Croûte aux Fruits

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Rimmed baking sheet with wire rack
• •10-inch (25 cm) shallow saucepan and parchment round
• •8-inch (20 cm) skillet
• •12-inch (30 cm) round serving platter
• •Serrated knife, paring knife, pastry brush, and 6-inch (15 cm) wooden skewer

Instructions

1. 1

   Poach and drain fruit

   Turn the smallest pear, meaning pare it into a smooth, even oval, and leave it whole. Bring the granulated sugar and 3 cups (720 ml / 720 g) of the water to a gentle simmer in a shallow saucepan. Add the apple quarters and poach at a bare tremble for 6 to 10 minutes, just until a knife enters with light resistance and the corners still hold; lift them carefully onto a wire rack. Tint the syrup pale pink with the food coloring, if using. Add the whole pear first, cook it for 5 minutes, then add the pear quarters and cover the surface with a round of parchment. Poach gently for another 10 to 15 minutes. Lift all the pears onto the rack and leave the fruit to drain for at least 30 minutes, then blot the undersides. If a quarter softens too far, cool it untouched and tuck it low in the finished crown rather than balancing it on top.

   A hard boil knocks the clean edges from the fruit and cooks the outside before the center. Keep the syrup barely moving.
2. 2

   Dry and glaze savarin

   Heat the oven to 275°F (135°C). With a serrated knife, cut eight even savarin slices, each 1/5 inch (5 mm) thick, allowing two per person. Set them on a wire rack over a baking sheet and sift the icing sugar generously over their upper faces. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, rotating the tray once, until the slices feel rigid and dry. Raise the oven to 375°F (190°C) for 3 to 5 minutes, watching continuously, until the sugar melts into a pale, thin glaze. Cool one slice for 5 minutes and test it. If it flexes rather than breaking crisply at the edge, ça se rattrape: lower the oven to 250°F (120°C) and dry every slice for another 10 to 15 minutes. Do not assemble until they pass this test.

   A savarin already soaked with syrup cannot be dried honestly because the sugar keeps drawing moisture back into the crumb. Begin with a plain, unsyruped cake.
3. 3

   Match the pineapple

   Use a dried savarin slice as the pattern and trim eight pineapple pieces to the same outline and thickness. The pieces need not be mathematically perfect, but neither should heavy pineapple hang beyond the cake and pull the crown apart. Lay them on a clean rack or towel for at least 10 minutes and blot both faces thoroughly. Drain the cherries, quarter the Chinois, and cut the angelica into small lozenges while the pineapple rests.

4. 4

   Build support and glaze

   Heat the clarified butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Fry the crustless bread cylinder on every face for 6 to 8 minutes, turning carefully, until deep gold and firm enough to hold the centerpiece pear. Set this fried bread cushion in the center of a 12-inch (30 cm) platter. For the apricot sauce, warm the apricot preserves with the remaining 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 45 g) water, strain if they contain pieces, and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Remove it from the heat and stir in the Kirsch. If it is too thick to brush, loosen it with a teaspoon of water; if it runs like syrup, simmer it for another minute.

5. 5

   Assemble the crown

   Arrange the savarin slices in a circle around the fried bread cushion, standing them at a shallow angle and placing one matching pineapple piece between every two slices. Overlap the edges slightly so the ring supports itself; if one piece slips, a small dab of apricot sauce behind it will hold it. Arrange the drained apple and pear quarters alternately over the crown, keeping their clean-cut faces visible. Add the preserved cherries, angelica lozenges, and quartered Chinois between the larger fruit. Insert a short wooden skewer vertically into the bread cushion and seat the whole pear on it. This is the home Hatelet. Remember that it remains hidden inside the centerpiece.

6. 6

   Lacquer and serve

   Immediately before serving, brush the warm apricot-Kirsch sauce lightly over the fruit and exposed savarin. Brush, do not pour. The coating should gleam without collecting beneath the cake; if a pool forms, wick it away at once with the corner of a clean towel. Bring the whole crown to the table, remove the hidden skewer before portioning, and serve two savarin slices with pineapple and poached fruit to each guest. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Order the savarin unsyruped or bake it in advance and leave it to stale. A soaked bakery savarin is wrong for this job, however splendid it may be with cream, because the fruit syrup will collapse it.
• •Fresh pineapple gives the cleanest shape, but pineapple canned in juice is an honest pantry answer out of season. Drain it for at least 30 minutes and blot it twice; technique first, always.
• •Chinois are very small candied oranges. If they cannot be found, candied kumquats keep the scale and bittersweet citrus character, though the green-and-yellow contrast will be quieter. Candied citron can stand in for angelica, but it loses angelica's gentle herbal note.
• •The finished crown has a short, glorious life. Assemble it no more than 10 minutes before serving, then bring it out whole so the architecture has its moment before everyone takes two slices.
• •Pour a demi-sec Champagne rather than a bone-dry one. The wine needs enough sweetness to stand beside the glazed fruit, while its acidity keeps apricot and Kirsch lively.

Advance Preparation

• •Acquire or bake the plain savarin 1 to 2 days ahead and keep it loosely covered at room temperature so it becomes stale without turning damp.
• •The apples and pears may be poached one day ahead. Drain them well, refrigerate them in a single layer, and blot every surface again before assembly.
• •The savarin slices may be dried and glazed up to 6 hours ahead. Cool them completely before sealing them in an airtight container, since trapped warmth creates the moisture this dish cannot forgive.
• •The apricot sauce may be prepared one day ahead and chilled. Rewarm it gently until brushable, adding the Kirsch after reheating if you want its aroma at its brightest. Assemble the crown only at serving time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 490g)