Chocolate Choux Buns With Vanilla Cream Filling Food

CHOCOLATE CHOUX PASTRY / CHOCOLATE CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F / 204°C.
• Measure out all the ingredients.
• Sift the flour and cocoa powder together and set aside in a small bowl.
• Place the salt, water, sugar, and butter in a saucepan, and heat over medium heat, while stirring occasionally. Make sure that the butter, salt, and sugar melt before the water comes to a boil.
• When the water comes to a boil, remove the pot from the heat and immediately add the cocoa powder and flour mix, in one go. Vigorously mix in the flour mixture so that it absorbs all of the water (use a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to do this). When the flour has absorbed the water and it's forming a dough, return the pan to the stove (medium heat).
• Cook the dough for about 1 minute (over medium heat) while mixing and moving it around in the pan, until you get a dough that pulls away from the sides of the pan and resembles dry mashed potato. You should also notice a dough film formed at the bottom of the pan. The cook time will vary depending on your stove, and pot size.
• Transfer the dough into a bowl and let it cool down slightly for a few minutes.
• Lightly whisk one egg in a small bowl and add it to the dough. Mix it well into the dough until thoroughly mixed in. Then add the second and third egg, mixing in the second well before adding the third.
• Now whisk the final egg, and add it in increments, until you get the right consistency. This is a crucial step, so take care not to add too much egg as this will result in flat/deflated puffs.
• The correct dough consistency is when the dough has a sheen to it, and has pipeable consistency, and the dough will form a "V" shape at the end of your spatula when lifted from the bowl. You may or may not use up all of the four eggs. This is why the fourth egg is added in increments.
• Prepare a baking tray with parchment paper.
• Pipe the desired shape onto the baking sheet - either using a piping bag fitted with a large tip (I use Wilton 1A, or you can cut the pastry bag opening instead). Then with a damp finger, flatten the apex and any sharp points on the dough mounds. Make sure to leave at least 1 - 1.5 inches between the piped mounds.
• Bake in the oven preheated at 400°F / 204°C, for about 5 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to 375°F / 190°C, and let the choux pastry cook for a further 20 minutes. DO NOT open the oven door during this step.
• After 25 minutes of total cook time, the choux pastry shells should have puffed up. Quickly open the oven door and rotate the baking sheet. If you piped very large choux pastry mounds, then let them cook a little bit longer before opening the oven door.
• Cook the choux puffs for another 5 minutes. At this stage, the choux pastries should have a hardened top. Quickly prick each of the cases with a toothpick.
• Bake the choux pastry for another 3 - 5 minutes, to allow the pastries to dry out a little.
• Remove from the oven, and prick the pastries one more time. Let the choux pastry cases cool completely in a draft-free area, preferably somewhere that is not cold.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F / 204°C again for the next batch. Once preheated, pipe and bake the second tray of choux pastry.
• Fill the choux cases with stabilized sweetened whipped cream as soon as they are at room temperature, and serve immediately. OR you can store cooled choux pastry shells in an air-tight container for up to one day. To store them for longer, keep in the freezer in an air-tight container.
• You can either cut the top of the pastry and fill the bottom half with whipped cream, OR make a hole at the bottom of the shell and fill with a pastry bag.
• In a small microwave-safe bowl, place the water, and sprinkle the gelatin over the surface of the water. Make sure all the gelatin is saturated with water, and then let it sit for at least 10 minutes to bloom.
• In a large bowl, place the heavy cream, confectioner's sugar, vanilla, and salt. Stir to combine. Have it ready to be whisked with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer by the time the gelatin is ready.
• After 10 minutes, microwave the gelatin in 10 second intervals to dissolve it. Do NOT let the gelatin mixture boil.
• Stir in the 1 tbsp of cold cream or milk.
• Start whisking the heavy cream mixture on high speed, and add the gelatin into it. Do NOT add the gelatin directly onto the whisk. Instead, add it where the cream is moving quickly due to whisking action. Alternatively, as soon as you add the gelatin, move the mixer around in the cream to make sure that the gelatin is mixed in well. The idea is to get the gelatin mixed into the cream as fast as possible, without it touching the whisk when added.
• Lower the mixer speed to medium (or medium high), and whisk the heavy cream until you have stiff peaks. Keep a close eye on it since the cream can go from stiff peaks to broken in a matter of seconds.
• Place the whipped chantilly cream in a large pastry bag, attached with a star tip (to create swirls), or with a round tip / bismarck tip (to fill).

CHOCOLATE CHOUX BUNS

Steps:

• Melt the butter with the water and caster sugar in a heavy-based pan.
• Bring to the boil, turn off the heat and immediately tip in all the flour.
• Beat thoroughly with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms a smooth ball in the centre of the pan.
• Turn the ball into a bowl and cool for 15min. Preheat the oven to 220°C (190°C fan) mark 7.
• Gradually whisk in the eggs a little at a time until the mixture is shiny.
• Sprinkle water over a non-stick baking sheet. Put eight large spoonfuls of the mixture on to the baking sheet.
• Bake for 30min until risen and golden brown. Turn off the oven.
• Pierce each bun. Leave in the oven for 10-15min. Cool on a wire rack.
• Halve buns and fill with cream. Top with warm melted chocolate.

FILLED CHOCOLATE CHOUX BUNS

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200°C (180° fan) 400F gas 6.
• To make the choux pastry, bring 250 ml (approximately 1 cup) of water to a boil with the butter, sugar and salt.
• Pour in all the flour in one go, add the cocoa powder and stir vigorously over a low heat until the dough forms a ball and leaves the sides of the pan clean.
• Tip the dough into a bowl and beat in the eggs one at a time. Finally, beat in the baking powder.
• Fill a piping bag with the choux pastry and pipe 20 walnut-size heaps onto a cookie tray lined with baking parchment.
• Bake for 25 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and slice each profiterole through horizontally. Replace the pastry lids and let cool.
• To make the filling, slit the vanilla bean and place in a pan with the cream. Bring the cream to a boil, remove from the heat and leave to steep.
• Beat the egg yolk and sugar until thick and creamy and stir in the hot cream.
• Pour back into the pan and cook over a medium heat stirring with a spatula. Do not allow to boil.
• Push the sauce through a sieve and let cool down to room temperature.
• Beat the butter with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy then whisk the vanilla cream into the butter little by little.
• Melt the chocolate over simmering water, let cool and mix into the cream.
• Spoon the filing into a piping bag with a large star nozzle. Pipe a portion onto the bottom half of each profiterole and replace the top.

CHOCOLATE CHOUX BUNS WITH VANILLA CREAM FILLING

Steps:

• Place the butter in a pan of water and melt it over a low heat until it starts to boil. As soon as it boils take it out of the heat and immediately add the flour into the pan.
• Once it starts to boil, remove from the heat and immediately add the flour, stirring rapidly until the mixture forms a ball and does not stick to the side.
• Mix with a whisk until all the flour is fully incorporated with the liquid and there are no lumps in the mixture.
• When it looks silky, place it back in the heat, adjust it accordingly so that your dough does not burn. Keep mixing until it starts to separate from the pan and forms a ball.
• Take it out of the heat, and leave for a couple of minutes or so before adding the eggs.
• Once it's cooled add the eggs one at a time and keep mixing with a wooden spoon or a plastic spatula.
• Put the mixture in a piping bag and pipe a spiral shape on the prepared baking tray. Ensure that there is a gap in between each bun.
• Bake the buns in the centre of the oven for around 10-15 minutes at 180°C and then reduce the temperature to 170°c.
• It's important that the pastry cooks for around 20 minutes or until it turns golden brown. Remove the buns out of the oven and turn the oven off.
• Poke small holes into each bun. You can use a toothpick or a BBQ stick. This allows the steam to escape. Return your choux buns in the oven and allow to dry for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

CHOUX PASTRY- FOR PROFITEROLES, CREAM PUFFS OR ECLAIRS

Steps:

• Place the butter and the water in a saucepan. Bring the water to the boil and stir until the butter has melted. Remove from the stove.
• Stir in the sifted flour. Add the flour all at once. Beat until smoth.
• Return to the heat, and stir vigourously until the mixture leaves the sides of the saucepan and forms a smooth ball.
• Allow the mixture to cool slightly.
• Whisk the eggs well and then add them to the choux ball. Beat the eggs into the mixture.
• Use a piping bag to pipe 7-10 cm lengths for eclairs, or place in spoonfuls onto greased cookie trays for cream puffs or profiteroles or pipe into dotted shapes for uniformly shaped profiteroles.
• Bake in a hot oven - 220°C for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 200°C and continue to cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp.
• Turn the oven off.
• Remove from the oven and immediately make a small slit in the side of each puff to allow the steam to escape. Return to the oven for a few minutes to help dry them out. The oven has already been turned off.