{my mom's cookbook that her grandmother gave her for Christmas}
The first tart I made was from Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I had received Volume I right before Christmas and decided to make a pear and almond custard tart. It was a delicious dessert for Christmas Eve dinner!
Just a couple days ago I started to read Julia Child: A Life by Laura Shapiro. I'm only about 25 pages in and it is already a great read. I've learned about first 35 years of Julia's life; right now she is married to her husband Paul and is taking cooking classes in Paris just to impress him. Who knew her cooking classes would help her to become such an iconic American cook! What a life she had, living in Paris with her husband and spending most of her time learning about the French cuisine and culture... I would love that life!
Right now, realistically speaking, the closest I can get to living Julia's life is through recreating her recipes. The way she explains everything in her cookbooks both informs readers about the French culture and instructs readers of the recipe's directions. As I continue to read her biography, I will make more recipes from her cookbook that will further help me understand the French culture and the happy life she used to live.
Tarte aux Pêches
by Julia Child, Mastering the Art of French Cooking
for 8 people
Ingredients:
- A 10-inch fully baked pastry shell
- About 4-5 fresh peaches
- 1 1/2 to 2 C chilled creme patissiere (custard filling)
Pâte Sablée (sugar crust):
for a 9- to 10-inch shell
- 2 C (7 oz) sifted all-purpose flour
- 3 to 7 tbl granulated sugar (the more sugar you mix in the more soft and sticky the dough will be)
- 1/8 tsp double-action baking powder
- 7 tbl fat: 5 tbl chilled butter and 2 tbl chilled vegetable shortening
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tsp water
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Combine flour, sugar, butter, vegetable shortening, and baking powder in the mixing bowl. Rub the fat and dry ingredients together rapidly with the tips of your fingers until the fat is broken into bits like the size of oatmeal flakes.
- Blend in the egg and vanilla, knead the dough into a ball. Place on pastry board and start kneading with the heel of your hand. Rapidly press the pastry by two-spoonfuls bits down on the board and away from you in a firm, quick smear of about 6 inches.
- Form into a ball, wrap in waxed paper, and chill for several hours until firm.
- After several hours have passed, roll out the dough and carefully place into your mold. Use foil and beans to help keep the dough set in the oven. Bake the sugar crust shell in a preheated, 375 degree oven for 5 to 6 minutes. Then remove the dining, prick the bottom of the pastry with a fork in several places, and bake for 8 to 10 minutes more. Remove the shell when it has browned very lightly; you could remove the mold from the shell and let cool or keep the pastry in it's mold.
Crème Pâtissière (custard filling):
for about 2 1/2 C
- 1 C granulated sugar
- 5 egg yolks
- 2/3 C sifted all-purpose flour
- 2 C boiling milk
- 1 tbl butter
- 1 1/2 tbl vanilla extract
- Gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks and continue beating for 2-3 minutes until the mixture is pale yellow and forms "the ribbon" (lift up the hand mixer and when the mixture falls down a ribbon of custard should slowly disappear)
- Beat in the flour, and slowly mix in the boiling milk in a very thin stream.
- Pour the whole mixture into a clean saucepan and set over high heat. Stir with a wire whip - when the sauce comes to a boil it will get lumpy, but keep beating it and it will turn smooth. After the boil is reached, turn the heat to low and keep beating for 2-3 minutes. Make sure custard does not burn on the bottom!
- Remove from heat and beat in the butter and the vanilla extract.
- Let custard cool in the refrigerator until it is ready to use (place a dot of butter on top of the custard so a skin does not form)
Preparing the Tart
- Drop the peaches in boiling water for 10-15 seconds. Peel, halve, remove pits, and slice.
- Spread a 1/2 inch layer of crème pâtissière in the bottom of the pastry shell. Add the sliced peaches in a circular design.
- I then used a pastry brush to add some Raspberry Cherry jam that I made a couple of weeks ago - it turned out to be a wonderful mixture between a topping and a glaze!
- Serve the tart warm or cold.
Bon Appétit!
xo, A
No comments:
Post a Comment