A tower of crunchy caramel profiteroles filled with a silky vanilla custard cream, this is the ultimate showstopper for any occasion.
Author:Catherine Zhang
Prep Time:90 minutes
Cook Time:45 minutes
Total Time:2 hours 15 minutes
Yield:1 x 30cm tall croquembouche 1x
Category:Pastry
Method:Advanced
Cuisine:French
Ingredients
Scale
Choux Pastry
150ml Whole milk (2/3 cup)
160 ml Water (2/3 cup)
135g Unsalted butter (1/2 cup1 tbsp)
1 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Granulated sugar
165 g All-Purpose flour (1 1/3 cups)
300 g Beaten egg, approx 6 eggs
Creme Patissiere
90 g Egg yolk, approx 6 egg yolks
180 g Granulated sugar (3/4 cup2 tbsp)
75 g Cornflour/ Cornstarch (1/2 cup2 tbsp)
600 ml Whole milk (2 1/2 cups)
3 tsp Vanilla extract
75 g Butter (1/3 cup)
Diplomat Cream
600 g Thickened/Heavy cream (2 1/2 cups)
Creme Patissiere, prepared and cooled
Caramel topping
600g Granulated sugar (3 cups)
90ml Water (1/4 cup 2 tbsp)
Instructions
Choux Pastry
Preheat the oven to 230°C
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
Heat milk, water, butter, salt and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium low heat
When it starts to boil remove from heat and add the flour in one go, mixing vigorously until smooth
Return to heat and flatten the dough to the bottom of the pan, listening for crackling of the dough without mixing
Give the pan a shake and when you notice a thin film on the bottom of the pan the dough is sufficiently dry
Remove from heat
Using a wooden spoon/spatula beat the dough to let steam evaporate and then cool for 10 minutes
Slowly add the beaten egg and stir until the dough is smooth, but still holds structure (the batter will form a 'V' or a 'beak' on the spoon/spatula when lifted)
Fit a pastry bag with a medium-sized round tip and fill with the batter
Pipe 3cm /1.2 inch round mounds onto the lined baking tray
Turn down the oven temperature to 160°C and bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown
Remove from oven and poke a hole in the bottom of each puff to release steam
Cool on a wire rack
Creme Patissiere
Heat milk until just boiling in a small saucepan
Meanwhile, in a medium-sized mixing bowl combine egg yolks and sugar, whisking until doubled in volume
Add the cornflour and mix until combined
Pour the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture and whisk until smooth
Return the mixture to medium-high heat and whisk constantly until thick
Remove from heat and add butter
Pour into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap, ensuring it touches the surface of the pastry cream
Cool in fridge until use
Diplomat cream
Whisk the cream until medium-stiff peaks are reached
Add the cooled creme patisserie and whisk until stiff peaks are reached
Transfer to a piping bag with small round tip
Reserve in the fridge until use
Assembly
Poke a hole at the bottom of each choux puff
Fill the choux with the creme diplomat
Place in the fridge as you prepare the caramel
Caramel
Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat
Heat the sugar, swirling the pan occasionally to ensure even heating
Continue to heat the sugar until it turns a golden brown
Remove from the heat and working quickly dip the tops of your filled puffs into the caramel
Place the dipped choux caramel side up on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and allow to set
Prepare a styrofoam cone or paper cone made from cardboard (25cm tall x 10cm wide / 10 inches tall x 4 inches wide), wrap it in cling wrap, and place it on your desired serving platterÂ
Dip your filled puffs into the caramel and start to assemble the croquembouche, starting from the bottom and working your way up to the top (if your caramel has hardened up, heat it gently over the stove on low heat until it has softened)