Yeasted Waffle with Recreated Rum Pearl Sugar and Braised Pineapple
Pastry Chef Dana Cree, formerly of Alinea – Chicago IL
Adapted by StarChefs.com
Yield: 4 Servings

INGREDIENTS
Whipped Coconut:
300 grams cream
100 grams brown sugar
100 grams dried unsweetened coconut
2 young coconuts
Salt

Pearl Sugar
100 grams cask-aged rum
150 grams raw sugar
2 grams salt

Yeasted Waffle:
7 grams active dry yeast
120 grams whole milk, warmed to 45ºC
20 grams light brown sugar
1 egg
250 grams bread flour
125 grams softened unsalted butter
25 grams honey
10 grams vanilla extract
25 grams rum
5 grams salt
150 grams pearl sugar

Braised Pineapple
1 pineapple
150 grams brown sugar
150 grams cask-aged rum
2 vanilla beans, cut in quarters along their length
1 cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
1 orange

Brown Butter-Cashew Powder:
50 grams tapioca maltodextrin
50 grams brown butter
2 grams salt
1000 grams canola oil
300 grams cashews
200 grams sucrose
50 grams honey
100 grams water
5 grams salt

METHOD
For the Whipped Coconut:
In a saucepot, heat the cream and the brown sugar until the sugar is dissolved. In a saucepan, toast the dried unsweetened coconut until golden, and immediately add to the cream mixture. Allow to infuse for one hour. Strain the mixture and chill overnight. Reserve the toasted coconut cream.

The next day, crack the young coconuts open and reserve the coconut water. Juice the coconut flesh.

In a bowl, combine 200 grams of the juiced coconut flesh, 100 grams of the coconut water, and the toasted coconut cream. Season with salt. Chill for 2 hours until very cold.

Whip the coconut cream with the whipping attachment of the Waring food processor. Transfer the Whipped Coconut to a container and keep cold. Use within 30 minutes of whipping.

For the Pearl Sugar:
In a saucepot, heat the rum, 100 grams of the raw sugar, and the salt to a simmer. Allow the temperature to reach 130ºC. Turn off the heat and stir in the remaining 50 grams of raw sugar. Continue stirring until the sugar re-crystalizes and forms ragged pearls.

For the Yeasted Waffle:
In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the yeast, milk, and brown sugar. Allow the mixture to stand until the yeast comes alive and begins to bubble, about 20 minutes.
Add the egg and 100 grams of the flour, and mix until just combined. Allow this “sponge” to ferment for 90 minutes.

Add the remainder of the flour, the butter, honey, vanilla, rum, and salt, and mix on low with a dough hook for 3 minutes. Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes and mix for 3 additional minutes. Transfer the mixture to a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to bulk-ferment until doubled in size, about 2 hours.

Remove the dough from the plastic wrap, punch the dough down, and wrap again tightly in plastic wrap. Chill for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, remove the dough. Over a flat surface, fold in the pearl sugar.
Portion the dough into 5 pieces, about 115 to 125 grams per piece. Round each piece and cover loosely with plastic. Allow the pieces to double in size, about 45 to 60 minutes.

When the waffle dough is nearly finishing its final proofing, preheat the waffle iron. Check the temperature with an infrared thermometer and make sure it is over 175ºC.
Bake the waffle dough in the waffle iron for 3 minutes, or more if needed. If the waffle iron isn’t hot enough, the sugar won’t caramelize on the outside, and if it’s too hot, it will burn.

For the Braised Pineapple:
Trim the outer skin from the pineapple, remove the top and bottom, and cut it into quarters. Remove the fibrous core from the pineapple.

In a half hotel pan, or other baking pan, sprinkle half the brown sugar on the bottom. Cove the sugar with the pineapple quarters, core side down. Cover the top of the pineapple with the remaining brown sugar, the strips of vanilla pod, and the broken cinnamon stick. Remove the rind of the orange with a peeler, and arrange the rind atop the pineapple. Juice the orange and pour the juice over the pineapple.

Cover the pan with vented foil, and bake at 150ºC for 2 to 3 hours.

Allow the braised pineapple to cool. Once cooled, dice the pineapple and cover with the braising juices that are in the bottom of the pan.

For the Brown Butter-Cashew Powder:
Add the tapioca maltodextrin to the bowl of a food processor and turn on the machine. Drizzle in the brown butter until a powder forms. Season with salt. Reserve the Brown Butter Powder.

In a saucepot, heat the canola oil to 150ºC. Add the cashews and stir, cooking slowly to ensure that the nuts evenly caramelize on the inside and outside, about 10 minutes. Remove the cashews from heat and drain on paper towels.

Add the cashews to the bowl of a food processor and run until the nuts liquefy, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue to purée as necessary. 
While the nuts are liquefying, prepare a sugar solution in a saucepot by heating 150 grams of the sucrose, the honey, and the water to 135ºC. When the thermometer reaches 135ºC, add the remaining 50 grams of sucrose and the salt to the cashews in the food processor. Slowly drizzle the sugar solution into the cashew mixture as it spins.

Once the sugar solution is added to the cashews, turn the food processor off for 20 seconds. Break up any large chunks that have formed, and pulse the food processor until the nut powder is even. Reserve the Cashew Powder.

For the Brown Butter-Cashew Powder, combine 200 grams of Cashew Powder with 75 grams of Brown Butter Powder until even.

To Assemble and Serve:
Warm the Braised Pineapple. Begin baking the Yeasted Waffle in the waffle iron. Transfer the Whipped Coconut to the base of the plate. When the waffle is finished cooking, cut it into cubes, and arrange 5 cubes on the plate. Sprinkle the Yeasted Waffle with the Brown Butter-Cashew Powder. Add the diced Braised Pineapple and drizzle the plate and the waffle with the pineapple braising liquid.