This is the Paris Brest recipe I made on MasterChef.
Typical Paris Brests are made of choux pastry and a praline cream. My version here, which is the one that I made on MasterChef, added in extra elements of chocolate and yuzu to it. Given the heaviness of the this dessert, personally I think that it can benefit from some acidity and the yuzu does just that. You can typically find yuzu juice from asian supermarket, but failing that you can also substitute with lemon too.
Yes there are quite a few elements – but with practice I managed to do it within 1hr 30 minutes. You can do it!
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For 3 portions
INGREDIENTS:
Chocolate craquelin –
40g flour
5g coca
45g caster sugar
37g softened unsalted butter
Choux pastry –
50ml milk
50ml water
50g softened unsalted butter
6g sugar
64g flour
1g (pinch) salt
2 eggs
Praline –
75g hazelnut
75g almonds
150g caster sugar
10ml vegetable oil
Praline creme mousseline –
155ml semi-skimmed milk
2 egg yolks
30g caster sugar
15g cornflour
1 sheet (2g) sheet gelatine
70g unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
80g praline (from above)
Chocolate disc –
100g dark chocolate
Lemon gel –
100g fresh lemon juice
15g sugar
3g agar agar powder
EQUIPMENT:
Chocolate craquelin –
8cm round cookie cutter
4cm round cookie cutter
Electric stand mixer with paddle attachment
Silicone mat
Silicone spatula
Choux pastry –
Large saucepan
2 mixing bowls
Silicone spatula
Piping Bag
Praline –
Large saucepan
Medium sized baking tray
Silicon mat
Wooden spatula
Blender/ food processor/ nutribullet that is capable of grinding a small amount of praline into a paste
Praline creme mousseline –
Medium saucepan
Silicone spatula
Whisk
Piping bag
Piping bag nozzle
Chocolate disc –
Microwave proof bowl
Silicone spatula
Acetate sheet (A4 size)
Baking parchment
Flat medium sized tray/board
9.5cm round cookie cutter (metal)
6cm round cookie cutter (metal)
Lemon gel –
Small saucepan
Plastic container
Blender/ food processor/ nutribullet
Plastic squeezy bottle
METHOD:
Chocolate craquelin –
– Mix all ingredient in a stand mixer until a dough form
– Roll the craquelin into 2mm thick on a baking parchment, and stamp a ring with the 8cm & 4cm cutter, and put in freezer for 5-10 minutes to firm up
– Once firm, peel off the craquelin dough to obtain the ring. Keep in freezer until needed
Choux pastry –
– Put milk, water, butter, and sugar into a large saucepan and heat until all melted and simmering, turn to low heat
– Mix flour and salt together and add all at once into the milk mixture, then stir until it becomes a dough for 1 minute. Take off heat
– Beat 2 eggs and gradually add to the dough while beating with a spatula until the mixture is smooth and reaches a consistency that drops off the spoon leaving a smooth ‘V’ shape. You typically don’t need the whole 2 eggs so adding the liquid bits by bits is key
– Transfer the dough into a piping bag. Cut an opening around 1cm in diameter. On a silicone baking mat, pipe a circle 7.5cm in diameter, then another circle on top of that. Wet your fingertips to smooth out any tips
– Put the craquelin ring on top of the choux dough
– Bake in a 200C oven for 22-25 minutes until golden. Remove and leave to cool completely
Praline –
– Repeat oven to 180C, roast the nut for 8 minutes
– Melt caster sugar in a medium saucepan until turn into a golden caramel (do not overheat otherwise sugar will turn bitter)
– Mix in the nuts and immediately transfer to a baker sheet, press into single layer – and leave to cool
– Keep around 30g of sugared nuts aside for decoration. Then break up the praline and transfer into a food process/blender, add oil, and blitz until you get a smooth paste
– Set aside 80g of paste for the creme mousseline (below), and transfer the rest into a piping bag and leave to cool in a fridge
Praline creme mousseline –
– Heat milk in a medium saucepan until simmering
– In a separate bowl, whisk together egg yolk and sugar, then add cornflour to obtain a smooth paste
– Slowly stream in half the hot milk while whisking until combined, then pour back into the saucepan and cool in medium heat until thick (keep stirring along the way)
– Soak gelatin in cold water for 5 minutes until soft
– Once cream is thick, take off heat and add in the gelatine and praline paste. Then add in chilled butter and combine until you obtain a smooth cream
– Pour the cream into a piping bag and and cool in the freezer / fridge until set (typically 20-30 minutes for freezer, 1-2 hours in fridge). Before use, squeeze the piping bag to loosen up the cream
Chocolate disc –
– Melt the chocolate either in a double boiler or microwave
– Spread the melted chocolate on a piece of baking parchment to around 2mm thickness and set in the fridge for 5 minutes
– Once the chocolate is half set, stamp out 2 chocolate rings using the 9.5cm and 6cm round cookie cutter. Then put back into the fridge to set completely
– Once set and hardened, peel off the baking parchment to obtain the chocolate ring. Keep cold in fridge until needed
Lemon gel –
– Mix all ingredient in a small saucepan and bring to simmer for 1 minute
– Transfer to a container to cool down in the freezer
– Once set (usually take 20 minutes), transfer to a blender and blend until becomes a gel
– Transfer to a plastic squeezy bottle for assembly
Assembly
– Cut the choux ring horizontally and remove the top
– Pipe a layer of praline paste into the bottom choux ring, then top with a very thin line of lemon gel (you only want a little to give it a bit of acidity, too much would overpower the dessert)
– Pipe a generous amount of creme mousseline on top. Use a nozzle to give the creme more definition if preferred
– Put the top choux ring back on top. Pipe a few dots of creme mousseline on top, then put the chocolate ring
– (optional) decorate the top of the chocolate ring with a dusting of icing sugar, chopped sugared nut, and lemon gel
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