Friday, May 10, 2013

FFwD: Coupétade aux Fraises


Today´s recipe for the French Fridays with Dorie group is Coupétade, a traditional French dessert that can be described best as a cross between French Toast and old-fashioned Bread and Butter Pudding. For some extra deliciousness my version of Dorie´s recipe contains small pieces of fresh strawberries baked into the custard,  instead of dried fruits such as raisins or other dried fruit, hence the name, Coupétade aux Fraises.




For this rich dessert you can use just about any type of plain bread that you like, of course homemade brioche would be the first choice but it can also be made with any other type of fresh bakery loaf. If you wanted to add dried fruits to the custard anyways you could even use a loaf of bread that is already studded with some dried fruits such as raisins.




Like many of the best desserts, this Coupétade  is not the type of dessert that can be thrown together at the very last minute, as you do need some day-old bread as well as some additions to the custard or some toppings such as fresh fruit.




Since it was Father´s Day in Germany yesterday, we enjoyed individual servings for dessert with a light dusting of powdered sugar as well as more fresh strawberries on the side.




To make the Coupétade, the first step is to prepare French Toast with your bread of choice. There is a 14th-century German recipe for French Toast under the name of "Arme Ritter" which literally translated means “poor knights” because it was a dish prepared with ingredients that were readily available at the time and when thrown together they made a satisfying meal for the knights returning to their castle after battle.




The second step in this recipe involves preparing a simple custard as is usual for most Bread and Butter Pudding recipes – a combination of milk, sugar, eggs, and pure vanilla extract all mixed together and poured straight over the French Toast that you previously layered in a well butter baking dish. Since I added the seeds from one vanilla bean to the mix as well as some heavy cream and a pinch of sea salt, the custard got a fabulous taste boost.




Dorie recommends baking the pudding in a bain marie for a smoother- textured custard – it keeps the temperature more uniform and it is easy enough to do with a roasting pan, and it does give a softer, silkier set to the finished dish.

This ultrarich French version of a Bread and Butter Pudding seems perfect for dessert or brunch.




To see how the other Doristas fared with this recipe, please do click here.


Bonne Fête des Mères! – Happy Mothers Day! – Alles Gute zum Muttertag!



54 comments:

  1. I do want to do this in minis and put them out at a brunch buffet. Its what this wants to be once I see it done as lovely as you have here.

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    1. Trevor, thank you for the kind comment - serving this as part of a brunch would be perfect - if I ever collect enough cute ramekins, I might consider putting them on a buffet table, oh, the possibilities.

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  2. Oh Andrea, I just received the lovely package you and your sweet girls sent me. It made me cry! We had a scare last night...spent hours at the hospital...so you can't imagine what PERFECT timing it was to have that waiting at my door. I can't wait to try the tea, and Ryan and I both agree that the the doggie chain is the cutest gift we've received. Please tell the girls that we have their paintings hanging on our refrigerator. Hugs and kisses to you and your sweet family! I will be sending you and yours something sweet soon. xoxo

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    1. Monet, I am so glad to read that you recovered from your scare and that all seems to be well now! Goodness, when I read that, I got a scare. So glad that the package finally arrived at your (new) home and I am thrilled that you and Ryan liked its contents! I told the girls that you enjoyed their drawings and hung them up on the fridge - you should have seen their happy faces!

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  3. First time I've heard of this dessert, Andrea. Looks fabulous and a great way of reinventing the strawberry!

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    1. Hester, this Coupétade was a first for me as well - although I have prepared many French Toasts or "arme Ritter" doused with delicious Canadian maple syrup and also my share of Bread and Butter Puddings, before yesterday, I had never even heard of this dish either but it was fun to prpare and we enjoyed it.

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  4. Love the story about the poor knight and french toast... and I love your baking dishes. Your custard really covers the bread it looks much more like a dessert than what I made.

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    1. Thanks, Diane, well, those poor knights - it seems that stale bread, eggs and some milk were almost always available on castle grounds, not so sure about the sugar though but who knows what they added to their bread baked in custard. But I agree, it is a fun story and every time I prepare French Toast, I have to think about it.

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  5. I like your sunny looking mini puds. I enjoyed this one - but only made two serves to keep temptation away.

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    1. That is a smart idea, preparing only two servings to keep temptation at bay, but, unfortunately, that would not work in this house, I always seem to feed a crowd.

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  6. I do love your beautiful little pink pans! How fun. I love bread pudding--this looks wonderful

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    1. Cindy, thank you for the nice comment, I found these French mini pink ramekins in a kitchen supply store a few months ago but never really knew what to use them for, now with this recipe they finally were put to good use.

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  7. love your "loaves" :) and fraises!

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    1. Thank you, Alice, good to see that you are finding the time to participate again despite your move and all the tons of work that comes with that.

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  8. You have so many cute plates, pans, and all the props! I love finding new things on your table. So fun and inspiring! This looks delicious and beautiful!

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    1. Thank you so much, Nami, you are the best - love all your wonderful comments!

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  9. Lovely photos! Your ramekins match your coupétade perfectly.

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    1. Thany you very much and welcome to the FFwD group. I am sure that you will enjoy cooking and baking along with us!

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  10. Those are such lovely individual serving dishes. I also like the idea of enhancing this dish with fresh strawberries and the scrapings from a vanilla bean.

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    1. Teresa, a few touches seemed to be in order to transform this dessert into s.th. even more delightful. The seeds from a vanilla bean plus some fresh strawberries were really what this French dessert needed to make it a bit more special.

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  11. So THAT's what Arme Ritter is. I've seen it on menus before and wondered what it was. Even my german husband didn't know what it was. Interesting though that it's a dessert here in Germany and France and breakfast / brunch in the US. Either way, yours looks delicious and I went with fresh berries too. They are just too good right now.

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    1. Rose, that´s what "Arme Ritter" is, a French Toast, pure and simple, we just adore the story behind this dish - as a wonderful cook once said "If there is no story, there is no recipe...", be that as it may, this was delicious!

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  12. Just beautiful, Andrea! Perfect presentation!!! xo

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    1. Thanks so very much for the nice comment Liz, I am glad that you like the presentation my Coupétade aux fraises. It seems like it took me forever to get it right.

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  13. Damn, i really love your bread pudding!
    instead of day old, i like using the fresh bread...
    the day old form a thick viber while chweing it...

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    1. Thanks for visiting my blog - there is a very passionate discussion among cooks as whether to use day old or fresh bread. But if you use bread that is a bit dry, you will certainly have an easier time making French toast with it and then dowsing it with custard - it will keep its shape and you could always cut the crusts off the bread before you get started!

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  14. What gorgeous little custard breads! I love that you use strawberries - so pretty and really delicious !
    Mary x

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    1. Mary, what a kind and wonderful comment - strawberries are everywhere here these days and I just did not feel like adding dried fruits to my Coupétade at this time of year and it worked out beautifully!

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  15. In mini ramekins and with fresh strawberries, that´s the way I would want my coupetade Andrea! They are truly gorgeous and perfect for a brunch.

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    1. Thank you so very much, Paula, it was Father´s Daywhen I made these and I wanted to make s.th. that looked special and everyone was happy, that´s what counts most! And these pink French ramekins looked so very pretty in the sunshine.

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  16. Your little serving dishes are charming. And the fresh berries look appealing. The lily of the valley bouquets also. I could look at your pictures all day long! Happy Mothers Day to you, Andrea!

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    1. Betsy, thank you so much for the kind comment - lily of the valley are my favorite flowers of spring, I love the way they smwll and look. SO nice that you like my pictures!

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  17. This had to be a perfect Father's Day dessert. Those little pink pans just looked so darn cute and festive. Your presentation, as usual, was perfect. So many good examples of love and family togetherness you are providing for your girls. Aren't you about partied out? Quite a merry-go-round of birthdays and celebrations, right? As usual, I love your historical food stories. I wondered if this was a recipe that French housewives devised to use up leftovers. Nicely done. I am so looking forward to seeing you soon, Andrea.

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    1. Mary, thanks so much for commenting - yes, a lot of parties this week, there is one more to go, you know the FRD (FJamie Oliver´s Food Revoltion Day 2013) and then I might take a bit oif a break - in the meantime, just keep on baking and cooking until we all get a well deserved break on May 21st in Paris, cannot wait!!!

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  18. Such a lovely addition to a brunch spread! Those mini pink ramekins are so sweet :-)

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    1. Thank you, Cher, glad that you liked my French mini pink ramekins!

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  19. What a pretty dessert. And I love your mini Eiffel Tower!

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    1. Beth, oh yes, that Eiffel Tower keychain - we bought it when we were in Paris a few years ago after hours of waiting in line to get a chance to finally be able to visit the Tower.

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  20. Oh Andrea- I always look forward to your posts. Your photos are professional looking, you provided historical background on the dish, shared that Germany was celebrating Father's Day while the states were ramping up for Mother's Day......and I really loved your shots with the lily of the valley flowers. Nana and I missed them on May Day this year in France but have fond memories of them from other trips. I tried to find them locally but they are not out yet and not common when they are blooming. So fun to see them on your post. And of course, your recipe looked lovely.I do very much like the idea of individual servings and wish I had thought of that. All the best -

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    1. Tricia, you always leave such kind and thoughtful comments that never ever fail to make me very happy and encourage me to keep coming up with new ideas for posts! Thank you so much!

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  21. These Coupétade aux Fraises look and sound wonderful! What a delicious treat. I love that you add strawberries in them to make them more refreshing and added nice flavor and color too.

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    1. Thanks for visiting, Amy! Glad that you liked my version of Dorie Greenspan´s Coupétade with the addition of some fresh strawberries. Fresh fruit seeme to make this dessert a bit more "chic" and certainly even more delicious!

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  22. Andrea, I replied on my site but want to reply on yours also. I know it's difficult to get everything organized, leave four little girls and one big husband alone, and whip on the train over to Paris.......... But, once you are on the train, hopefully the stress and nerves will melt alway and we'll have a wonderful day together. If we do nothing else but just get acquiainted, that would be perfect. However, I have an entire day planned so we'll just have to get acquainted as we take breaths! See you soon.

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    1. Mary, you are so kind - I am really looking forward to this day of somewhat frantic yet fabulous day of travelling six hours by train, shopping, eating and getting aquainted!!! Thank you also for "double comments"!

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  23. Andrea, you did a beautiful job. I love the Lilly of the Valley flowers. They are my favorite.

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    1. Geraldine, Lily of the Valley are my favorite flowers as well - I adore their smell and the fact that they look so very pretty - unfortunately, the season for them is so very short so I try to buy a bouquet or two whenever I can.

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  24. I can almost smell those beautiful Lillie's of the Valley, I'm not sure which I would enjoy more the aroma of the lovely flowers or the taste of your delicious looking dessert. I know your husband was thrilled with this for Father's Day.

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    1. Thank you, Chris, Father´s Day was so early this year around here but we were lucky, the weather was nice, the food was good and the flowers are blooming everywhere! What more could one ask for?!

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  25. Simply Superb.
    I shall make this for my daddy next month! Thank you.

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    1. Thank you for your nice comment, this is a nice and easy dessert or brunch treat that everyone really enjoyed!

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  26. So nice that you used fresh strawberries instead of dried fruit Andrea...the coupetade aux fraises looks delicious. The wild lily of the valley in our orchard should start blooming any day. The tiny flowers are so delicate and beautiful.

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    1. Karen, strawberries are everywhere right now and since they are delicious, pretty and seasonal, I really did not see the point of using dried fruits and I certainly did not regret my decision. This was a nice, light dessert and we loved it exactly this way. Thanks so much for commenting!

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  27. I love your mini Coupetade….they are gorgeous and presented so beautifully! Fresh strawberries sound like a lovely alternative! Andrea, your photos are wonderful! Have a great day!

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    1. Kathy, the strawberries were wonderful in this French dessert treat and the finely chopped pieces of fruit made the Coupétade even more pretty!

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