Tarte Poire Bourdaloue (Pear Almond Tart)

Poire Bordaloue 

French have a love affair with tarts and custards, this tart is a combination of both and the addition of almond makes it so heavenly.  This recipe is from Chef Cyril Lignac, a famous French chef, why not?

Ingredients :
250 gm pâte brisée http://zhelazycook.blogspot.com/2011/01/pate-brisee-short-crust-pastry.html
3-4 pear or a can of pear in syrup
500 ml milk
3 egg yolk
100 gm sugar
30 gm all purpose flour
75 gm almond powder
1 vanilla pod or 1 tsp vanilla essence

Pre-heat the oven to 200°C.
Roll out the patê brisée onto a tart pan, chill.
Cut the vanilla pod into 2, remove the seeds and place them with the milk. Place the milk in a pot, heat it over slow fire.  In the meantime, whisk the egg yolk with the sugar till pale. Add the flour, continue to whisk till combine.  If you are using vanilla essence instead of vanilla pot, you can add it now. Add the warm milk into the egg mix.  Do not boil the milk because it might cook the egg mix. Mix well, then transfer the mix back to the pot.  Whisk over slow fire till thicken to custard like.  Turn off the heat and add the almond powder.  Let cool.
Once cool, pour the custard over the patê brisée.  Lazy cook don't pre-cook the pâte brisée.

Custard onto pâte brisée

Place the pears onto the custard.  Lazy cook uses the can pears. Put it in the oven at 200°C for 25 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let it cool.  Best easten slightly chilled.

Tarte Bourdaloue before putting in the oven

Pear Bordaloue after cooking

Banana Cheesecake

In Malaysia, normally when we have cheesecake it's made with Digestive biscuit as the base and Philadelphia Cream Cheese.  When I first arrived in France, I could not find any of those cream cheese, and to make cheese cake the cream cheese they use to replace the Philadelphia Cream Cheese is St Moret.
France is known to be land of many cheeses, I've discovered that the French make their cheese cake with cheeses available around the region.  It is not so creamy, and not so sinful eating them!
I have a banana left sitting in the kitchen, so I have chosen this Banana Cheesecake recipe, the recipe is for 4 person.
Ingredients:
125 gm speculoos (belgian cookie spiced with cinnamon)
60 gm butter, softened
1 ripe banana, sliced
2 eggs, separated
1 packet vanilla sugar
30 gm sugar
150 gm ricotta cheese
125 gm natural yoghurt/ fromage blanc

Pre-heat the oven at 150°C.
In a bowl, combine the speculoos crumbs with the softened butter. Press the crumbs onto the base of a greased 6 inch springfoam pan. Refrigerate while making the cheese mix.
Whisk the egg yolk, then add the sugar, if you don't have vanilla sugar just additional 10 gm sugar with a teaspoon of vanilla essence. Whisk till pale,  then add ricotta and yoghurt.  In a separate bowl, whisk the egg white, with a pinch of salt,  till stiff.  Fold the egg white into the cheese mix.  Arrange the bananas onto the speculoos crumbs, then pour the cheese mix on top of the banana on the speculoos crumbs.  Bake for 40 - 45 minutes.
Cool and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
To serve, topped with honey.

Banana cheesecake