A few hours before, make the
brioche. Mix both of the flours,
with the sugar, salt and yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer
fitted with a dough attachment.
In a separate bowl, mix 6
of the eggs with the orange
blossom water.
With the machine switched
on, slowly add the egg mixture
to the bowl with the flour, then
mix for 8-10 minutes, adding
the milk if the dough is too stiff.
Slowly add the butter, cube by cube and mix for another
8-10 minutes until the dough
doesn’t stick to the bowl any
more. Form into a ball, cover
with cling film and set aside in
a warm place for 2-3 hours to
rise until doubled in size.
Meanwhile, to make the
crème patissière, add the milk
to a heavy-based pan with the
vanilla paste or the vanilla
seeds and pods and warm over
a medium heat.
In a glass bowl, mix the egg
yolks with the flour and sugar.
Pour half the warm milk over
the yolk mixture and whisk well,
then pour the rest of the milk
over and return the mixture
to the pan. Cook for a few
minutes, stirring continuously,
until the crème patissière is
quite thick. Return it to the
bowl, cover with cling film
and set aside to cool.
Remove the air from the
brioche dough by kneading it
on a worktop, and shape into
a large ball. Grease a 24cm
loose-based cake tin with
butter, place the brioche in
the middle and push to the
sides to fill up the tin.
Beat the remaining egg and
use to brush over the brioche.
Leave the brioche to rise for
another hour or two.
Preheat the oven to 200C/
180C F/Gas 6.
Brush some more of the egg
wash over the brioche, sprinkle
with the pearl sugar and bake
for 35-40 minutes, until golden
and thoroughly cooked.
To finish the crème patissière,
whip the cream to soft peaks.
Use a spatula to loosen up the
crème patissière, then add the
whipped cream to it and softly
incorporate it into the cream.
Transfer to a piping bag.
Once the brioche is done,
allow it to cool completely, then
slice it in half. Pipe the crème
patissière on to the bottom half
of the brioche and then put the
sugar-pearled half on top.
RECIPES AND PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN FROM CHEZ MANON BY MANON LAGRÈVE, PHOTOGRAPHY BY NASSIMA ROTHACKER (QUADRILLE, £26).
