Pear And Pistachio Cake With Belle De Brillet And Vanilla Custard Recipes

PEARS BELLE HELENE

Steps:

• Peel, halve, and core the pears and sprinkle over them the lemon juice to stop them from discoloring. In a wide shallow pan (in which the pears will fit in 1 layer - otherwise cook them in batches) put 1 1/4 cups water, the sugar, and the vanilla bean, if using. Bring to a boil, stirring every now and again to make sure the sugar dissolves, then lower the heat slightly and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the vanilla extract, if using. Put the pears into the liquid, cut side down, and raise the heat again so that the syrup boils up and the pears are covered by it. You may need to spoon the syrup over. After half a minute or so, lower the heat, then cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes; turn the pears, cover the pan again, and simmer for another 10 minutes. Continue poaching until the pears are cooked and translucent; they should feel tender (but not soggy) when pierced. They may need more or less cooking time - it depends on the pears. Take off the heat, keep covered, and leave to cool.
• Now the chocolate sauce: place the chocolate, broken up into small pieces, in a thick-bottomed pan with the coffee and sugar and melt over a low heat, stirring occasionally. Then pour in the cream, still stirring, and when it is very hot pour into a warmed sauceboat or a bowl with a ladle.
• To serve, arrange pears cut side down on a big flat plate and pour some syrup over. (Any remaining syrup will keep in the refrigerator or freezer and can be used to pour over apples or other fruit when making pies or crumbles. You can wash the vanilla pod, wipe it and put it in a canister of sugar.) Offer with ice cream, sauce, and pistachios, if using, served separately; allow diners to help themselves.

PARIS-BREST CUSTARD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. On a large piece of parchment paper, trace a circle 10 inches in diameter. Use this parchment paper to line a baking sheet, pencil side down (you should still be able to see the circle). In a large saucepan, bring the water, butter, salt, and granulated sugar to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. When it boils, immediately take the pan off the heat. Stirring with a wooden spoon, add all the flour at once and stir hard until all the flour is incorporated, 30 to 60 seconds. Return the pan to the heat and cook, stirring, 30 seconds to evaporate some of the moisture.
• Scrape the mixture into a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer). Mix at medium speed. With the mixer running and, working 1 egg at a time, add 3 of the eggs, stopping after each addition to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix until the dough is smooth and glossy and the eggs are completely incorporated. The dough should be thick, but should fall slowly and steadily from the beaters when you lift them out of the bowl. If the dough is still clinging to the beaters, add 1 more egg and mix until incorporated.
• Using a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip and using the pencil line as a guide, pipe the dough onto baking sheet in a ring. Pipe a second ring around the first one, hugging it so the 2 rings touch closely all the way around. Pipe a third circle, using up all the remaining dough, on the crack between the first 2 rings so that all 3 rings touch closely, forming 1 big ring with 3 parts.
• Whisk the remaining egg with the water. Brush the surface of the dough with the egg wash (do not use all of it). Sprinkle the almonds over the surface. Bake 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 degrees and bake until puffed up and light golden brown, about 25 minutes more. Try not to open the oven door too often during the baking. Let cool on the baking sheet. The recipe can be made up to this point up to 24 hours in advance. Hold at room temperature, lightly covered with aluminum foil.
• Custard: In a medium saucepan, heat the milk and vanilla bean to a boil over medium heat. Immediately turn off the heat and set aside to infuse for 10 to 15 minutes. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cornstarch and whisk vigorously until no lumps remain. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the hot milk mixture until incorporated. Whisk in the remaining hot milk mixture, reserving the empty saucepan.
• Pour the mixture through a strainer back into the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until thickened and slowly boiling. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter. Let cool slightly. Cover with plastic wrap, lightly pressing the plastic against the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill at least 2 hours or until ready to serve. The custard can be made up to 24 hours in advance. Refrigerate until 1 hour before using.
• Whipped Cream: When ready to serve, whip the cream and brown sugar until stiff.
• Using a long serrated knife, cut the pastry ring in half horizontally. Set the top half aside. Using a clean pastry bag, pipe the custard filling onto the bottom half. Pipe the whipped cream on top of the custard. Place the top half of the pastry lightly on the whipped cream, dust with confectioners' sugar, and serve, cut into sections.

FROZEN BANANA CUSTARD

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, bring the milk just to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Stir in 1/2 cup of the warm milk into the egg mixture, then pour all the egg mixture into the pan with the milk. Over medium low heat, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens slightly and will coat the back of a spoon. Do not allow to boil.
• Place the bananas in a food processor and pulse to a smooth puree. Add the warm custard mixture and pulse 2 to 3 times, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until the mixture is evenly blended. Cool the custard to room temperature, then place in an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturers instructions. Serve in cups, covered with Uncle Bill's hot fudge sauce and garnish with a few raspberries and a sprig of mint.

BAKED CARAMEL CUSTARD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Melt brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until it turns to liquid and begins to caramelize. Pour into 6 custard cups, shaking cups to make sure the sugar is evenly distributed. Don't touch the sugar because it will be very hot.
• Mix the remaining ingredients together and pour into each custard cup. Fill a large baking pan with 1-inch of hot water. Place custard cups in the water bath and bake for about 45 to 50 minutes, or until just set. Cool in the baking pan until they reach room temperature. Remove from water bath and chill. To serve, quickly turn each cup over onto an individual serving plate. The sugar will have turned into a delicious syrupy glaze. For an extra treat, serve with fruit and whipped cream.

ORANGE-VANILLA FROZEN CUSTARD

Steps:

• Whisk the cornstarch and 1/2 cup milk in a small bowl until smooth. Whisk the eggs, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan; whisk in the cornstarch mixture and the remaining 1 cup milk until smooth.
• Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring, until thick enough to coat a spoon, 7 to 8 minutes (do not boil). Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, then set the bowl in a larger bowl of ice water. Add the cream and stir until cool. Remove from the ice bath; stir in the vanilla, orange juice concentrate and orange zest. Cover and chill until cold.
• Freeze the custard in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions. Scrape into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip and pipe into cups.

VANILLA CUSTARD WITH RASPBERRY MASH

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, heat the milk and vanilla bean to a boil over medium heat. Immediately turn off the heat and set aside to infuse for 10 minutes. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cornstarch and whisk vigorously until no lumps remain. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the hot milk mixture until incorporated. Whisk in the remaining hot milk mixture, reserving the empty saucepan.
• Pour the mixture through a strainer back into the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until thickened and slowly boiling. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter. Pour into individual dessert dishes and chill. Chill at least 2 hours or until ready to serve. (The custard can be made up to 24 hours in advance. Cover with plastic wrap if you are keeping it longer than that.)
• Raspberry Mash: Place 1/4 of a pint of raspberries in a bowl with the sugar and mash it with the back of a fork. Toss in the remaining 1/4-pint of raspberries and gently toss to coat.
• Whip the cream with the sugar and serve on the custard and mash.