A few weeks ago, some of us bloggers got together to test recipes from the new Giovanni Apollo cookbook, Apollo 2. I had received the book a few days prior to that and thought it was beautifully illustrated with dramatic photography and cute hand sketched illustrations. The way the book is organized is also very interesting: 5 different recipes are developed around 30 ingredients ranging from blueberries and beets to rabbit and snails. Each recipe is paired with a wine chosen by sommelière Albane Cannaferina.

Andréa (and her husband and excellent cook Sylvain), Janice, Kristel, MariÈve, Charlotte and I got together in one of Apollo’s kitchen spaces at his restaurant downtown to try some of the recipes. I opted to make the leek and blue cheese gratin, as well as the pineapple pudding chômeur. Pouding chômeur, literally translated into pudding of the unemployed, is a very traditional dessert here in Québec made of simple ingredients. This pudding chômeur has the addition of a pineapple/maple syrup sauce that makes it delicious! A recipe that I would definitely make again.

Pineapple and anise seed pudding chômeur (serves 4 people)
Recipe from Apollo 2 by Giovanni Apollo – Les Éditions Transcontinental
Preparation time: 2o minutes   Cooking time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

For the dough:

• 1/2 cup of soft butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp ground anise seeds
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/4 cup milk

For the sauce:

• 1 small pineapple
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tbs butter

Preparation:

• Preheat your oven to 325ºF

For the dough:

1. Beat the eggs and the sugar in your cake mixer until well mixed then mix in the eggs and the anise seeds
2. Mix the flour and baking powder in a bowl then add to the egg mixture while alternating with the milk
3. Spread the dough in an 8″x12″ buttered oven-proof mold

For the syrup:

1. Peel and cube a pineapple over a bowl with a sieve so you can recuperate as much of the juice as possible
2. In a pan, heat the maple syrup, the sugar and the butter until it comes to a boil
3. Add the pineapple juice and cubes, lower the heat and let it simmer for 3 minutes
4. Pour this sauce delicately over the dough and bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes or until the top turns golden
5. Serve at room temperature

The book suggests a Crémant de Bourgogne to drink with this very rich dessert.

Notes:

1. I had some leftover juice that I just served on the side of the pudding table side
2. I would probably let the pineapple pieces cook longer in the juice next time so they caramelize more
3. I might cut a bit of the sugar out of the juice recipe because it really is very sweet

The book is now available (in French) at all bookstores as well as online. The electronic version will be available soon on the Transcontinental website.