The French choux pastry tower. Do you also want to impress and play along with the best, but don't always have the right equipment? Then it's time to break out the aluminum foil and a little imagination.
Recipe for croquembouche
Do you also want to impress and play along with the best, but don’t always have the right equipment?
Then it’s time to pull out the aluminum foil and a bit of imagination.
I don’t have the cone to make a proper croquembouche myself, but sometimes you just have to make do.
So New Year’s Eve 2018 will feature a croquembouche at midnight, if the profiteroles cooperate.
Servings: Piece
Croquembouche
The French choux pastry tower. Do you also want to impress and play along with the best, but don't always have the right equipment? Then it's time to break out the aluminum foil and a little imagination.
Ingredients
- 80 gram Butter
- 200 gram Water
- 100 gram Wheat Flour
- 3 pcs. Egg
- 500 gram Sugar
- 35 gram Glucose Syrup
- 200 gram Water
- 1 brev/sachet Cake Cream a packet
- 500 gram Whole Milk
Instructions
The Pastry Cream
- Mix a packet of pastry cream in 5 deciliters of whole milk. Place a piece of cling film directly on top of the pastry cream and refrigerate.
Choux Pastry
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (392 degrees Fahrenheit) (convection).
- Put 2 deciliters of water and 80 grams of butter in a pot and bring to a boil.
- Add 100 grams of all-purpose flour and turn off the heat. Stir the flour into the water/butter mixture until there are no more lumps.
- Let the mixture cool slightly for a couple of minutes before stirring in 3 eggs, one at a time, using a whisk.
- The dough will initially look like it has separated, but continue whisking. The dough will gradually absorb the egg and become smooth and glossy. Continue until all the eggs are incorporated into the dough.
- Put the dough into a piping bag with a plain nozzle.
- Pipe small choux pastry balls, about the size of a two-crown coin, onto one or two baking trays lined with parchment paper.
- Use a wet finger to smooth out the surface of the choux pastry so they don't have small peaks.
- Bake the choux pastry at 200 degrees Celsius (392 degrees Fahrenheit) (convection) for a minimum of 15 minutes, in the middle of the oven.
- Let the baked choux pastry cool on a wire rack.
- Bake only one tray at a time for optimal results.
- Fill the cooled choux pastry with pastry cream by making a small hole in the bottom, which is filled with pastry cream from a piping bag with a small nozzle.
The Caramel
- Put 500 grams of sugar, 35 grams of glucose syrup, and 2 deciliters of water into a pot and stir until all the sugar is coated with water.
- Melt the mixture over high heat. While the sugar mixture is boiling, wash down the sides of the pot with a clean, wet brush to avoid impurities in the caramel. But don't wash more than 8-10 times.
- When all the sugar has dissolved, turn the heat down to medium-high.
- When the caramel starts to turn light golden and thick, check the temperature with a candy thermometer (or another thermometer). The mixture should reach 150-152 degrees Celsius (302-306 degrees Fahrenheit) before it's ready to use.
- Once the sugar mixture is ready, remove the pot from the heat, and when it stops bubbling, it's ready.
Assembling the Cake
- Since I didn't have a cone, I chose to make the cone out of pure aluminum foil. It was made like a cornet. This meant my cone was solid, so I couldn't assemble it inside the cone as it's traditionally done.
- Grease the cone with a bit of cooking oil before you start assembling your croquembouche.
- Place your cone on a cutting board that can withstand heat.
- Take a filled choux pastry and dip the bottom in the caramel (without burning your fingers).
- Place it with the bottom against the aluminum foil cone, using the caramel as glue.
- Build one layer of choux pastry at a time, working your way up the cone.
- Place a choux pastry on the top to finish off the creation.
- Optionally, decorate with caramel threads, or leave it as is.
- Let your Croquembouche set before moving it.
Notes
By building a croquembouche outside the cone made of aluminum foil, I haven't been able to remove the foil from it.
But so far, this version is the one I use. Over time, I might invest in the proper cone for the purpose, but so far, I haven't received any complaints from friends and family about my version.
Happy baking
It can be an advantage to have a pair of disposable gloves ready to protect your fingers during the assembly of the delicious croquembouche.
But so far, this version is the one I use. Over time, I might invest in the proper cone for the purpose, but so far, I haven't received any complaints from friends and family about my version.
Happy baking
It can be an advantage to have a pair of disposable gloves ready to protect your fingers during the assembly of the delicious croquembouche.