Croûte à la Maréchale

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch (30 cm) wide serving platter
• •Wide 3-quart saucepan
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Wire cooling rack and rimmed baking tray
• •Small offset spatula
• •3-inch (7.5 cm) round cutter or paper template
• •4-inch (10 cm) food-safe bamboo pick

Instructions

1. 1

   Poach the pears

   Combine the poaching sugar and water in a wide saucepan and heat gently, stirring only until the sugar dissolves. Pour half the clear syrup into a heatproof bowl. Peel two pears, halve and core them, then poach the four halves in the syrup remaining in the pan under a parchment cartouche. Hold the liquid at a bare tremble for 12 to 18 minutes, until a knife enters with slight resistance. Transfer the white pear halves and their syrup to another bowl. Return the reserved clear syrup to the pan, add the reserved cherry syrup, then poach four halves cut from two more pears along with the final pear, peeled but left whole with its stem. Remove the halves when tender and give the whole pear a few minutes longer if required. Cool the white and pink pears separately in their syrups, then drain them thoroughly.

2. 2

   Build the fruit binders

   Put the diced apples, their water, and sugar in a saucepan. Cover and cook gently for about 10 minutes, then uncover, mash, and stir until the apples form a stiff compote and the spoon leaves a clean trail across the pan floor. The apples are the binder, not a loose sauce. If they remain wet, cook them uncovered a little longer; if they catch, transfer the unburned portion to a clean pan without scraping the bottom and loosen it with a teaspoon of water. Cool completely and reserve ½ cup for assembling the support and correcting the salpicon. In a clean saucepan, combine the apricot preserves, water, and vanilla bean. Simmer gently for 4 minutes, remove the vanilla, then pass the purée through a fine sieve. It should pour in a smooth ribbon and lightly coat a spoon; reduce it if thin, or loosen it with a spoonful of water if stiff.

3. 3

   Shape the brioche

   Heat the oven to 325°F (160°C). From the firmest part of the stale mousseline brioche, cut 12 even triangles about 4 inches (10 cm) high, 2½ inches (6 cm) across the base, and ⅜ inch (1 cm) thick. Cut three rounds about 3 inches (7.5 cm) across and 1¼ inches (3 cm) thick for the central cushion. Trim the rounds into a neat cylinder or slight cone, keeping their flat faces parallel so the finished support won't lean.

4. 4

   Dry the coated crusts

   Set a wire rack over a parchment-lined tray. Spread the Pralin (No. 2352) in a thin, even coat over both broad faces and the long edges of each triangle, leaving the bottom edge bare so it can stand. Dust both faces lightly with the icing sugar and arrange the triangles on the rack. Dry them in the moderate oven for 18 to 25 minutes, turning the tray once, until the coating has lost every wet gleam and taken the colour of old gold. Cool them completely on the rack before judging. If the coating beads, feels tacky, or weeps as it cools, don't build the dish yet. Ça se rattrape: lower the oven to 275°F (135°C), dry the triangles for another 5 to 8 minutes, and cool again. This step is the dish.

   Warm sugar always feels softer than cooled sugar. Test a triangle only after it has rested on the rack for 5 minutes; a properly dried crust feels firm and carries no sticky patch underneath.
5. 5

   Fold the salpicon

   Blot the pineapple and cherries once more, then combine them with the raisins and candied orange peel. Fold in the cooled apple compote, followed by ¼ cup (60 ml) of the apricot purée. This salpicon, a small even dice bound just firmly enough to hold together, must mound without releasing syrup. If it slumps, fold in some of the reserved stiff apple compote one spoonful at a time. If it feels heavy and pasty, add another spoonful of apricot purée. Keep the finished salpicon cool, but don't let it touch the crusts until service.

6. 6

   Build the cushion

   Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat and fry the brioche rounds on both flat faces until evenly golden, adding the cut edges to the pan briefly so no pale bread remains. Cool them on a rack. Smear a little reserved apple compote in the center of a 12-inch (30 cm) platter, set down the first round, and stack the others with thin layers of compote between them. Press gently to form a stable cushion about 4 inches (10 cm) high. This edible stack replaces the pastry brigade's carved fried-bread support while keeping its height and purpose.

7. 7

   Assemble the croûte

   Mound the salpicon around the central cushion, hiding its lower edge. Stand the coated brioche triangles upright around the fruit, placing their bare edges firmly on the platter and letting the salpicon support them. Arrange the drained pear halves in an outer border, alternating white and pink. Set the whole pink pear on top of the cushion and secure it with a short food-safe pick, the home equivalent of the hatelet. Spoon a fine, continuous thread of vanilla-apricot purée around the pear border and pour the remainder into a sauceboat. If the triangles have softened before assembly, return them to the 275°F (135°C) oven for 5 minutes and cool them fully before continuing. Assemble no more than 20 minutes before serving, remove the pick before portioning, and bring the whole construction to the table. À table!

   Serve each guest one coated brioche triangle, one pear half, and a generous spoonful of salpicon, with the vanilla-apricot purée passed separately.

Chef Tips

• •Mousseline brioche has the fine crumb and height this construction wants. If your brioche is fresh, slice it and dry the pieces in a 250°F (120°C) oven for 15 to 20 minutes, then cool completely before coating; soft bread bends under the Pralin (No. 2352).
• •Dry means dry. A coating that merely skins over can release syrup as it cools, which softens the brioche and spoils the clean almond crust. Give a doubtful triangle another few minutes at low heat rather than hoping for the best.
• •Jarred cherries and canned pineapple in juice are honest choices here, especially when fresh fruit is poor. Drain either one until no liquid gathers beneath it; the classical pantry preserved fruit precisely so a dessert like this didn't have to wait for the market.
• •Keep the white pears in clear syrup and the pink pears in cherry-tinted syrup until shortly before assembly. Their equal numbers and alternating colour are part of the original design, not decoration added at whim.
• •Pass the vanilla-apricot purée at the table instead of pouring it over the crusts in advance. The guests get the generous sauce the dish promises, and the brioche stays crisp.

Advance Preparation

• •Have the Pralin (No. 2352) prepared according to its own entry before beginning. The finished coating should be spreadable but thick enough to cling to the brioche.
• •Poach the pears and prepare the apple compote and vanilla-apricot purée up to 1 day ahead. Chill them separately, then bring the purée to room temperature and drain the pears thoroughly before assembling.
• •The coated brioche triangles can be dried up to 8 hours ahead. Cool them completely and keep them airtight at room temperature; refrigeration invites moisture and softens the crust.
• •Mix the salpicon up to 4 hours ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. Assemble the complete croûte no more than 20 minutes before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 490g)