canelés, attempt nº 3

It's been a while since I made canelés. Used Paula Wolfert's recipe again, using a vanilla bean in place of extract, AP flour in lieu of cake flour, and brandy instead of rum (didn't have any rum!)

The "white oil" that I used is sunflower oil and beeswax. It's messy, and beeswax is highly flamable, so I heated the wax and oil in a glass jar. This meant no messy pans to clean up (even solid, beeswax is sticky), and you can pour the oil into the moulds and dump the excess back into the jar, and then move into the next mold. These then sat overnight in the freezer.

The batter (2 c milk, 2 tbsp butter, ¾ c AP flour, pinch of salt, 1 c minus 2 tbsp sugar, 4 egg yolks, 1 tbsp brandy [or rum], 1 split vanilla bean) also sits overnight as to settle and be (almost entirely) free of bubbles.

I baked them at 400ºF for 30 mins, 360º for another 30 minutes. Soft inside, crusty and caramelized outside. Really fantastic.

canelés, attempt nº 2

The second attempt at canelés was much better. Started at 400ºF, lowered to 350º after 30 mins. I also used a coating mixture that was higher in beeswax than safflower oil, and being the second attempt they were probably better seasoned, the canelés slid right out of the molds—perfectly.

canelés, attempt nº 1

I was recently in Paris and have been wanting to make canelés for years. I went to Dehillerin—the finest cookware supply store that exists (since 1820!)—and bought some canelé molds.

Following Paula Wolfert's Canelé de Bordeaux recipe, I started by seasoning the new molds. They get oiled and then baked.

The batter is similar to a crêpe batter—very wet—with the addition of rum. This needs to rest at least 24 hours.

And since these adorable molds are tin-lined copper that bakes for at least an hour, butter will not do. Wolfert suggests beeswav and safflower oil. Beeswax is the key to the perfect crust. It is also very difficult to get off of and out of containers and utensils.

I filled each tin with the mixture—"white oil"—to get a decent covering. I preheated the tins in the oven (on warming setting). At first I thought I had too much wax, so re-did some.

These then rest for 6-7 hours and go into the freezer before filling.

The molds get filled most of the way up.

These aren't the larger molds, and took about an hour.

Of thirteen molds, these six were presentable. More wax on try nº2! The are, nonetheless, delicious (and much better than the average pâtisserie's limp and few-days-old canelés).

Wolfert notes, on cleaning the molds: "After baking, don't wash or scrub the interiors of the molds. To remove baked debris: place the molds in a moderate oven; heat until debris burns; remove debris with paper toweling." Of course, this is a messy and smoky process.