Heat the oven to 150°F/66°C. Generously
butter the soufflé dish and butter a wide strip of wax or
parchment paper to form a collar extending at least 3 inches/7.5
cm above the rim of the dish. Press the collar, buttered side
inward, against the inside of the dish and chill until the
butter is set and the paper sticks to the dish.
To extract the zest from the skins of the
oranges, rub them with the sugar cubes so the cubes soften and
turn bright orange. Wrap the orange-flavored cubes in plastic
wrap and crush them with a rolling pin.
Peel the apples and scoop our the stems and
flower ends. Halve them and scoop out the core with a melon
baller or the point of a knife. Set a half, cut-side down, on a
board and cut it crosswise into the thinnest possible slices.
Alternatively, slice the apple halves on a mandoline. Arrange a
layer of apple slices in a flower pattern in the bottom of the
mold.
Top this first layer of apple with more apple
slices arranged across the others like ripples in a pond. (This
crossed pattern of slices ensures that the cake holds together
when unmolded.) Sprinkle the second layer with the crushed
orange sugar. Continue filling the mold until the apples, held
in place by the paper collar, extend at least 2 inches/5 cm
above the rim. (They will shrink down into the mold during
cooking.) Cover them with a round of buttered paper.
Bake until the apples are much reduced and
meltingly soft when pierced with a skewer, 12 to 14 hours. Tear
off the top of the paper collar and let the cake cool to tepid.
Unmold it onto a warm platter - the top should be lightly
caramelized with a little syrupy juice running down the sides.
Serve it warm, with a caramel sauce.
Caramel Salt Butter Sauce
Caramel, of course, is simple toasted sugar.
It took a master chef like Marc Meneau to think if making
caramel sauce, not just the usual cream, but with salted butter
to add an inimitable bite to the sweetness. The resulting
butterscotch sauce is great with ice cream as well as fruit
desserts like apple gâteau.
Heat 1 cup/200 g sugar with 1/2 cup/125 ml
water and squeeze of lemon juice over low heat until the sugar
dissolves - be sure to use a heavy pan as caramel is one of the
hottest ingredients in the kitchen. (The lemon juice helps stop
the sugar from crystallizing.)
Boil the syrup rapidly without stirring until
it starts to turn golden around the edges. Do not stir - if you
do, the syrup may crystallize. Meanwhile, melt 1/2 cup/125 g
salted butter with 3/4 cup/175 ml heavy cream. When the syrup
begins to color, lower the heat a bit and continue boiling to a
deep golden color - it will darken rapidly.
Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool
for 30 seconds. Add the butter and cream, standing back as the
sauce will sputter and bubble up in the pan. Put it back over
the heat, stirring until the caramel is completely dissolved.
Serve hot or chilled. It makes enough to top 4 to 6 desserts.
Honey Caramel Sauce
I found out how to make a honey caramel sauce
quite by accident. One day my caramel was starting to cloud, and
I'd read somewhere that honey would cut the crystals. Magic -
not only did the syrup clarify, it tasted strongly, deliciously,
of honey.
Follow the recipe above for Caramel Salt
Butter Sauce without adding the butter and cream. When the
caramel has reached a golden brown, remove the pan from the heat
add 2 tablespoons honey. Swirl the pan to mix in the honey, then
add 1/2 cup/125 ml water, or cream if you prefer a cream sauce.
Heat the sauce, stirring until the caramel has dissolved. Serves
4 warm of cold.
This Recipe of the Month
selection comes from Anne Willan's newest release: Anne
Willan From My Château Kitchen (Clarkson Potter/Publishers.
April 2000)
www.randomhouse.com
