October 20
Stanislas Leczinski's Birthday
 

Stanislas was a man of a diversity of talents and interests. His court became famous as a cultural center, he founded a military school, a science academy at Nancy, and published a major book on proposed reforms in the Polish constitution, Free Voice to Make Freedom Safe which is still an underground classic in Poland.

Stanislas was also one of the great gourmet cooks of Europe, specializing in pastries. He invented madeleines (July 10) which he named after his mistress/cook, Madeleine Paulmier. Stanislas also invented the famous baba au rhurn which was named for Ali Baba, one of the hero's of Stanislaus'  favorite books, A Thousand and One Nights. The original dessert was simple known as babas and were baked in spiced Malaga wine. In French, the word baba meaning, "falling over or dizzy."  Baba is called Babka in Poland.

The baba were reinvented Paris in the 1800's by a pastry cook, named Sthorer,  who extended the name to baba au rhum.  Sthorer developed the practice of making his babas in advance and then brushing them with rum as they were sold. They quickly became the rage in Paris and made Sthorer a fortune. The baba had one more important transformation when another French pastry chef, Julien, eliminated the raisins from the recipe, changed the shape of the cake, and steeped it in a special syrup. This variation was named after the chef's friend, and well known gastronome and food writer, Brillat-Savarin, and was renamed savarin.

Making some Baba au Rhum is the perfect way to celebrate Stanislas's birthday which we suggest pairing with the film Ubu Roi (1965) in which he is one of the principal characters.
 

1 package of dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm milk
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs
1/2 cup soft butter
1 TB grated lemon zest
1 TB grated orange zest
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt

3 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup white raisins
2 cups sugar
2 cups rum
1 cup apricot jam, forced through a fine sieve
1 cup orange juice
1 cup orange juice
6 maraschino cherries, halved

1. Sprinkle yeast over lukewarm milk in a mixing bowl and allow 5 minutes for it to dissolve. Add sugar, eggs, butter, and zests. Mix well. Add flour and salt and beat mixture until dough is smooth. Fold in raisins.
2. Add orange juice and sugar in a saucepan. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and cool. Add rum.
3. Beat down dough and fill greased muffin cups about 1/2 full. Cover and place in a warm place to rise for about 45 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 350º F.
5. Bake babas for 15 to 20 minutes until they brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before removing from muffin cups. Place babas in a shallow pan and spoon on rum syrup. Turn babas several times so that they will absorb syrup from bottom of pan.
6. Glaze with strained apricot jam.
7. When ready to serve, whip cream for topping and add a half cherry.