Paris Pastry Club: A collection of cakes, tarts, pastries and other indulgent recipes Read Online Free PDF

fraiche
    Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Butter and flour a 1 litre (34 fl oz) loaf tin.
    Finely blend the loose Earl Grey tea leaves with around 50 g (2 oz) of the caster sugar until powdery. Place in a bowl along with the eggs and the remaining caster sugar and whisk for around 4 minutes, until light in colour. Mix the flour, bergamot zest (if using) and baking powder in another bowl.
    Fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, then pour a little of this into the crème fraiche and melted butter in a separate bowl and mix well. Transfer back to the main batter mix and fold in gently using a spatula. Pour into the prepared tin.
    Put the extra softened butter into a piping bag and cut a very small hole, around 4 mm (¼ in) wide, then pipe a line of the butter across the cake. Bake for 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 170°C (340°F)for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature again to 160°C (320°F) and bake for a further 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
    Cool on a wire rack for 10–20 minutes, then turn out and set aside. If you’re not planning to eat it right away, wrap tightly in clingfilm and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
    While the cake is cooling make the clémentine confit. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Plunge in the clémentines and simmer for 3 minutes. Remove the fruit with a slotted spoon and pop them into a bowl of ice-cold water. Repeat, using fresh water, then chill the clémentines until they are cold enough to handle.
    Slice very finely and add to a saucepan with the sugar, vanilla pod and seeds and water. Simmer for 30 minutes or until reduced and almost candied. Then vigourously fold in the cornflour mixture. Allow to boil for a couple of minutes, then transfer to a bowl. Chill until needed.
    Serve slices of the cake topped with a spoonful of clémentine confit and a dollop of crème fraiche.

CARAMEL
CIDER-POACHED
PEARS

    I like to make these poached pears in the morning with plenty of time to cook them into tender bites and, perhaps, read a book with a side of wool blanket and some sort of caffeinated drink.
    It seems to me that cooled-down poached pears and ever-so-slightly-too-hot Sticky Toffee Pudding are kindred spirits. Of the opposite kind. Just like that boy you had a crush on in high school. But to be fair, they also make a decent dessert or goûter (snack), when still warm in their juices and placed whole on a plate, with a good measure of vanilla ice-cream. (Because, let’s face it, everything sort of tastes better à la mode.)
    Serves 4
    350 g (12 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
    60 g (2 oz) butter, cubed
    350 g (12 oz) pear cider
    500 g (17½ oz) water
    2 cinnamon sticks
    zest of 1 orange
    1 vanilla pod, with its seeds
    4 small pears, peeled
    Put the sugar in a large pan set over medium heat and stir continuously until it starts to melt. The sugar might clump together – don’t worry, just keep stirring. I find a whisk does a marvellous job on caramels as the sugar will eventually melt when it reaches the right temperature. As you keep stirring, the sugar will slowly turn into liquid gold. Who said making caramel was hard?
    When it reaches a deep amber tint, remove from the heat and carefully add the butter, a couple of cubes at a time, stirring with the whisk after each addition.
    Add the pear cider and water – it will splash and spit so make sure you back away for a few seconds before slowly stirring as it bubbles away. Place back over a medium heat and bring to the boil to dissolve any bits of caramel that might have seized.
    Add the cinnamon sticks, orange zest, vanilla pod and seeds and the pears. Cover with a cartouche – a piece of baking paper cut to the diameter of your pan, with a small hole in the centre to let the steam escape (see image ).
    Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes or until you can insert a knife into the pears without any resistance.
    The pears will keep for a week chilled in their