Category Archives: Profiteroles

QC Cadre Fete

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Yesterday we held our first ever QC Cadre Fete at our house. For those not in the know the Quality Control Manager (QC) is my wife, Fran. The QC Cadre incudes all our immediate neighbors, and significant others. To thank everyone for their reviews over the past year I made a selection of heretofore untried pastries and bread.

From front to back are” Snowflake Bread, fig newtons and raspberry filled profiteroles, chocolate glazed chocolate filled chocolate tarts with a croustillant layer and finally gingerbread millionaires bars.

Sadly, I pulled the gingerbread millionaires bars before the fete began. I over cooked the caramel and while it tasted good, it was a very hard crack and once you started to chew it, your mouth could be glued shut. As I said, this was the first attempt at each bake so accidents will happen, but not again!

Chocolate Orange Snowflake Bread

INGREDIENTS
For the Dough:
• 1c milk, plus 1 tbsp extra
• 30g (2 Tbl) cubed butter
• 2 Tbl olive oil
• 2 Tbl sugar
• 7g (2 ¼ tsp) instant yeast
• 175g AP white
• 175g bread flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• A pinch of salt
• 1 orange, zested?
For the Filling:
• 100g cream cheese
• 2 Tbl sugar
• 2 Tbl cacao powder
• 1 Tbl cinnamon
• 1 Tbl cornstarch
• 1 orange, zested
For Decoration
• Candy orange peel

METHOD

  1. Combine the milk and butter and warm until just melted and lukewarm. Stir in the olive oil, sugar, and yeast. Let rest for 5 minutes.
  2. In a large bowl whisk flour, cinnamon, and salt. Pour in the yeast-milk and bring to a shaggy dough with a spoon. Tip onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 1 minute to make a smooth ball of dough. Place in a lightly greased bowl, cover and leave somewhere warm for 30 minutes, to rise. Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 350ºF.
  3. Whisk together all the filling ingredients until smooth (you can microwave the mix for 10 seconds, if needed, to make it smoother to combine).
  4. Punch down the dough and form into 2 balls. (I like to weigh the dough and divide the total weight by 2 to make equal sized balls. My dough weighed 1630 g therefore, each ball should be ~815g.)
  5. Divide each ball into two smaller balls, each ~400g and form each into a rough circle ~6” diameter, then roll out into circles ~10”
  6. Place one circle down and coat with 1/3rd of the filling, leaving the outer 1” un-coated. Repeat for the next two layers and leave the top layer uncoated.
  7. Center a 10” cake pan and trim the circles to an even circle.
  8. Set a 3” bowl in the center of the stack of circles and press down making an impression
  9. Cut the dough from the perimeter to the outside of the 3” circle into 16 equal portions
  10. Twist adjacent portions away from each other and pinch the ends into a point
  11. Snip each dendrite is several places to form fronds, or feathers.
  12. Cover and let rise 20-30 min.
  13. Beat the egg with 1 Tbl water to use as the egg wash
  14. Brush the pastry evenly with the 1 tbsp egg wash and place in the middle of the oven for 22-25 minutes, until well-risen, golden and springy.
  15. Remove from the oven sprinkle with candied orange peel and cool for 20 minutes.

Homemade Fig Newtons

INGREDIENTS
• 1 pint fresh or preserved figs or 12 ounces dried figs 2 Pints
• 1 ½ cups AP flour 3 cups
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder ½ tsp
• ¼ teaspoon salt ½ tsp
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp
• 1 stick butter 2 sticks
• 1/3 cup sugar 2/3 cup
• 1 egg 2
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tsp
• 2 tablespoons orange juice 4 Tbl
If you are using:
• Fresh figs: Remove stems and boil figs with 2 cups of sugar in 1 cup of water for 45 minutes. Drain and cool. This seemed to be too much sugar and water. Try cutting in half. If too thin, cook down until temp reaches about 210.
• Dried figs: In a bowl, pour boiling water over figs (stems removed) and let rest 10 minutes. Drain all but 2 tablespoons water and stir in 2 tablespoons corn syrup + ¼ teaspoon cinnamon.
• Preserved figs: Drain syrup.

METHOD

  1. Puree figs in food processor into a thick paste (if too thick or thin to spread evenly, add a little water or flour until spreadable consistency is reached).
  2. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together and set aside.
  3. Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl.
  4. Add egg and vanilla, mix until smooth
  5. Add orange juice and combined dry ingredients to bowl and mix until dough forms.
  6. Optional: form dough into a flat thick disk and chill to set butter and make it easier to roll and fold.
  7. Roll dough out on a floured surface into an 8”x14” rectangle about ¼” thick.
  8. Cut rectangle in half lengthwise.
  9. Spread fig paste onto half of each rectangle, lengthwise.
  10. Cut the rectangle in half crosswise, or even thirds to facilitate folding.
  11. Fold dough in half lengthwise to cover fig paste and pinch edges to seal.
  12. Slide each newton log onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
  13. Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees until crust begins to brown.
  14. Slice into cookie-sized segments and cool. Slice while warm to reducing flaking.

Raspberry Italian Meringue Profiteroles

INGREDIENTS
Choux Pastry:
• ½ c (65 grams) AP flour
• ½ tsp granulated white sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 4 tbsp (55 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• ½ c (120 ml) water
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Raspberry Italian Meringue
• egg whites room temperature
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 2 drops raspberry flavor
• 1-2 drops red food coloring
• Optional: 1 tsp freeze dried raspberry powder
Chocolate Glaze:
• 2 ounces (55 grams) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
• ¼ c (60 ml) heavy “whipping” cream (cream with 35% butterfat content)
• ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract
• ½ tbsp light corn syrup (or golden syrup or glucose)

METHOD

  1. Preheat oven to 375o F (190o C) and place rack in center of oven.
  2. In a bowl whisk the flour with the sugar and salt.
  3. Place the butter and water in a saucepan over medium high heat and bring to a boil.
  4. Remove from heat and, with a wooden spoon, add the flour mixture, all at once, and stir until combined. It will look like mashed potatoes. Return saucepan to the heat and stir constantly until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a thick smooth ball (about 1-2 minutes). The dough will film the bottom and sides of the saucepan and make cleaning a pain.
  5. Transfer the dough to an electric mixer and beat on low speed to release the steam from the dough (about 1 minute).
  6. Once the dough is lukewarm start adding the lightly beaten eggs (dough will separate and then come together) and continue to mix until you have a smooth thick paste (dough will fall from a spoon in a thick ribbon).
  7. Place the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip and pipe round mounds of dough (about 1 ½ inch) onto the parchment lined baking sheet. (When piping, hold the bag at a 90-degree angle, ie straight up.)
  8. Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350o F (180o C).
  9. Remove from oven, pierce the bottom of each profiterole with a small skewer to release the interior steam.
  10. Continue to bake for a further 25 minutes or until the shells are a nice amber color and when split, are almost dry inside. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
    Raspberry Italian Meringue
  11. Wipe down all tools with white vinegar or lemon juice to remove any trace of fat.
  12. Place sugar and water mixture over medium heat for 5 minutes. Do not stir it at all during this time. The mixture will look cloudy.
  13. Gently stir the mixture for 1 minute. There should be little to no granules of sugar left at this point.
  14. Once the mixture begins to bubble from the bottom, 3 to 5 minutes, place the digital thermometer in the pot and increase to medium-high heat. Do not stir it at all after this.
  15. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip the eggs whites on low speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar, increase the speed to medium and beat until soft peaks form.
  16. Allow the sugar mixture to come to a boil and watch carefully. Once it reaches 230 °F turn stand mixer on highest speed to whip egg whites to peaks.
  17. Once the sugar syrup reaches 240 °F, remove from heat and remove the probe. This takes about 4- 6 minutes.
  18. Allow the boiling to come to a slow bubble before moving on.
  19. Slowly pour sugar syrup (steady stream) into whisked egg whites. Avoid the whisk attachment or it will fling your mixture all over the bowl.
  20. Allow mixture to whisk for another 3-5 minutes until the mixer bowl is cool/room temperature to the touch.
  21. Add raspberry flavoring and if desired, the freeze-dried raspberry powder. (In my first attempt at adding the powder I added it prior to adding the sugar syrup and it ruined the soft peaks. I think adding at the end should work.)
    Chocolate Glaze:
  22. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl.
  23. Heat the cream just until boiling and immediately pour it over the chocolate.
  24. Gently stir until the chocolate has melted.
  25. Stir in the vanilla extract and corn syrup, mixing to ensure incorporation.To complete:
  26. Fill a piping bag equipped with a filling tip (such as Wilton 230). Inject crème pat into the hole you made to allow the steam to escape. When you feel the side of the profiterole begin to bulge, the éclair is full.
  27. Dip the top of each profiterole into the warm, thin ganache and set on a piece of waxed or parchment paper to dry. (I use the parchment paper previously used to line the baking sheet.)

Gingerbread Millionaire Bars

INGREDIENTS
FOR THE GINGER SHORTBREAD BOTTOM:
• 1 c butter
• ½ c packed dark brown sugar
• ¼ c (85g) un-sulfured molasses
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp powdered ginger
• ¼ tsp cloves
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 ½ c all-purpose flour
FOR THE CHEWY CARAMEL:
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• ⅓ cup sweetened condensed milk
• ⅓ cup butter
• 3 tbsp. golden cane syrup (or honey as a substitute)
• 1 tsp. flaky sea salt
FOR THE CHOCOLATE TOP:
• 7 oz dark chocolate, chopped

METHOD

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper.
  2. In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and molasses together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  3. Add in the egg, spices, fresh ginger, and salt, whipping an additional minute. Fold in flour, mixing only until combined.
  4. Transfer dough to prepared baking pan, patting down evenly. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center of the shortbread comes out clean. Allow to cool while you make your caramel.
  5. In a small saucepan over medium low heat, combine the sweetened condensed milk, sugar, and honey. Use a rubber spatula to mix slowly but continuously for about ten minutes. The mixture will slowly turn a light golden color and begin to pull away from the sides of ithe pan. Heat until mixture reaches a nice golden caramel color then add the butter and mix until incorporated, then remove from heat and mix in salt.
  6. Pour mixture over ginger shortbread and use spatula to spread evenly. Place in the fridge to harden completely, about 2 hours.
  7. Once the bars have cooled, put the chocolate into a large glass measuring cup and heat in 30 second intervals. (My 1000W microwave requires 90 second total heating, but the chocolate should be stirred after each 30 second interval.
  8. Pour over chilled bars, then place back in fridge to harden.
  9. Cut into 1″x1″ cubes and serve! Will last up to 1 week when sealed tightly in a container in the fridge.

TOR 2024 Gala

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I am always pleased when asked to prepare some items for a party, large or small. Tonight is our annual temple baseball themed gala with an expected attendance of 100 people. I started this tradition in 2018, but missed a couple of years due to Covid etc.

Tonight Dede’ Bakery and Confectionary is serving chocolate/raspberry baseball field brownies, gluten free raspberry mousse tarts with baseball decorated cookies and key lime profiteroles with no baseball association whatsoever. (I just like them.)


GLUTEN FREE TARTS
INGREDIENTS
• 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes
• 60 g icing sugar
• 200 g Kim’s Bread flour blend
• ½ tsp vanilla
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 eggs – 1 for the dough and the other 1 reserved for an egg wash

METHOD

  1. Mix dry Ingredients.
  2. Lightly beat egg then add the melted butter.
  3. Add wet to dry ingredients. Form into a dough ball.
  4. Wrap the dough ball in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  5. Roll to a 1/8” thick sheet between two pieces of parchment paper or plastic.
  6. Cut rounds of the dough about an inch larger than the tart pans
  7. Gently press the dough circles into the tart pans pressing into any flutes
  8. Patch any breaks with extra dough
  9. Dock the bottom of the crust. Wrap and keep in freezer at least 30 minutes.
  10. Pre-bake the tart crust 8 to 10 minutes in preheated oven at 350 deg.
  11. Depending on recipe, you may want to protect the crust of the tart with foil
  12. Cool to room temperature
  13. Fill with raspberry mousse.
  14. Top with a raspberry and white sugar cookies with red baseball seams.

Raspberry – Cream Cheese Mousse

INGREDIENTS
Raspberry Puree
• 340 g (~2 ½ c, 12 oz) fresh raspberries
• 2 Tbl confectioner’s sugar
• 1 Tbl instant vanilla pudding mix (substitute corn starch if desired.)
• 112 g (4 oz) cream cheese softened
• ¼ cup Tbl powdered sugar
• 1 Tbl freeze-dried raspberry powder
• Optional: ¼ tsp red food coloring
• Optional: 1 tsp ouzo (for tartness)
Whipped Cream – Stabilized
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream, chilled
• 2 Tbl instant vanilla pudding powder (substitute corn starch if desired.)
• 2-3 Tbl powdered sugar

METHOD

  1. Combine raspberries and 2 Tbl confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl and add to a food processor and pulse until berries are reduced
  2. Sieve the mixture allowing enough time for most of the raspberry juice to drip into a bowl, (enough to make 200ml (2/3 c) puree)
  3. Add 1 Tbl vanilla pudding, softened cream cheese and 1/4 cup sweetener, raspberry powder and ouzo and beat until well combined (3-4 minutes on high.) Mix in red food coloring in 2 or 3 aliquots until desired color is attained.
  4. In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream, vanilla pudding mix and confectioners sugar.
  5. Add red food coloring (in several small amounts until desired color is attained) and whip to firm peaks.
  6. Fold the raspberry mixture into the whipped cream until combined. Divide the mousse among 6 dessert cups, cover, or fill a piping bag and chill until set, about 1 hour.

KIM’S GLUTEN FREE BREAD FLOUR BLEND
Yield: 700g (5 c)
INGREDIENTS
• 285g Bob’s Red Mill potato starch
• 250g superfine white rice flour (DON’T use regular rice flour, ie Bob’s Red Mill)
• 75g Tapioca flour
• 75g Whey protein isolate or egg white protein.
• 15g Xanthan gum
METHOD

  1. Weigh all ingredients and add to a stand mixer bowl
  2. Mix on low, with bowl covered for 30 seconds

CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRY BROWNIE BARS
I made a 1 ½ recipe and used an 11×15 pan.

INGREDIENTS
Brownies
• 4 large eggs
• 1 ¼ c dark cocoa
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 ¼ c sugar
• 1 c unsalted butter, melted
• 1 ½ c All-Purpose Flour
• 1 c chocolate chips
• 1 c Raspberry Jammy Bits
• 3 Tbl seedless raspberry jam
• 1 Tbl water
Chocolate Ganache Glaze
• 1 Tbl cup heavy cream
• 1 Tbl light corn syrup (20g)
• 2 ⅔ c (400g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 Tbl vanilla extract

METHOD

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9″ x 13″ pan. To make very even bars, line the pan with aluminum foil before baking, leaving foil sticking up above the edges of the pan.
  2. Crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, and vanilla until smooth.
  3. Add the sugar and melted butter, stirring until smooth.
  4. Add the flour, chips, and Jammy Bits, again stirring well. The batter will be very thick.
  5. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth.
  6. Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean (205 degrees,) or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look moist, but not uncooked. Do not over bake! Remove them from the oven.
  7. Heat the seedless raspberry jam with the water and stir until smooth. (I use 2 tsp of apple jelly, mixed with 1 tsp water and heated to melt the jelly.) Brush over the warm brownies. Set aside to cool for an hour or longer before topping with the ganache.
  8. To make the ganache, heat the cream and corn syrup until they begin to steam. Pour over the chopped chocolate in a bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes, add any flavorings, and whisk until smooth. Let cool for 15 minutes or so.
  9. Pour ganache over the brownies while it’s still warm but has begun to thicken — reheat if it thickens too much as you work. Allow several hours for the ganache to set up fully. You may refrigerate the brownies to hasten the setting of the ganache.
  10. Remove the brownies from the pan using the aluminum foil sling. Heat a knife in hot water, wipe dry and use to cut the brownies. Repeat with each cut.

KEY LIME PROFITEROLES
INGREDIENTS
Whipped Cream Key Lime Curd:
• ½ c white sugar
• 2 Tbl cornstarch
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• 1 large egg, plus 2 large egg yolks
• 2 tsp lime zest
• ⅔ c key lime juice
• ⅔ c sweetened condensed milk
• 2 Tbl butter
• ¾ c heavy whipping

Choux Pastry:
• ½ c (65 grams) AP flour
• ½ tsp granulated white sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 4 tbsp (55 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• ½ c (120 ml) water
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
White Chocolate Raspberry Ganache
• 150 g confectioner’s sugar
• 50 g heavy cream
• 1 Tbl freeze-dried raspberry powder
• Red food coloring
• Coarse decorating sugar

METHOD

  1. Preheat oven to 400° F (200° C) and place rack in center of oven.
  2. In a bowl whisk the flour with the sugar and salt.
  3. Place the butter and water in a saucepan over medium high heat and bring to a boil.
  4. Remove from heat and, with a wooden spoon, add the flour mixture, all at once, and stir until combined. It will look like mashed potatoes. Return saucepan to the heat and stir constantly until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a thick smooth ball (about 1-2 minutes). The dough will film the bottom and sides of the saucepan and make cleaning a pain.
  5. Transfer the dough to an electric mixer and beat on low speed to release the steam from the dough (about 1 minute).
  6. Once the dough is lukewarm start adding the lightly beaten eggs (dough will separate and then come together) and continue to mix until you have a smooth thick paste (dough will fall from a spoon in a thick ribbon).
  7. Place the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip and pipe oblongs of dough (about 3/4 inch (2 cm) wide) onto the parchment lined baking sheet. (When piping hold the bag at a 45-degree angle.) If desired, with a pastry brush, gently brush the tops of the dough with the lightly beaten egg.
  8. Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350o F (180o C).
  9. Remove from oven, pierce an end of each éclair with a small skewer to release the interior steam.
  10. Continue to bake for a further 25 minutes or until the shells are a nice amber color and when split, are almost dry inside. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
  11. Warm white chocolate to soften (30 seconds in a 1000W microwave)
  12. Heat whipping cream to steam, but not boil and pour over the softened white chocolate
  13. Let sit 3-4 minutes then add freeze dried raspberry, red food coloring and beat with a spoon until the mixture is smooth
  14. After filling the profiteroles with the key lime curd dip the top into the warm ganache and sprinkle with decoration sugar.
    ROYAL ICING
    Makes ~3 cups of royal icing, (¼ recipe decorated 48 1” diameter cookies)
    INGREDIENTS
    • 4 cups (480g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
    • 3 Tablespoons meringue powder (not plain egg white powder)
    • 9–10 Tablespoons room temperature water
    METHOD
  15. Sift confectioners’ sugar and meringue powder, into a large bowl and add 9 Tablespoons of water. Add half the water after sifting 2 cups of sugar. Add the remaining water or more, checking flow consistency of the icing is what you want for piping etc.
  16. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat icing ingredients together on high speed for 1.5 – 2 minutes.
  17. When lifting the whisk up off the icing, the icing should drizzle down and smooth out within 5-10 seconds. If it’s too thick, beat in more water 1 Tablespoon at a time. I usually need 10 Tablespoons but on particularly dry days, I use up to 12-14 Tablespoons. Keep in mind that the longer you beat the royal icing, the thicker it becomes. If your royal icing is too thin, just keep beating it to introduce more air OR you can add more confectioners’ sugar.
  18. When applied to cookies or confections in a thin layer, icing completely dries in about 2 hours at room temperature. If icing consistency is too thin and runny, it will take longer to dry. If the icing is applied very thick on cookies, it will also take longer to dry. If you’re layering royal icing onto cookies for specific designs and need it to set quickly, place cookies in the refrigerator to help speed it up.

Whipped Key Lime Pastries

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I love key lime. I saw a recipe that inspired me to make two pastries featuring whipped key lime (like a chiboust with key lime curd mixed with stabilized whipped cream.)

My first attempt used Pepperidge Farm puff pastry to form the pastry cups. This puff pastry “puffed” up too much. My second try used Trader Joe’s puff pastry which only puffs about 25% of Pepperidge Farm’s. This pastry worked better.

Pastry in pan with cupcake papers and beans
“Sandwiched” puff pastry, cupcake papers, beans and second cupcake pan
Baked puff pastry

Cut the puff pastry into circles (I use hexagons as they don’t waste as much pastry) about 2” larger than the diameter of the cupcake pan pocket. Fit the circles into each pocket. Try not to fold them over along the sides and more than necessary. Place a mini-cupcake paper in each and fill with baking beans (not baked beans,) then cover with an identical cupcake pan. This will retard the “puff” of the pastry.

Raspberry coulis
Coulis filled bottom of shell
Key lime whipped cream piped into shell

Bake about 15 minutes at 400F. Remove the upper pan, the cupcake paper and beans, turn the oven off and return the baked shells to the over to dry the bottoms. This should take ~5 minutes.

Raspberry drizzled profiteroles
Raspberry drizzled pastry shells
Final pastries
I could have done a better job drizzling (should have!) When the first attempt failed I made profiteroles as well.

Key Lime Cream Puff Pastry

INGREDIENTS
• 1 sheet puff pastry (Trader Joe’s preferred)

Whipped Cream Key Lime Curd:
• ½ c white sugar
• 2 Tbl cornstarch
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• 1 large egg, plus 2 large egg yolks
• 2 tsp lime zest
• ⅔ c key lime juice
• ⅔ c sweetened condensed milk
• 2 Tbl butter
• ¾ c heavy whipping cream

Key Lime Drizzle:
• 3 c confectioners’ sugar
• 2 tsp lime zest
• 4-6 Tbl key lime juice
• ¼ tsp Agar agar.

Alternative Raspberry Drizzle
• 12 oz raspberries – fresh or frozen; about 320g
• ~4 to 6 Tbl granulated sugar – to taste
• ~1 tsp lemon (or lime) juice
• ¼ tsp Agar agar.

METHOD

  1. Curd: In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
  2. Whisk in the egg yolks, lime zest, and juice. Bring to a boil, over medium-high heat. Whisk constantly and cook for about 1 minute.
  3. Remove from heat, whisk in sweetened condensed milk, and bring back to a boil.
  4. Remove from heat again and strain the mixture through a sieve. Add in butter and whisk until smooth.
  5. Cover with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
  6. Puff Pastry Shell: Cut defrosted and pliable puff pastry into circles 2” larger than the cupcake pan pocket. I use hexagon cutters as they are more efficient and don’t waste as much pastry dough.
  7. Fill each cupcake pan pocket with pastry, put small cupcake paper in each pocket, fill with beans and cover with an identical cupcake pan.
  8. Bake at 400 F for 15 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Remove the upper pan, beans and cupcake papers and bake another 5 minutes to dry the bottoms of the shells.
  9. Cool pastry cups to room temperature.
  10. Drizzle: Whisk together confectioners’ sugar, key lime zest, and lime juice. Add more powdered sugar/lime juice if needed for the right dripping consistency.
  11. Assembly: Spread a thin layer pf curd in the bottom of each cup.
  12. Whip heavy cream to stiff peaks and fold into the the balance of the curd.
  13. Refrigerate the mixture until ready to use.
  14. Transfer the whipped cream key lime curd to a piping bag, with a large star tip.

Alternative raspberry drizzle:

  1. Add the raspberries, sugar, agar-agar and lemon juice to a saucepan and bring to a boil while mashing the raspberries to break them down. Once it boils, turn off the heat and adjust with more sugar or lemon juice as needed.
  2. Strain the raspberry sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds. Press firmly to extract all of the pulp as that is what thickens the sauce.
  3. Thin with a teaspoon of water at a time, (if desired) keeping in mind the sauce thickens as it cools.
  4. Use in place of lime curd where desired.

Fruit Braided Tarts

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Ok, so I made fruit tarts in braided tart shells. Should the title be Braided Tarts with Fruit, or Fruit Braided Tarts, or Braided Fruit Tarts? Reminds me of Eats, Shoots and Leaves.

Did I fail to mention I had some frozen choux pastry, and as creme diplomat is made with creme patisserie which when piped inside choux and coated with chocolate makes profiteroles and as long as the oven was hot, decided to add some frozen chocolate chip cookies to conserve energy?

QC had the day off and was out with some friends, leaving me home alone, heh, heh, heh. What to do, oh what to do?

There were braided tart shells in the freezer and I recently bought a kiwi and picked an orange from my neighbor’s tree. I promised a couple of friends I would make them some fruit tarts when everything came together and yesterday all the stars aligned.

First freshen the frozen tart shells (notice the braided sides) in the over at 400F for 5-8 minutes, then an additional 5 minutes at 320F.

Peel and cut the kiwi into thin slices and slice the orange and strawberries.

Make the Crème Diplomat and pipe into the cool shells, add the fruit in your best imitation of a pretty pattern. Sprinkle a few blueberries around the other fruit for color.

Serve as soon as possible as the Crème Diplomat will deflate fairly quickly.

A good, quiet “me” day.

Crème Diplomat

INGREDIENTS
• ½c sugar
• ¼c corn starch
• Pinch salt
• 2 c whole milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 Tbl butter
• 2 cups heavy cream, cold

METHOD

  1. Whisk eggs and milk together and add to all other ingredients (except vanilla) to a medium saucepan.
  2. Bring to boil whisking constantly
  3. Cook until thickened (it will look lumpy, its ok)
  4. Sieve lumpy mixture into a bowl and add 1 tsp vanilla, mix thoroughly
  5. When incorporated, cover with plastic directly on the cream and cool about an hour.
  6. Whip the cold heavy cream to medium peaks.
  7. Fold a few spoonfuls of the custard into the cream. Gradually add the rest of the custard, being careful to not knock the air out.

Notes

  1. You can make the custard or creme patisserie ahead of time, it will keep for a few days in an airtight container in the fridge. However, I would not add the whipped cream until you were ready to serve it. It is best served immediately.
  2. Mix crème patisserie 1::1 with whipped cream if making crème patisserie in advance,