Celebrating Charlotte

Brits recently have had much to celebrate. First there was the 70th anniversary of V-E Day, then there was a watershed election, and, finally, and perhaps most important, a new royal baby, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge.

Named after, among others, her grandfather Prince Charles (Charlotte being the feminine version of Charles) and presumably not after George V's beloved parrot, the infant, in her own right fourth in line to the British throne, is truly, in the eyes of her loyal subjects, something special. No wonder that to signal the occasion of her birth, the Tower Bridge, the London Eye, and the fountains in Trafalgar Square were all lit up in pink.

As it so happens, when it comes to cookery, there is another Charlotte, just as special as the new princess and, like her, it may also have royal lineage. I'm referring to the famous dessert which, according to some accounts, was named after an ancestor of the new princess.

In the culinary sense, a charlotte is a concoction in which a filling of some sort is molded in a deep dish which has been lined, typically with ladyfingers. It may be either baked or unbaked. The former is more or less on the order of a bread pudding, the latter more like a trifle. In either case, when ready to serve, the charlotte is removed whole from its mold for an often stunning appearance with upright ladyfingers surrounding the contents.

Actually, depending on the nature of the filling, other things can be used to line the dessert mold, such as slices of bread, brioche or cake. Emeril even has a recipe for a charlotte lined with French macarons. I myself have contemplated using Twinkies.

The preferred vehicle for making a charlotte is a genuine charlotte mold, a deep, high-sided metal pan, usually with heart-shaped little handles. Though early cookbooks sometimes show straight-sided charlottes, the classic mold is flared out slightly from bottom to top. In effect, it looks a little like an upside-down fez.

If you don't have a charlotte mold, you can use a souffle dish, a springform pan, ramekins or muffin tins, or even an oblong cake pan. After all, what's a tiramisu but a flat charlotte?

One of the most celebrated charlottes of all, the New York version, just uses a cardboard cup, albeit it a frilly one. A long popular street food in the city, it consists simply of a disk of sponge cake inserted into the cup and topped with a spiral of whipped cream and a cherry.

Whatever form it takes, the dish apparently has a noble heritage. The famous apple charlotte possibly was named after Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III, who was a patron of apple growers. The equally famous cream-filled version developed by the renowned French chef Car'me, though called a Charlotte Russe in deference to Czar Alexander I, Car'me's Russian employer at the time, may have also been meant to honor another Princess Charlotte, the daughter of the chef's previous employer, George IV. Or maybe the dish was intended to be a tribute to Charlotte of Prussia, the Czar's sister-in-law.

However you explain the derivation of its name, there's no question that a charlotte is about as regal as it gets.

Lined from top to bottom with ladyfingers, a charlotte mold packed with filling is ready for refrigeration, the final step of preparation. (TOM HARTE)

Tiramisu Charlotte

Though usually made in an ordinary cake pan, turning a tiramisu into a charlotte, as in this recipe adapted from bakedecoratecelebrate.com, adds a royal touch.

A classic charlotte pan is a high-sided, fez-shaped metal pan with heart-shaped handles. (TOM HARTE)

• 3 eggs
• 1 3/4 cups cream, divided
• 3/4 cup sugar, divided
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 tablespoon instant coffee
• 1 tablespoon brandy
• 9-10 oz. ladyfingers Whisk together eggs, 3/4 cup cream, and 1/2 cup sugar. Over medium heat, stirring constantly, cook until mixture thickens. Cool slightly. Beat cream cheese and 3 TB sugar until light and fluffy. Slowly beat in egg mixture, blending well. Whip remaining 1 c. cream to soft peaks. Fold into cream cheese mixture. Combine water, coffee, brandy, and remaining 1 TB sugar. Brush ladyfingers with coffee mixture and use to line bottom and sides of springform pan or charlotte mold. Spoon half of filling into pan, top with a layer of ladyfingers, and cover with remaining filling mixture. Chill at least 4 hours before serving.

This charlotte, in its final stages of preparation, awaits a finishing layer of ladyfingers before being refrigerated. (TOM HARTE)