Ducasse's Baba

Ducasse's baba with the rum of your choice

Ingredients for about 15 babas

Baba
200g flour
Teaspoon of salt
70g butter
8.5g yeast
8.5g honey
250g eggs

Syrup
500ml water
250g sugar
orange, zested
lemon, zested
scraped vanilla bean and seeds

Garnish
14g apricot glaze
Old rum, to taste
Vanilla whipped cream
500ml double cream
100g granulated sugar
Seeds from ¼ vanilla bean

Making the baba dough

Mix the flour with salt, butter and yeast. Knead in an electric mixer with a dough hook. Add the eggs one by one. Gradually the dough should become smooth, and should stop sticking to the sides of the bowl.

Allow the dough to sit on an oiled surface for five minutes. The dough should be elastic, but firm.

Divide up the dough into (30g) portions and place in cylinder-shaped moulds. Let it rise at room temperature until the dough reaches the top of the mould.

Bake at 180ºC (356ºF) until browned (usually about 25 minutes). Turn the baking sheet halfway through baking.

Allow to cool and set aside in a dry place.

Preparing the syrup and vanilla cream

Mix together all the syrup ingredients. Bring to the boil, and allow them to steep slowly. Plunge the babas into hot, but not boiling, syrup. Use a skimmer to turn them in the syrup, until they are thoroughly soaked. Drain on a rack. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, scrape it out and collect the seeds. Mix the contents thoroughly into the cream. Beat it together with the granulated sugar until the cream is semi-firm.

Finish and presentation

Place the baba on a plate and cover with the apricot glaze. Cut the baba in half when serving and drizzle with old rum of your choice. Serve with vanilla cream.