Swan Profiteroles Food

SWAN PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Pate a Choux: Place an 11-by-17-inch piece of parchment lengthwise on work surface. Using a pencil and ruler, draw sets of parallel lines to make a grid that will be the guide for piping out the swans: Starting 3/4 inch up from the bottom edge, draw a line across the paper. Draw a second parallel line, 2 1/2 inches above the first. Draw a third parallel line, 1 inch above the second line, and a fourth line 2 1/2 inches above the third. Draw another line 1 inch above the fourth line, and a sixth line 2 1/2 inches above that. This should leave a 3/4-inch border at the top. Place parchment, pencil-side down on an 11-by-17-inch unrimmed baking sheet. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium saucepan, heat butter, granulated sugar, salt, and 1 cup water over medium; bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Using a wooden spoon, quickly stir in flour. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture pulls away from sides of pan and a film forms on bottom, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on low speed until slightly cooled, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add 4 eggs, one at a time, beating until each is fully incorporated and a soft peak forms when you touch dough with your finger.
• Fit a large 18-inch pastry bag with a 1/2-inch round tip (such as Ateco #806). Fill with a generous three-quarters of the dough. Fit a small pastry bag with an 1/8-inch round tip (such as Ateco #11). Fill with remaining dough. Using the large pastry bag, squeeze out 18 large teardrops of dough onto prepared baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart and staying between the lines. Form the heads: On a separate parchment-lined unrimmed baking sheet, using the small pastry bag, squeeze out 18 small S shapes, like question marks but with the second end slightly curved as well. Make a pointed beak by pulling up the tip at the edge of the head.
• Brush beaten egg over swan bodies and heads. Bake bodies 10 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees and add heads. Continue baking until golden and airy, about 25 minutes. Transfer sheets to wire racks and let cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Assembly: Gently slice off top of bodies with a sharp serrated knife. Cut tops in half. Working quickly, fill each body with a small scoop of ice cream. Place both pieces of the top back on ice cream to simulate wings; place a head into the ice cream at the point where the two wings meet. Transfer swans to a baking sheet and freeze until ready to serve.
• Place chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat cream over medium; pour over chocolate. Let stand 5 minutes; stir until smooth. Let cool at room temperature until ready to use. Spoon a pool of chocolate sauce on each plate and top with a swan. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve immediately.

CREAM PUFF SWANS

Steps:

• PASTRY
• Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Place templates on baking sheets; line with parchment paper. Measure flour and set aside.
• In a large saucepan, bring butter, water, salt, and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove the pan from the heat and add the flour all at once. Stir quickly until all the flour is incorporated, about a minute. Return to the heat and cook, stirring constantly, for another minute or two.
• Transfer dough to the bowl of an electric mixer, and let cool for 5 minutes.
• Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; beat until the dough loses its "slimy" look, and each egg is incorporated. (You may only need 3 eggs, depending on your climate.) The dough should be thick, but should fall slowly and steadily from the beaters when you lift them out of the bowl.
• Spoon dough into a pastry bag fitted with a coupler. Attach a #10 tip (1/2-inch) to coupler. Pipe dough to make 12 swan necks on a baking sheet, using template as a guide. Smooth out peaks and round tops with a moistened finger; remove template. (You're aiming for something between a numeral 2 and a question mark, with a little beak if you're skilled and/or lucky.)
• Remove the tip from the bag and pipe out 12 swan bodies on a second baking sheet, using template as a guide. These will be about 3" long, and about 2" wide. One end should be a bit narrower than the other. Smooth out peaks and round tops with a moistened finger; remove template.
• Egg wash: Whisk together 1 egg and 1 teaspoon water. Brush tops of dough with egg mixture. Place swan necks on baking sheet in the freezer.
• Bake swan bodies at 425° for 5 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 375°, and bake 30 minutes or until puffy and golden brown. Remove from the baking sheet to a wire rack, and cool completely.
• Bake swan necks at 375° for 15 minutes or until puffy and golden brown. Remove from the baking sheet to a wire rack, and cool completely.
• PASTRY CREAM
• In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, flour, and salt. Gradually whisk in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture starts to boil. Cook for 2 minutes until thickened.
• Remove from the stove. Slowly whisk 1/4 cup of the hot mixture into the beaten egg yolks, and immediately add the egg yolk mixture to the hot mixture in the saucepan. Cook for 2 more minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Cover with plastic and refrigerate until well chilled, about 1 hour or overnight.
• When pudding is chilled, whip cream to form soft peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding until evenly mixed. Cover and chill until ready to use.
• ASSEMBLY
• Cut swan bodies in half horizontally. Cut the top halves in half to create two wings.
• Dollop or pipe a small amount of pastry cream onto the widest part of the bottom halves. Fix the swan necks in the cream. After you've put the neck in place, fill the bottom halves with additional pastry cream. Place wings on each side.
• Chill until ready to serve. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving if desired.

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Heat the milk, butter, and salt over medium heat until scalded. When the butter is melted, add the flour all at once and beat it with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together and forms a dough. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat for 2 minutes. The flour will begin to coat the bottom of the pan. Dump the hot mixture into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the eggs and pulse until the eggs are incorporated into the dough and the mixture is thick.
• Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain round tip. Pipe in mounds 1 1/2 inches wide and 1-inch high onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You should have about 18 puffs. With a wet finger, lightly press down the swirl at the top of each puff. (You can also use 2 spoons to scoop out the mixture and shape the puffs with damp fingers.) Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned, then turn off the oven and allow them to sit for another 10 minutes, until they sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Make a small slit in the side of each puff to allow the steam to escape. Set aside to cool.
• For the chocolate sauce, place the cream and chocolate chips in a bowl set over simmering water and stir just until the chocolate melts. Add the honey and coffee and stir until smooth. Set aside.
• For serving, cut each profiterole in half crosswise, fill with a small scoop of ice cream, replace the top, and drizzle with slightly warm chocolate sauce.

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. To make the profiteroles, put the butter and 2 tsp of the caster sugar in a saucepan with 150ml water. Place the pan over a low heat until the butter and sugar have melted, then bring to the boil. Take off the heat, add the flour all at once and beat energetically with a wooden spoon until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan.
• Leave to cool for 5 mins, then beat in the eggs bit by bit until you have a stiff, glossy mixture (this process is much easier in a food processor). Rinse two baking trays with cold water, shaking off any excess so they are slightly damp (this helps the pastry to rise). Using 2 teaspoons, spoon blobs of the mixture onto the baking trays. Then place in the oven and cook for about 18-20 mins until well risen and brown. Remove the profiteroles from the oven and cut a small slit in the base of each one so they don't collapse. Cool on a wire rack.
• When they're cold, whip the cream lightly until just holding its shape. Sweeten to taste with remaining sugar and a few drops of vanilla extract. Cut the profiteroles in half, fill them with the sweetened cream and pile them up on a plate. You can refrigerate them for 1-2 hrs at this point but not for any longer as the pastry will go soggy.
• To make the sauce, sift the cocoa powder into a bowl. Put the sugar in a pan with 100ml water and warm over a low heat until dissolved. Bring to the boil, cook for 1 min, then pour over the cocoa powder and stir well until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan, cook for 1 min then set aside for 15 mins before drizzling over the profiteroles.

PATE A CHOUX

Steps:

• Bring butter, sugar, salt, and 1 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Using a wooden spoon, quickly stir in flour. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture pulls away from sides and a film forms on bottom of pan, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until slightly cooled, about 1 minute. Raise speed to medium; add whole eggs, 1 at a time, until a soft peak forms when batter is touched with your finger. If peak does not form, lightly beat remaining egg white, and mix it into batter a little at a time until it does.