Name: Gâteau Basque
Prep time: 2 h 11 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 2 h 51 min
Yield: 1 gâteau
Cuisine: french
Ingredients: 4 egg yolks; 66 g caster sugar; 330 ml whole milk; 25 g cornflour; 2 tablespoons rum; 300 g flour; 120 g butter; 190 g caster sugar; 10 g Vanilla sugar; 2 eggs; 10 g baking powder; ½ teaspoon fine (or table) salt; 20 g beaten egg

Gâteau Basque

This traditional Basque dessert is similar to a gâteau breton (brittany butter cake), but very moist as it is filled with a rum-flavoured confectioner's custard (crème pâtissière, or french pastry cream).

This is a fairly simple recipe, though as the dough is fragile and difficult to handle, I offer a useful tip to make this easier.

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Last modified on: September 11^th 2018

Preparation

Resting

Cooking

Start to finish

1 hour 8 min.

1 hour 3 min.

40 min.

2 hours 51 min.

Step by step recipe

Stage 1 - 30 min.

Prepare the confectioner's custard with 4 egg yolks, 66 g caster sugar, 330 ml whole milk and 25 g cornflour, using the method explained here.

When the custard is cooked, add 2 tablespoons rum, mix well and cover.

Set aside in the refrigerator.

Stage 2 - 5 min.

Put into a food-mixer bowl: 300 g flour, 120 g butter, 190 g caster sugar, 10 g Vanilla sugar, 2 eggs, 10 g baking powder and ½ teaspoon fine (or table) salt.

Stage 3 - 5 min.

Start kneading and stop as soon as the dough is evenly mixed.

Stage 4 - 2 min.

Weigh the dough and divide into 2 unequal parts: 1/4 and 3/4.

Stage 5 - 7 min.

Roll out the smaller piece of dough between 2 sheets of cooking parchment into a circle...

Stage 6 - 7 min.

...the size of your tin or mould.

Using 2 sheets of cooking parchment makes it easier to roll out the soft, fragile dough.

Stage 7 - 1 hour

Then roll out the larger piece of dough, again using 2 sheets of cooking parchment, into a circle a little larger (by about 1 inch / 2 or 3 cm) than your tin.

Lay both circles, still in their papers, on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Stage 8 - 3 min.

After this, the dough will be firmer and easier to handle.

Take the larger circle out of the fridge, carefully remove the paper and lay the dough in the tin.

Preheat your oven at 360°F (180°C).

Stage 9 - 4 min.

Fill the case with the rum-flavoured custard and level the top.

Stage 10

Turn the edges of the dough in towards the centre.

Stage 11 - 2 min.

Take the remaining circle out of the fridge, carefully remove the paper and lay in the tin like a "lid" on top of the custard filling.

Stage 12 - 3 min.

Glaze the top of the cake.

Stage 13 - 3 min.

If you like, you can decorate the top by marking the dough with a fork. Use a bit of pressure, or the marks will disappear during cooking.

Stage 14 - 40 min.

Bake for 40 minutes.

Best eaten cold, the gâteau Basque will only improve if kept for a day or two.