g (1¾ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

FOR THE BRIOCHE BASE AND CUBES

1 Brioche (
The only brioche recipe you’ll ever need
)

200 g (7 oz) caster (superfine) sugar

THE ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL

Bring the water and sugar to a rolling boil in a large pan. Add the flowers and simmer for 5 minutes. Take off the heat, cover with a lid and infuse for a further 5 minutes.

Pour through a fine-mesh sieve, pushing the juices through. Allow to cool down to room temperature, then add the lemon juice. Keep in the fridge until needed.

THE ELDERFLOWER SORBET

Combine the water and glucose syrup in a large pan over medium heat and bring to 45°C (110°F). Combine the sugar, dehydrated glucose and stabiliser in a bowl and add to the water, whisking as you do so.

Bring to a rolling boil, then remove from the heat, add the elderflower cordial and mix well. Chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Churn according to your ice-cream machine manufacturer’s instructions and transfer to a plastic container. Freeze for a couple of hours before using.

THE BERRY COMPOTE

Bring all of the ingredients to the boil in a pan over low heat and simmer for 2–3 minutes.

Allow to cool to room temperature, then tip into a fine-mesh sieve (do not push through). Put the berries in a bowl and keep in the fridge until needed. Save the juices to add to the soaking syrup.

THE SOAKING SYRUP

Cook the strawberries and sugar in a large bowl set over a pan of simmering water on a low heat for 1 hour, stirring every now and then. Transfer to a sieve lined with muslin cloth and drain without pushing. Discard the strawberries and reserve the syrup.

Mix 150 g (5 oz) of the juices from the berry compote into the syrup and cool down.

THE BRIOCHE BASE

With a serrated knife, carefully slice away the crust from the brioche loaf and cut 6 x 2 cm (¾ in) slices. Cut the remaining brioche into 2 cm (¾ in) cubes – you'll need about 18 in total.

About 20 minutes before serving, add the slices of brioche to a dish of the soaking syrup, turning every few minutes to soak them evenly.

Meanwhile, heat a few tablespoons of sugar in a frying pan until it caramelises. Add a few brioche cubes to the pan and cook for a few minutes, turning to coat all sides in caramel. Transfer to a tray lined with baking paper and repeat with more sugar and more brioche cubes.

TO SERVE

Arrange a slice of brioche on each dessert plate. Carefully spoon on some berry compote and top with 3 cubes of caramelised brioche cubes. Finish with a quenelle of elderflower sorbet.

SALTED CARAMEL
& MILK CHOCOLATE
FLAN PÂTISSIER