There were a total of 7 people in the class, ranging from a highschool teacher who taught a baking class (no fair!) to an seventy year old woman who 'could never get pie crusts just right.' We paired up and picked a recipe from the following list. Can't go wrong with any one of them!
Frangipane Tart with Prosecco Poached Plums - This recipe was by FAR the best. I'm still raving about it!
1 tart dough recipe *
1 frangipani recipe*
10 plums, ripe but not too soft
1 bottle Prosecco
2 cups water or enough to cover fruit
1 cup granulate sugar
1 vanilla bean
Preheat over to 350 degrees
Bake tart shell and fill with frangipane, about 1/4-inch thick. Set aside.
While tart shell is baking, wash, pit and halve the plums, set aside. If plums are ripe, reduce liquid prior to adding fruit.
Bring Prosecco, water, sugar and vanilla bean to a boil, cook until sugar has dissolved. Add the plums.
Cook until fruit is tender; remove from liquid with a slotted spoon. Reduce cooking liquid to the consistency of maple syrup. Remove from heat. Arrange plums on top of the frangipani.
Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the frangipane is golden brown. Glaze the tart with the Prosecco glaze and allow to cool to room temperature.
*Dough*
8 ounces unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 whole egg, room temperature
1 egg yolk, room temperature
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cake flour
In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add the egg and yolk and mix until well incorporated. Add salt and flours and mix just until incorporated.
Remove dough from mixer and form into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour before rolling out.
When ready to make the tart, roll out to a diameter of 12-inches and form into a 10-inch tart shell.
Dock the bottom with a fork and place in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
Remove from freezer and place on a sheet pan. Line tart dough with foil or parchment paper and add weights.
Bake for about 20 minutes. Remove weights and paper and continue to bake until lightly browned. Remove from oven.
*Frangipane Batter*
8 ounces almond paste
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
5 ounces unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1/4 cup cake flour, sifted
Mix almond paste, sugar and butter in a food processor until smooth.
Add eggs one at a time and then add the flour.
Set aside while tart dough is baking.
Blueberry/Blackberry Pie with Double Crust
1 recipe pie dough* (double crust)
2 pounds (about 3 pints) blueberries, fresh
1 pound (1 pint) blackberries, fresh
zest of one lemon, preferably organic
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
5 ounces, plus 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
3/4 ounce (3 tablespoons) cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 egg, beaten with a teaspoon of water
Preheat over to 400 degrees.
Wash and drain the berries well. Mix berries with remaining ingredients, except the butter and beaten egg.
Heap the berry mixture into a prepare pie shell, piling them higher in the venter. Scrape any sugar and cornstarch left in the bowl over them and dot with butter.
Roll the remaining pie dough into an 11-inch circle. Brush the edge of the pie shell lightly with beaten egg white. Lay the circle of dough over the pie. Fold and crimp the edges.
Place pie on a parchment silpat lined sheet pan.
Brush the top of the pie with egg white and sprinkle on 1 teaspoon of sugar. Cut four slashes in the top to let steam escape. Bake for 20 minutes, then rotate the pie and turn the over down to 350 degrees and continue baking until juices are bubbling and clear, about 40 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
*Pie Dough*
11 1/4 ounces (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) granulated sugar
1/4 ounce (1 teaspoon) fine sea salt
4 ounces (8 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces
1/4 cup vegetable shortening or lard
7-8 tablespoons ice water
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, optional
In a large mixing bowl, mix together flour, sugar and salt. Cut in 1/2 of butter until completely blended into flour. Cut in remaining butter until pieces are pea size. Add shortening and cut in until slightly larger than peas.
Slowly add water and lemon juice until dough starts to come together. Quickly form into two disks, wrap in food film and refrigerate for at least two hours.
On a lightly floured surface or between two pieces of parchment paper, roll one disk into an 11-inch circle. Line a 9-inch pie pan with it and set aside.
Classic Sour Cherry Pie with Lattice Crust
Crust:
11 1/4 ounces (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
5 tablespoons (or more) ice water
Whisk flour, sugar, and salt in large cowl to blend. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until small pea-size clumps form. Add 5 tablespoons ice water; mix lightly with fork until dough holds together when small pieces are pressed between fingertips, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry.
Gather dough together; divide into 2 pieces. Form each piece into a disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes. Do ahead. Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled. Let dough soften slightly before rolling out.
Filling:
7 ounces (1 cup) plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 tablespoonds cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 cups whole pitted sour cherries or dark sweet cherries
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (if using sour cherries) or 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (if using dark sweet cherries)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon milk
vanilla ice cream
Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 425 degrees. Whisk 1 cup sugar, cornstarch, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Stir in cherries, lemon juice, and vanilla; set aside.
Roll out 1 dough disk on floured surface to 12-inch rough. Transfer to 9-inch glass pie dish. Trim dough overhand to 1/2 inch. Roll out second dough disk on floured surface to 12-inch round.
Using large knife or pastry wheel with fluted edge, cut ten 3/4-inch-wide strips from dough round.
Transfer filling to dough-lined dish, mounding slightly in center. Dot with butter.
Arrange dough strips atop filling, forming lattice; trim dough strip overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold bottom crust up over ends of strips and crimp edges to seal. Brush lattice crust (not edges) with milk. Sprinkle lattice with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
Place pie on rimmed baking sheet and bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Bake pie until filling is bubbling and crust is golden brown, covering edges with foil collar if browning too quickly, about 1 hour longer.
Transfer pie to rack and cool completely. Cut into wedges and serve with vanilla ice cream.
Strawberry and Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream Tart
Serves 8
Crust:
6 3/4 ounces (1 1/2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
2 ounces (1/2 cup) confectioner's sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
4 1/2 ounces (9 tablespoons) very cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg
Special Equipment: 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom
Pulse the flour, sugar and salt together in the bowl of a food processor to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until the butter is coarsely cut in.
Some pieces of butter should be the size of oats and others the size of peas. In a separate small bowl, stir the egg, just to break it up.
Then, add it a little at a time to the flour mixture, pulsing after each addition. When the egg has just been incorporated, process the mixture in 10 seconds pulses until the dough just begins to form some clumps.
At this point stop the machine. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and with a gentle hand knead the dough just to finish incorporating any dry ingredients that might have escaped the mixing in the machine. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours or overnight.
Roll out chilled dough between two pieces of parchment paper or on a marble counter-top to a 12-inch round, lifting and turning dough occasionally to prevent it sticking to the paper or counter. Note that less flour will be needed if rolling between the parchment paper than on the counter. And, using less flour means a more tender crust so use as little as possible to keep the dough from sticking.
When at the 12-inch round, roll the dough onto your rolling pin and lay it over the tart pan pressing the dough firmly into the bottom edge of the pan.
Seal any cracks in dough. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold overhang in, making double-thick sides and extending the sides to about 1/4 in- inch above the pan's rim. Pierce crust all over the fork. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes, but preferably longer, before baking.
When ready to bake, center a rack in the over and preheat the oven to 375 degree. Take a piece of the parchment paper that was used to roll out the dough and line the tart dough with it. Add pie weights. Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake the crust for 20 to 25 mintes.
Carefully remove the weights and parchment paper. Return the tart shell to the oven and continue baking about 10 minutes longer to fully bake it, or until it is firm and golden brown. If the edges start to become too brown, cover with pieces of aluminum foil.
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup graulated sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
pinch salt
1/2 vanilla bean
3 tablespoons constarch
1 large egg
3 large egg yolks
1 1/2 pints fresh strawberries or other fresh fruit
1/2 apricot or apple jelly for glazing fruit, warmed
Bring the milk, 1/4 cup of the sugar, butter salt and vanilla bean to a gentle boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat.
Whisk together the cornstarch and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Add the egg and yolks to the cornstarch and mix into a smooth paste.
Slowly, and in small amounts, whisk a little of the hot milk into the egg mixture. This is called tempering the eggs, which you need to do to get them to the same temperature of the hot milk in the pan, so they won't curdle.
Once the egg mixture is warm to the touch, pour it back into the milk in the pan.
Return the custard to the stove and bring to a boil, whisking continuously for 2 to 3 minutes.
The pastry cream will thicken almost immediately but it is important to cook out the starch (2 to 3 minutes) so that it isn't grainy and so your pastry cream won't separate. When the pastry cream is done, it will be smooth and glossy.
Strain the pastry cream into a bowl and set the bowl in an ice bath. Stir to quickly cool. Then scrape it into a shallow container. Cover with plastic wrap pressing it directly on the pastry cream and place in the refrigerator until ready to assemble tart.
When tart shell has completely cooled and is ready for assemble, slice strawberries.
Spread a layer of pastry cream over bottom of tart shell.
Place sliced strawberries in concentric on top of pastry cream and serve.
Thank you chef Bret Bannon!
