Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Complexity: easily
Servings: 12

If you're looking for a dessert that will not only captivate your guests with its flavor but also be the centerpiece of your holiday table, consider creating a magnificent, slightly ornate, yet unforgettable croquembouche. It's a cone-shaped tower of cream-filled profiteroles, then decorated with a caramel web. This rather complex dessert is prepared in several stages: the custard filling, the choux pastry profiteroles, the caramel used to secure and decorate the profiteroles, and then the assembly of the croquembouche. The advantage is that you can bake the profiteroles in advance, and assemble the tower just before serving. Make part of the profiteroles' filling with vanilla cream and the other with chocolate. If you follow the recipe precisely, you won't have any difficulties with any of the croquembouche's components.

Ingredients:

• 7g packet of unflavored gelatin (2.5 tsp)
• 4 cups whole milk
• 2 vanilla pods
• 12 large egg yolks
• 1 cup of sugar
• 6 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 5 tbsp (75 g) butter
• 170 g dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 tbsp. dry instant espresso
• 1.5 cups heavy cream
• 10 tbsp butter, cut into pieces
• 1.5 tsp sugar
• 0.5 tsp salt
• 1.5 cups of flour
• 6 large eggs
• 3 tbsp. sugar
• 3 tablespoons corn syrup

Substituting ingredients
Measuring containers used

1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Recipes with similar ingredients

gelatin, milk, vanilla pod, eggs, sugar, starch, butter, dark chocolate, coffee, cream, premium flour, syrup

We recommend

Preparation:

Step 1
• 
  Cream filling: Make the cream filling: Sprinkle the gelatin over 1/4 cup cold water in a bowl and set aside to dissolve.
Step 2
• 
  Pour milk into a saucepan. Split the vanilla beans in half lengthwise; scrape out the seeds with a knife and add them to the milk along with the pods. Bring to a boil, then cover and remove from the heat.
Step 3
• 
  In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, and salt until smooth.
Step 4
• 
  Remove the vanilla beans from the milk. Gradually whisk a third of the warm milk into the egg mixture.
  
  
Step 5
• 
  Then whisk the egg mixture into the remaining milk in the saucepan. Heat over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens, 6 minutes. Continue cooking until it forms a custard, 3 minutes.
Step 6
• 
  Remove the pan from the heat. Cut the butter into pieces and stir it into the custard, then add the gelatin mixture.
Step 7
• 
  Microwave the chocolate until melted, 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Dissolve the espresso in 2 tablespoons of hot water. Transfer half of the cream filling to a bowl and stir in the chocolate and espresso.
Step 8
• 
  Transfer the remaining cream filling to another bowl. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the chocolate and vanilla cream and refrigerate until the filling sets, at least 2 hours.
  
  
Step 9
• 
  When you're ready to fill the profiteroles, beat the heavy cream with a mixer until soft peaks form. Fold half the whipped cream into the vanilla filling and the other half into the chocolate filling.
Step 10
• 
  Transfer each filling to a large pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch tip. (To fill the pastry bag neatly, hold the open end of the bag and cuff it around your hand.)
Step 11
• Profiteroles: Unfilled profiteroles can be frozen for up to 1 week. To re-crispice them, thaw, brush with beaten egg, and bake for 5 minutes at 175°C.
Step 12
• 
  While the fillings are setting, bake the profiteroles: Preheat oven to 230°C. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring 1.5 cups of water, butter, sugar, and salt to a boil, stirring constantly until the butter melts.
  
  
Step 13
• 
  Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour with a wooden spoon to form a paste. Return to the heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the dough is shiny and pulls away from the sides of the pan, 6-7 minutes. Cool slightly.
Step 14
• 
  Transfer the dough to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on medium-low speed until cool, 1 minute. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary.
Step 15
• 
  Transfer the choux pastry to a large pastry bag fitted with a 1 cm tip. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, pipe a small amount of dough into the corners of the baking sheets to hold them in place. Pipe 4 cm diameter balls of dough onto the parchment paper (about 48 balls total).
Step 16
• 
  Smooth the tops of the balls with a finger dipped in water. Bake the profiteroles until fluffy, 15-20 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 175°C and bake until golden brown, another 15 minutes. Turn off the oven; keep the profiteroles inside for 10 minutes to dry. Pierce each profiterole with a dry piping tip and transfer them to a wire rack to cool.
  
  
Step 17
• 
  Assembly: Fill half of the profiteroles with chocolate cream and the other half with vanilla cream. Insert the tip of a piping bag into the hole and squeeze out cream to completely fill the ball. Refrigerate the filled profiteroles for at least 30 minutes before assembling the tower.
Step 18
• 
  Cook the caramel: Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1 cup water in a saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Remove the lid and simmer, swirling the pan, until the syrup turns deep amber, about 20 minutes.
Step 19
• 
  Immediately plunge the bottom of the pan into a large bowl of ice water for a few seconds to prevent the caramel from cooking further.
Step 20
• 
  Pour the caramel into a liquid measuring cup and let it cool slightly (it should be runny). Be careful, the caramel will still be hot!
  
  
Step 21
• 
  Draw a circle 18 cm in diameter on parchment paper. Partially dip each filled profiterole in caramel, letting the excess drip back. Arrange the profiteroles in a circle. If the caramel hardens in the glass, microwave it until soft, about 45 seconds.
Step 22
• 
  Fill the round base with profiteroles to make it stable, then continue building the conical tower, gluing the remaining profiteroles in a circle. There should be one profiterole remaining at the top of the tower. Line your work surface with parchment paper, as the next step can be messy.
Step 23
• 
  Dip the tips of a fork into the caramel and quickly wrap the resulting thread around the tower to create a caramel web. Repeat the process again. Let the caramel set, then slide two spatulas under the paper and transfer the croquembouche to a serving dish. Trim any excess paper around the base.
Step 24
• To serve, break up the caramel web with the back of a knife, then dismantle the tower and arrange the profiteroles on plates.

Votes: 37