For this week's bake, Rob chose another French delicacy. The Classic French Flan is considered a simple custard tart and a classic French recipe, but the origins go back much further. “What have the Romans ever done for us?” The classic line from Monty Python’s Life of Brian got the answer “aqueducts… sanitation… roads… irrigation…” and a whole lot more. They didn’t say flans – but in fact, flan comes from the old French flaon which comes from Latin fladon. Yup, thanks to the Romans, the French discovered flans and then perfected them.
Sable dough is a versatile pastry staple. Shorter (crumbly) and richer than regular pie crust (thanks to eggs), sable makes a sturdy and tasty shell for tarts and also makes excellent shortbread-type cookies.
The thought of this bake even makes Mona Lisa smile.
Classic French Flan (Pastry Cream + Vanilla Sablé) - by Chef Dominique Ansel
We're using a 3" tall X 8” wide tart ring and filling the raw tart shell with finished pastry cream, then baking it altogether to create our flan.
Pastry Cream Ingredients
535 g (2 1/4) cups whole milk
130 g (2/3 cup) sugar
50 g (1/3 cup) cornstarch
185 g (9 large) egg yolks
110 g (8 tbsp, or 1 stick) unsalted butter, cubed, at room temp
Vanilla Sablé Tart Shell Ingredients
185 g (1 1/2 cups) AP flour, plus more for dusting
85 g (2/3 cup) confectioners’ sugar
50 g (5 1/4 tbsp) cornstarch
1 g (1/4 tsp) salt
3 g (1/2) vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped
130 g (10 tbsp) unsalted butter, cubed, at room temp
50 g (1 large) egg
Pastry Cream Instructions
1. Combine milk & 65 g (1/3 cup) of the sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking continuously. Remove from heat.
2. Whisk together remaining 65 g (1/3 cup) sugar & cornstarch in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in 1/2 cup of the warm milk mixture.
3. While whisking, add egg yolks to the cornstarch mixture one at a time, whisking until each yolk is incorporated before adding the next. Pour the tempered egg yolk mixture into the pan with the remaining milk mixture.
4. Cook the pastry cream over medium-low heat, whisking continuously, until it thickens to a pudding-like consistency, about 5 min. Remove from heat. Add butter & whisk until evenly combined and the pastry cream is pale yellow with a smooth, glossy texture without any lumps. Let cool.
Vanilla Sablé Tart Shell Instructions
1. Combine flour, confectioners’ sugar, cornstarch, salt, & vanilla seeds in a large bowl. Add butter, mix w/ your hands (or use a stand or hand mixer) until the butter is the size of peas & ingredients are combined. Add the egg, mix with a spatula until smooth. Don’t over mix.
2. Transfer dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap & shape into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, flatten into a disc. Refrigerate for 30 min, until cold but still pliable like clay.
3. Flour your work surface & rolling pin. Unwrap dough, roll into a 1/8 in (3 mm) thick rectangle.* Work quickly so the dough doesn’t warm up. *If the dough is sticking, add more flour.
4. Using an 8 in (20 cm) tart ring/pan as a guide, cut dough into a round that’s 1 in (2.5 cm) wider than the ring.
5. “Fonçage” the dough: Butter the tart ring/pan. If you’re using a ring, line a sheet pan with parchment & set the ring in the center (no need to do this if using a tart pan w/ a bottom). Place the dough round on top of the ring/pan, push down gently w/ your fingers, pressing the dough along the inside of the ring/pan & into the inside edge. Don’t press too hard, & keep an even thickness. Trim away excess dough w/ a paring knife.*
* If your dough starts to get warm, put back in fridge for 15 min.
TO ASSEMBLE THE FLAN
Butter the inside of your tart ring.
While your pastry cream is still warm (not piping hot) or chilled from the fridge, pour into the raw tart shell, stopping 1/4” from the top.
Bake at 350F (175C) until the top is dark brown, 25-30 min.
Let cool completely (you can also chill it in the fridge) before unmolding, slicing, and serving.
Chef Ansel would approve of Rob's bake. It is magnifique.
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