TASTE LE TOUR 2014 EP207 Prune and Raisin Tart
Channel: Peter J Warren
Date: 2020-07-10

This is the famous Col du Tourmalet in the Pyrenees.

It is one of the most challenging climbs of the Tour de France.

Voice over

The area offers some of the most attractive mountain scenery in France.

Patrick Berger is a much admired chef of the Pâtisserie Royalty in the nearby town of Tarbes.

From his croissants to his gâteau creations, to his ice-cream cakes, everything looks so artistically presented and delicious.

 
Interview Patrick Berger

J'ai eu la chance de démarrer le métier avec mon père lequel avait créé l'entreprise Royalty.
(I was lucky to learn my skills from my father who had created the Pâtisserie Royalty).

Mon père était Meilleur Ouvrier de France Glacier, et j'ai conservé des fabrications que lui avait créé,
(My father won the title as one of the best ice-cream makers in France and I kept some of his creations),

dont l'Arlequin qui est toujours en vente chez nous.
(including the Arlequin ice-cream cake that we still sell).

C'est un sorbet au citron avec un cocktail de fruit rouge pesé sur un fond de meringue.
(It's a lemon sorbet with a red fruit cocktail on top of a meringue base).

Voice over

I need to be strong.  I want to taste everything.


Interview Patrick Berger

Alors ce dessert c'est l'Antalia.  C'est une génoise à la pistache
(This dessert called Antalia is made with a pistachio sponge)

avec des incrustations de framboises et pistache et du curable à la pistache.
(with raspberry and pistachio pieces and a pistachio crumble).

Ensuite à nouveau une crème pistache et un coulis de fruit rouge fraise, framboise 
(and then a pistachio cream and a strawberry and raspberry coulis).

TASTING
Mmm.  Delicious!


Voice over

It is a joy to see Patrick decorating a festive raspberry Saint Honoré cake, and in the true tradition of French patisserie, seasonal fruits are used in many tarts and desserts. 

This dessert in a glass, a basil mousse with chocolate baba, is garnished attractively with fresh fruits and was created by Patrick's son, Xavier, also a great pâtissier who three years ago became a French Champion Chocolate Maker at the tender age of twenty-seven.

What a talented family!

Tarte aux Pruneaux et Raisins Secs  
Prune and Raisin Tart

This luscious prune and raisin tart is one of the best desserts of the region.

First, I pour a little Jurançon wine over some raisins and leave to macerate.

Later, I mix them with two cups of chopped, pitted prunes, then I mash 2 cooked apples.

Next I cut a round of puff pastry, using a flan tin.

I spread the apple in the centre, top with the prunes, leaving an uncovered edge of one and a half centimetres that I brush with egg wash.

I make a criss-cross pattern of thin strips of pastry on top of the prunes.

Gabriel to Camera

"To be very successful, make sure that the pastry is very chilled and that your kitchen is not too hot."

Voice over 

To obtain a lovely golden colour, I brush the top of the pastry with egg wash.

I then cook the tart in a hot oven for about 25 minutes.  Naturally, the local sweet 
Jurançon wine is the perfect match for this tarte aux pruneaux et raisins secs.


voice over

The market of Tarbes is a good window on the local specialities.

Gabriel to camera 

Les haricots Tarbais, one of the best beans in France, cooked in a little bit of duck fat with sausages or in a cassoulet, are so good. 

This small producer transforms their own plums into prunes.  They are juicy and contain no preservatives.

The honey from the Pyrenees is much loved and gets its distinctive flavour from the mountain's flowers.

What a beautiful region!

Gabriel to camera

‘Tomorrow I’ll be in the much loved Dordogne region and I will taste the beautiful wine of Monbazillac.