Sweet Christmas | divine agreement

What if we had tea, during those somewhat lazy holiday afternoons, when relatives and friends come for a stroll? Obviously, we accompany it with a sweet touch that will bring the guests together. Camellia Sinensis, Patrice Demers and Marie-Josée Beaudoin come together to create an absolutely perfect pairing.

Moist pecan cake with Wulong tea ganache

For the average person, this exclusive holiday cake recipe may have a lot of steps, but if you follow it exactly, you can’t miss it.

Like the Sabayon, this cake is entitled to its liquid companion. It is simply served with Shui Xian Lao Cong from Camellia Sinensis, which is already part of the composition of the ganache.

Moist pecan cake

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Cooling: 2 hours
Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

• 125 g brown sugar
• 125 g of icing sugar
• 85 g all-purpose flour
• 85 g of almond powder
• 3 g of salt
• 1/2 tsp. teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 vanilla pod split and scraped
• 210 g egg whites (the whites of 7 large eggs)
• 125 g unsalted butter
• 75 g roasted pecan paste (see note)
• Zest of 1/2 orange

Preparation

1. In a bowl, combine brown sugar, icing sugar, flour, ground almonds, salt, cardamom and vanilla seeds.
2. Pour in the liquid egg whites and mix well using a whisk.
3. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the butter until brown. Stir the butter regularly during cooking (you can use a whisk), especially once the water has evaporated, to ensure that you obtain a uniform color and thus avoid burning the milk solids. Pour into a heat-resistant container to stop cooking.
4. While stirring the mixture with a whisk, gradually pour in the hot butter to incorporate it perfectly.
5. Add the pecan paste and zest; mix well.
6. Pour the dough into a round mold of approximately 7 to 8 inches, previously buttered and whose bottom is covered with a circle of parchment paper. Patrice used a savarin-shaped silicone mold to bake the cake. It is also possible to use two 8-inch cake pans.
7. Leave to rest for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
8. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180 ^oC), bake the cake for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
9. Leave to cool for 15 minutes before unmolding.

Good to know

The cake can be kept for 48 hours at room temperature if well wrapped. You can also easily freeze it. It is simply necessary to take it out at least 2 hours in advance at room temperature before eating it.

Note from Patrice

For the pecan dough, simply place 200 g of pecans on a baking sheet and roast them in the oven at 300°F (150 ^oC), for approximately 12 minutes. After removing them from the oven and letting them cool to room temperature, reduce to a more or less smooth paste using a food processor. It is difficult in a large robot to prepare only the 75 g necessary for the recipe. You can store the rest of the dough in an airtight container at room temperature and use it like any other nut butter.

Wulong tea ganache

Preparation: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Rest: 10 hours

Ingredients

• 250 g of 35% cream
• 30 g of honey
• 1/4 tsp. teaspoon of salt
• 2 tbsp. wulong tea (suggestion: Shui Xian Lao Cong from Camellia Sinensis)
• 250 g of Valrhona Bahibe 46% chocolate (or other dark milk chocolate) (see note)

Preparation

1. In a small saucepan, bring the cream, honey and salt to a boil. Remove from heat, add tea, cover and let steep for 4 minutes.
2. Pass through a fine sieve to remove the tea leaves.
3. Pour the tablets into a high-sided container. Pour the hot cream over the pastilles and let sit for 30 seconds.
4. Emulsify the ganache well using an immersion blender.
5. Pour the ganache into a small container and cover it with plastic wrap directly in contact with the surface.
6. Leave the ganache to set for at least 10 hours at room temperature.

Good to know

You can keep the ganache for 24 hours at room temperature. If you want to prepare it a few days in advance, you can store it in the refrigerator. Just make sure to take it out of the fridge at least 2 hours in advance before using it, to allow it to regain its initial texture.

Note from Patrice

For this ganache, Patrice suggests using milk chocolate with a fairly high percentage of cocoa. Ideally above 45%. Many bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturers now offer it, sometimes with cocoa percentages of up to 55%, which is very high for milk chocolate.

Trims and assembly

Candied orange zest

Preparation: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 orange
• 100 g of sugar
• 50 g lemon juice

Preparation

1. Using a vegetable peeler, peel the orange.
2. Cut the zest into thin julienne strips.
3. Place the zest in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil; pass through a sieve. Repeat the operation 2 more times.
4. Squeeze the orange to recover 100 g of juice. Pour into a saucepan with the sugar and lemon juice. Bring to the boil and pour over the zest.
5. Allow to cool and store in the refrigerator.

Crispy pecans

Preparation: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 12 minutes

Ingredients

• 125 g pecans
• 3 tbsp. tablespoon of maple syrup
• 1 C. tbsp canola oil
• 1/4 tsp. teaspoon of salt

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150 ^oVS).
2. In a bowl, mix the pecans well with the other ingredients to coat them perfectly.
3. Spread on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and bake for about 12 minutes, taking care to stir them 2 or 3 times.
4. Allow to cool and store in an airtight container.

Assembly

Ingredients

• 1 clementine, peeled and divided into segments

Preparation

1. Using a pastry bag, garnish the top of the cake with the tea ganache.
2. Garnish with a few segments of clementine, crispy pecans and some candied zest.