Orange Soufflé
By Thomas Ciret
Chef - Embassy of France
Orange Pastry Cream:
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150 g fresh orange juice
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25 g cornstarch
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75 g sugar
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100 g whole eggs
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60 g egg yolks
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Zest of 1 orange
French Meringue:
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150 g egg whites
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50 g sugar
For the ramekins:
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Softened butter
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Granulated sugar
Orange Pastry Cream
In a saucepan, heat the orange juice with the orange zest until it just begins to simmer.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, and sugar. Add the cornstarch and whisk until smooth.
Gradually pour the hot juice over the egg mixture while whisking continuously. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened — as you would a pastry cream.
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French Meringue
In a clean bowl, whip the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to whip
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Soufflé Base
Weigh out 200 g of the cooled orange pastry cream. Whisk gently to loosen it. Preparing the Ramekins. Brush the inside of the ramekins with softened butter, going all the way up the sides.
Dust with granulated sugar and tap out any excess.
Fill the ramekins with the soufflé batter.
Smooth the surface with an offset spatula
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Baking
Bake in a preheated convection oven at 170°C for about 10 minutes. Serve immediately.
Boeuf Bourguignon
By Paul Bocuse
Chef - Meilleur ouvrier de France
2 pounds beef shoulder cut into 2-inch large pieces (or about 3 pounds of beef short ribs)
1 calves foot split
1 bottle red Burgundy wine, or pinot noir
1 bay leaf
1 sprig thyme
1 tablespoon pork fat
1/4 pound slab bacon cut into large dice
16 pearl onions
1/2 pound button mushrooms
2 stalks celery finely diced
2 carrots diced
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 cups beef stock
1 head of garlic
parsley for garnishing
In a large nonreactive bowl, combine the beef, wine, bay leaf, and thyme. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator a minimum of 6 hours, preferably overnight.
Heat the pork fat in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add the bacon, and cook until lightly browned, stirring, about 5 minutes. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the onions and bacon to a plate. Add the mushrooms to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Remove to the plate with the bacon.
With tongs, remove the beef from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Pat it dry with paper towels. Season with salt and cracked peppercorns to taste. Turn the heat to medium-high. Working in batches, brown the beef on all sides, about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer the beef to a plate.
Add the celery and carrots to the pot and cook until soft and lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle over the flour and stir into the vegetables. Add the reserved marinade, as well as the stock, beef, and garlic and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 2 hours. The meat should remain partially submerged in liquid; if it starts to look a little dry, add water, red wine, or stock.
If you want a more refined dish, transfer the beef to a plate; place a fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl and strain the sauce, discarding the carrots, celery, and garlic. Return the beef to the pot. Add the mushrooms, bacon, and onions. Simmer until the beef is fork-tender, about 1 hour. Serve sprinkled with parsley.
Easy Chocolate Cake
200g Chocolate Milk or Dark
60g Butter
60g Castor Sugar
30g Flour
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 210°C(410°F)
Melt chocolate and butter separately in microwave or bain-marie.
Mix sugar and flour, add eggs then chocolate and butter.
Mix and pour into a non-sticky mold.
Bake for 15-20 min
Let the cake cool down and add desiccated coconut on the top or iced sugar.
Gougères
By Philippe Etchebest
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1 egg
40 g of grated cheese
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For the choux pastry:
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100 g of butter
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125 ml of milk
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125 ml of water
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4 pinches of salt
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150 g of flour
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5 eggs
Preheat your oven to 180°C (356°F).
Start by preparing the choux pastry: in a saucepan, heat the water and milk. Add the butter in pieces to the milk/water mixture and let it melt over high heat.
Add a pinch of salt and stir with a wooden spatula to help the butter melt more quickly and evenly.
Once everything is melted and the milk is boiling, incorporate the flour and mix vigorously with the spatula to form a smooth dough without lumps.
Then reduce the heat and dry out the dough in the saucepan by working it with the spatula. Count about 4 minutes.
Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl. Break the eggs and incorporate them into the dough in two additions. Mix well until you get a smooth batter. The dough should be smooth, flexible, and not too runny.
Next, add the grated cheese and mix well.
Prepare an egg yolk for brushing the choux. Add a tablespoon of water to loosen the yolk.
Use a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle and fill it with the gougères mixture.
Pipe the gougères onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper, making sure to space them out well. The bigger the gougères, the more space they will need.
Brush the choux with the egg yolk and water mixture using a pastry brush.
Grate a bit of Comté cheese over the gougères before baking them for 25 minutes at 180°C (356°F).
Once the gougères are out of the oven, grate a little more cheese on top of them while they’re still hot.
Madeleines
By Nina Metayer
The World's Best Pastry Chef
166 g of sugar
254 g of flour
14 g of baking powder
1 vanilla bean
5.6 g of orange zest
4 whole eggs
40 g of honey
76 g of milk
254 g of butter
Melt the butter in a saucepan, stirring constantly, until it turns a hazelnut brown (beurre noisette).
Mix the eggs with the sugar, then add the flour and baking powder, followed by the milk and honey.
Zest a little bit of lemon.
Grease the madeleine molds with softened butter. Pipe a small amount of madeleine batter into each mold.
Preheat the oven to 210°C. Bake for 3 minutes with the oven turned off, then turn the oven back on and bake for another 2 to 3 minutes at 200°C.
Mash potatoes
By Joël Robuchon
Chef of the Century" by the guide Gault Millau
1 kg of potatoes
250 ml of whole milk
10 g of coarse salt
250 g of cold butter
Wash the potatoes and scrub them. Place them in a large pot and cover with water, about 2–3 cm above the level of the potatoes. Add 10 g of salt and cook for 25 minutes. To check if they’re done, pierce a potato — if it slips off the knife easily, it’s cooked.
Place the potatoes on a plate and peel them with the tip of a knife.
Put the potatoes into a food mill and turn it.
Transfer the mashed potatoes to a saucepan and heat over low heat. In another saucepan, pour a drop of water in the bottom, add the milk, and bring to a boil. While the milk heats, work the mashed potatoes with a wooden spatula. Cut the butter into pieces and gradually incorporate it into the potatoes.
Using a ladle, add the milk and mix with a wooden spatula. When the texture becomes smoother, switch to a whisk while continuing to add the milk little by little.
Using a spatula, pass the purée through a sieve. Serve immediately.
The Rose Bouquet Tart
By Alain Passard
Three Michelin stars
5 red- or pink-skinned apples
Juice of 2 lemons
500 g puff pastry
130 g sugar
30 g butter
For decoration:
Icing sugar
Wash the apples thoroughly. Cut them in half, then remove the cores and ends using a melon baller or a small serrated spoon.
Using a mandoline, slice the apples very thinly — no more than 1 mm thick.
Place all the slices in a large mixing bowl. Cover them with cold water and add the lemon juice (to prevent browning). Let the apples soften for about 10 minutes. Pat them dry with paper towels.
Preheat the oven to 200°C (about 390°F / gas mark 6-7). Roll out the puff pastry very thinly. Cut it into strips measuring 3 x 15 cm. Sprinkle the strips with sugar.
To assemble the apple flowers:
Place a strip of pastry horizontally in front of you. Starting at the left end, lay a slice of apple so it overlaps the top half of the strip. Add another slice, overlapping the previous one slightly. Continue placing slices along the entire strip.
Fold the bottom half of the pastry strip over the line of apples. Then roll the strip up on itself to form a flower.
Arrange the flowers vertically in a 18–20 cm tart pan lined with baking paper. Fill the entire pan with the apple flowers.
Cut the butter into small cubes and scatter them over the tart. Sprinkle with sugar.
Bake on the lower rack of the oven for about 30 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown, depending on your oven.
Crème brûlée
By Pierre Hermé
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Interview of H.E Pierre-André Imbert - So France-So Good 202
1/2 liter of milk
1/2 liter of heavy cream
5 vanilla beans
180 g of granulated sugar
9 egg yolks
100 g of brown sugar (cassonade)
Preheat the oven to 100°C (approx. 210°F, gas mark 3/4).
Split the vanilla beans and scrape out the seeds with a small knife.
Place the seeds and pods into a saucepan, add the milk and cream, and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and let it infuse for 30 minutes.
Separate the egg yolks from the whites.
Mix the yolks with the granulated sugar.
Pour the infused milk and cream mixture through a strainer into the egg mixture, stirring well.
Divide the custard into 8 porcelain ramekins and bake for 45 to 60 minutes, depending on your oven.
The custards are done when the edges are set and the center is still slightly wobbly.
Once out of the oven, let the custards cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Before serving, sprinkle the custards with brown sugar and caramelize using either the oven broiler or a kitchen torch.
Whichever method you use, be careful not to overheat the custard or it will become runny.
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