A traditional "Tarte Tropézienne" is a round brioche filled with a crème mousseline. It originates from Saint-Tropez, in the south of France. Traditionally it's a big round brioche with the cream inside and then each serving is a slice but I prefer it as mini tartes tropéziennes so that everyone has their own but of course, this recipe works really well if you prefer to do a traditional one with one big brioche that you cut.
The brioche has a super soft crumb and the thick and airy crème mousseline really makes the bake a dessert and not something you would just have for breakfast.
I made this recipe over 2 days because to get a nice airy brioche, you store the dough in the fridge overnight and then you let it rise in a warm place for at least 6 hours and then you shape the balls and leave them to rise for at least 1 hour. It's not hard in any way, it just takes time but you're not doing anything during this time. I really encourage you to make this recipe because even though you need to make the dough in advance, it's really fun and everyone will really enjoy it.
A really important characteristic of the Tarte Tropezienne is the sugar pearls on the top, it adds a little crunch to the soft cream and the springy brioche. You can buy the sugar pearls online, even on IKEA and in some supermarkets but if you would like to make some, the recipe is here.
Ingredients:
For the Brioche:
300 grams of plain flour
75 grams of soft butter, unsalted
1 teaspoons of active dry yeast
50 grams of caster sugar
5 grams of salt
125 ml of warm semi-skimmed milk
1 egg + 1 egg for brushing at the end
Pearled sugar
For the crème mousseline with Italian meringue:
2 egg yolks
55 grams of caster sugar
15 grams of cornfour, sifted
10 grams of plain flour, sifted
1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste / 1 vanilla pod's worth of seeds
190 ml of semi-skimmed milk
2 egg whites
60 grams of caster sugar +30 ml of water
Instructions:
Start by making the brioche dough, place in the bowl of your stand-mixer your flour + sugar + salt + yeast, making sure the salt and the yeast don't touch.
Mix the dry ingredients together with the dough hook on low and then add in your warm milk + eggs, one at a time.
Knead the dough for about 5 minutes and then leave to rest for 5 minutes.
Next start kneading the dough again on the lowest setting and slowly add in your butter, little at a time and waiting for 30 seconds in between each addition.
Once all of the butter is incorporated, knead until the dough is coming off the sides of the bowl all by it's self and that it springs back when you poke it, this tells you that your dough is ready.
Place in an oiled container and leave overnight (at least 9 hours) in the fridge.
Once the dough has been left overnight in the fridge, take out of the fridge and leave to rise in a warm area in a new clean bowl with a towel over the top for at least 5 hours.
Meanwhile, make the crème mousseline, whisk your egg yolks with the caster sugar until pale in color, then add in the sifted flour + cornflour, and whisk until smooth.
Heat your milk + vanilla in a saucepan until simmering, then add in half of it to your egg mixture and whisk until completely smooth.
Place your egg mixture back into the other half of milk in the saucepan, sieving it as you pour it in to make sure there are absolutely no lumps.
Whisk on low heat until really thick and then leave to cool in the fridge in a bowl, filmed so that the clingfilm touches the cream.
Once the cream is cooled, place into your stand mixer and whisk on low to loosen the pastry cream. Add in little by little you soft butter, waiting about 1 minute between each adding until all the butter has been fully incorporated.
Make your italian meringue, by heating your sugar + water in a saucepan until all the sugar has dissolved.
Whisk your egg whites until white and forming soft peaks. Add in your sugar syrup in a steady stream, whisking during all the process until a stiff and glossy meringue forms.
Incorporate your Italian meringue into the crème mousseline with a spatula until combined and store in the fridge (filmed at contact with clingfilm) until needed.
Once your dough has risen to double its size, shape the dough into 10 balls, set on baking trays lined with baking parchment and leave for at least 1 hour until double their size. (Make sure to place them very spaced apart on the baking trays so that they won't touch when they rise).
Once they are double their size, brush with a beaten egg, sprinkle with pearled sugar and bake in the oven at 180° for 15-20 minutes.
Once the brioche balls are golden brown, take out of the oven and leave to cool. Once cooled, cut in half and dollop on on your crème mousseline so that it fills the bun completely and lay the top of the bun back on top.
Your Mini Tartes Tropéziennes are ready to be served and enjoyed.
I really hope you enjoy making them and before leaving, don't forget to:
Check out the new Baking Glossary on the blog if you are unsure of any baking terms.
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Bye Xxx
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