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From Café Boulud Cookbook by Daniel Boulud (Simon
& Schuster, Scribner, 1998)
Adapted by StarChefs
Yield: 8 Servings
The recipe for the berry marmalade will make more than you'll need
for the vanilla cakes, but it keeps well and is scrumptious stirred
into yogurt or spread on toast.
Ingredients:
Berry marmalade:
- 1¼ cups strawberries, hulled
- 1 cup raspberries
- ¼ cup blackberries, halved
- ¼ cup blueberries, halved
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon powdered pectin
- ½ moist, plump vanilla bean
- Grated zest and juice of ¼ lime
Vanilla cakes:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- 5 large egg whites, at room temperature
- Pulp scraped from ½ moist, plump vanilla bean (scraped as above;
reserve the pod for another use, if desired)
- ½ cup sugar
- 5½ Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Method:
For berry marmalade:
Dice ¼ cup of the strawberries. Cut ¼ cup of the raspberries
in half. Gently mix these berries with the blackberries and blueberries,
and set aside.
Slice each of the remaining strawberries into 8 to 12 pieces, depending
on their size, and toss the slices along with the remaining ¾ cup
raspberries, the sugar, pectin and lime zest and juice into a medium
saucepan. Cut the vanilla bean lengthwise in half and, using the
back of the knife, scrape the pulp out of the pod; toss the pulp
and the pod into the pot. Gently stir, then set aside for 5 minutes.
Place the saucepan over low heat and cook, gently stirring occasionally,
just until the berries begin to render their juices, about 5 minutes.
Increase the heat to medium and continue to cook and stir until
the raspberries lose their shape and the strawberry slices are soft
but still intact, about 8 minutes. Turn the marmalade into a bowl,
press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface to create an airtight
seal, and cool to room temperature.
When the marmalade is cool, remove and discard the vanilla bean
and fold in the reserved fresh berries. (The marmalade can be made
up to 2 days in advance and kept in an airtight container in the
refrigerator. Use it at room temperature or slightly chilled.)
For vanilla cakes:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter
the insides of six 2½- by 1½-inch-high ring molds, 4-ounce disposable
aluminum cups, or 4-ounce muffin tins, dust them with flour, and
tap out the excess. Place the molds or cups on a baking sheet (line
the sheet with parchment if you're using the ring molds) and keep
close at hand.
Sift the flour and baking powder together and reserve.
Put the egg whites and vanilla bean pulp in the bowl of a mixer
fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the whites on low speed until
they are broken up and foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high
and continue to whip until the whites form soft peaks. Gradually
add the sugar and whip until the whites form firm, glossy peaks.
Spoon out a little of the whipped whites into a small bowl and fold
the butter into the whites; reserve. Using a large flexible rubber
spatula, fold the flour into the whites in two to three additions.
When the flour is incorporated, fold in the egg white and butter
mixture. Immediately spoon the batter into the prepared molds.
Slide the baking sheet into the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes,
or until a knife plunged into the center of the cakes comes out
clean. The cakes should be golden brown and springy to the touch,
and they should pull away just a bit from the sides of the molds.
Lift off the ring molds, or unmold the cakes, and transfer them
to a rack to cool to room temperature.
To serve:
For each portion, spoon a circle of marmalade onto the center of
a dinner plate. Place a cake on top of the marmalade, then, with
a spoon, gently form a shallow hollow in the center of the cake
and fill with marmalade.
Wine Pairing
A light, sparkling Moscato d'Asti
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