Berry-Cucumber Tart

BY LAURENT DUCHÊNE, M. O. F. PÂTISSIER

CHEF'S TIP: To make the fruit tart and cucumber-dill gel even fresher, you can add fresh herbs and sprouts to the top at
the last minute, as they don't keep for long.

ALMOND SABLÉ DOUGH - VANILLA PASTRY CREAM - RASPBERRY JELLY - CUCUMBER-DILL JELLY - VANILLA GLAZE

For ten tarts for six people, 20 cm in diameter

ALMOND SABLÉ DOUGH
1600 g butter
1000 g icing sugar
335 g ground almond
25 g salt
2670 g T65 flour
535 g whole eggs

METHOD:
Sand together the cold butter, icing sugar, ground almond, salt and flour in a bowl.
Stir in the eggs, before finishing the mixing without over-kneading.
Weigh out to 6 kg and roll out the dough on a rimmed baking tray lined with baking paper.
Freeze and cut into ten 20 cm disks.
Bake for approximately 35 min in a convection oven at 155°C.

VANILLA PASTRY CREAM
500 g semi-skimmed milk
5 g vanilla paste
70 g egg yolks
100 g sugar
40 g custard powder

METHOD:
Boil the milk and infuse the vanilla paste for 15 min, covered and airtight, then strain.
Whiten the egg yolks with the sugar and add the custard powder.
Boil the mixture for 1 to 2 min.
Blend while removing from the heat. Set aside and cool to 4°C in less than 2 hours.

RASPBERRY JELLY
125 g raspberry purée
6 g sugar
0.75 g pectin 325NH 95
6 g sugar
1 g agar-agar

METHOD:
Heat the raspberry purée to 50°C. Stir in 6 g sugar and pectin.
Boil for 1 min.
Add the remaining sugar and agar-agar, and boil again for 1 min.
Set aside in a shallow pan and leave to set completely. Blend and refrigerate.

CUCUMBER-DILL JELLY
250 g cucumber purée
7 g sugar
1.2g pectin 325NH95
7 g sugar
2.4 g agar-agar
5 g fresh dill

METHOD:
Wash and peel cucumbers. Blend.
Heat the cucumber purée to 50°C. Stir in 7 g sugar and 325 NH
95 pectin. Boil for 1 min.
Stir in the remaining sugar and agar-agar. Boil for 1 min.
Set aside in a shallow pan and leave to set completely.
Blend in the fresh dill. Store in the refrigerator.

VANILLA GLAZE
35 g water
0.15 g vanilla caviar
335 g neutral mirror glaze

METHOD:
When cold, combine the water and vanilla caviar. Mix with glaze.
Store in the refrigerator.
Heat to 80°C. Leave to cool.

ASSEMBLY
Strawberries as required
Blueberries as required
Blackberries as required
Raspberries as required
Redcurrants as required

METHOD:
Smooth the raspberry jelly and pipe onto the tart shells.
Smooth the custard and pipe. Arrange the fruit evenly, except the redcurrants and raspberries.
Pipe the cucumber jelly.
Top the tartlets with the cold glaze. After glazing, add the redcurrants and raspberries.

Laurent Duchêne

PASTRY CHEF IN PARIS

M.O.F. pâtissier-confiseur in 1993, Laurent Duchêne has explored almost every aspect of the pastry- making profession: he has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants(Toit de Passy, Manoir aux Quat's

Saisons), was a teacher at Le Cordon Bleu (Paris) for ten years, opened his first store in 2001 and now does consulting work in France and abroad. In 1999, he coached the French pastry team to the World Cup, which they won that year.

In his three Paris stores, the chef aims to make high-end patisserie accessible to the general public, with quality ingredients and creative recipes. Among his recent creations, created in collaboration with his pastry chef Fabien Le Moal, is the popcorn tart, featuring a roasted corn cream, popcorn and salted caramel. In addition to pastries, Laurent Duchêne also produces chocolates made by his wife Kyoko, bakery products and ice creams.