Around My French Table (91 page)

BONNE IDÉE
Profiteroles.
To make this extremely popular dessert, form the dough into puffs (see
[>]
for instructions) and bake as directed. When they're cool, slice the top third off each puff and fill the bottom with ice cream; freeze in an airtight container until needed. Profiteroles are best when they've had a couple of minutes to warm up from their freeze. Serve 2 or 3 to a plate, and just before you bring them to the table, pour a generous amount of Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce (
[>]
) over each one.

ANOTHER BONNE IDÉE
Coffee Éclairs, Chocolate Éclairs with Thick Ganache, and Some More Ideas.
To make coffee pastry cream to fill the éclairs, make a coffee extract by dissolving 2 tablespoons instant coffee or espresso in 2 tablespoons boiling water. Add 1 tablespoon of this mixture to a recipe of Vanilla Pastry Cream, then taste and add more, if you like. To make a coffee glaze, swap espresso for the milk.

If it's chocolate you want, use Chocolate Pastry Cream (
[>]
) for the filling and a thick ganache for the glaze: Bring ¾ cup heavy cream to a boil. Pour the cream over ¾ pound bittersweet chocolate, very finely chopped, and wait for 30 seconds, then gently stir to blend. Chill the ganache until it thickens enough for you to spread it smoothly over the éclairs.

Éclairs can also be filled with whipped cream, ice cream, or a mixture of lemon curd (
[>]
) and whipped cream (very untraditional).

E
VERY FOUR YEARS, THE UNION DES AUDAX FRANÇAIS
organizes an amateur bicycle race that goes from Paris to Brest, and every day in Paris, Brest, and all over France, the Paris-Brest turns up for dessert. Created to celebrate the race, the first one of which was held in 1891, the dessert is a cream puff ring (made from
pâte à choux)
meant to evoke a bicycle wheel, split in half, filled with cream, and topped with toasted sliced almonds. I've seen Paris-Brest filled with whipped cream, buttercream, crème Chiboust (pastry cream lightened with cooked meringue), and almond praline pastry cream, which I think of as the truest filling and the one often referred to as crème Paris-Brest. The pastry is wonderful-looking—truly a party dessert—and not difficult to make, since, like a bicycle race, it's done in stages.

If you'd like, you can make smaller rings—that's what's often done in pâtisseries and restaurants. (I always order the Paris-Brest at Bistrot Paul Bert, where although they say it's a single serving, one is enough for a whole table, no matter how many you've got at the table.)

BE PREPARED:
You'll need to refrigerate the Paris-Brest for at least 1 hour before serving.

TO MAKE THE CARAMELIZED ALMONDS:
Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Put the sugar and water in a small saucepan, preferably nonstick, over medium-high heat and cook to dissolve the sugar. Swirl the pan to make sure that all the sugar is dissolved, then bring the mixture to a boil and cook until the sugar is a medium caramel color. Add the nuts and, using a wooden spoon or spatula, stir without stopping until the sugar turns a dark caramel color and coats the nuts. Turn the nuts out onto the baking sheet, spreading them out as best you can, and allow them to cool to room temperature.

When the nuts are completely cool, put them in a food processor and pulse until they are very finely chopped. Keep the nuts in a cool, dry place—
not
the refrigerator—until needed (or for up to several days).

When you are ready to fill the Paris-Brest, whisk the pastry cream to loosen it, then stir in the caramelized almonds.

TO MAKE THE RING:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Draw an 8-inch circle on a piece of parchment paper, turn the paper over, and use it to line a baking sheet. Fit a large pastry bag with a large (⅔-inch-diameter) plain or star tip.

Spoon the warm dough into the pastry bag and, keeping the tip 1 to 2 inches above the circle's outline, pipe a ring of dough about 1 inch thick. Pipe a second ring of dough inside the first ring and just touching it (the rings will merge when you bake them, and that's just what you want). Pipe a third ring of dough on top of the first two rings, piping along the seam where the bottom circles meet. (If you have any extra dough, pipe out as many cream puffs as you can—they'll be the baker's treat.) Sprinkle the top of the ring with the sliced almonds and slide the baking sheet into the oven.

Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F and bake the ring for another 20 to 25 minutes, until it is puffed, brown, and firm (total baking time is 35 to 40 minutes—although the puffs might be done sooner). Transfer the ring to a cooling rack and allow it to cool to room temperature.

TO CONSTRUCT THE PARIS-BREST:
Using a serrated knife and a very gentle sawing motion, slice off the top third of the cream-puff ring in one piece (you'll see the seam that forms a natural guide for cutting). Put the base on a cake dish and, if there's some soft dough in the base, gently pull it out with your fingers (discard or munch). Spoon the pastry cream into the base, then settle the top of the Paris-Brest in place. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 8 hours) before serving.

At serving time, dust the top of the Paris-Brest generously with confectioners' sugar.

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

SERVING
In France the pastry is served plain or with a drizzle of Crème Anglaise (
[>]
), but that doesn't mean that in America we can't serve it with a little Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce (
[>]
) on the plate.

STORING
You can make the caramelized almonds several days ahead, and the pastry cream can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator, but don't combine the two until you need the filling. The cream puff ring can also be made a few hours ahead. And you can fill the Paris-Brest up to 8 hours ahead and keep it chilled, but this is a pastry that should be enjoyed the day it is made.

N
ELLIE MELBA, AN OPERA SINGER
in the late nineteenth century, must have been quite a woman. Not only is Melba toast named for her, but peach Melba too. Both the dry toast and the beloved ice cream sundae were created by Auguste Escoffier, one of France's best-known chefs (and the man credited with codifying all of
la cuisine française
), when he was directing the vast kitchens of the Savoy Hotel in London. The cultured chef had heard Melba perform at Covent Gardens, and learning that she had a fondness for ice cream, he created the sundae, taking care to arrange it so that it wouldn't be frightfully cold, a hazard to her vocal cords. Given her fear of chill, it's not certain that Melba got to enjoy the dessert, but there's nothing to stop us from the pleasure that comes from working your long spoon down to the bottom of the glass and bringing it up with a little of the sundae's vanilla ice cream, raspberry sauce, poached peaches, and toasted almonds.

TO POACH THE PEACHES:
Bring a 2- to 3-quart saucepan of water to a boil. Drop in the peaches and count to 20, then, using a slotted spoon, transfer them gently to a bowl. When they're cool enough to handle, slip off the skins. If some of the skin just won't come off, use a vegetable peeler or paring knife.

Empty the pan, add the water and sugar, and bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon verbena (if you're using it), the lemon zest, and vanilla bean and seeds. (If you're using vanilla extract, you'll add it later.) Bring back to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Drop in the peaches and poach them gently for 10 minutes. (If there isn't enough liquid to immerse the peaches, cover the pan and turn the peaches frequently;)

Carefully transfer the peaches (not the syrup) to a container or bowl that will hold them and the liquid. Stir the vanilla extract, if you're using it, and the liqueur into the syrup. Taste and add a little lemon juice, if needed, then pour the syrup over the peaches and allow the peaches to cool in the syrup.
(The peaches can be refrigerated, covered and immersed in the syrup, for up to 3 days.)

TO MAKE THE RASPBERRY SAUCE:
Puree the berries in a blender or food processor. You can leave the sauce as is, with the seeds, or strain it. Add 1 tablespoon—more if you'd like—of the peach syrup, then cover and chill until needed.
(The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

When ready to serve, cut the peaches in half and pit them. For each sundae, pour a spoonful of the poaching syrup into the bottom of a parfait glass or wineglass. Top with half of a peach, a scoop of ice cream, and then the other peach half. Spoon over some raspberry sauce and top with lightly whipped cream and, if you'd like, some raspberries and/or toasted almonds. Serve immediately.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

SERVING
Peach Melba is an elegant dessert alone, but I like to have something a little crunchy to go with it, so I often put out a plate of Almond-Orange Tuiles (
[>]
) or Croquants (
[>]
).

STORING
You can poach the peaches and make the raspberry sauce up to 3 days ahead and keep them covered in the refrigerator, but you've got to dig into the assembled treat as soon as you top it with the last berry.

BONNE IDÉE
Raspberry-Cassis Ice Cream.
On its own, this is a lovely ice cream with deep fruit flavor, but in Peach Melba, it becomes sublime. Follow the instructions for making Vanilla Ice Cream (
[>]
) up to the point where you cool the custard. Defrost and drain one 12-ounce bag frozen red raspberries (unsweetened and not in syrup) and put the berries, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 2½ tablespoons crème de cassis into a blender (first choice) or a food processor. Let everything sit for 10 minutes, then whir to puree the berries; strain and discard the seeds. Stir the puree into the vanilla ice cream base and churn following your ice cream maker's instructions. Freeze until scoopable, and use in the Peach Melba or serve with anything chocolate.