RADIX by Paco Torreblanca

Radix, Latin for root, beginning, origin, starting point, base, foundation. It is also the path that anchors a plant to the ground, through which it absorbs water and minerals. Paco Torreblanca's pastry radix feeds on the best tradition. It is the essential pastry, the foundation, the base which has supported its evolution for the past years, but which the master now turns into a target itself. It is not a starting point but the goal; it is not a turning back but a step forward; it is not an involution but a new step in evolution itself. It is a pastry that shows its interior without objection, without the makeup of glaze, keener on straight lines than on curves, more accustomed to a knife or an oven than to a mold or a freezer, more earth than air, more rough than soft, more related to chewing than just swallowing... This universal pastry chef also teaches us the value of simplicity, naturalness and optimization. Thus, the book shows a clear attempt to simplify many of the recipes and processes. For example, from a base crème pâtissière, more than a dozen flavored creams are made, which can in turn be used as a filling for a wide range of petit choux. Why complicate life with complex recipes if they can be simplified and thereby make the workshops and especially the pastry shop or bakery more productive? Radix is organized in six sections or chapters, each with a main feature that summarizes its contents. Thus we find the crispy sablés doughs, which leads to the all-purpose tartelettes; puff pastry, with which the unbeatable millefeuille is made but also some interesting soufflé tarts; the fluffy pâte à choux, with which eclairs and petit choux are formed; the essential sponge cakes, with which the sheet cakes are assembled; the wide range of baked doughs, with which the so-called travel cakes are made; and the airy mousses, creams and crémeux, with which the so-called entremets are assembled.

RADIX
by Paco Torreblanca
180 pages
English and Spanish
Hardcover



Contents:

SABLÉ
Vanilla sablé dough, 17
Cocoa sablé dough, 17
Pistachio sablé dough, 17
Sablé breton dough, 17

TARTELETTES
Buddha's hand and yuzu, 20
Cherry and pepper streusel, 22
Baked chocolate, 24
Mont blanc, 26
Strawberries, 28
Raspberries and chocolate, 29
Amandine, 30
Lemon and meringue, 32
Caramelized banana, 34
Fresh figs, 35
Caramelized peach, 36
Caramelized mandarin, 36
Catalan custard, 36
Pistachio, 36
Tiramisu, 36
Chocolate and pralini, 36
Kaffir lime, 36
Tocino de cielo, 38
Savarin, 40
Saffron and apple tart, 44
Saffron, apple and chocolate tart, 46

SOUFFLÉ TARTS
Pear soufflé and other fruits, 50
Soufflé with chocolate mousse, 56

CHOUX
Pâte à choux with butter, 65
Pâte à choux with lard, 65
Pâte à choux with olive or sunflower oil, 65
Craquelin, 65
Crème pâtissière, 71
Variations of the crème
Pâtissière, 71

PUFF PASTRY
Classic puff pastry, 83
Inverse puff pastry, 83
Quick puff pastry, 83
Chocolate puff pastry, 83
Millefeuille
Hazelnut pralini millefeuille, 86
Whipped cream millefeuille, 90
Crème pâtissière and fruit
Millefeuille, 92
Strips and tarts
Assembling strips and tarts, 98
Cherry tart, 97
Apricot tart, 99
Apple tart, 100
Fig tart, 102
Plum tart, 103
Peach strip, 104
Apricot strip, 105
Fig strip, 106
Apple strip, 107
Neapolitan sfogliatella, 109

SPONGE CAKES
Water sponge cake, 117
Castela sponge cake, 121
Opera, 127
Black corn, 127
Pistachio alhambra , 127
Sacher, 131
Dacquoise, 131
Other sponge cakes
Caramel sponge cake, 133
Walnut and honey sponge cake, 133
Malaga sponge cake, 133
Flourless sponge cake, 133
Magdalena sponge cake, 133
Extra virgin olive oil sponge cake, 137
Marzipan sponge cake, 137
Pâte à choux sponge cake, 137
Chocolate genoise, 137
Almond genoise, 137
Sheet cakes
Three chocolates, 140
Truffle, 142
Truffle and cream, 143
Pistachio and red berries, 144
Saint mark cake, 145
Apricot sachertorte, 146
Raspberry sachertorte, 146
Black corn, 148
Crispy core, 150
Opera cake, 151

TRAVEL CAKES
Lemon cake, 157
Vanilla cake, 157
Chocolate cake, 157
Raspberry cake, 157
Banana cake, 157
Financiers, 162
Cheesecake, 168
Russian cake, 172
Gâteau progrès, 178
Panettone, 184

ENTREMET
Glazes, 199
Sprays, 202
Fall, 206
Snow rose, 208
Desert flower, 210
Yogurt and yuzu, 212
Royal gianduja, 214
Caramel, 216
White lady, 218
Mont blanc, 220
Coconut, pear and caramel, 222
Cherries and fresh cheese, 224
Cassis and hazelnut praliné, 226
Black forest, 228
Caramel and coffee, 230
Catalan custard and manjari, 232

RECIPES, 237

Shop More Books >