Here it is !
Writing articles about French pastry doesn't make sense if I don’t share the recipe : one of the famous pastry you can find in any French pastry shop. Of course, I’m talking about the Paris-Best. Finally, I post a simple recipe you should try for your tea time or as a dessert. If you like hazelnuts and sugar, you will fall in love with this cream. Each pastry chef has his own version of the Paris-Best (using specific nuts), but everybody is starting with the same base : a choux pastry, and a praliné mousseline cream.
If you follow all the steps (whether you are a beginner or an intermediate), everything should be smooth.
Just read carefully the following recipe, and feel free to tag me on instagram at @theparisbest_baking so I can see your creation and repost it.
This recipe is for 4 people
Time required : 1 h
Baking time : 20 - 25 min
Resting time (cream & craquelin): 1 h
DIRECTIONS
Cream:
220 g milk
1 vanilla pod (optional)
40 g sugar
2 egg yolks
20 g cornstarch
165 g butter
120 g praliné
Boil the milk in a saucepan with scraped vanilla pods beforehand.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl: mix the egg yolks with the sugar.
Add the cornstarch and continue to mix. The whole mixture should be a homogeneous batter.
When the milk boils, pour half into the mixture (egg + sugar + corn starch). Whisk it so that the mixture is homogeneous.
Transfer the mixture into the saucepan and cook over low heat until the mixture thickens. Be careful not to stop mixing with a whisk, otherwise, the cream may be grainy.
Once the cream thickens, let the pan heat (while stirring) for 2 minutes to ensure that cornstarch cooks completely.
Add the praliné and whisk until the cream is homogeneous. (Check the following recipe to make a homemade praliné: coming soon)
Pour the cream into a bowl and cover the cream with plastic wrap on contact.
Keep the cream in the fridge until ready to use. (30min to 1 h)
Whisk the butter until it look smooth and creamy (I strongly advise you to use a soft butter so it’s easy to mix)
Add half of the praliné pastry cream and mix the whole thing. Pour the rest and mix until the cream is homogeneous. The texture should be airy and creamy.
Pour the cream into a piping bag and put it in the fridge until use.
Craquelin:
50 g soft butter
50 g flour
40 g sugar
pinch of salt (optional)
Mix all the ingredients together evenly. Avoid overworking the dough, the sugar should not melt.
Roll it out to 2 mm thickness between two sheets of parchment paper.
Cut out circles of dough with a cookie cutter. Use a second cookie cutter smaller than the previous one, so you get crown shapes. The discs/crowns will have to be larger than the choux pastry to be able to completely cover them during baking. Remove the excess with your finger or a spatula.
Sprinkle the craquelins with hazelnut shavings and stick them slightly by rolling your rolling pin on the craquelins
Set aside in the freezer until your choux are ready to go into the oven.
Choux:
190 g milk
75 g butter
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
90 g flour
3 eggs
In a saucepan, pour the milk, then add the butter, salt and caster sugar.
Heat everything over medium heat for 5 minutes.
Once the butter is well melted, bring it to a boil, then add, off the heat, and in one go, the sifted flour.
Mix well until a homogeneous dough is obtained.
Dry it in a saucepan, over low heat, for 2 min, without ever stopping stirring the dough. The purpose is not to cook the dough but to dry it out, otherwise the batter will be too liquid and soft. The dough is dried out when it forms a ball and there is almost no steam left when it is crushed. Remove the pan from the heat.
Whisk the eggs in a bowl (one by one), then pour gradually, in a drizzle, over the dough. Mix the dough.
The batter has a good texture when you run your finger through it and the track closes gently after passing. The texture of the batter can be compared to a ribbon.
Fill a piping bag. I recommend putting your piping bag in a deep container, so you can easily pour the batter in it. Let the dough in the fridge for 30 min.
On a parchment paper, draw circles slightly smaller than the edge of your craquelins. Pipe the choux and place the craquelins on top of each Paris-Brest.
Put your frozen craquelins on top of each crown.
Cook the choux at 180°C/356°F, for about 20 to 25 minutes (with rotating heat). At the end of baking, let the choux pastry cool at room temperature.
Presentation :
icing sugar
Cut the choux in half
Pipe your cream with circular moves. Don't forget : your upper hand will push the cream out of the piping bag, the other hand is simply guiding.
Cover the cream with the top of the choux and sprinkle icing sugar for the finishing touch.
Now that you know how to make this yummy pastry, please tag me on Instagram to show me your creation (@theparisbest_baking). I would be so glad to give you my feedback and share it with the community !
See you soon on The Paris-Best
Lea from The Paris-Best
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