Pudding Seymour

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1¼-quart (1.2-liter) lidded metal pudding mould or deep stainless-steel bowl
• •Small heavy saucepan
• •Instant-read or sugar thermometer
• •Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
• •Fine rack for draining fruit
• •Chilled serving platter and clean lint-free white napkin

Instructions

1. 1

   Poach the peaches

   Chill a 1¼-quart (1.2-liter) metal pudding mould or deep stainless-steel bowl. Combine 1 cup water, ½ cup sugar, and the split vanilla bean in a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer, stirring only until the sugar dissolves, then add the peeled peach slices. Poach at the barest tremble for 2 to 4 minutes, just until the slices bend without breaking. Lift them onto a rack, cool completely, and blot away every bead of syrup. Wet fruit creates icy seams in the finished pudding.

2. 2

   Season the brioche

   Stir 1 tablespoon sugar into ½ cup cold heavy cream until dissolved, then add 1 tablespoon kirsch. Keep the cream liquid and unwhipped. This is the source's raw cream, meaning unwhipped rather than unpasteurized. Lay the brioche in a shallow dish and spoon the cream over it gradually, turning once, until each slice is pliable and evenly moistened but no cream pools beneath it. If a slice begins to sag or tear, lift it immediately onto a rack and chill it for 10 minutes. Ça se rattrape. Never squeeze it, and never pour leftover cream into the mould.

   Press one corner between two fingers. It should yield like a soaked sponge while the crumb remains visible. If it turns to paste, it has taken too much cream.
3. 3

   Build the pâte à bombe

   Put the 3 yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a deep heatproof bowl with an electric whisk ready. Combine ⅓ cup sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a small saucepan and boil without stirring. When the syrup reaches 230°F (110°C), begin beating the yolks at medium speed. At 244°F (118°C), remove the syrup from the heat and pour it in a thin stream down the bare inside wall of the bowl, never onto the moving whisk. Beat at high speed until the mixture is pale, thick enough to fall in a ribbon, and completely cool, about 6 to 8 minutes. If the syrup forms a hard thread on the bowl, stop pouring, remove the thread, and resume more slowly. If the bowl still feels warm, keep beating; warm pâte à bombe will melt the whipped cream.

4. 4

   Fold the bombe

   Reserve 1 tablespoon of the ¾ cup cold cream, then whip the remainder only to soft peaks. Stir the orgeat, the remaining tablespoon of kirsch, and 1 teaspoon of ruby syrup taken from the Bar-le-Duc preserve into the cooled pâte à bombe. The orgeat is almond syrup, and it should perfume rather than dominate. Add the optional coloring only if the currant syrup has not produced a clear pale pink. Fold in the whipped cream in three additions, keeping as much volume as possible. If the cream was beaten too far and looks grainy, fold the reserved liquid cream into it before combining. Ça se rattrape.

5. 5

   Layer the pudding

   Peel and thinly slice the very ripe William pears now, leaving them uncooked as the original formula directs. Spread a thin layer of pink bombe over the bottom and slightly up the sides of the cold mould. Add a fitted layer of soaked brioche, then some poached peach and raw pear slices, a few small spoonfuls of Bar-le-Duc preserve, and enough bombe to fill the spaces. Repeat the layers without crushing the fruit, ending with bombe levelled across the top. Tap the mould twice against a folded towel to release large air pockets, but do not compact it.

6. 6

   Freeze the mould

   Press a disc of baking parchment directly onto the surface, then close the mould with its lid or cover it tightly with foil. Freeze for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. The professional method surrounded a small metal bombe mould completely with salted ice and could set it rapidly; still air in a home freezer works more slowly, so the longer freezing time is an honest equipment change, not an alteration to the pudding.

7. 7

   Unmould and serve

   Chill the serving platter. Remove the cover and parchment, wrap the sides of the mould in a warm damp towel for 5 to 8 seconds, and invert it onto a perfectly clean, lint-free white napkin laid flat on the platter, as the classical service directs. If the pudding does not release, repeat with the warm towel in 3-second turns; prolonged warmth will soften the pink shell. Let it stand for 8 minutes, then cut with a knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry between slices. Serve while the layers hold their clear edges. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose a butter-rich brioche with a close, feathery crumb and let it stand uncovered for several hours. Very fresh brioche compresses under the cream; day-old brioche absorbs evenly and keeps its shape.
• •Williams' Bon Chrétien is the pear called Bartlett in North American markets. It must be fully fragrant and yielding at the neck because it goes into the mould uncooked; a hard pear will remain hard after freezing.
• •Bar-le-Duc preserve is made with whole red currants suspended in syrup, not an ordinary smooth jelly. If it cannot be found, use the best whole-fruit red currant preserve available and say plainly what changes: the necessary currant acidity remains, but the delicate whole berries do not.
• •Out of peach season, use good canned peach halves packed in juice. Drain them, slice them, and warm them for one minute in the vanilla syrup, then cool and blot them exactly as you would fresh fruit.
• •Use dry kirsch, not a sweet cherry liqueur. With orgeat, currant preserve, and the frozen custard already supplying sweetness, a sugary substitute makes the pudding cloying.
• •A demi-sec Champagne suits the almond, currant, and orchard fruit, particularly at an anniversary table. Pour small glasses. The pudding should remain the generous thing in the room.

Advance Preparation

• •Poach and drain the peaches up to one day ahead. Refrigerate them in a covered container lined with absorbent paper, keeping them separate from their syrup.
• •Assemble and freeze the pudding the day before serving. Once fully frozen, it keeps for up to three days if tightly covered, though the fresh pear aroma is finest on the first two.
• •Move the platter to the refrigerator an hour before serving so the unmoulded pudding meets a properly cold surface. Unmould only when the table is ready.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 210g)