Pie and Pastry Bible (149 page)

To check the consistency:
When it is tepid, a small amount of glaze should mound a bit on the surface when dropped from a spoon before smoothly disappearing.
If the glaze is too thick and the mound remains on the surface, or if the glaze seems curdled, warm the remaining ¼ cup of cream and add it by the tablespoon.

FILL AND GLAZE THE PUFFS

Preferably no more than 3 hours ahead, use a pastry bag fitted with a long Bismarck or number 12 (¼-inch) round tube to pipe filling through the slit or hole into the hollow center of each cream puff. Then dip the tops of puffs into the chocolate glaze. They can be eaten immediately, or after the glaze sets (about 1 hour). Refrigeration dulls the glaze slightly.

FILL AND GLAZE THE ÉCLAIRS

Use a pastry bag fitted with a number 6 (½-inch) tube (or a teaspoon) to fill each one with a scant ¼ cup of filling. Place the filled éclairs on a rack over a sheet pan and pour the tepid glaze over them. They can be eaten immediately, or after the glaze sets (about 1 hour). Refrigeration dulls the glaze slightly.

FILL AND GLAZE THE PROFITEROLES

Use a serrated knife to split them horizontally in half. Use a small scoop or spoon to fill them with the ice cream. Place in bowls and drizzle the hot glaze on top.

STORE

If filled with pastry cream or ganache, room temperature, up to 3 hours; refrigerated, up to 2 days. Both éclairs and profiteroles are the crispest within 3 hours of being made, but they are still delicious even after the pastry softens.

NOTE

For profiteroles filled with ice cream, it’s preferable to use the full amount of cream and pour the sauce over the filled puffs while it is still hot.

GÂTEAU ST.-HONORÉ

T
his triumph of French classic pastry consists of a disc of puff pastry topped with a ring of caramel-glazed cream puffs that have been filled with Chiboust pastry cream. This was the grand finale of my baking classes—the perfect lesson, because it teaches so many of the basic pastry components: puff pastry, cream puff pastry, pastry cream perfumed with Grand Marnier, caramel, and spun sugar. The contrast of textures—flaky, crunchy, soft, and creamy—makes
this the most thrillingly complex of any pastry. The piped spiral of cream puff pastry, set on top of the puff pastry disc in the center of the cream puff halo, is an idea I learned from a course in France at LeNôtre’s pastry school in Plaisir. It is a lovely architectural addition to the gâteau, appreciated only when it is served and the round open cross sections of the spiral coil, surrounded by pastry cream, become apparent.

This is the dessert to make for your grandest, most elegant dinner party. The puff pastry, cream puff pastry, and pastry cream can all be prepared well ahead, but the final assembly of filling the puffs, dipping them in caramel, shaping the gâteau, and making the optional spun sugar, which takes about thirty minutes, is best performed no more than two to three hours before serving. This makes it ideal for couples who cook together. One can attend to the appetizer and main course while the other completes the dessert.

The optional spun sugar is pure fantasy, but don’t make it unless the weather is dry, as heat and humidity cause it to evaporate.

EQUIPMENT

A heavy pizza pan or a rectangular baking sheet at least 10 inches wide; a 10-inch cake pan; a second large baking sheet for the puffs, line with parchment or greased and floured; and a pastry bag, a number 6 (½-inch) plain round pastry tube, a Bismarck tube or a number 12 (¼-inch) round tube, and a number 7 large star pastry tube

Make the puff pastry dough (page 417 or 420) and the cream puff dough (page 530).

ROLL AND BAKE THE PUFF PASTRY BASE

On a well-floured surface, roll the puff pastry into a 9½-inch square about 3/16 inch thick, rolling evenly from the center out in all directions. Move the pastry occasionally to be sure it is not sticking and flour the surface if necessary. Push in the corners and roll the pastry into a 10-inch circle.

Spray or brush the pizza pan or heavy baking sheet with water to prevent distortion and transfer the dough to it. Cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it until firm, at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the lowest level before preheating.

Remove the plastic wrap and prick the dough all over with a fork. For even rising, grease the bottom of a cake pan or sheet pan at least 10 inches in diameter and place it on top of the pastry. If using classic puff pastry, evenly distribute some metal pie weights or beans in the pan as additional weight. (Don’t use too many, as the object is not to keep the pastry from rising completely but just to keep it from rising excessively yet allowing it to remain tender and very flaky.)

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the cake pan and continue baking for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Open the oven door and bake for another 5 minutes with the oven door propped open with a wooden spoon. Then turn off the oven, leaving the door propped open, and leave the pastry in it for 15 minutes to dry the center layers. Remove it to a wire rack to cool, then wrap airtight until ready to use.

FORM AND BAKE THE CREAM PUFF PASTRY HALO, SPIRAL, AND PUFFS

Preheat the oven to 425°F. at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the middle level before preheating.

Measure the baked puff pastry round and cut a piece of parchment the same diameter. Using a few dabs of the cream puff pastry as adhesive, attach the parchment round to the baking sheet.

Have a glass of water and small metal spatula or knife nearby. Fill the pastry bag fitted with the ½-inch tube with cream puff pastry and pipe a circle just inside the edge of the parchment for the halo. Dip the spatula in water, cut off the end of the pastry, and smooth together the break where it begins and ends.

Pipe a spiraled coil of pastry inside the halo, at least ½ inch away, so that during baking the expanding dough will not connect.

Use the remaining cream puff pastry to pipe puffs about 1½ inches in diameter ½ to ¾ inch high about 1 inch apart onto a second baking sheet. (You can use two greased teaspoons instead of piping. Use one to scoop out the dough and the
other, or your fingertip, to push it off onto the baking sheets. If necessary, use your fingertip, dipped first in a little water or oil, to smooth the shape.) (You will have about 28 puffs, but only 16 are needed for this recipe.)

Spray or brush the halo, spiral, and puffs lightly with water. Bake for 10 minutes, then lower the heat to 350°F. and continue baking for 15 to 20 minutes or until the halo and spiral are golden and firm enough to lift without collapsing. Remove the halo, spiral, and puffs to racks (leave the oven on). Make a small slit in the bottom of each puff to release steam. (Or use a decorating tube, preferably the Bismarck filling tube, to make a small hole that will be used later for filling the puffs, twisting it as you push it into the puffs to help cut the hole.) Return the puffs, halo, and spiral to the oven, still on the racks. Turn off the oven, use a wooden spoon to prop the oven door slightly ajar, and let the pastry dry for 10 minutes. Close the door and leave the pastry in the oven for 1½ hours to dry out completely (or continue baking for 45 minutes at 200°F). Test a puff by cutting it open. The dough inside should not be soft to the touch; if it is, return them to the oven. Allow all the pastry to cool completely. Store it airtight in a plastic bag or container until ready to use.

ASSEMBLE THE GÂTEAU

Fill the puffs:
Fill a pastry bag, fitted with the Bismarck tube, with a small amount of the pastry cream and fill the hollow centers of 16 cream puffs.

Prepare the caramel:
If you have a microwave oven, pour the caramel into a 2-cup heatproof glass measure. This will enable you to remelt it easily if it hardens. Alternatively, it can be reheated over low heat in the pan, but try not to drip any of the caramel onto the outside of the pot.

Allow the hot caramel to sit for about 5 minutes to thicken slightly for coating the puffs. Meanwhile, spoon a few drops of it onto the puff pastry round and affix the halo and spiral to it.

Holding a filled puff at the bottom with tongs or fingertips, carefully dip the top into the caramel and then allow the excess to drip off onto the halo. Quickly attach the bottom of the puff to the halo before the caramel hardens. Continue with the remaining filled puffs until the circle is completed, placing each puff snugly against the one before it.

When the gâteau is no longer hot from the caramel, pipe or spoon the remaining pastry cream into the center.

MAKE THE OPTIONAL SPUN SUGAR

If the weather is very dry, the spun sugar can be made a day ahead, but it must be shaped immediately after preparation, while it is still flexible. Use an inverted cake pan the size of the finished gâteau, well sprayed with nonstick vegetable spray, to shape the spun sugar. Leave it on this mold until ready to transfer it to
the gâteau. I find it preferable to make the spun sugar after the rest of the dessert has been assembled and wrap the golden strands directly around the outside of the gâteau.

To serve, use sharp shears to cut through the spun sugar and a serrated or sharp thin-bladed knife to cut through the pastry. Be sure to do this in front of your guests, as the wonderful variety of crunchy sound effects is part of the joyful anticipation! Serve 1½ to 2 puffs per person.

STORE

Unfilled halo, spiral, and puffs, room temperature, up to 1 day; refrigerated, up to 1 week; frozen, up to 3 months. (To recrisp, place them in a 350°F. oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Cool completely before filling them.) Gâteau, cool room temperature, 4 to 6 hours.

NOTE

For a larger gâteau to serve 12 to 14, you will need 1
pounds of puff pastry rolled into a 12-inch circle and 1½ times the pastry cream (made with 31½ to teaspoons elatin). (There will be more than enough extra puffs for this larger size.)

POINTERS FOR SUCCESS

If you wish to assemble the gâteau the day before, it can be done up to the point of filling the puffs and gâteau with the pastry cream and making the spun sugar, providing the humidity is low to prevent the caramel from becoming sticky.

If piping the pastry cream, do not fill the bag too full, or the heat of your hand will soften the cream.