From Julia · 2022-2023 · Reconstructed
Petit Fours
Serve when
Serve once the fondant glaze has set to a smooth, mirror-like shine on each little cake.
In the series
Season 1
- S1E4 · ~00:25:00 Julia tapes a delicate petits fours episode of The French Chef just as the show earns its first real newspaper notice
In the series
The petits fours episode is small and exacting in exactly the way the show itself is finding its footing: precise, a little fussy, and worth doing properly even when nobody outside the crew is watching yet. It airs the same week the first outside validation — a good newspaper notice — tells Julia the show might actually have an audience.
Ingredients
- For the cake:
- For the filling:
- For the fondant glaze:
Method
- Cream the butter and sugar, beat in the eggs one at a time, then the extracts, and fold in the sifted cake flour until just combined.
- Spread the batter in a lined quarter-sheet pan and bake at 350 F until a tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool completely.
- Slice the cake horizontally, spread the warm apricot jam between the layers, and chill until firm.
- Trim the edges and cut the cake into small squares or rounds, about 1 1/2 inches across.
- Warm the powdered sugar, water, and corn syrup together over low heat until pourable and smooth, tinting with food coloring if you like.
- Set the cake pieces on a rack over a tray and pour the fondant over each one in one even motion so it coats the top and sides in a single smooth layer. Let set completely before serving.
Substitutions
- Fondant glaze: if pourable fondant fights you, a simple powdered-sugar-and-milk glaze gives a close approximation, just less mirror-glossy.
- Apricot jam: any light, not-too-sweet jam works for the filling layer.