Gerbeaud cake

Instructions

1. Make the pastry: mix the flour, icing sugar and salt, then rub in the cold diced butter with your fingertips until it resembles sand.
2. Add the yolks and crème fraîche, then bring together quickly without overworking. Wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Roll out the pastry into three strips the size of a baking tray and prick them with a fork. Bake for 10 min at 180 °C, watching closely: they should be golden.
4. Make the cream: whisk the yolks and sugar over a bain-marie until they thicken, then remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
5. Beat in the softened butter in small pieces with a whisk, then flavour. The cream should be smooth and firm.
6. Spread the apricot jam over one pastry strip, cover with the second strip, then spread half the buttercream on top. Cover with the third strip.
7. Spread the remaining cream over the top, then chill for 30 min to firm it up.
8. Melt the chocolate with the butter over a bain-marie, spread it over the top and let it set in the fridge before cutting into squares.