Gâteau nantais
Nantes cake with rhubarb marmalade
Alternative namesgâteau du voyageur
TypeCake
Place of originFrance
Region or stateNantes
Serving temperaturecold
Main ingredientsFlour, sugar, salted butter, eggs, almond meal, rum, icing sugar
Variationslemon juice, lemon zest, orange blossom water, vanilla extract, apricot gelée

Gâteau nantais is a cake originating in the city of Nantes in France. Gâteau nantais is a soft, round pound cake, made of flour, sugar,[1] salted butter,[2] eggs, and almond meal,[3] then dampened with a punch of rum and lemon,[1] sometimes with an apricot gelée centre.[3] The round shaped cake top is topped with a white glaze thinned with rum, although lemon or orange blossom water can be substituted if the cake is to be served to children.[1] It is recommended to make the cake a day before it is intended to be served.[4] It keeps very well.[5] An earlier version of the recipe, without eggs, reportedly kept for three to four weeks.[6] In the modern recipe, the icing is white, whereas earlier versions were an amber colour.[7]

A cookbook from the 1890s called for lemon peel to be grated into the cake's batter. The batter was firm enough to be stretched with a rolling pin and cut into rounds with a dough cutter. This version used a sprinkling of almond meal and sugar as a topping for the cake prior to cooking, and did not call for rum.[8]

Box of gâteau nantais on display at the Nantes History Museum

In the 18th century, the port of Nantes was enriched by the triangular trade and saw many goods from the Caribbean colonies such as cane sugar, dark rum, and vanilla; ingredients that were later used in the composition of the Nantes cake.[9] Because of this, it is sometimes called the "traveller's cake".[5]

It is considered a regional speciality of Nantes.[7][2] Columnist Paul Eudel says it was created in 1820 by a Roleau, master baker of Nantes.[7] This "high-end" dessert was once served by housewives to their guests. It fell somewhat into oblivion until its revival by the biscuit factory LU, from 1910 to 1972.[1] In the late 1990s, LU gave their recipe to Gilbert Debotté, who managed the Debotté patisserie.[10]

Since it became popular again in the 20th century, pastry chefs and cooks in Nantes have served it in its most classic version, or have been inspired to create variants including additional ingredients.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Le gâteau nantais" (in French). Nantes, Pays-de-la-Loire, France: City of Nantes. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  2. 1 2 Jaime Schler (27 May 2011). "Gâteau Nantais : A Secret Worth Knowing". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  3. 1 2 Christophe Amouriaux (2016-03-28). "Nantes : connaissez-vous bien le gâteau nantais ? - France 3 Pays de la Loire" (in French). France 3 Pays de la Loire. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  4. ↑ "Recette gâteau nantais - Spécialité culinaire". Nantes tourisme. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  5. 1 2 Julie Urbach (2015-01-29). "Nantes: Quatre conseils de chefs pour réussir son gâteau nantais" (in French). 20minutes.fr. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  6. ↑ Delarue, Cecile (2015). The Everything Easy French Cookbook: Includes Boeuf Bourguignon, Crepes Suzette, Croque-monsieur Maison, Quiche Lorraine, Mousse Au Chocolat...and Hundreds More!. F+W Media, Inc. p. 262. ISBN 9781440583964.
  7. 1 2 3 "Concours du gâteau nantais - Institut Edouard Nignon" (in French). Institut-nignon.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  8. ↑ Taride, A., ed. (1899). La Veritable Cuisine de Famille comprenant 1000 recettes et 500 menus par Tante Marie (in French) (30th ed.). Paris: Taride. pp. 350–351. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  9. ↑ Laurent Bonneau (2014-06-20). "Le Gateau nantais" (in French). Compagnons-boulangers-patissiers.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  10. ↑ "Les secrets du gâteau nantais" (in French). Rcalaradio.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.


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