Number cake
Gourmet

Number Cake

Made with Cooking Range Millot 74% organic dark chocolate

AN ORIGINAL RECIPE BY L’École Gourmet Valrhona

6 steps

Makes two 25 cm number cakes

Recipe Step by Step

Step01

SHORTBREAD CRUST

240 g Butter
4 g Fine salt
180 g Icing sugar
60 g Almond flour
100 g Egg
470 g Plain flour

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Leave to sit for: 1 hour
Baking time: 18 minutes
Sift the icing sugar, almond flour and plain flour along with the cold butter until a crumbly texture forms.
Add the egg. Hand-mix until a homogeneous dough forms.
Roll out the pastry dough to a thickness of 3mm between two sheets of baking paper.
Store in the freezer for at least an hour before use.
Cut out the numbers and bake at 160°C in a fan-assisted oven for 18 minutes.
Step02

PISTACHIO CRÉMEUX

140 g Shelled pistachios
20 g Grape seed oil
315 g Whole milk
130 g Whipping cream 35%
90 g Eggs
10 g Caster sugar
18 g Gelatine powder
90 g Water (to rehydrate the gelatine)
300 g IVOIRE 35% chocolate

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Leave to sit for: 6 hours
Using a food processor, grind the shelled pistachios with the grape seed oil to obtain a smooth pistachio paste.
Dissolve the gelatine powder in water.
Beat the eggs and sugar.
Bring the milk and cream to the boil in a saucepan. Pour a third of this mixture onto the egg-sugar mixture, stirring well.
Pour this back into the saucepan then cook at 82°C, using a spatula to stir. Add the rehydrated gelatine.
Pour onto the melted IVOIRE 35% white chocolate in three batches, taking care to emulsify thoroughly. Add the pistachio paste. Mix using a hand blender until the emulsion is complete.
Place some cling film on the mixture’s surface and leave to stiffen in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours.
Step03

MILLOT 74% WHIPPED GANACHE

60 g Cold whole milk
20 g Potato starch
570 g Whole milk
420 g MILLOT 74% chocolate
240 g Whipping cream 35%

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Leave to sit for: 6 hours
Mix 60g cold whole milk with 20g potato starch.
Bring 570g whole milk to the boil in a saucepan. Add some of the hot milk to the starch and cold milk and pour it back into the saucepan.
Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly.
Pour into the previously melted MILLOT 74% chocolate in three batches, taking care to emulsify well using a spatula.
Add the cream and use a hand blender to perfect the emulsion.
Place some cling film on the mixture’s surface and leave to stiffen in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours.
Step04

ALMOND AND PISTACHIO DACQUOISE

115 g Plain flour
170 g Almond flour
170 g Pistachio flour
400 g Icing sugar
580 g Egg whites
200 g Caster sugar

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 15 minutes
Sift the plain flour with the nut flours and icing sugar.
Beat the egg whites and (superfine) sugar to stiff peaks.
Using a spatula, carefully fold the sifted dry ingredients into the stiff egg whites.
Line two baking trays with baking paper or a silicone mat. When the mixture comes together, pour half onto each prepared tray and bake at 180°C in a fan-assisted oven for about 15 minutes.
Step05

MACARONS

150 g Almond flour
150 g Icing sugar
100 g Egg whites
150 g Caster sugar
50 g Water

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 15 minutes
Sift together the almond powder and icing sugar or combine them in a food processor. Beat 50g egg whites to stiff peaks.
Heat 150g sugar with the water at 110/112°C and combine with the stiff egg whites.
Stop the food processor and add the 50g of non-beaten egg whites.
Add the dry ingredients and stir gently until fully combined.
Using a piping bag with a 8mm nozzle, pipe out the macarons onto baking paper and bake at 140°C in a fan oven for 14/15 minutes.
Step06

CARAMELISED PISTACHIOS

60 g Shelled pistachios
20 g Caster sugar
10 g Water

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooling time: 30 minutes
Cook the sugar and water in a saucepan at 117°C.
Add the shelled pistachios and stir until caramelised.
Set aside on a baking tray lined with baking paper or a silicone mat until completely cooled.

Assembly and finishing

Number cake

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Using a shaped cutter, cut the shortbread crust into number shapes and bake them. Then cut the cooked dacquoise into number shapes.
Beat the MILLOT 74% whipped ganache in a food processor until it has a smooth texture that will pipe easily. Store in a piping bag with a 14mm nozzle.
Fill a piping bag with a 14mm nozzle with pistachio crémeux.
Once you have cooked the number-shaped shortbread crust and left it to cool, pipe on the pistachio crémeux. Cover with a dacquoise shape.
Pipe on the MILLOT 74% whipped ganache.
Use the remaining MILLOT 74% whipped ganache and pistachio cream mix to fill the macarons.
Decorate liberally using macarons, caramelised pistachios and more: let your imagination run wild!
Store in the refrigerator until serving