RECIPE
Yield: 16 profiteroles
CRAQUELINE
50 g Softened Butter
60 g Plain Flour
50 g Raw Sugar
CHOUX PASTRY
50g Full Cream Milk
75g Water
60g Unsalted Butter
5g Caster Sugar
2g Fine Salt
90g Bread Flour 12% Protein
125g Eggs
STRAWBERRY WHIPPED GANACHE
75g Strawberry Puree
20g Glucose
175g White Coverture Chocolate
250g Cream 35% Fat
qs Red Gel Colour (optional)
VANILLA MASCARPONE CREAM
300 g Thickened Cream 35% Fat
100 g Mascarpone Cream
2 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
STRAWBERRY JAM
80 g Strawberries
50 g Raspberries
30 g Caster Sugar
20 g Lemon Juice
FINISHING
Fresh Strawberries
Mint Leaves
METHOD
PREPARE THE STRAWBERRY WHIPPED GANACHE the night before. Heat the strawberry puree and glucose syrup in a saucepan to a boil. Pour over the white coverture chocolate and whisk until the chocolate are fully melted. If the chocolate is not fully melted, gently heat the chocolate base over a Bain Marie.
Once all the chocolate has melted, whisk in the cold cream until well incorporated. Cover with a food wrap touching the surface then chill in the fridge overnight.
Note that the whipped ganache need at least 12 hours in the fridge to settle or it will not whipped well and will not have a holding consistency.
For the CRAQUELINE, cream the butter and raw sugar together then add in the flour to form into a smooth dough. Place the dough in between two parchment paper. With the help of a rolling pin, roll the dough to approximately 1-2 mm thick. Place the sheeted craqueline onto a flat surface and store in the freezer until they are firm enough to cut.
When it is firm enough, using a 5cm round cutter, cut to individual discs. Return the craqueline back to the freezer until ready to use.
PREPARE THE STRAWBERRY JAM. Place all the berries, sugar, and lime juice into a pot and bring to a boil. Continue to cook until it starts to thicken slightly. This should take approximately 5 minutes. Turn the heat off then add in some vanilla bean paste. Transfer into a bowl then place a food plastic wrap touching the surface of the jam. Leave in the fridge to fully chill.
If you have overcooked the jam and it is too thick, simply add in some lime juice to bring it to the desired consistency.
PREPARE THE CHOUX PASTRY. Pre heat the oven to 180˚C. Line a baking tray with a non stick baking paper
Place the milk, water, sugar and salt into a saucepan and bring to a mere simmer all around the side and centre of the pot. Once the liquid has come to a simmer, turn off the heat and add in the plain flour and very quickly stir to mix. The starch in the flour will start to absorb the liquid and turn to a doughy paste, this is called the panade.
Turn on the heat again to low and medium heat and continue to cook the panade for 2-3 minutes or until the base of the pan starts to form a crust and the panade begins to become smooth.
Remove from the heat and transfer the cooked panade into the stand mixer bowl and mix on low speed with a paddle attachment until it cools slightly but is still warm. The recommended temperature is 45˚C.
When the panade is cooled enough, whisk the eggs together and then gradually add in the eggs in a few additions, only adding each addition when the first addition is well absorb into the panade.
Note that you may not need all of the eggs or may need to add more eggs depending on how long you have cooked out the panade. The consistency you are after is a smooth and shiny appearance and when you scoop the large amount of choux pastry with your paddle or spatula, they drop back gradually into the bowl with a spike at the end. If the choux pastry drops too hard into the bowl or do not drop at all, you will need to add more eggs.
Transfer the choux pastry into a piping bag fitted with 15mm/1.5 cm plain pastry tip.
Draw 4 cm rounds as a template on a parchment paper. To help the parchment paper to stick to the baking tray, pipe some of the choux pastry on all four corners of the tray then adhere the parchment paper, ensuring that the pencilled side is at the bottom.
Pipe the choux pastry over the template ensuring you give the profiteroles some height when piping. Wet your finger and dap any spiky top so that they are flat at the top.
Place the individual craqueline disc on top of each profiteroles.
Bake in the pre heated oven at 180˚C for 30 minutes, then turn down the oven to 170˚C and continue to bake for another 10 minutes. Once the éclair has puffed up and form a crust and is light golden in colour, open the oven door slightly to release some of the steam, close the oven door again and bake for another 10 -15 minutes. Once baked, turn off the oven, and leave the oven door slightly open and leave to dry in the turned off oven for 30 minutes.
Remove the eclairs from the oven and leave to cool completely.
ASSEMBLY
Place the chilled Strawberry Cream in a stand mixer bowl fitted with a whisk. Add in some red food colouring gel (optional) then whisk until it comes to a pipeable consistency. Do not overwhip. Transfer the whipped cream into a pastry bag fitted with a 1.5cm plain pastry tip.
Trim the top of each profiteroles then run a piping tip around to open up a gap. Pipe the whipped strawberry cream into each profiteroles, ensuring that you fill them up well. You should start to feel some weight on each choux pastry.
Transfer the chilled strawberry jam in to a pastry bag then pipe a small amount of the jam into each filled profiteroles. Run a palette knife on the top to get rid of any excess strawberry cream.
Whip the vanilla mascarpone cream to a pipeable consistency. Transfer into a pastry bag fitted with a medium close star pastry tip. Pipe rosette of the vanilla cream on top of each profiteroles then finish with fresh strawberries and mint leave.
