Great British Bake Off special: Puits d’Amour (‘Wells of Love’)
PRUE LEITH
MAKES 9
1 portion rough puff pastry (find Prue’s foolproof puff pastry method under ‘browse all recipes’ at thegreatbritishbakeoff.co.uk) or 1 pack shop-bought puff pastry
4½ tsp demerara sugar
FOR THE COMPOTE
250g strawberries, hulled
25g caster sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
50g raspberries
FOR THE CREME PATISSIERE
500ml whole milk
½ vanilla pod, split, seeds scraped, pod reserved
100g caster sugar
4 egg yolks
40g cornflour
40g unsalted butter
FOR THE CHOUX PASTRY
55g unsalted butter, diced
pinch salt
70g plain flour
2 eggs, beaten
beaten egg, for brushing
nibbed sugar, for sprinkling
- For the compote, tip the strawberries into a pan with the sugar and lemon juice. Cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes. Add the raspberries and cook for a further 5-10 minutes, until reduced to a thick compote (but not a jam). Remove from the heat, cool, then chill.
- For the crème pâtissière, put the milk in a pan with the vanilla pod and seeds. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat. Whisk the sugar, yolks and cornflour together in a large bowl. Whisk a little hot milk into the sugar and egg mixture, then whisk in the rest of the hot milk until well combined. Return to the pan. Cook over a gentle heat, stirring until it thickens.
- Remove from the heat and pass through a sieve into a clean bowl. Add the butter and stir until melted. Leave to cool, cover with clingfilm and chill until cold.
- Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Lightly dust the worktop, roll out the puff pastry to a 35cm square. Using a 10cm cutter, cut out 9 discs. Place on baking sheets and prick each disc all over with a fork. Chill for 30 minutes.
- For the choux pastry, place the butter, salt and 150ml of water in a medium pan. Heat gently to melt the butter, then bring to the boil. Immediately remove from the heat and tip in the flour. Beat with a wooden spoon to form a smooth ball of dough that leaves the sides of the pan.
- Vigorously beat the 2 eggs into the hot dough, a little at a time, until the dough is stiff and glossy. You may not need all the egg – stop if the dough becomes loose. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain nozzle.
- Pipe the choux in a circle 5mm in from the edge of each disc. Brush each choux ring with beaten egg and sprinkle with nibbed sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until puffed, crisp and golden. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To assemble, spoon the crème pâtissière into a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm plain nozzle. Spoon the strawberry compote into the pastry shells and pipe the crème pâtissière over the top. Sprinkle ½ teaspoon of demerara sugar on top of each and, using a blowtorch, brûle the sugar. Serve immediately.