Chocolate Cognac Profiteroles With Raspberry Sauce Recipes

COGNAC-RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

Steps:

• Put the heavy cream, butter and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Put the chocolate in a heatsafe bowl, pour the hot cream mixture over it and let it sit until the chocolate is completely melted, about 10 minutes.
• Stir the chocolate-cream mixture with a whisk or rubber spatula until combined and smooth. Stir in the cognac, raspberry extract and vanilla extract, then whisk until the ganache is smooth and shiny. Transfer the ganache to a shallow container, cover and refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put the cocoa powder in a shallow dish. Scoop tablespoons of the firm ganache, roll into balls and roll the balls in the cocoa powder. Transfer the truffles to the prepared baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and up to overnight.

PROFITEROLES WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine the cream and butter in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Heat the mixture until bubbles appear around the sides of the pot, but do not allow the cream to boil. Mix in the chocolate and vanilla; remove from the heat and stir until the chocolate melts and the sauce is smooth. May be served warm or chilled.;
• Profiteroles: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• To make the pate a choux: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the water, butter, sugar, and salt to a gentle boil over medium-high heat, stirring to melt the butter completely. Add all the flour and baking powder at once and continue to stir until all the flour is incorporated and the dough becomes a mass that pulls away from the sides of the pot. Remove from the heat and scrape the dough into a mixing bowl. Using a standing or hand-held mixer, beat the dough on medium speed to cool it off a bit. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl periodically. When all eggs have been incorporated, the dough should be a thick, smooth, and glossy paste.
• Form 24 golf ball-size mounds on the lined baking sheet about 2-inches apart allowing room for them to spread; keep the mounds as high and round as possible. You can use a pastry bag fitted with a star tip or a large spoon, your choice. Place the pans in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. and continue to cook for 25 minutes. Do not open the oven door or remove the pans from the oven until the puffs are firm to the touch. The profiteroles should be golden brown and well-risen. Allow the shells to cool before filling.
• Using a serrated knife, slice the pastry puffs almost in 1/2. Place 3 profiteroles on each dessert plate and fill with a scoop of ice cream. Drizzle the chocolate sauce over the top; garnish with powdered sugar and fresh mint if desired.

CHOCOLATE-COGNAC PROFITEROLES WITH RASPBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine 3/4 cup water, butter, sugar and salt in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to boil. Remove from heat. Add flour; stir vigorously with wood spoon until mixture is smooth. Stir over medium heat until mixture forms ball, about 3 minutes (mixture will be stiff). Stir 2 minutes longer to allow flour to cook thoroughly. Remove from heat. Make well in center; break 1 egg into well. Stir vigorously until egg is incorporated and mixture is smooth. Repeat with remaining eggs, adding 1 at a time.
• Transfer dough to pastry bag with 1/2-inch plain round tip. Pipe 1 1/4-inch-diameter, 1-inch-high mounds spaced 2 inches apart onto baking sheets. Bake profiteroles until puffed and golden, about 35 minutes. Cool on sheets. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.)
• Cut 12 profiteroles horizontally in half (reserve remainder for another use). Fill each bottom half with 1 heaping tablespoon chocolate cream. Cover with tops. (Can be made 3 hours ahead. Cover; chill.)
• Divide Raspberry Sauce among 4 plates. Top each with 3 profiteroles. Drizzle with Chocolate Sauce.

PROFITEROLES WITH RASPBERRIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees; line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put the butter in a saucepan with the salt and 3/4 cup water; bring it to a boil over medium-high heat and stir until the butter is melted. Reduce the heat to medium and add the flour; continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture pulls away from side of pan and forms a ball, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and let cool for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add the eggs to the slightly cooled flour mixture one at a time, beating well after each addition - the batter will come apart after each egg is added but will reunite as you stir. Transfer the batter to a resealable plastic bag or pastry bag and make a 1/2 -inch cut in one corner. Pipe mounds about 1 inch high and 1 to 2 inches in diameter onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about an inch of space between.
• Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the profiteroles from the oven and pierce the bottom of each profiterole once with a skewer, to keep them from getting soggy. Return to the oven; prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon and let the profiteroles crisp up for about 3 minutes. Cool on sheet on a rack.
• Meanwhile, put the raspberries in a food processor along with 1 to 2 tablespoons water. Purée the berries, adding a little more water through the feed tube if needed, to create a pourable drizzle. To serve, use a serrated knife to slice each profiterole in half around the equator, fill with a scoop of ice cream or sorbet, and drizzle with the raspberry purée.

RASPBERRY, WHITE CHOCOLATE & PISTACHIO PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. To make the choux pastry, sift the flour onto a large sheet of baking parchment. This will stop lumps of flour forming in the dough. Put the butter, milk, water, sugar and salt in a pan, and heat gently until the butter has completely melted. Only once the butter has melted, increase the heat and bring the liquid to the boil. When bubbling, remove quickly from the heat and tip in the flour all at once. Immediately beat with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms a dough that leaves the side of the pan clean. Return to a low heat, stirring, for 1 min. Remove from the heat. Cool for 3 mins. Gradually add the beaten egg to the dough, beating well between each addition, until the dough is smooth and glossy.
• Line a large flat baking sheet with baking parchment. Pipe or spoon about 24 balls of dough over the baking sheet, allowing space between each for rising. Bake for 20-25 mins until the profiteroles are puffed and golden. Remove the profiteroles from the oven and quickly poke a hole in the bottom of each to let out the steam, then return to the oven for 5 mins. Cool on a wire rack.
• If using frozen raspberries for the filling, defrost in the microwave on Low for 4-5 mins. Tip the raspberries, icing sugar and lemon juice into a food processor or mini blender and blitz until smooth. Press through a sieve into a bowl.
• Whip the cream until stiff, then fold in 4 tbsp of the raspberry sauce. Spoon the filling into a piping bag fitted with a nozzle a little smaller than the holes you made in the profiteroles. Or use a plastic food bag and snip off the tip of a corner. Poke into each hole in turn, and pipe in the filling until full. The profiteroles should be fully cool before you do this.
• Break up the chocolate into a small bowl, then either melt in the microwave on Low for 1½-2 mins, stirring halfway through, or over a pan of simmering water. Leave to cool briefly until slightly thickened.
• Carefully spoon the melted chocolate over each filled profiterole and sprinkle with pistachios. Leave to set. To serve, drizzle the remaining raspberry sauce over 6 serving plates and top each with 4 profiteroles, or simply serve the sauce in a bowl alongside for drizzling over.

CLEMENTINE PROFITEROLES WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE

Steps:

• For the clementine marmalade:.
• Put the clementines (with the skin on) in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and let cool.
• Thinly slice the clementines and remove any seeds. Return to the pot along with the sugar and the lemon zest and juice. Simmer over low heat until the peels are translucent and candied, about 1 hour.
• For the pastry puffs:.
• Combine the milk, butter, granulated sugar and salt in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and quickly add the flour, stirring with a wooden spoon. Return to the heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the saucepan and forms a thick, smooth ball, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with the wooden spoon until smooth and thick. When you put a small amount of dough between two fingers and pull your fingers apart, two peaks should form on the dough.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Transfer the dough to a piping bag. Pipe mounds on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Beat the remaining egg with a bit of water for the egg wash, and use a pastry brush to gently brush it over the tops of the dough. Gently flatten any peaks on top of the mounds. Sprinkle with the crushed pistachios and brown sugar.
• Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and bake until the pastry puffs are golden and dry inside, 15 minutes more. Turn the oven off. Prop the oven door open so that it is slightly ajar, and let the pastry dry in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
• For the custard cream:.
• Whisk together the cream and 1/2 cup sugar in a saucepan. Add the scraped vanilla and bean. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and remove from the heat.
• Beat the egg yolks and remaining 1/2 cup sugar until thick enough to hold a ribbon on the surface when you lift up the whisk. Slowly beat in the hot cream mixture. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly, until it coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Strain into a bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.
• Stir 1 cup (250 ml) clementine marmalade and the whole pistachios into the cold custard. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, about 4 hours.
• For the chocolate sauce:.
• Bring the cream just to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the chocolate, melt it and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Keep warm.
• To serve, split the pastry puffs in half, fill the bottom half with a scoop of the frozen custard and replace the top. Place on a plate and drizzle with warm chocolate sauce. Sprinkle with pistachios. Serve immediately.
• Cook's Notes:.
• The pastry puffs can be frozen. Thaw them and then reheat in a 350 degree F (180 degree C) oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until crisp. Cool before filling.
• Choux pastry rises due to the egg content and steam. Therefore, it is essential that the oven is hot when you add the pastry puffs. Without this initial burst of steam they will not rise properly or dry out; they will stay flat and become soggy.

PEPPERMINT PROFITEROLES WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE

Steps:

• Make ice cream:
• Place ice cream in large bowl. Fold in candies and peppermint extract. Cover and freeze until ice cream is firm, at least 4 hours.
• Make cream puff pastry:
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Line heavy large baking sheet with parchment. Combine 3/4 cup water, butter, sugar and salt in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring until butter melts. Add flour and stir over medium heat until dough pulls away from sides of pan and forms ball, about 2 minutes. Cool 10 minutes.
• Using electric mixer, beat 3 eggs into dough 1 at a time. Transfer dough to pastry bag fitted with 1/2-inch plain tip. Pipe sixteen 1 1/2-inch mounds of dough onto sheet, spacing 2 inches apart. Beat 1 egg in small bowl. Brush over dough mounds (do not drip egg onto sheet).
• Bake pastries 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Bake pastries until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Using skewer, pierce side of each pastry to allow steam to escape. Bake pastries 5 minutes longer; transfer to racks and cool completely. (Ice cream and pastries can be made 1 week ahead. Keep ice cream frozen. Enclose pastries in resealable plastic bag; freeze. Thaw pastries before continuing.)
• Make chocolate sauce:
• Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate. Let stand until chocolate softens, about 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill. Rewarm over low heat.)
• Cut pastries crosswise in half. Place 1 scoop ice cream into bottom of each pastry. Cover with pastry tops. Spoon some warm chocolate sauce into 8 bowls. Place 2 profiteroles atop sauce in each bowl. Spoon sauce over profiteroles. Sprinkle with additional crushed peppermints. Garnish with mint sprigs.

RASPBERRY COULIS FOR PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over medium heat, boil raspberries and sugar 10 minutes, or until mixture thickens. Strain through a fine sieve, add water, a tablespoon at a time, until mixture resembles a sauce. Refrigerate until ready to use.