Photo Pierre Obendrauf , The Gazette

This dessert is easy and good fun. You'll find brioche at pastry shops like Au Pain Dore, Patisserie de Gascogne and Au Duc de Lorraine. In a pinch you could use a pound cake, or if you're counting calories, country bread. Grilling the strawberries brings out their juiciness. But if you would rather skip that step, leave them plain or brush them with some warm red-currant or apricot jelly, or strawberry syrup (see recipe below).

8 1/2-inch (1 cm) slices of brioche

About 1 cup (250 mL) pastry cream, whisked smooth

About 35 strawberries, sliced vertically in three

Granulated sugar or vanilla sugar for caramelizing

1. Toast the brioche slices on both sides until golden (be careful - brioche burns easily). Spread a generous tablespoonful of pastry cream over each slice to evenly cover the bread. Arrange the sliced strawberries over the cream, covering as much as possible and slightly overlapping the layers.
2. Sprinkle with about a teaspoon of sugar, then, using a blow torch or under a preheated broiler, blast-heat the sugared berries until the sugar melts, starts to bubble, and then caramelizes. The strawberries should blacken slightly. Remove from heat and cool before serving.

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