Level: BASIC
Winter is here! At least in Melbourne anyway and for those of you that are still in isolation, here is an easy and comforting pastry to go with a warm cuppa.
Gâteau Basque originated from the region Basque in France in the 18th Centuries. This pastry consist of a smooth pastry cream encased by a crunchy yet soft pastry. The pastry cream are commonly added with rum but not being a great fan of rum I have omitted that but you can add any type of liquor that suits you. In the below recipe I have added some orange zest for that citrus flavour to compensate. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.
RECIPE
Crème pâtissière
Full Cream Milk 300 ml
Vanilla 1 pod
Orange Zest ½ Orange
Egg Yolk 20 g / 1 egg yolk
Whole egg 1 egg
Castor sugar 60 g
Custard Powder 40 g
Cream 35% 30g
Method
1. Place Milk, vanilla bean and orange zest into a saucepan and bring to a simmer.
2. Meanwhile, mix yolk, eggs, castor sugar and custard powder together with a whisk until well combined.
3. Once the milk starts to simmer, gradually stream the milk into the egg mix while whisking.
4. Transfer the anglaise back into the pot over low heat and keep cooking while continuously whisking until thickens.
5. Transfer the pastry cream into a clean bowl, wrap with cling film touching the top and leave to fully cool in the fridge. Once cooled, whisk until smooth then add in the cream and mix until well combined
Gâteau Pastry
Unsalted butter (softened) 160 g
Castor sugar 160 g
Eggs 100 g/ 2 eggs
Almondmeal 60 g
Baking Powder 5 g
Plain Flour 180 g
Method
1. Place butter, sugar, eggs and almond meal into a stand mixer bowl with a paddle attachment.
2. Mix until all ingredients are well combined and smooth and there is no lump of butter. Do not aerate.
3. Sift plain flour and baking powder together and add in to the butter/egg mix and mix to combine.
4. Transfer into a pastry bag.
Assembly:
1. Place an 18 cm bottomless cake ring on to a baking mat or parchment paper. Lightly oiled the ring and place a strip of parchment paper around the border of the ring.
2. Pipe a spiral of the Gâteau pastry to fully cover the base and use a spoon or palette knife to smooth out the surface.
3. Pipe 3 circle of the Gâteau Pastry around the edges with each circle on top of the next to create a well with approximately 1.5 cm in height from the top of the base.
4. Pipe the Crème pâtissière to fill up the centre but not parallel to the borders, leaving a few centimetres gap.
5. Seal the top of the Crème pâtissière with Gâteau Pastry until just covered. Smooth out the top then place a cling film on top to further smooth out the surface.
6. Place the Gâteau Basque in the fridge to completely chill for at least two hours.
7. Make egg wash, remove the Gâteau from the fridge and the cling film, egg wash the surface and place it back in to the fridge for a few minutes until the egg wash have dried.
8. Using the fork, create a lattice mark on the surface.
9. Bake Gâteau in a pre-heated oven at 180°C for 40 minutes until light golden in colour at the top. Remove the Gâteau from the oven and very carefully remove the ring and the paper, place it back in to the oven and bake for a further 20 minutes or until the sides are fully dark brown in colour. If the top starts to darken too much, cover the top with an aluminium foil.
NOTE: Baking time may vary depending on the oven you are using. It is best to judge it by the colour.
