Almond Choux Puff with Caramel Ice Cream & Chocolate Sauce

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If the Genoise Sponge is Lesson 1 in a Culinary Baking Course, then Pate A Choux is possibly either a pre-cursor of Lesson 1 or a more achievable Lesson 1 itself.... Like the genoise sponge, it is plain and non fancy but it serves as the foundation of so many classic and new creations that we have become familiar with.

It has truly transcended all cultural boundaries, for how else would I still bear childhood memories of munching on soft wrinkly cream puffs filled with dry pasty custards? Or that swan-like cream filled puff sitting in the neighbourhood bakery store?

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Of course, with affluence and greater exposure to everything in the world, our palate has become more discerning. I don't think those wrinkly cream puffs with dry pasty custards would work any more.  Thankfully, there are still many ways to 'glam up' the humble Pate A Choux. One can let one's imagination take flight and work with a myriad of interesting cream fillings as exemplified by ZenChef's creation. Or, if you are, like me too lazy to whip up a pastry cream ( my secret confession - creme patissiere is one of my least favourite things to prepare) , there are still many other ways to add pizzazz to your choux puffs.

I made an easy chocolate sauce here to line the plate with and simply sandwich the puffs with Haagan Daz Caramel Biscuit & Cream ice cream. Present this to your guests on a plate like the way I did and they would think that they are eating dessert in a fine-dining restaurant!


Almond Puff With Caramel Ice Cream & Chocolate Sauce
Recipe (Adapted from The Patisserie Of Tony Wong) 
Choux Puff
125g             Water
4g                  Sugar
2g                  Salt
50g                Butter
75g                All purpose flour (sifted)
100g              Eggs
Diced almonds to garnish
Egg wash

Chocolate Sauce
130g              70% dark chocolate
250g              Water
125g              35% whipping cream
50g                Sugar
1g                  Vanilla extract

Method:
Choux Puff: 
1. Boil water, sugar, salt and butter in a saucepan.  Add all the flour into the boiling butter solution and mix well.
2. Cook dough until the mixture forms a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan.
3. Beat the batter on medium speed with a paddle attachment until just warm.
4. Add egg, one at a time. Scrape away the batter from the sides of the pan to the center and continue to mix well.
5. Spoon the choux dough into a piping bag fitted with a plain tip. Pipe 4-5cm diameter choux paste. Brush with egg wash.
6. Sprinkle with diced almond and bake at 200C in a preheated oven for 30-35mins.

Chocolate Sauce:
1. Cook all ingredients in a saucepan until all the chocolate is melted. Simmer down the sauce to thicken.

Assembly :
1. Slice choux puff in half.
2. Spoon chocolate sauce into a shallow plate.
3. Place bottom half of puff on the chocolate sauce. Top with a scoop of ice cream. Cap with sugar dusted top half of puff and serve immediately.

Cherry Yoghurt Sorbet

The $60 Giveaway promotion I am running now (kindly sponsored by CSN) has set me pondering once again about the many kitchen desires I have... the list never seems to diminish. However,on the top spot of my wish-list is undoubtedly the Cuisinart powerful ice-cream maker-the model with a built in chilling motor. The only reason that is keeping me from procuring one lies in the limitation of my kitchen counter. I have always told myself, if I were able to somehow create space on my kitchen counter, I would get the ice-cream maker. Come to think of it, it is rather irrational really, for

1. I am not even a big ice cream fan.
2. I not a dairy product person.

I do enjoy the occasional scoop of good ice cream but I am not able to partake large quantities of it. Even when Singapore Airlines serves Haagan Daas on some of their flights, I would take only eat a quarter of it and that would be enough to satisfy me immensely. It is the same with Chocolates. You will never find me munching away at a whole bar of chocolate. A couple of good quality pralines or chocolate truffles would be sufficient to make me swoon with content. Hence I do not mind spending a little more for the really good item (I have sworn by Valrhona chocolates for many years now) for I know I won't eat alot.

So really, the ice-cream maker, in all good sense would most likely become a white elephant and ought to be the first item to be crossed out from my wish-list. However, there is something strangely invigorating about smooth round scoops of colourful ice-cream. It has the power to draw out the childish and girlish emotions from women of every given age and disposition. The appeal of food lies not only in its taste and flavours but very often, its pull on the visual and memory senses is so emotionally powerful that it defies all culinary logic.

During my recent trip to India 2 weeks ago, I came across a wildly popular bakery near the hotel where I was staying. Literally a hole in the wall, this very rustic bakery is constantly packed with people. I took some photos one evening at 9pm with my Black Berry phone. ( The photo quality is really not good but I would still like to share it here. Look at that Oven Kiln behind! Now, how would you control the temperature?)







The next morning, I went there early before the crowd started to build up. I bought 2 croissants, 1 muffin and a cookie all for S$0.35 (US$0.12).  I had to stop myself from exclaiming 'so cheap!'. I ripped open the paper bag with eager hands and took my first bite of the muffin, expecting an epiphany of sorts but it didn't do anything for me.... :(  It was coarse, somewhat dry and very different from the fine crumbed, rich buttery taste that I have become so used to. I was immediately reminded of my earlier experience at the Iranian cafe early this year. (I had brought back a pack of the famous Shrewsberry cookies for the office- it is still sitting  in the cookie jar, untouched.) Seeing how these are flying of the shelves literally like hot cakes, I really wanted to be able to gush about it but its popularity was quite beyond my comprehension... I remember messaging L about it and he had told me that I have become spoilt by too much good food. I suppose I am and that we all are,compared to the people in India. Looking at the way they embrace these simple pastry, I have a feeling that these will always remain the best pastry for them even if fine pastries would become fashionable and accesible to them in future.





Well, back to my ice-cream. When I saw Wendy's Blueberry Yogurt Ice-cream, I had told her that I would make this soon but I do like to experiment with my food and instead of working with Wendy's recipe exactly, I tweaked a few things. Cherries are becoming cheaper by the day and I suspect at S$1.10/100g,  it could be the same price as blueberries... Hence that is what I have decided to use. Also, since I am not much of a diary person, I decided to cut down the cream component and convert it to a sorbet - with equal parts of fruits and creamy yogurt. With an ice-cream machine, the icicles will be finer and the texture of the ice cream would be alot smoother. However, since I can only covet the ice-cream maker for now, I blend the half frozen slush in the blender twice. It is decent enough and for now this will have to do.


Recipe

340g              Cherries, pitted
360g              Creamy plain Greek-Style yoghurt
150g              Castor sugar
1tbsp             Freshly squeezedd lemon juice
1tsp               Kirsch

Method:
1. Blend cherries, yoghurt and sugar until smooth.
2. Add in lemon juice and kirsch.
3. Cling wrap the bowl and refrigerate over night.
4. Blend cold yoghurt mixture and freeze in a freeze proof container for 1 hour.
5. Take out half frozen mixture and blend it in the blender again. Return to freezer for another hour. Repeat blending.
6. Freeze in the freezer in a covered container until frozen.
7. Serve with fresh cherries and mint leaves.