Recipe of the month

Mont-blanc

Recipe for 20 petits gâteaux.

Viennois shortbread

  • Butter 150 g
  • Icing sugar 60 g
  • Salt "fleur de sel" 2 g
  • Vanilla bean 1/2 piece
  • Egg whites 24 g
  • Flour 180 g

Mix butter, icing sugar, salt, and scraped vanilla bean in a mixing bowl with a paddle. Gradually add egg whites and flour. Refrigerate and roll out to 2 mm thick. Cut 7 cm discs and bake on a Fiberpain® at 160°C for 12 minutes.


Hazelnut sponge

  • Egg whites 50 g
  • Egg yolks 60 g
  • Muscovado sugar 60 g
  • Honey 60 g
  • Brown butter "Beurre noisette" 85 g
  • Hazelnut paste (Chocolaterie de l’Opéra) 85 g
  • Icing sugar 65 g
  • Salt "fleur de sel" 1 g
  • Flour 85 g
  • Baking powder 4 g
  • Vanilla bean 2 pieces
  • Roasted hazelnut powder 200 g
  • Egg whites 200 g
  • Cream of tartar 2 g
  • Brown sugar (cassonade) 30 g

Whip 50 g egg whites, yolks, muscovado sugar and honey. Fold in sifted hazelnut powder, icing sugar, flour, baking powder and salt. Whip 200 g egg whites, gradually adding cream of tartar and brown sugar. Fold meringue into previous mixture and finish with brown butter and hazelnut paste. Spread onto a Silpat® into a 60 x 40 cm frame and bake at 160°C for 8 minutes in a fan forced oven. Cool on a wire rack out of the oven. Cut 3.5 x 5 cm rectangles. Set aside for assembly.


Lime meringue shells

  • Egg whites 100 g
  • Icing sugar 200 g
  • Salt "fleur de sel" 2.5 g
  • Lime zest 1 piece

Heat egg whites over a bainmarie with icing sugar to 50°C, constantly whisking. Whip to cool on mixer. Add zest and salt. Pipe 3 cm balls with a N°13 tip. Bake at 80°C for approximately 1 hour. Spray with cocoa butter to isolate for the assembly.


Chestnut paste with armagnac

  • Chestnut paste 345 g
  • Chestnut cream 125 g
  • Vanilla bean 1 piece
  • Armagnac 25 g

Mix all ingredients together on a mixer with a paddle attachement.


Blueberry compote

  • Caster sugar 50 g
  • Water 14 g
  • Blueberry puree 22 g
  • Gelatin mass 19 g
  • Frozen blueberries 133 g
  • Lemon juice 16 g

Cook water and sugar to 125°C, stop cooking with hot puree, add gelatin mass and finish with frozen blueberries and lemon juice.


Vanilla chantilly

  • Cream 600 g
  • Mascarpone 100 g
  • Gelatin mass 18 g
  • Vanilla bean 2 pieces

Heat 1/3 cream with sugar and vanilla bean. Cover and infuse for 15 minutes. Strain and add gelatin mass, remaining crema and mascarpone. Emulsify with a hand blender and refrigerate for 12 hours before use.


Chestnut cream

  • Gelatin mass 15 g
  • Chestnut cream 70 g
  • Chestnut paste 140 g
  • Vanilla bean 2 pieces
  • Armagnac 15 g
  • Whipped cream 273 g

Heat chestnut cream to 17°C and add gelatin mass melted to 40°C. Soften chestnut paste with paddle in mixer and add Armagnac. Scrape well the sides and add chestnut cream. Heat to 22°C and mix to create a smooth texture. Whip cream with scraped vanilla bean. Fold into chestnut base and use immediately.


Milk chocolate spray mixture

  • Milk chocolate 600 g
  • Cocoa butter 400 g

Melt ingredients together to 40°C before spraying.


Assembly

Place a 3 cm acetate strip into 6 cm rings. Line edges with a band of hazelnut sponge. Fill interior with chestnut Armagnac mousse, sprinkle with candied chestnuts. Blast freeze. Fill with blueberry compote and blast freeze. Pipe vanilla chantilly into 4 cm half sphere Flexipan® Place citrus meringue balls and blast freeze.


Finishing

Lightly spray sponge base with milk chocolate spray. Place base onto Viennois shortbread. Place a half sphere of meringue/vanilla chantilly. Place gateau onto a turn table and pipe chestnut cream. Decorate with two dark chocolate stems and logo disc. Finish with a candied chestnut and gold leaf.

Recipe given by

Lilian Bonnefoi
Pâtisserie Lilian Bonnefoi, Nice

The idea?

The idea was to rework a montblanc, a classical dessert, onto a tart shell, giving added texture.


The shape?

A tart shape, with a new technique: piping inspired by my friend, Yann Brys. In summer we change the flavours to Antibe rose.


The flavours?

A good quality chestnut paste, a wild blueberry compote which brings a slight acidic flavour, roasted piedmont hazelnut sponge and a light lemon meringue bringing a little freshness.


The technical step?

The piping: mastering the speed of the turntable like Yann Brys. The meringue: to make thin shelled meringues to bring a nice crunch to the dessert.


Careful

To make this recipe, it is important to finish the chestnut mousse every day and not to freeze the recipe.

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