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Gateau Basque

This recipe is adapted from Zen Can Cook Gateau Basque is commonly made with a vanilla pastry filling, but you can also use fruit marmalades such as cherry or apricot. If you do use the pastry filling, make certain to let it heat for a minute to cook off the raw flour taste. SERVES 6

For almond pastry
8 3/4 ounces (250 g) all pupose flour
4 1/2 ounces (125 g) sugar
one 4 oz. stick (125 g) unsalted butter
1 ounce (25 g) almond flour
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 lemon zest
1/2 orange zest
For pastry filling
cherry marmalade
or 2 cups + 2 tbsp (1/2 liter) whole milk
3 egg yolks
3 1/2 ounces (100 g.) sugar
1 3/4 ounces (50 g) flour
1 vanilla bean
1 tablespoon rum

In a bowl add flour, sugar, butter, baking powder, almond flour and lemon and orange zest. Mix until it looks like sand. Add the egg and the almond extract and mix until dough comes together, do not overmix. Wrap the dough in foil and let it rest in freezer.

In the meantime prepare the pastry cream. Scrape the vanilla bean into the milk and bring to a boil. Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale. Add the flour and whisk until incorporated. Temper the egg mixture by slowly adding half of the hot milk to it while whisking. Place the rest of the milk back on the fire until it starts boiling. Now whisk in the egg-milk-mixture and continue whisking for at least one minute to cook off the raw flour taste. Turn off the heat and spread the mixture out on a large surface in order for it to cool rapidly.

Preheat the oven to 375′F and grease an 8 inch (20 cm) cake pan or pastry dish. Cut the dough in half, and place one half back into the freezer. Roll out the other half to a circle of about 10 inches (25 cm) in diameter. Gently line the bottom and sides of the baking dish with the dough. Fill with either cooled pastry cream or cherry preserve.

Roll out the second half of the dough to about 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter. Carefully drape it over the cake filling and and pinch together the edges of the two layers of dough to seal in the filling. Trim off any excess dough. Make a crisscross pattern on top and brush it evenly with an egg yolk diluted in a tiny bit of water. Bake it for 30 minutes or until golden brown.