The shortest night of the year arrives and we start to think about what we want to keep in our lives and what we want to leave behind. This festival, of pagan origin, is said to have its origin in the magical ritual of fire, which was lit to revive the power of the sun and purify the people who looked at it. But as always, there are many interpretations and the entry of Christianity changed parts of history and adapted them in another way.
However, in many places, and especially in Catalonia, this festival remains rooted and is always crowned with a delicious Coca de San Juan. Although we can find all kinds of cokes, one of the favorites is the pastry cream one. Would you dare to make it at home?
It is a simple and economical recipe that is worth knowing. To start,
check that you have the following ingredients at home :
- 50 g milk
- 50 g water
- 7 g dry yeast
- 250 g strong flour
- 1 pinch of salt
- 40 g sugar
- 50 g soft butter
- 1 egg
- Zest of half a lemon
- splash of anise liqueur
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Then you will need other ingredients to decorate your coke, including beaten egg, pastry cream (now we will also tell you how to make it), pine nuts and sugar.
Once all the elements have been controlled and measured, start making the cream! To do this, you will need to have on hand:
- 250 ml milk
- 63 g sugar
- 1 strip of lemon peel
- 1 piece of cinnamon stick
- 1 egg yolk
- 20 ml corn starch
- a pinch of food coloring
To make the cream you will only need 15 minutes, but remember to set aside 2 hours for it to cool and gain consistency. For a start:
1. Put 2/3 parts of the milk with the sugar, lemon peel and cinnamon in a saucepan. Stir with a whisk and put over low heat.
2. In a bowl, beat the rest of the milk, the egg yolk, the starch and the coloring until the mixture is homogeneous. Reserve.
3. When the milk boils, strain and put the milk back on the heat at low power. Stir with the whisk and add the mixture of yolk, cold milk and starch to the saucepan. Whisk constantly until the mixture begins to thicken and has a custard texture.
4. Put the cream on a plate and cover the skin with plastic wrap,
5. Finally, put the cream on a plate and cover it with plastic wrap, making sure it is very hot. Let it cool for a few minutes at room temperature and then put it in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
And now it's the coke's turn!
6. Mix the milk with the water and heat slightly, add the yeast and stir until it dissolves. Reserve.
7. In a large enough bowl, mix the flour, salt, sugar, softened butter, egg, lemon zest, anise and cinnamon powder.
8. Finally, add the milk, water and yeast and knead until the dough is homogeneous, elastic and slightly sticky.
9. Grease a bowl with oil. With greased hands, shape the dough into a ball and place it in the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and let it ferment for half an hour.
10. Cover a tray with baking paper.
11. With greased hands, place the dough in the center of the tray and stretch it with your hands until it gives the desired shape and thickness. The dough is very elastic and it is very easy to shape it with your hands.
12. Beat an egg with a little water and paint the coke. Cover the coke with aluminum foil and let it ferment for about 40 minutes.
13. Soak the pine nuts. Put the oven at 180ºC
14. When the dough has doubled in volume, fill a pastry bag with the cream and make the decorative drawings on it that you like the most, decorate with the drained pine nuts and sugar.
15. Bake the coca for about 20 minutes or until golden.
16. Remember that later you can paint the coke with the anise liquor right after it comes out of the oven, so that it remains shiny.
Happy festival!
