Chocolate Passion Fruit Profiteroles

I've been wanting to work with passion fruit for a while. This week I spotted 3 different kinds of passion fruit at the grocery store and decided to try them out. They all differed in flavor but it might be that they were not all the same ripeness. The orange one in the middle I found to be the sweetest. The yellow one on the right the most sour and the purple one to be sweet and sour and the most floral. I juiced them all together and used the juice to make the chocolate passion fruit pastry cream.

I really liked this recipe though the profiterole shells did not rise as much as I wanted them to. Perhaps it was because I had the temperature too high (410 degrees F) or did not bake them long enough. Or perhaps it was because I opened the oven briefly to turn the pans so the outside ones didn't burn. My oven tends to get really hot on the right side. It could also be that there was not enough space between them on the baking sheets or that they were not baked long enough. And I should have only baked one sheet at a time.

The pastry cream was so good we spread the extra on scones we made the next day.


Chocolate Passion Fruit Profiteroles

Inspired by Citrus and Candy

Milk Chocolate Passion Fruit Pastry Cream

500 ml whole milk

6 large egg yolks

120 g super fine sugar

40 g cornstarch

200 g milk chocolate, melted

125 ml passion fruit juice (approximately 10 passion fruits, I used 6 small and 4 large)

60 ml heavy cream

1. Set up an ice bath in a large bowl.

2. Simmer milk in  a medium saucepan.

3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch. To temper, add a little of the milk at a time to egg mixture whisking constantly until it is all combined. Pour it back into the saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Whisk constantly.

4. Add in passion fruit juice and melted chocolate. Stir with wooden spoon for one minute. Take off heat and put in saucepan into ice bath to cool. Whisk occasionally until cooled to room temperature. Transfer pastry cream to airtight container. Press plastic wrap directly over pastry cream so skin doesn't form. Chill in fridge up to 3 days.


Chocolate Profiterole Shells

110 g all purpose flour, sifted

20 g Dutch processed cocoa powder, sifted

100 ml water

80 ml whole milk

100 g unsalted butter

1/4 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. sugar

4 large eggs

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Prepare piping bag with coupler and large round tip.

3. In a bowl, stir together flour and cocoa powder.

4. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring water, milk, butter, salt and sugar to a boil. Stir in flour mixture. Stir constantly cooking until dough forms a ball and dries slightly. Transfer to stand mixer with paddle attachment. Beat until bowl no longer feels warm to the touch.

5. Add eggs one at a time, beating until smooth. Pipe as high as possible onto sheet pan into 2 inch mounds around the size of walnuts. Space at least 2 inches apart. Smooth down peaks with a fingertip dipped in water.

6. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 15-20 more minutes until shells are dry but make sure bottoms do not burn. Cool on wire rack. Store in airtight container if not filling right away. You may also rebake them the next day for 5 minutes to crisp up the shell.

7. To fill shells, slice them in half with a serrated knife and fill with pastry cream. Or poke a small hole in the profiterole and place the piping tip in to fill with pastry cream. Temper dark chocolate (200 g) and dip or drizzle on tops of the profiteroles. Chill to set. Store in an airtight container in fridge.

Tempering Chocolate:

1. Chop chocolate finely with a large serrated chef's knife.

2. Simmer 1 inch of water in saucepan on stove. Place 2/3 of the chocolate in a metal or heatproof bowl on top of saucepan so it doesn't touch the water. Melt the chocolate until it reaches at least 107 degrees F.

3. Remove from heat and wipe the water from the bottom of the bowl making sure no moisture gets into the chocolate or it will seize up. Whisk in the remaining 1/3 of chocolate. Continue whisking until it has cooled to 86-90 degrees F. It is now tempered and ready for use. Keep at this temperature while using or it will have a dull whitish bloom instead of a shiny snap. A good tip is to use a heating pad.

Rainbow Cupcakes

On a rainy day, my son and I decided to stay in and study rainbows. These cupcakes were so much fun to make and to eat. I had all of the food coloring already except for the purple which I mixed from sky blue and red. I think perhaps I will buy a purple next time so it will turn out more vibrant. The cupcakes were moist and rose nicely. The flavor good but not the best I've ever had.

Rainbow Cupcakes

Inspired by Joy of Baking (white cupcakes)

2 large eggs, separated

1 3/4 cups sifted cake flour (I substituted 2 Tbsp. cornstarch for 2 Tbsp. of all purpose flour instead)

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar, divided

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup whole milk

1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. Prepare 6 small disposable plastic cups and 6 plastic spoons.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

3. In stand mixer bowl with paddle attachment, cream butter. Add in 3/4 cup sugar and beat till light and fluffy. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl. Beat in egg yolks one at a time. Scrape bowl. Beat in vanilla.

4. Turn mixer to low speed and alternate adding flour mixture and milk in 3 additions.

5. In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites with hand mixer until foamy. Add cream of tartar and beat till soft peaks form. Add in 1/4 cup of sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Fold whites into batter gradually so as not to deflate it.

6. Divide the batter into the 6 plastic cups. Add food coloring into each cup- red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple. Make sure it is vibrant enough. Spoon the batter into the paper liners starting with purple and ending with red on the top. If you like your layers to be even, smooth out with a knife or small spatula.

7. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.

Chocolate Hot Cross Buns

One a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns. The boys were inspired to make these after learning how to play Hot Cross Buns on the keyboard. We found that Australia and New Zealand make chocolate hot cross buns. These reminded me of the chocolate pan I love to eat from the Japanese markets.

Chocolate Hot Cross Buns

2 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast

50 mL warm water

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 egg

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

260 mL water

18- 5 g pieces of dark chocolate and additional chocolate for piping


1. Proof  yeast and 50 mL water in stand mixer bowl. Let sit for 15 minutes until foamy.

2. Add additional ingredients and mix with dough hook.

3. Transfer into a large lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours.

4. Line bottom and sides of a 9x13 baking pan and an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper.

5. Divide dough into 20 pieces. Press a piece of chocolate into the center of each ball, fold the dough around it and pinch to seal. Roll into balls and place in baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes.

6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool in pans on wire rack.

7. Melt dark chocolate in a microwave safe bowl at 50% heat for 30 seconds at a time. Transfer into a plastic baggie and cut off a corner. Pipe crosses onto the buns.

Strawberry- Lemon and Pineapple- Lime Pate De Fruits (Fruit Jelly Candies)

I've seen bags of assorted pate de fruits, jelly candies rolled in sugar, at the patisserie and wanted to make my own. As a kid I liked to eat Sunkist Fruit Gems. They came in strawberry, orange, lemon and lime. This week I decided to try out two flavors- strawberry- lemon and pineapple- lime. Candy making usually involves mixing together ingredients and then stirring it in a huge pot then pouring it into a pan and letting it set overnight. Candy thermometer and oven mitts in hand, I stirred the boiling mixture, like a witch over a bubbling cauldron, for a good 15-20 minutes. They were both quite sweet but they are candy and I'm not used to eating a lot of candy. The strawberry-lemon ones tasted better as they had the taste of ripe strawberries and a little tartness from the lemon. The pineapple-lime ones were just o.k. I think they were too acidic and lacked depth. I also didn't process the lime zest with the pineapple and it left little squiggles of zest in the candy.

Strawberry- Lemon Pate De Fruits

Inspired by The Spiced Life

1 pound of fresh strawberries

zest from 1 large lemon

juice from 1 1/2 large lemons

3 cups sugar

6 oz. liquid fruit pectin (2 envelopes)

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

sugar for coating

1. Grease an 8x8 inch baking pan and smoothly line it with plastic wrap. Lightly brush oil over the top of plastic wrap.

2. Puree the fresh strawberries and lemon zest together with a food processor or hand blender.

3. Place a medium bowl on the scale and add juice from 1 1/2 large lemons. Then add the strawberry puree until it weighs one pound.

4. Snip open the pectin packets and place upright in a narrow container. Keep them next to the stove for easy access.

5. In a large saucepan (4 qt. or larger) stir together the puree and 3 cups of sugar. Stir constantly over medium high heat with a rubber spatula. Stir until candy thermometer reaches 238 degrees F.

6. Stir in the pectin and boil stirring constantly for 1 minute.

7. Remove from heat and stir in 1 Tbsp. of lemon juice. Pour into prepared baking pan and sprinkle lightly with sugar.

8. Cool on wire rack overnight. Turn upside-down on cutting board and remove plastic wrap. Cut into 1 inch squares using a lightly greased knife and cleaning off with paper towel between cuts. Fill a bowl with sugar. Roll the jelly pieces in the sugar and store in an airtight container.

For pineapple- lime recipe, use pineapple in place of the strawberries and lime zest and juice instead of the lemon zest and juice.

Magic Chocolate Custard Cake

I've wanted to try this recipe for a long time. I've seen many pictures of magic custard cakes but this is the first chocolate on I've seen. The magic happens in the oven when the cake batter separates into 3 layers- a cake layer, a more dense cake layer and a custard layer. I was very concerned while making the batter that this cake would not turn out. The batter was runny and curdled. After baking, the cake was slightly jiggly in the center and had a small crack in the middle. After refrigerating overnight it was the perfect blend of creamy, chocolatey, moist, cakey goodness.

Magic Chocolate Custard Cake

Inspired by White on Rice

1/2 cup  (113 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 1/2 cups (600ml) whole milk, lukewarm

1 cup (115g) all purpose flour

1/2 cup (43g) cocoa powder

4 eggs, separated

6 drops distilled white vinegar

1 3/4 cups (210g) confectioner's sugar

2 Tablespoons (30ml) espresso,  lukewarm

1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract

extra confectioner's sugar for dusting 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly butter a glass 8"x8" baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour and cocoa powder.
3. In a stand mixer with whisk attachment, whip the egg whites with vinegar to stiff peaks.
4. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar. Then beat in the melted butter, espresso, and vanilla extract until evenly incorporated.
5. Stir in the flour/cocoa into the batter until incorporated. Gently whisk in the milk until well mixed.
6. Fold in the egg whites, 1/3 at a time. Repeat until all of the egg whites are folded in. The batter will look curdled and runny.
7. Pour the batter into pan and bake for 50-60 minutes until slightly jiggly in the center (like a cheesecake).
8. Cool cake on wire rack. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar. If not serving soon, refrigerate.