4 lbs cooking apples (peel, core and slice for about 10 cups)
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
grated peel of one lemon
1/4 cup of granulated sugar
1/4 cup of a good cognac or apple brandy
4 Tbsp of butter
4 eggs & 1 egg white

Caramel

1/2 cup of sugar
2 Tbsp of water

• Cook the apples over high heat, covered for 10 min.
• Turn down the heat and cook for another 15 minutes or until tender and broken down.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• While the apples are cooking, make the caramel with 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 Tbsp of water in a saucepan.
• As soon as it turns gold in color, line a 6 cup, fireproof, cylindrical mold.
• Mix together the cinnamon, peel of lemon and sugar and add to the apple sauce.
• Boil until the apples are reduced to a thick purée. You should have about 4 cups of applesauce.
• Remove from the heat and mix in the cognac or brandy and the butter.
• One by one, beat in the eggs and the egg white.
• Turn the apple mixture into the caramel-lined mold.
• Cover with a plate and set in a deep saucepan with boiling water.
• Place in lower third of preheated oven and cook for 1 hour.
• Uncover and cook until the dessert shrinks from the side and the top is set except at the very center.
• Check with a knife after about 1/2 hour.
• Remove the mold from the saucepan and allow to cool for 20 minutes.
• Reverse on a serving dish and serve warm.
• To serve cold, chill overnight and reverse on a serving dish; in a few minutes it will dislodge itself from the mold.
• Simmer some brandy in the mold to dissolve any remaining caramel and strain over the dessert.
• You can also serve it with a warm crème anglaise.

Pastry cream

2 Tbsp of cornstarch
2 Tbsp of flour
1/2 cup of sugar
3 egg yolks
3 cups of milk
3 Tbsp of butter – 2 Tbsp of liqueur (pear brandy)
2 Tbsp of crystallized ginger

• In a 1 1/2 quart saucepan, bring 3 cups of milk to a boil on medium heat.
• Meanwhile, sift cornstarch and flour into a 3 quart mixing bowl.
• Mix in the sugar.
• Break 3 egg yolks in another bowl and beat slightly.
• Quickly pour half the boiling milk in the flour-sugar-cornstarch mixture.
• Whisk vigorously to break any lumps.
• Mix in the beaten egg yolks.
• Add the rest of the milk to the mixture. Return to cook over medium heat until the custard thickens.
• Remove from the heat and add the soften butter.
• Mix well and add the liqueur.
• Cover with a plastic wrap and refrigerate.
• When ready to use add the crystallized ginger.

Poached pears

4 Anjou pears
1/2 lemon
1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water

• Cut the pears lengthwise, peel and core them.
• Rub half a lemon on the pears to keep them from darkening.
• Combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup of water in each of two skillets.
• Cook to dissolve the sugar.
• Pour 4 pear half in each skillet and cook for 5 minutes on each side, ladling syrup on top of the pears. They should be tender but not mushy.
• Remove the pears and dice in 1/2″ cubes.
• Put the cubes in glasses and fill with the pastry cream. Refrigerate.
• Combine the cooking syrup in one skillet.
• Cook until it caramelized.
• Ladle the hot caramel over each glass.

6 cups of water
2 cups of sugar
8 large ripe (but firm) peaches, peeled, halved and stoned
1 vanilla bean or 3 Tbsp of vanilla extract
Whole raspberries for garnish

Sauce Cardinal

2 ten-ounces packages of frozen raspberries, defrosted and drained
2 Tbsp of superfine sugar
1 Tbsp of kirsch

Crème Chantilly

3/4 cup of heavy cream
2 Tbsp of sugar
1 Tbsp of vanilla extract

• In a heavy 4 quart saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
• Boil for 3 minutes and reduce the heat as low as possible.
• Add the peaches and vanilla and poach them uncovered for 10 to 20 minutes or until barely tender when pierced with a knife.
• Refrigerate in the syrup until cold.

Sauce Cardinal

• With a wire whisk or food processor, purée the raspberries.
• Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl.
• Stir in the sugar and the kirsch.
• Refrigerate, covered.

Crème Chantilly

• Whip the cream until it thickens.
• Sprinkle in 2 Tbsp of sugar and the vanilla.
• Continue beating until the cream hold soft peaks.

To serve

• Transfer the chilled peaches to individual dessert dishes.
• Discard the syrup.
• Mask each peach with the sauce Cardinal and decorate with the chantilly.
• Garnish with whole raspberries.

This is a simple dessert to make. Yet it can look very sophisticated when served in large glasses. The pears should be ripe for good flavor but firm to hold their shape while cooking.

1 cup granulated sugar
4 fresh pears, pared, halved, and cored

Sauce

4 egg yolks
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/4 cup sherry
3/4 cup heavy cream

• In 4-quart saucepan, combine granulated sugar and 3 cups water; heat to melt sugar.
• Add the pears, cover and simmer gently until tender – about 30 minutes.
• Remove from heat.
• Refrigerate pears in their syrup several hours.
• Make Sauce:
  • In top of double boiler, with rotary beater or wire whisk, beat egg yolks, confectioners’ sugar and sherry until light in color.
  • Place over hot, not boiling, water; water should not touch bottom of double boiler top.
  • Cook, stirring constantly, 8 to 10 minutes.
  • Refrigerate 3 hours. Mixture thickens. Mix it well again as it separates a bit.
  • In medium bowl, beat cream until soft peaks form when beater is raised.
  • Carefully fold in chilled sauce.
• Drain pears. Serve topped with sauce.

Use one seedless orange per person for the salad.

Peel three of the oranges with a vegetable peeler to remove only the orange part of the rind. This will be used for the julienne candied orange rind. Then, proceed as below:

• To peel the oranges, hold each fruit in one hand and with a sharp knife, cut a slide across the top to expose the flesh.
• Remove the skin in a strip, cutting deep enough to go right down to the flesh.
• Cut each section right down to the core by following as close to the membrane as you can with the knife.
• Squeeze the membrane over the orange sections to extract all remaining juices.

Candied orange rind

• Use the peels of the orange part of the rind only.
• The white skin between the peel and the flesh is bitter.
• Stack a few peels together and cut into very thin strips; this is called a julienne.
• Blanch the julienne twice to remove the bitterness: plunge the julienne in about 1 cup of boiling water.
• Return to a boil and let cook for about 2 minutes.
• Strain immediately and rinse under cold water.
• Repeat this process and keep the julienne in cold water until ready to use.
• Meantime, make a syrup with 1/4 cup of water and 1/2 cup of sugar.
• Cook until the sugar is dissolved.
• Add julienne and boil until all syrup is absorbed and the peel is transparent.
• Spread on rack to dry.

Praline

1 full cup of almonds
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of water

• Preheat oven 400°F
• Roast almonds on an ungreased 9 inch metal pan. Put them in a bowl and set aside.
• When the metal pan has cooled, butter it and set aside.
• In a saucepan, mix granulated sugar and water.
• Cook over high heat until golden brown.
• Stir in the prepared almonds and pour in the metal pan, let cool for an hour.
• Invert the pan with a hard rap on the counter to dislodge the hard caramel and almonds.
• Pulverize the pieces in a food processor.
• Serve the orange salad sprinkled with the praline and decorated with the candied orange rind.

Serves 4

Fraises glacées

1 lb of firm ripe strawberries
1 package of frozen raspberries
1/4 cup of sugar
The juice of 1/2 lemon

• Hull the strawberries, slice them lengthwise.
• Refrigerate.
• Melt the raspberries and purée in the food processor.
• Add the lemon and strain the raspberry juice with a fine sieve to remove the pips.
• Add the sugar and mix well.
• Coat the strawberries with the raspberry purée. Refrigerate.

Crème Chantilly

2/3 cup of heavy cream
2 Tbsp of milk
1 tsp of sugar

• Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl.
• Whisk until the cream forms soft peaks.

Praline

1 cup of pecans or almonds
1/2 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of water

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Roast nuts on a cookie sheet for 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside.
• Butter a 9 inch metal pan and set aside.
• In a heavy saucepan mix the sugar and water to make the caramel.
• Cook on high heat without stirring until golden brown.
• Stir in the prepared nuts.
• Pour into the buttered metal pan and let cool completely.
• Return the pan with a hard rap on the counter to dislodge the caramel and pulverize the pieces in a food processor.

To serve

Set the strawberries in wide sherbet glasses, cover with a dab of Chantilly and sprinkle with praline.

Serves 6 to 8.

1 1/2 lb of strawberries
1/2 cup of sugar

1 1/4 cups of whole milk
2 large eggs
1/4 cup of sugar
1 Tbsp of flour
2 tsp of vanilla extract
3 Tbsp of orange liqueur (Cointreau or Grand Marnier)
1 cup of sliced, blanched almonds

• Roast the almonds at 400°F oven for 3 minutes or until brown
• Wash, drain and dry the strawberries, remove the stems.
• Sprinkle with the sugar and let macerate for 2 or 3 hours.

Crème patissière

• Assemble and measure all ingredients before starting. Work quickly.
• Put flour in 2 quart mixing bowl. Add sugar and mix well. Add enough milk to make a paste without lumps.
• In a small bowl, beat the eggs slightly with a fork.
• In a 2 1/2 quart saucepan bring the rest of the milk to a boil.
• Pour 1/2 the milk in the flour/sugar mixture and beat quickly until smooth.
• Add the eggs and blend well.
• Pour this mixture into the remaining milk (bring back to the boil if necessary) and cook for 30 seconds or until it thickens.
• Cool by putting bottom of pan in cold water. Continue beating.
• When just warm, add orange liqueur and vanilla extract.
• Refrigerate until cold.

To serve

• Divide the strawberries evenly in wide dessert glasses, pour the macerated juice over them, cover with the cream, sprinkle with roasted almonds.
• Keep in refrigerator until ready to serve.