“I love pumpkin pie, but we’ve played around a little and somehow created our most talked-about dessert,” says Casey Wall, former head chef of the now-closed Rockwell & Sons. “All the traditional elements are there, however we have added a couple of things to make it our own. Dulce de leche with roast pumpkin is ridiculously good and the pumpkin-seed brittle adds a salty-sweet crunch that all desserts need.” Store-bought dulce de leche is a safer alternative to cooking the can.
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Ingredients
Sablé pastry
Pumpkin-seed brittle
Method
Main
1.Place unopened can of condensed milk in a saucepan of simmering water, lined with a tea towel, and cook, topping up pan with extra hot water as necessary, for 3½ hours. Cool can completely to room temperature before opening (if you open the can before it is completely cooled, hot caramel will explode).
2.Meanwhile, for sablé pastry, process flour, sugar and a pinch of salt in a food processor to combine, add butter and process until coarse crumbs form. Add 60ml cold water in a slow, steady stream, processing until dough just holds together when pinched. If the mixture is still too dry, add another 60ml cold water and pulse to combine. Turn out onto a work surface, flatten into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate to rest (30 minutes).
3.For pumpkin seed brittle, preheat oven to 150C. Spread pepitas on an oven tray and roast, stirring occasionally, until golden (15-20 minutes). Cool completely, transfer to a bowl and add bicarbonate of soda and ½ tsp sea salt flakes. Set aside. Stir sugar, glucose, butter and 30ml water in a saucepan over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves, bring to the boil and cook until mixture reaches 150C on a sugar thermometer. Add pepita mixture, mix quickly to combine (mixture will puff), then spread out mixture on baking paper. Cool completely, then break into rough pieces and store in an airtight container until required. Brittle will keep for a week.
4.Increase oven to 180C. Spread pumpkin on a lightly oiled oven tray and roast until very tender and caramelised at the edges (30-35 minutes). Transfer to a food processor and add half the caramelised condensed milk (remaining caramel will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a month; use in milkshakes, to fill biscuits or as a spread). Process until smooth, pass through a fine sieve, transfer to a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain nozzle and refrigerate until required.
5.Roll out pastry on a lightly floured work surface to 3mm thick, then transfer to a tray lined with baking paper and rest for 30 minutes. Cut out eight 9cm-diameter rounds, place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake until light golden around the edges (8-10 minutes). Set aside to cool completely.
6.To serve, pipe a little pumpkin dulce de leche onto each serving plate and place a sablé round on top (this helps hold the round in place). Pipe small rounds of pumpkin dulce de leche and whipped cream onto sablé and around it, scatter with pumpkin seed brittle and serve.
Drink Suggestion: Clark Street Roasters Kenya Mugaga Kenya washed beans, brewed in a Moccamaster. Drink suggestion by Manu Potoi
Notes
