GROUNDed in Tradition: Aimerick Davy’s Exotic Entremet

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By Robert Wemischner

Ask Pastry Chef Aimeric Davy about Fleur de Cocoa, his popular bakery and café in Los Gatos, CA., and he’s quick to tell you about his abiding commitment to upholding the high standards of French pastry and the importance of using quality ingredients.

Trained in France starting in his teens, he soaked up the classics as an apprentice at Patisserie Pène in Bagnères de Luchon, near Toulouse in southwest France. He has never forgotten his early lessons. As owner of his own bakery in the San Francisco Bay area for the past four years, Davy, 44, continues to stress the importance of using quality ingredients — from fresh farmers market produce and Swiss chocolate from Felchlin, to Tahitian Gold’s signature ground vanilla beans—his “favorite ingredient”.

“I like to play with textures and contrasting flavors underpinned by vanilla wherever possible, but I’m always mindful of not using too much sugar in our desserts which can overwhelm vanilla’s delicate flavor,” he says. “Our customers, loyal and local, approve.”

In a competitive locale, Davy has carved out a niche for himself with a busy business open six days a week, aided by five full-time back-of-the-house and two part-time staffers. “We are lucky to have an amazing sous pastry chef as part of the team who carries out my vision,” he says. Completing the lineup is his Swiss-born wife, Aline Davy, who grew up “surrounded by wonderful pastry.” The pair work side by side, with Aline in the front of the house and Davy helming the kitchen.

The complex notes of Tahitian Gold’s signature ground vanilla beans amp up the symphony of flavors in Davy’s Entremet Exotique, anchored by dark chocolate elements, hazelnut streusel and praline brightened with tart passion fruit, lush banana and pineapple. “In this dessert, banana, passion fruit and pineapple transport the taster on a tropical voyage. The natural acidity of the fruits is balanced by the perceived sweetness of vanilla from Papua New Guinea for a hauntingly memorable dessert,” Davy says.

“Many years ago, Tahitian Gold came to us with a sample and we loved it. For more than ten years now I’ve used only this brand, because every time it’s top quality and it’s always consistent. It’s amazing to work with,” he adds. “The consistently high quality and affordability of Tahitian Gold’s product line has made me a convert.”

Davy has switched to ground vanilla beans instead of the more typical whole vanilla beans because of quality and cost. “When you buy whole vanilla beans, after a few weeks they start to dry and the flavor changes while the ground vanilla quality doesn’t change,” he says “It is very easy to work with because it’s already ground.” He goes on to explain, “You get all the flavor of fresh vanilla, it’s a very rich and intense flavor plus it’s less waste to use the ground beans. Time and again, I have found that infusing ground vanilla in liquid bases overnight pays high flavor dividends in the finished product.”

Whether with vanilla or rum, Fleur de Cocoa uses only real ingredients. “We use nothing artificial in our sweets, from bonbons to custardy and crunchy cannelés de Bordeaux amped up with vanilla and rum, and from madeleines with their citrusy personality to many special holiday items featuring our house-made almond paste and praline,” Davy says. The mention of almond paste evokes memories for Davy of his formative time spent at the pastry shop in his hometown in France where everything was done, in his words, “the old-fashioned way—no shortcuts — what would be called ‘artisanal’ nowadays.”

As an entrepreneur, Davy supports other small businesses like Tahitian Gold Co., based in Signal Hill, CA., whenever possible. He also stresses the importance of continuing education. “I’m hungry for knowledge about new developments, techniques, styles and ingredients used in the pastry making world,” he says. Along these lines, Davy has benefited from classes given by chocolatier Melissa Coppel and pastry chef Antonio Bachour, just to name a few.

The pastry chef listens to his customers. He now offers a substantial number of gluten free and vegan items including his version of Barcelona-based Jordi Bordas’ rice flour sponge cake, layered with a raspberry basil mousse.

Never content to rest on his sweetly fragrant laurels, Davy is constantly innovating. Drawing upon the richly rewarding early years, he operates a bakery where the classics coexist deliciously with a spirit of forward-thinking culinary adventure.

Vanilla is only part of the magic. “Given the day-to-day hard work, you must be passionate about what you do, committed to giving pleasure to the customer,” he says. “With that first bite, the customer’s smile says it all. We are happy when they are happy.”

Entremet Exotique

By Aimeric Davy, Fleur de Cocoa, Los Gatos, CA

Yield: 4 entremets, each 16 cm in diameter x 4.5 cm high

Hazelnut Streusel

• 70 g unsalted butter
• 90 g hazelnut flour
• 0.5 g fleur de sel
• 70 g brown sugar
• 70 g all-purpose flour

1. Combine all the ingredients and bake at 338°F (170°C) for 15-18 minutes.

Hazelnut Chocolate Mixture

• 30 g cocoa butter
• 20 g milk chocolate
• 90 g hazelnut paste
• 100 g hazelnut praline
• 70 g roasted hazelnuts
• 30 g unsalted butter
• 300 g baked Hazelnut Streusel
• 1 g fleur de sel
• 1 g Tahitian Gold Ground Vanilla Beans, Madagascar Bourbon Premium

1. Melt the cocoa butter and the milk chocolate separately. Combine with the remaining ingredients and mix well with a paddle. Use 180 g of this mixture for each 16 cm ring.

Cocoa Nib Nougatine

• 40 g milk
• 100 g unsalted butter
• 40 g glucose syrup
• 120 g granulated sugar
• 2 g pectin NH
• 120 g cacao nibs
• 10 g cocoa powder
• 2 g Tahitian Gold Ground Vanilla Beans, Madagascar Bourbon Premium

1. Boil all the ingredients for 2 minutes, then bake between 2 full-sheet silicone mats at 338°F (170°C) for 14 minutes. Reserve the nougatine until needed. You will use a think layer inside each cake and the rest for garnish.

Vanilla Cream

• 4 g gelatin powder
• 24 g cold water
• 600 g heavy cream
• 6 g Tahitian Gold Ground Vanilla Beans, Madagascar Bourbon Premium
• 60 g granulated sugar
• 140 g egg yolk

1. Dissolve the gelatin in water and let it sit for 15 minutes.
2. Boil the cream with vanilla and sugar, then slowly pour into the egg yolks, cooking at 179-183°F (82-84°C) until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat, add the gelatin, and mix well.
3. Pour into 15 cm diameter silicone molds and freeze.

Exotic Confit

• 87 g granulated sugar
• 7.5 g pectin NH
• 162 g mango purée
• 100 g passion fruit purée
• 75 g banana purée
• 1 g Tahitian Gold Ground Vanilla Beans, Papua New Guinea Tahitian Select
• 62 g invert sugar

1. Mix the sugar with pectin, then add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, cool and refrigerate until needed.

Dark Chocolate Mousse

• 186 g milk
• 226 g cream
• 200 g glucose syrup
• 465 g dark chocolate, 65% Maracaibo from Felchlin
• 10 g gelatin powder
• 60 g cold water
• 575 g heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

1. Heat the milk, cream, and glucose to 95°F (35°C).
2. Melt the chocolate at 95°F (35°C).
3. Dissolve gelatin in water, then add to the milk mixture.
4. Combine with the chocolate, emulsify with a hand blender, then cool to 80-82F (27-28C).
5. Divide the mousse among the molds and freeze until ready to glaze.

Dark Chocolate Glaze

• 13 g gelatin powder
• 78 g cold water
• 75 g water
• 115 g granulated sugar
• 135 g glucose syrup
• 20 g cocoa powder
• 96 g condensed milk
• 135 g dark chocolate, 65% Maracaibo from Felchlin
• 30 g neutral glaze

1. Bloom the gelatin in cold water.
2. Cook water, sugar, glucose, and cocoa to 217°F (103°C), whisking until smooth.
3. Add the condensed milk and gelatin. Then add the chocolate and neutral glaze. Blend well using an immersion blender. Use the glaze at 82-86°F (28-30°C).

Assembly

1. Press an equal amount of the Hazelnut Streusel into the base of each entremet mold.
2. Break the nougatine into roughly equal-sized pieces and distribute evenly over the streusel layers. Reserve any remaining nougatine for garnish.
3. Add a layer of frozen Vanilla Cream to each mold.
4. Top with the Exotic Confit and freeze.
5. Fill each mold with the Dark Chocolate Mousse, ensuring it spreads up the sides, then freeze.
6. Unmold and glaze each entremet on an icing grid, ensuring even coverage. Decorate as desired.

(This article appeared in the Spring 2024 issue of Pastry Arts Magazine)