Its ingredients are similar to those of our traditional tiramisu, but the renowned French pastry chef adds vanilla flavoring and a “tart-like” texture.
Pierre Hermé’s signature tart is a true ode to vanilla, built on a crisp shortcrust pastry base filled with a rich white chocolate ganache and a light mascarpone cream. The French master pastry chef’s touch of class lies in the blend of three different varieties: Tahitian vanilla for an intense base note, Mexican vanilla for its floral aromas, and Madagascar vanilla for its woody undertones, thus creating a “homemade” yet exquisite flavor.
Interestingly, the combination of soaked ladyfingers (here flavored with rum and vanilla) and mascarpone cream closely resembles the structure of our Italian tiramisu. However, while our great Italian classic plays on the sharp, bitter contrasts of coffee and cocoa, Hermé’s Parisian interpretation transforms this layering into a delicate, monochromatic cloud, where the aromatic sweetness of vanilla takes center stage.
Tarte Infiniment Vanille
Recipe from “Best of Pierre Hermé” – Éditions Alain Ducasse
Ingredients
Shortcrust Pastry Base
- 75 g unsalted butter
- 15 g white almond powder
- 50 g powdered sugar
- 1/2 g vanilla powder
- 30 g beaten egg (about half an egg)
- 0.5 g Guérande fleur de sel
- 125 g flour
Savoiardi Cookie
- 70 g egg whites (about 2)
- 45 g granulated sugar
- 40 g egg yolks (about 2)
- 25 g flour
- 25 g potato starch
Vanilla Custard
- 250 g heavy cream (32–34% fat)
- 1 Madagascar vanilla bean (split and scraped)
- 50 g egg yolks (about 2)
- 65 g granulated sugar
- 2 sheets of gold-grade gelatin (200 Bloom)
Vanilla Mascarpone Cream
- 225 g vanilla pastry cream (prepared earlier)
- 150 g mascarpone
Vanilla Ganache
- 115 g whipping cream (32–34% fat)
- 1.5 Madagascar vanilla beans (split and scraped)
- 2 g of alcohol-free natural vanilla extract
- 1/2 g of vanilla powder
- 125 g of white chocolate
Vanilla syrup
- 100 g of mineral water
- 1.5 Madagascar vanilla beans
- 2 g of alcohol-free liquid vanilla extract
- 50 g of granulated sugar
- 5 g of aged dark agricultural rum
Vanilla Glaze
- 50 g white chocolate
- 15 g granulated sugar
- 0.5 g NH pectin
- 30 g mineral water
- 20 g liquid cream (32–34% fat)
- 1/4 Madagascar vanilla bean (scraped)
- 2 g titanium dioxide powder
Decoration:
- Vanilla powder, as needed
Preparation
- Shortcrust pastry: Cream the butter until smooth, then stir in the ground almonds, powdered sugar, vanilla, egg, salt, and finally the flour, mixing just enough to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator. Roll out the dough to a thickness of 2 mm, cut out a 23-cm disc, and let it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Line a buttered tart pan (17 cm in diameter x 2 cm in height). Line the bottom with parchment paper and baking weights (or beans), then blind-bake at 170 °C for about 25 minutes.
- Savoiardo cookies: Sift the flour and potato starch. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, gradually adding the sugar. Gently fold in the egg yolks for a few seconds, then fold in the dry ingredients using a spatula, working from the bottom up. Pipe a 13-cm-diameter disc onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (use a pastry bag fitted with a No. 7 tip). Bake at 230 °C (convection oven) for about 6 minutes. Let cool.
- Vanilla syrup: Place the water, sugar, and scraped vanilla beans in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, turn off the heat, and let steep for at least 30 minutes. Then add the vanilla extract and rum. Store in the refrigerator (the pods can remain in the liquid).
- Custard: Soak the gelatin in cold water. Bring the cream to a boil, add the vanilla bean, and let it infuse for 30 minutes; then strain. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar, pour the hot cream over them, stir, and return to the heat. Cook until it reaches 85 °C (the custard will coat the spatula). Add the squeezed gelatin, stir, and let cool in the refrigerator.
- Mascarpone Cream: In a stand mixer, lightly whip the mascarpone, then gradually fold in 225 g of the chilled pastry cream, beating until the mixture is smooth. Form a disc 20 cm in diameter and 1.5 cm thick inside a pastry ring. Smooth the surface well and place immediately in the freezer.
- Vanilla ganache: Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler. Heat the cream with the vanilla beans to 50 °C and let it infuse for 30 minutes. Add the vanilla extract and vanilla powder, bring back to a boil, and pour over the melted chocolate. Blend with an immersion blender to emulsify.
- Vanilla Glaze: Melt the white chocolate. In a separate bowl, mix the sugar with the pectin. Bring the water, cream, and vanilla to a boil. Remove the vanilla bean, gradually sprinkle in the sugar-pectin mixture, and bring back to a boil. Pour over the chocolate, add the titanium dioxide, and blend to emulsify.
- First assembly: Fill the baked shortcrust shell 3/5 full with the freshly made vanilla ganache. Generously soak the ladyfinger disc in vanilla syrup and place it in the center of the ganache, pressing down lightly. Cover up to the edge of the shortcrust shell with more ganache. Refrigerate until set.
- Final assembly and decoration: Heat the glaze to 35 °C. Remove the mascarpone cream disc from the freezer, unmold it, and place it on a cooling rack. Pour the glaze over it, quickly leveling it with a spatula to create a thin coating. Lift the glazed disc and place it exactly in the center of the tart (on top of the now-set ganache). Using a sieve, dust a strip of vanilla powder about 2 cm wide along the left side of the dessert.
Let it rest in the refrigerator until ready to serve. The tart will keep for up to 2 days.
