Brioche pain perdu with figs and quince poached in red wine
Think fancy brioche French toast and you're not far off! Matt serves golden slices of brioche with red wine-poached fruits to make this elegant dessert.
Ingredients
For the poached quince and fig
- 500ml/18fl oz red wine
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 1 orange, pared zest and juice
- 150ml/5fl oz honey
- 2 cloves
- 3 peppercorns
- 1 small quince, peeled and cut into chunks
- 3 ripe figs, cut in half
For the brioche pain perdu
- 3 medium free-range eggs
- 1 vanilla pod, seeds reserved
- 300ml/10fl oz double cream
- 300ml/10fl oz full-fat milk
- 80²µ/2¾´Ç³ú caster sugar
- 2 thick cut slices brioche, preferably stale
- 100g/3½oz salted butter
- 90²µ/3¼´Ç³ú caster sugar
To serve
Method
To make the poached quince, put all the ingredients except the quince and figs in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the quince to the pan, then cover with a cartouche, followed by a small plate to weigh it down. Poach for around 2 hours until soft, adding the figs after 1½ hours. Allow the fruit to cool in the liquid.
Pour half of the poaching liquid into a separate pan and cook on the hob until reduced to a syrup. Set aside.
Meanwhile, make the brioche pain perdu. Whisk together the eggs, vanilla seeds, cream, milk, and sugar in a bowl. Add the bread, coating on both sides, and leave to soak for at least 10 minutes.
Heat the butter in a large frying pan until foaming, then dust the soaked brioche liberally in the sugar and fry on both sides until golden. Pat dry with kitchen paper.
Serve the pain perdu with the poached fruit and a scoop of crème fraîche. Drizzle over the red wine syrup to finish.