puff pastry rolls with almond praline custard cream

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135. Copyright 2012 The Mobile Home Gourmet, MobileHomeGourmet.com, all rights reserved.

PUFF PASTRY ROLLS WITH ALMOND PRALINE

CUSTARD CREAMMakes 12 to 16

By Dennis W. Viau; an original recipe.

Using puff pastry dough makes these pastries easier to prepare, allowing more time to be devoted to the cream filling. A simple custard would suffice, but almond praline ramps this filling up to a rich and satisfying flavor.

Ingredients:2 boxes (17.3 oz./490g each) frozen puff pastry sheetsFor the Almond Praline:4 ounces (113g) almonds½ cup (125g) granulated sugar¼ cup (60ml) water1 teaspoon lemon juice½ teaspoon salt1 teaspoon vegetable oilFor the Cream Filling:The almond praline from above1 packet (¼ ounce/7g/1 tablespoon) unflavored gelatin¼ cup (60ml) water1½ cups (355ml) half-and-half or whole milk5 large egg yolks (save the egg whites for making Cat’s Tongues cookies; the recipe is on this web site)1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar1½ tablespoons corn starch3 tablespoons butter (unsalted okay); chilled and cut into pieces1½ teaspoons vanilla extract1 cup (237ml) heavy cream; chilled

Directions:Thaw the puff pastry according to package directions, typically 30 to 40 minutes. Note: Leaving it thawed for a long period of time, such as several hours in the refrigerator, will make the dough unworkable. Use quickly as soon as the dough is thawed. Separate the two sheets and unfold. Cut each sheet into 4 squares.

Heat oven to 400°F (200°C). Separate one of the eggs, reserving the yolk for later. Whip the egg white lightly to make an egg wash. Roll a square of pastry dough around a cannoli tube, brushing the overlap with the egg wash and pressing to seal. (Wrapping the cannoli tube in a small piece of parchment paper will facilitate removing the tube later.) Arrange on a baking sheet. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Remove the cannoli tubes. Store the pastry in an airtight container until needed.

To make the Almond Praline:Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (wax paper will not suffice) and arrange the almonds on the baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Chop in a food processor to reduce to small chunks. The almonds don’t need to be chopped fine yet. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Do not use wax paper or plastic wrap.

Heat the sugar, water, lemon juice, and salt in a medium saucepan until the water comes to a boil and the

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sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat the medium-low and watch the pan, without stirring, until the water evaporates and the sugar syrup starts to change to a golden color. A good instant-read digital thermometer is useful at this point. When the sugar reaches the hard crack stage (310°F/154°C), remove from the heat and pour over the chopped almonds. Be careful; it’s hot. Set aside to cool. Let the pan cool and then it can be filled with water and allowed to soak to dissolve the sugar residue.

When the almond praline is cool, the sugar should be hard and easy to break with the hands. If it is a little soft and sticky (the soft crack stage), it can still be used. Break or cut the praline into chunks and place them in a food processor fitted with a chopping blade. If the sugar is sticky, powdered sugar can be used to dust the praline, helping prevent it from sticking to the blades. Chop to a fairly fine texture, like bread crumbs. Add the vegetable oil and process into a crumbly paste. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and set aside.

To Make the Custard for the Cream Filling:Put the ¼ cup of water in a small bowl and sprinkle the unflavored gelatin over the top. Set aside. Select two saucepans, one slightly smaller than the other, such that one can be placed inside the other to make a double boiler. Heat the half-and-half (or milk) in the smaller pan until it just comes to a simmer and remove from the heat. While the milk is heating, combine the egg yolks, sugar, gelatin, and corn starch in a bowl, whisking together until thoroughly mixed. Whisking constantly, pour about a third of the hot milk into the egg mixture and combine well. This is called tempering the eggs and helps prevent them from cooking into a scrambled egg mess. Then pour the tempered eggs into the milk pan and thoroughly combine with the whisk.

Heat water in the larger pan until it comes to a boil. There should be just enough water to allow the bottom of the smaller pan to come into contact with the water when placed inside. Place the smaller pan in the large one, return the water to a boil, and reduce the heat to medium-low. Stirring constantly, cook the custard mixture in the double-boiler for 8 minutes. It will begin to thicken when the temperature rises enough to set the corn starch. Continue cooking. At the end of 8 minutes it will have a thick consistency. Add the chilled butter (cut into small pieces), and vanilla. Combine thoroughly.

Pour the custard into a bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap, or trimmed parchment paper (see pictures below) onto the surface of the custard and refrigerate 45 minutes to 1 hour.

To make the Praline Cream:Add the praline to the cooled custard and blend well to remove any lumps that might block the piping tube.

Place the chilled heavy cream in a mixer bowl and beat until frothy using a mixer fitted with a wire whisk. Increase the speed of the mixer and continue beating until the cream forms soft peaks. Add the whipped cream to the custard mixture and carefully fold together so as not to break down the loft of the whipped cream. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a large (½ inch/12mm/Wilton #48) star tip.

To fill the pastry shells:Pipe cream filling into the pastry tubes, filling completely. Arrange on a baking sheet or tray that will fit in your refrigerator. Continue until all the pastries are filled. Keep chilled until ready to serve. This cream filling is made with butter and gelatin, which helps it maintain its shape when cold. When it warms, the cream will soften and wilt; therefore, keep leftovers refrigerated until ready to serve.

The Step By Step guide begins on the following page.

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STEP-BY-STEP1

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This is usually where I display my mise en place of assembled ingredients. For those who might not have used puff pastry sheets before, I decided to show the package. It is typically sold frozen. Pay attention to the thawing time. Unlike phyllo dough sheets, which can be thawed and used at leisure, puff pastry must be used as soon as it thaws. If it is allowed to sit a long time it will become sticky and difficult, if not impossible, to work with.

For this pastry I bought a set of stainless steel cannoli tubes. This was my first time using them; so I wasn’t sure whether or not the puff pastry would stick to them. I therefore cut pieces of parchment paper with which to wrap each tube.

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I cut each piece of parchment to be slightly longer than the metal tube when rolled. Again, this was an experiment and I don’t know that it is necessary. It worked, though, as you will see below.

As soon as the puff pastry dough is thawed enough, unfold it and cut each piece into four.

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Prepare an egg wash by separating one egg and using the white only. I chose the white because I thought it might give me more “glue” for holding the puff pastry. Wrap a square of pastry dough around a tube and brush the end with egg white.

Press the final flap into place to seal it. Continue with the other pieces of pastry and cannoli tubes.

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Arrange the pastry rolls on a baking sheet. I lined a small sheet with parchment paper. Bake in a 400 °F (200°C) 25 to 30 minutes until browned.

Here are my pastry rolls fresh from the oven. Allow to cool on a rack.

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Arrange the almonds on a baking sheet and roast at 350°F (177°C) for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

When cool, remove the cannoli tube from each pastry. I found it was easiest to slide the metal tube out first and then twist the parchment paper. You can see the well formed cylindrical hollow each pastry will have when done. These can be set aside until needed. Store in an air-tight container.

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When cool, chop the roasted almonds in a food processor. They don’t need to be chopped too fine at this point because they will be chopped again in a later step. Arrange the chopped nuts on the lined baking sheet.

Combine the sugar, water, lemon juice, and salt in a small pan over medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and watch closely. As the water boils away, the sugar will concentrate and start to melt. This is when the temperature rises quickly. As the sugar gets hotter it will start to color, or caramelize. When it reaches the hard crack stage (310°F/154°C), remove it from the heat.

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Immediately pour the hot melted sugar over the chopped almonds. Be careful, it’s hot! Allow the caramelized sugar to cool completely. Sugar residue will remain in the pan. Let the pan cool and fill with water. Allow to soak for a while, which will dissolve the sugar. You can hasten the process, if necessary, by heating the water to boiling.

When the sugar-almond mixture has cooled, process in a food process to reduce the mixture to a fairly fine crumb. This is important so that large pieces won’t clog the piping tube in a later step. Finally, add the vegetable oil and process again. Transfer to a bowl and cover. Set aside until needed.

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To start the custard: Combine the egg yolks, sugar, softened gelatin, and corn starch in a bowl, whisking together until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

You’ll need to set up a double boiler by using a larger saucepan into which a smaller saucepan will fit.

Heat the half-and-half (or milk) in the smaller pan until it just comes to a simmer and remove from the heat.

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Whisking constantly, pour about a third of the hot milk into the egg mixture and combine well. This is called tempering the eggs and helps prevent them from cooking into a scrambled egg mess. Then pour the tempered eggs into the milk pan and thoroughly combine with the whisk. Assemble the double boiler and cook the custard mixture over simmering water, stirring constantly, about 8 minutes. Finish by adding the chilled butter and vanilla, then blend well.

Transfer the finished custard to a bowl. To prevent a skin forming, press a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap onto the surface of the custard. Refrigerate 45 minutes to 1 hour.

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Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and then add the custard-nut mixture. Fold gently together to avoid breaking down the structure of the whipped cream. It should be smooth and free of lumps.

Combine the cooled custard with the chopped almond mixture, blending well to avoid lumps that might clog the piping tip in a later step.

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Put the custard cream filling in the piping bag and squeeze the filling into the channel inside each pastry tube. The filling will probably fill only half the pastry; so fill from both ends. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Leftovers should be kept refrigerated because the structure of the filling is maintained with gelatin. When the gelatin warms it softens, causing the filling to wilt and ooze out of the pastry.

Optional: You can dust these pastries with a little powder sugar or decorate the top with melted chocolate.

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Although I have piping bags, I prefer to use Alton Brown’s (Good Eats) method of using a disposable ziplock bag. Cut one corner off, large enough to insert the piping tip through but small enough to engage the tip firmly. I use a little piece of tape to secure the tip in place.

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ConclusionAdmittedly, this is not a simple recipe. I would make these for special occasions when a fancy dessert seems appropriate. Nonetheless, by using frozen puff pastry dough rather than making it from scratch, the process is considerably easier. The end result is fantastic.

puff pastry rolls with almond praline custard cream

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