The thought of making a laminated dough has always terrified me which is why I have a handful of bakeries I like to frequent for buttery flaky baked goods such as croissants and danish pastries. So when I logged in to check out the June Challenge, I was a bit concerned.
It’s a bit time consuming but after last month’s hazing, this was a piece of cake. I may even try this again (albeit with a different recipe for the dough).
For the filling I used a bag of wild strawberries I’d frozen for just such an occasion and cooked it with Lillet and a bit of black pepper to give it a little kick. I didn’t actually have time to run out to get tapioca starch (which is my preferred thickener for fruit fillings), so I cheated and used pearl tapioca which was a BIG mistake. Even after cooking it for 30 minutes the pearls refused to soften (probably because there wasn’t enough liquid), so I was left with slightly chewy balls of tapica in my filling. It wasn’t bad… just a bit odd.
This month’s challenge is being hosted by Kelly of Sass & Veracity, and Ben of What’s Cookin’. Thanks to both of them for organizing this and for the jaunt outside my comfort zone.
Oh and the best part was that this made enough dough to make 2 braids so I threw half the dough in the fridge and made these chocolate croissants for breakfast this morning:-)
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I first came across this dish at Landmarc in Tribeca. It’s somewhere between “French” toast and bread pudding and with a caramelized buttery exterior and a custardy interior it makes for a sinful Sunday morning brunch.
I used some good sandwich bread this morning (pictured), but this really works best with a crusty baguette. If custard dipped, butter fried bread isn’t quite rich enough for you, try putting some crisp bacon on top and drizzle maple syrup over that during its last few minutes in the oven.
2 pieces of baguette or other firm bread about 4″ x 3″ x 2″ each
3/4 C whole milk
1/4 C cream
1/4 C sugar
1 extra large egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbs butter
The night before you want to eat this, whisk the milk, cream, sugar, egg and vanilla together until smooth. Put the bread in a large ziplock bag and pour in the custard mixture. Make sure the bread is well coated then squeeze out as much of the air from the bag as you can (without squashing the bread) and seal the bag. Put it in the fridge and turn it over once after a few hours.
The next morning, heat the oven to 350 degrees. Then heat an oven proof pan large enough to accommodate both pieces of bread over medium heat. Drop the butter in and let it melt.
Take the bread out of the bag and place it in the pan. Once it’s brown on that side, turn it to another side. Depending on how many sides your bread has, repeat until all flat surfaces of your bread is browned.
Pop it in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until an instant read thermometer inserted into the middle of the bread reads 170 degrees. You can also tell if it’s done or not by cutting a little slit into the middle of the bread and squeezing, if liquid custard mixture comes out it’s not done.
Give it an ample dusting of powdered sugar and serve with a wedge of lemon or some maple syrup.
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