Mouthwatering Gourmet Dishes

Friday, April 12, 2013

Tart souffle with chestnuts

View the story "Tart souffle with chestnuts" on StorifyTart souffle with chestnutsStorified by Arya McLean· Fri, Apr 12 2013 16:41:57Gourmandia

Crispy golden tart filled with chestnut soufflé and served with vanilla ice cream is a delicious and luxurious dessert dish that will sparkle in a lunch gathering or dinner party. This gourmet cooking recipe consists of three parts: making the tart, the soufflé, and the ice cream. An ice cream machine is best for a smooth and creamy ice cream. Of course, you can always buy vanilla ice cream if you don’t have enough time to make it at home.

To make a crispy tart, use a dull-metal (as opposed to shiny metal), glass, or ceramic baking plate and coat it with vegetable shortening before lining it with the dough. Avoid aluminum pans, which prevent crust from browning and dark pans, which might brown the crust too much. Preheat the oven at least 20 minutes before baking to ensure a nice crust. You can use a food processor to mix the ingredients, pulsing them until you get supple dough; or you can also use a hand blender or a kitchen mixer to get a smooth consistency.

Instead of using regular flour, this recipe uses ground chestnuts, also known as chestnut flour, to make the soufflé tart filling. Ground chestnut has a sweet and nutty flavor and slightly denser than regular flour so expect your soufflé to be not as airy. The color of chestnut flour, which is creamy-brown, also affects the final product. Low in fat and calories, and also gluten-free, chestnut flour is considered a healthier alternative to white flour and almond flour and is a popular ingredient in Tuscany in Italy and Corsica in France, particularly in making Chestnut cake.

To make soufflé that puffs up beautifully when baked in the oven. Beat the egg whites until they are foamy then add the sugar and beat until it reaches a stiff stage. Use a clean stainless steel bowl and an electric mixer to get the best results.

Ingredients

For the dough:

9 ¾ tablespoons butter
10 ½ tablespoons powdered sugar
2 cups flour
½ cup almond powder
2 eggs
1 pinch salt

For the main mixture:

5 ½ tablespoons butter
5.28 oz. chestnut flour
3 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 egg yolks
1 egg

For the ice cream:

1 pint (2 cups) milk
6 egg yolks
7 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup cream
1 ½ tablespoons preserved ginger
2 vanilla pods

Preparation Instructions

1. To make the tart dough, soften the butter. Add powdered sugar, eggs, flour, and almond powder. Slightly knead the dough to smoothen. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes. Flatten and mold the dough on a tart pan coated with butter. Put the tart in the pan back in the refrigerator and chill for another 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 356 degrees F. Bake the tart for 10 to 15 minutes.

2. To make the filling, melt the butter and chestnut flour in a bain-marie pan. Stir with a mixer until pale and add the egg yolks. Blend until smooth. Whisk the egg whites and sugar until foamy and fold it in the egg yolk mixture. Stir the butter-chestnut mixture at lukewarm temperature using a spatula. Use the resulting mixture to fill the bottom of the tart. Cook in the oven for 7 to 8 minutes at 356 degrees F.

3. To make the ice cream, boil the milk and vanilla pods (cut in half, opened, and scraped) in a saucepan. Using a beater, mix the egg yolks and sugar. Pour the hot milk on top of this and place the whole on the stove, stirring gently with a spatula. While this English cream thickens, be careful to not let it boil. Strain. Refrigerate. Once it has cooled down, add the cream and mix well. Place in the ice cream machine to churn. Freeze again. Cut the preserved ginger into a very small dice. Add these dices to the ice cream.