The Layered Look : A Skilled <i> Patissiere </i> Creates Desserts of Which Dreams Are Made

Perhaps something chocolate today. Or a fruit tart, maybe with a hint of framboise or . . . ? She nods--no problem. She can create pastries that you’ve never imagined, based on the sketchiest of culinary clues submerged deep within your brain. “I have endless ideas for desserts,” she says simply.

Olivia Erschen is no idle boaster. A patissiere extraordinaire, she comes with impeccable professional credentials--and immutable personal confidence. (Is it the yoga lessons that make her so tranquil? Or the satisfaction of creating beautiful food? Is it genetic?) It’s hard to imagine her enthusiasm dampened, her composure ruffled, even in situations that would send other chefs nipping at the cooking sherry. Like taking charge of a restaurant kitchen with virtually no experience. Or turning out 120 meals per night at another restaurant in a space that was, well, no bigger than the average kitchen table, sauteing batches of frogs’ legs with one hand and tossing salads with the other. Or enduring the chauvinism endemic to the kitchens of French restaurants. (One French chef refused to hire her because she would be a distraction to the men, he said; they would look at her and chop off their fingers. And the late Jean Bertranou, before adding her to his staff at L’Ermitage, asked a series of how-would-you-cope? questions. His first: “Olivia, how would you get to work if your car broke down?”)

Doing has never been a problem for Erschen. She did research at the Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute in San Francisco, managed an art gallery and a gourmet food and wine shop, and has been a cook and chef at several restaurants. These days her career encompasses recipe development and consulting for major food companies, food styling, writing and teaching French pastry techniques. One of Erschen’s latest projects--she calls it an “anthology of my 10 years of cooking and teaching experience”--is the just-published book “Cakes and Pastries,” part of the new California Culinary Academy Series, “Easy and Elegant Meals.”

“I always start from a classical French base, because that is my training,” she says. “The basics are all in my head--I can make a biscuit or creme anglaise without consulting a cookbook. And because I know the rules, I can make the substitutions. So, when I’m developing a recipe I simply think of what I’d like to eat, or think of foods that I’ve had in other countries. Italy has been one of my biggest inspirations. The Chocolate Hazelnut Ricotta Cake, for example, is actually part Italian and part French.”

“When I was doing the book, the American desserts were the biggest challenge,” she continues. “I went through all my mother’s and grandmothers’ recipes and made notes. Both my grandmothers baked, and each had a distinct style. My ‘country’ grandmother baked for the farmhands--huge quantities of pies and cakes. When I tried to re-create her recipe for pastry creme, which she knew as plain old vanilla custard, I just couldn’t get it right. ‘I’m a professional pastry chef,’ I kept saying to myself. ‘What’s wrong with this?’ Then I realized that the unique taste that I remembered came from the fresh eggs and unpasteurized milk that she used. My ‘city’ grandmother baked dainty things for the ladies in her club.”

Although Erschen traces her love of baking to her grandmothers and the fragrant memories of her Iowa childhood, she considers L’Ermitage’s Bertranou, with whom she spent a year as pastry chef, her real mentor. “He was incredibly demanding of others but also of himself,” she says. “The restaurant was so good because he cared about inspiring people. We made certain desserts every day because they were on the menu, but Bertranou would also teach me something new each day. And he made me love what I might otherwise have been tired of after two years.” PRODUCED BY ROBIN TUCKER CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT RICOTTA CAKE 10 ounces peeled hazelnuts 1/2 cup cornstarch 7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate cup orange-flavored liqueur 1 teaspoon vanilla 5 eggs, separated Sugar teaspoon cream of tartar Orange Syrup Ricotta Mousse Raspberry Sauce 1/2 cup raspberries Chocolate leaves, optional

Line bottom of pullman pan with parchment paper. Butter and flour sides of 17x11-inch jellyroll pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Finely grind enough hazelnuts to yield 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons by placing nuts in blender or food processor fitted with metal blade. Using 1-second pulses, grind to fine powder. Grind small amount of nuts at one time, being careful not to grind too long and liquefy them. Mix nuts with cornstarch and set aside.

Chop chocolate into small pieces and place in top of double boiler. Add liqueur and vanilla. Place over simmering water until chocolate is just melted. Remove from heat and stir gently to combine ingredients. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.

Beat egg yolks with cup sugar in large bowl until slightly thick. Slowly beat in melted chocolate. In medium bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar and continue beating until soft peaks form. Gradually add cup sugar and beat until whites are stiff but still glossy. Fold of whites into chocolate mixture. Fold in cornstarch-hazelnut mixture. Gently fold in remaining whites.

Spread batter evenly on prepared pan. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until cake begins to pull away from sides of pan. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Run knife around edges of cake to loosen from sides of pan. Place a sheet of waxed paper or parchment paper over cake. Place a large wire cooling rack or baking sheet over cake and carefully invert cake onto rack. Cover with clean dish towel and cool completely. When cake is cool, carefully slide onto flat surface. Peel off parchment paper and cut cake into four 11 1/2x4-inch rectangles. Cover cake layers with plastic wrap and set aside until ready to assemble.

To assemble cake, line bottom and sides of 12x4-inch straight-sided loaf pan with parchment paper. Tape top edges of paper to pan to keep paper in position. When Ricotta Mousse begins to thicken but is still pourable, pour into bottom of pan; smooth into even layer with rubber spatula. Carefully position one cake layer on top of mousse. (Cake breaks easily, so use a long, wide, offset spatula or cardboard rectangle to lift layers into place when assembling.) Brush cake with small amount of Orange Syrup. Continue to fill cake pan with alternating layers of mousse and cake, ending with layer of cake, and brushing each cake layer with Orange Syrup. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill until firmly set, about 4 hours.

To unmold, run knife between pan and parchment paper. Invert pan onto serving platter. Tap on pan to loosen cake, then gently lift pan away from cake. If pan does not slide off easily, wrap hot, wet towel around outside of pan for a few minutes. Remove parchment paper from sides and top of cake. Trim slice from each end of cake to reveal alternating layers of cake and mousse. Press 1 cup chopped hazelnuts onto sides of cake. Decorate top with alternating rows of raspberries and finely chopped hazelnuts. To serve, spoon a small amount of Raspberry Sauce onto plate alongside of cake slice. Decorate each slice with raspberry and chocolate leaves, as shown on Page 51. Makes 12 servings.

Note: It is important to use the designated pan for this recipe. They are available through restaurant-supply stores and some gourmet shops. Orange Syrup cup freshly squeezed orange juice 2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon orange-flavored liqueur

In small saucepan, combine orange juice and sugar. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat, cool to room temperature and add orange liqueur. Ricotta Mousse 2 1/2 cups ricotta cheese 2 tablespoons orange-flavored liqueur 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 3/4 cups whipping cream 2 tablespoons unflavored gelatin 7 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice 3 eggs 3 egg yolks 1/2 cup sugar

Combine ricotta, orange liqueur and vanilla in food processor fitted with steel blade; process until smooth. Spoon mixture into large bowl and set aside. Beat whipping cream until soft peaks form, then refrigerate. Sprinkle gelatin over orange juice in small bowl and set aside to soften. Combine eggs, yolks and sugar in large bowl. Beat with mixer or balloon whisk until well blended. Place mixture in top of double boiler over boiling water and continue beating until mixture triples in volume and holds soft peaks, about 5 to 10 minutes. Just before eggs reach soft peak stage, place gelatin mixture over small pot of simmering water and stir until gelatin is just dissolved. Remove egg mixture from heat and add gelatin, continuing to beat until mixture cools to room temperature--about 5 minutes. Stir of egg mixture into ricotta; then fold in remaining egg mixture. Fold in softly whipped cream. Place mousse over bowl of ice water and gently stir with folding motion until mixture just begins to thicken. Remove from ice and immediately assemble cake. Raspberry Sauce 3 baskets fresh raspberries cup sugar 1 teaspoon lemon juice 2 tablespoons orange-flavored liqueur

In food processor, puree raspberries. Strain to remove seeds. Stir in sugar and lemon juice. Refrigerate. When ready to serve cake, stir in liqueur.