BaxterStorey’s baking book, The Modern Baker, features over 80 delicious recipes of varying difficulty levels – simple, tougher and expert. As the grand finale of The Great British Bake Off approaches, we have selected an expert recipe to challenge all those budding bakers out there. Honey and grappa-soaked sultanas combined with smooth, low-fat ricotta makes for a tasty Italian classic – the Ricotta and Honey Gâteau is a delicious alternative to a traditional Sunday morning brunch.
Makes: One 20cm cake
Ingredients
Crêpes:
- 300g whole egg
- 750g semi-skimmed milk
- 240g plain flour
- 75g caster sugar
- 75g unsalted butter, melted
- Pinch of salt
- Flavourless oil for cooking
Pâte à bombe:
- 35g leaf gelatine
- 325g caster sugar
- 90g water
- 220g egg yolk
Ricotta mousse:
- 1000g ricotta
- 400g sultanas soaked in 100g grappa for a week
- 100g whipping cream
- 200g honey
METHOD – Crêpes
- Place egg, milk, flour and sugar in bowl and blitz with hand blender.
- Add melted butter and salt and rest for 1-2 hours.
- Heat a lightly greased 20cm frying pan, add 85g of batter to pan, swirl to cover base. As soon as mixture sets flip over to cook other side.
- Tip crêpe onto baking parchment and repeat process to make a total 20 crêpes.
- Layer each with baking parchment to avoid them sticking together.
Note: Take care not to overcook crêpes as they should be pale in colour.
METHOD – Pâte à bombe
- Bloom gelatine in iced water.
- Boil sugar and water to 118⁰C.
- Using an electric mixer, whip egg yolks until pale and frothy. Pour in hot syrup and continue whipping until mixture cools to tepid.
- Add drained gelatine and continue whipping for 5 minutes.
METHOD – Ricotta mousse
- Place ricotta in large bowl, add soaked sultanas and any residual grappa and combine.
- Add pâte à bombe a third at a time, folding gently each time.
- Whip cream to ribbon stage and fold into ricotta mixture. Allow to stand for 10 minutes so that it just begins to set.
METHOD – Gâteau
- Create a stack by sandwiching each crêpes with around 100g of evenly spread ricotta mousse and repeat 20 times.
- Drizzle the final one with a little honey.
- Chill and serve garnished with vanilla pods, orange segments and sultanas.
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