Charlotte de Pommes, Emile Giret

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •8-inch (20 cm) shallow, straight-sided charlotte mould or cake pan, about 2 inches (5 cm) deep
• •Wide 12-inch (30 cm) sauté pan
• •Small offset spatula
• •Piping bag with ½-inch (1.25 cm) plain tip
• •Fine-mesh sugar sieve
• •Two long food-safe stainless-steel skewers
• •Locking kitchen tongs and heatproof glove
• •Rimmed metal tray for the hot skewers

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook Apples Dry

   Melt 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 43 g) of the clarified butter in a wide sauté pan. Add the apples, granulated sugar, and salt, then cook over medium heat, stirring and turning regularly, until the fruit collapses into a thick, slightly chunky compote, 25 to 35 minutes. Keep cooking until no juice gathers at the edges and a spoon drawn across the pan leaves a path that stays open. If the filling remains loose, don't thicken it with flour. Spread it across the pan and continue cooking gently; ça se rattrape. Transfer it to a wide tray and cool completely.

   A wide pan matters because evaporation, not fierce heat, makes the filling firm. If the bottom begins catching before the apples are dry, lower the heat and keep turning them.
2. 2

   Build Bread Shell

   Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Brush an 8-inch (20 cm) shallow, straight-sided charlotte mould or cake pan with clarified butter. Cut one bread disc to cover the base, a second for the lid, and enough rectangles to line the sides with a ½-inch (1.25 cm) overlap. Brush every piece generously on both sides with the remaining butter, then fit the base and sides snugly into the mould. Press the overlaps together so no apple can escape. If a gap appears, patch it with a small buttered piece of bread; a neat repair disappears as the shell browns.

3. 3

   Fill and Bake

   Pack the cooled apple filling firmly into the lined mould, pressing out air pockets without disturbing the bread. Lay the reserved bread disc over the top and tuck its edges just inside the side lining. Brush with any butter left in the bowl. Set the mould on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the bread is deeply and evenly golden and the edges have drawn slightly away from the mould. Pale bread remains soft beneath the cream, so give it its full colour.

4. 4

   Unmould and Cool

   Rest the Charlotte in its mould for 10 minutes, then run a thin knife only around the upper edge. Invert it decisively onto a flat, heatproof serving platter and lift the mould straight up. If it clings, set the bottom of the mould on a hot damp towel for 20 seconds and try again; don't pull at the bread. Leave the turned-out Charlotte uncovered until completely cool, about 45 minutes. Warm bread would soften the cream jacket.

5. 5

   Jacket with Cream

   Reserve about ½ cup (120 ml / 125 g) of the Pastry Cream (No. 2401) for the finishing beads. With a small offset spatula, cover the top and sides of the cooled Charlotte with the remaining Pastry Cream (No. 2401), maintaining an even coat about ½ inch (1.25 cm) thick without rounding away the mould's clean shape. This thickness is part of the preparation, not decoration to be pared down. If the cream slides, stop and chill both Charlotte and cream for 10 minutes; if it is too firm to spread, work a small portion gently with a spatula until pliable. Chill the coated Charlotte for 20 minutes.

6. 6

   Brand the Lattice

   Set the platter on a rimmed metal tray. Sieve the icing sugar copiously over the top and sides so the cream is completely veiled. Grip a long, food-safe, all-metal stainless-steel skewer securely with locking tongs, and heat its far end over a gas flame or with a culinary torch until fiercely hot, with the tip just beginning to glow. Press it briefly into the sugared surface, then lift straight away. Repeat in parallel diagonal lines across the top and around the sides, then cross them in the opposite direction, reheating and wiping the skewer between marks. Press, never drag. If a line gouges the cream, chill the Charlotte, patch it with reserved Pastry Cream (No. 2401), resugar that spot, and mark it again. Keep the hot skewer on the metal tray, clear of cloth and handles.

   Test the first stroke on a spoonful of chilled cream dusted with icing sugar. The correct contact is nearly instantaneous: long enough to leave an amber line, never long enough to melt a trench.
7. 7

   Pipe and Serve

   Fit a piping bag with a ½-inch (1.25 cm) plain tip and fill it with the reserved Pastry Cream (No. 2401). Pipe a close row of round beads around the entire base, each bead just touching the next, as the source directs. Chill for 15 minutes to settle the finish, then serve within the hour while the caramel lattice remains distinct. Cut with a thin knife wiped clean between slices. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose apples that soften without surrendering all their acidity. Reinette and Boskoop are splendid; Granny Smith is the honest widely available choice. Very juicy eating apples make you cook twice as long for half the flavour.
• •Use the exact firm Pastry Cream (No. 2401) called for by the source. Ordinary loose crème pâtissière cannot support a half-inch jacket or hold the piped beads, and the difference isn't invisible.
• •A culinary torch is useful for heating the skewer, not for firing the Charlotte directly. Direct flame gives a blotched surface; the pressed skewer gives the regular dark lattice that defines this preparation.
• •Brand the sugar shortly before serving. Refrigeration protects the cream, but humidity gradually dissolves the caramel lines, so this is not the part to finish the night before.

Advance Preparation

• •The apple filling can be cooked one day ahead, covered, and refrigerated. Bring it only to cool room temperature before filling the bread shell.
• •The bread-lined Charlotte can be baked, unmoulded, and cooled earlier on the day of serving. Keep it uncovered at cool room temperature so its shell stays firm.
• •Prepare and chill the Pastry Cream (No. 2401) according to its own entry. Coat the Charlotte up to 3 hours ahead, but apply the icing sugar, brand the lattice, and pipe the base beads during the final hour.
• •Refrigerate leftovers promptly and eat within 2 days. The flavour keeps, though the caramel pattern softens.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 335g)