Fourtiere Aux Pruneaux Et Armagnac
The memory of eating a crisp, flaky, prune-studded tourtiere that was heady with Armagnac remained with me long after my return from an. eventful trip to the south-west of France, and I made a number of attempts to reproduce it. This is the nearest replica I can make. The tricky part is rolling the dough sufficiently thinly to warrant the traditional French name of voile de marriage (wedding veil) for this type of pastry. The naming and exact content is also a little difficult to fathom out the same recipe may be called croustade or pastis in Gascony, gáteau Landais in Bordeaux, where the layers of pastry are sometimes separated by sliced apples instead of prunes sprinkled with Armagnac. To confuse matters further, a pastis may have no fruit at all, just a sprinkling of Armagnac. Different sources, all claiming to be authoritative, say contradictory, things. Be all that as it may, this is delicious and well worth making.
INGREDIENTS:
36 AGEN OR LARGE PRUNES
ARMAGNAC (OPTIONAL)
55 G/2 OZ. MARZIPAN (OPTIONAL)
WALNUT OIL OR MELTED
BUTTER, PREFERABLY CLARIFIED,
FOR GREASING
1/2 QUANTITY PUFF PASTRY
ICING SUGAR AND CORNFLOUR SIFTED TOGETHER IN EQUAL QUANTITIES, FOR SPRINKLING
ORANGE FLOWER WATER MELTED BUTTER, PREFERABLY CLARIFIED, FOR BRUSHING
1 EGG BEATEN WITH 1 TSP
WATER, FOR GLAZING
3 TBSP ARMAGNAC
ICING SUGAR, FOR SIFTING
DIRECTIONS:
Place the prunes in a saucepan, cover with boiling water and add a few tablespoons of Armagnac, if liked, then leave the prunes to soak for about 2 hours. Bring the saucepan to just below boiling point, remove from the heat and leave to soak again for about 2 hours, by the end of which time the prunes should have softened but retained their shape and the stones be easy to remove. If necessary, repeat the heating again. Remove the stones and, if liked, divide the marzipan between the cavities of twelve of the prunes.
Brush a 25 cm/10 inch deep flan tin generously with walnut oil or melted butter.
Divide the pastry into five pieces, then form one piece into a ball. Sprinkle the work surface and rolling pin with the icing sugar/cornflour mixture, then roll the ball of pastry out on the work surface thinly to just over 30 cm/ 12 inches in diameter. Carefully line the tin with the rolled-out pastry. Roll out another piece of pastry in the same way to the same size. Brush the pastry lining the tin with walnut oil or melted butter and cover with the second piece of pastry. Arrange eight of the prunes near the edge of the pastry and place four around the centre. Sprinkle them with a little orange flower water and a little of the icing sugar/cornflour mix. Roll out another piece of pastry in the same way, but this time to 25 cm/10 inches in diameter. Lay this over the prunes, arrange another eight of the marzipan-stuffed prunes, if used, near the edge and four around the centre, placing them in the spaces between the prunes in the layer below. Sprinkle them with a little more orange flower water and sprinkle a little of the cornflour/icing sugar mixture over. Repeat with another portion of pastry and the remaining prunes. Finish with the last piece of pastry and glaze with beaten egg. Fold the edges of the first two layers of pastry clown over the top. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Set. the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7.
Brush the top of the tourtiere well with melted butter and hake for about 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 and bake for a further 20 minutes or so until the top is crisp and golden. Carefully transfer the tourtiere to a wire rack, cut a small hole in the centre and pour in the Armagnac, rolling the tin from side to side so all the parts receive some. Sift icing sugar over the top and serve lukewarm.
