Raspberry and White Chocolate Choux Buns
Ingredients:
Choux pastry
80g plain flour
1 ½ - 2 tbsp of Corn flour
60g cold water
50g salted butter
2 large eggs beaten
½ tsp caster sugar (optional)
½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Crème Patisserie
1 cup whole milk
1 large egg yolk
1 small egg
1 ½ tbsp of caster sugar
2 tbsp of cornflour
½ tsp vanilla extract
Topping
100g white chocolate melted
50g whipping cream/double cream
Freeze dried raspberries
1 small punnet of fresh raspberries
Method:
Choux pastry
1. Preheat oven 180C fan.
2. Line a baking tin with parchment paper.
3. Sieve flour directly onto another piece of parchment paper (this makes it easier to transfer to the mixture when combining).
4. In a pot over a low heat, melt the butter and water together, bring to the boil and then remove from heat straight away – add sugar and vanilla (if using).
5. Then tip in the flour from that is on the baking paper. Using a wooden spoon beat vigorously and put back on the hob at a low heat for 2 minutes while beating vigorously until the dough comes away from the sides of the pot. Allow to cool slightly, then very gradually add in the beaten egg. With each addition of egg beaten till the dough it glossy and smooth again, you may leave some egg as it can get too ‘wet’. The mixture should be able to hold a ‘v’ shape on a spoon or spatula when you dollop the mixture back into the pot.
6. Spoon the mixture carefully into piping bag with a large wide round or star nozzle in place at the bottom of the bag.
7. If you can, mist the surface of the baking tray before you pipe your desired shape of choux bun – could be round for profiteroles or long for eclairs.
8. Then with a damp finger (have a bowl of water to hand) smooth over any ‘points’ sticky out of the piped dough – this smoothens the surface, but do not go overboard as you will flatten your choux from rising. 12 choux buns should be able to be piped.
9. Bake for 25 minutes, or until well risen and golden brown. Do not open before this! Then prick with a toothpick or skewer and return to oven for another 5 minutes to dry out. Leave to cool totally before you assemble.
Crème Patisserie
1. Beat the egg yolks, egg and sugar for a few minutes until pale and slightly thickened.
2. Whisk in the cornflour.
3. Heat the milk and vanilla paste in a saucepan until stating to boil.
4. Whisk the milk into the egg mix carefully – make sure milk is cooled enough it will not curdle/cook the eggs.
5. Put the whole lot back into the pan, stirring all the time until thick and boiling. But do not take your eye off it otherwise the bottom of the custard will burn.
6. Take the pan off the heat - cover with cling - film to prevent a skin from forming. Then put in the fridge to chill for at least an hour.
7. Once chilled you can put into a piping bag with a thin round nozzle pipe into the choux buns.
Topping
1. Heat the cream either in the microwave (in 10 sec bursts - keep mixing) or over a pot of boiling water in a bowl – then add in the broken up pieces of white chocolate – to make a ganache.
2. Dip or drizzle the tops of the eclairs/buns with the chocolate and put onto a cooling rack.
3. Then decorate with freeze dried raspberries.
Alternative
1. Cut open the éclair or profiterole and pipe some crème patisserie into the inside of the bun then put some sliced raspberries onto on the crème.
