passover week 2020 - passover paris-brest
As I've noted before, superfine matzo meal makes really good choux pastry so choux pastry was always going to feature in Passover Week 2020.
Mini Paris-Brests flooded instagram this year and who was I to buck the trend. Choux pastry I've made before but hazelnut praline was new to me as was a mousseline filling so I looked online for some recipes. The hazelnut praline worked out fine but I had a few challenges with the mousseline filling. I made the first batch of creme patissiere using potato starch. It turned gummy and set so hard I could have used it as wallpaper paste. I made a second batch using superfine matzo meal and it turned out beautifully. The finished hazelnut mousseline filling was just gorgeous and I'd love to use it again.
Making this recipe is a multi-step step process and a labour of love. If you'd like to give it a try, then here’s the recipe for you. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20ºC.
Passover Paris-Brest with Hazelnut Praline Cream - serves 6
Hazelnut praline
170 gm caster sugar
40 mls water
170 gm each roasted skinned hazelnuts/toasted almonds
Pinch salt
Hazelnut Mousseline Cream
250 mls whole milk
2 large egg yolks
½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
60g caster sugar
25g superfine matzo meal
125g unsalted butter
75g hazelnut praline paste
Choux Pastry
⅔ cup water
50g unsalted butter
⅔ cup superfine matzo meal
Large pinch salt
3 - 4 eggs, at room temperature
To serve: 25g coarsely halved roasted hazelnuts and icing sugar
Hazelnut praline
Stir sugar and 40ml water in a saucepan over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves, then brush down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush and bring to the boil, swirling pan as mixture starts to caramelise, until dark caramel (5-6 minutes). Remove from heat, stir in the nuts and a pinch of salt with a lightly oiled fork, tip onto a lightly oiled baking tray and stand until set (40 minutes). Coarsely crush praline, then process three-quarters (reserve remaining in an airtight container to serve) in a food processor, scraping down sides occasionally, until a paste forms (5-6 minutes). Store in an airtight container at room temperature until required.
Mousseline Cream
Place the milk in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Place the egg yolks, vanilla if using, caster sugar and matzo meal into a large bowl and mix to combine into a thick paste.
Pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking to prevent the eggs from overcooking. Pour the custard back into the pan and place back over the heat and cook, whisking constantly until thickened and bubbling, then cook for a minute or so more. Remove from the heat, mix in 25g of the butter then scrape into a bowl. Press a sheet of cling-film directly onto the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or until needed.
Leave the remaining butter at room temperature. To finish off the mousseline place the remaining 100g butter into a large bowl and beat in a stand mixer until smooth and creamy then add the praline paste and mix to combine. Remove the pastry cream from the fridge and using a whisk beat until brought back to a smooth texture. Add the pastry cream to the praline mixture in 3 or so additions, beating until fully combined to prevent lumps. Check for sweetness and adjust if necessary. If the texture looks a little shiny and loose return the bowl in the fridge for up to an hour.
Choux pastry
Preheat oven to 200°C. Draw six 6cm circles (use a cup or a cutter as a template) onto a sheet of baking paper. Flip the paper upside down and place on a baking sheet. Stir the water and butter in a saucepan and over a medium heat, bring to the boil. Add matzo meal and salt and stir with a wooden spoon for 1 minute or until the dough comes away from the side of the pan. Set aside for 5 minutes. Transfer dough to a large bowl. Use electric beaters to beat eggs into dough, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, until well combined and glossy. You may not need all the eggs so use any remaining egg as egg wash. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain nozzle/.7cm fluted nozzle.
Pipe rings of the still warm choux pastry around each of the circles, sealing ends with a flick of the wrist. Pipe a second ring of pastry around the outside of the first so the rings touch. Brush lightly with egg wash, scatter with the chopped hazelnuts and bake for 15 minutes then reduce heat to 180°C and bake until golden brown and puffed (20-25 minutes). Allow to cool a little before splitting horizontally with a serrated knife. Remove any uncooked dough and return the choux to the oven for a further 5 minutes or until dried out. Cool completely on wire racks.
To assemble, spread the bases with a little of the hazelnut praline paste. Pipe hazelnut mousseline cream over the bases in a decorative pattern, scatter with crushed hazelnut praline, sandwich lightly with choux ring tops, dust with icing sugar and serve. These are best eaten on day of making.
I took these into work where they were very well received. I hope you enjoyed this year's Passover Week. See you all again next week with a little Easter baking from my kitchen.
Bye for now,
Jillian
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