Gaufres

Ingredients :

1. 325 g plain flour
2. 3 large eggs
3. 75 g butter
4. 300 ml milk
5. 50 ml water
6. 100 g caster sugar
7. 2 tsp baking powder
8. 1/2tsp salt
9. a few drops of vanilla essence/ extract

Step :

1. Separate the eggs.
2. Melt the butter in the milk by heating till luke warm.
   
3. Mix the egg yolks into the butter and milk mixture and add the vanilla essence.
4. Put the flour into a mixing bowl and make a well in the centre.
   
5. Add the milk mixture and combine into the flour.
   
6. Whisk the egg whites in a separate bowl till firm peaks then whisk the caster sugar in to form a meringue mixture.
7. Fold the meringue mixture into the batter using a large metal spoon.
8. Cook the mixture in the hot waffle iron which will need a little oil on the first ones.
9. Decorate with icing sugar or topping of your choice and eat hot!
   
    
   
   
   

Fondant Au Chocolat

Ingredients :

• 50g melted butter , for brushing
• cocoa powder , for dusting
• 200g good-quality dark chocolate , chopped into small pieces
• 200g butter , in small pieces
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 4 eggs and 4 yolks
• 200g plain flour
• Caramel sauce (see 'Goes well with') and vanilla ice cream or orange sorbet, to serve 

Step :

1. First get your moulds ready. Using upward strokes, heavily brush the melted butter all over the inside of the pudding mould. Place the mould in the fridge or freezer. Brush more melted butter over the chilled butter, then add a good spoonful of cocoa powder into the mould. Tip the mould so the powder completely coats the butter. Tap any excess cocoa back into the jar, then repeat with 1 the next mould.
2. Place a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, then slowly melt the chocolate and butter together. Remove bowl from the heat and stir until smooth. Leave to cool for about 10 mins.
3. In a separate bowl whisk the eggs and yolks together with the sugar until thick and pale and the whisk leaves a trail; use an electric whisk if you want. Sift the flour into the eggs, then beat together.
4. Pour the melted chocolate into the egg mixture in thirds, beating well between each addition, until all the chocolate is added and the mixture is completely combined to a loose cake batter.
5. Tip the fondant batter into a jug, then evenly divide between the moulds. The fondants can now be frozen for up to a month and cooked from frozen. Chill for at least 20 mins or up to the night before. To bake from frozen, simply carry on as stated, adding 5 mins more to the cooking time.
6. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Place the fondants on a baking tray, then cook for 10-12 mins until the tops have formed a crust and they are starting to come away from the sides of their moulds. Remove from the oven, then leave to sit for 1 min before turning out.
7. Loosen the fondants by moving the tops very gently so they come away from the sides, easing them out of the moulds. Tip each fondant slightly onto your hand so you know it has come away, then tip back into the mould ready to plate up.
8. Starting from the middle of each plate, squeeze a spiral of caramel sauce - do all the plates you need before you go on to the next stage.
9. Sit a fondant in the middle of each plate. Using a large spoon dipped in hot water, scoop a 'quenelle' of ice cream.
10. Carefully place the ice cream on top of the fondant, then serve immediately. Repeat with the rest of the fondants. credits : bbcgoodfood.com

Mont Blanc

Ingredients :

• 4 egg whites, room temperature
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 cup less 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
• .
• 3 pounds fresh chestnuts or one (1 pound 15 ounce) can chestnut puree
• 1 vanilla bean (if using fresh chestnuts)
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/3 cup sugar
• .
• 1-1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 to 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg white, room temperature
• 2 squares semisweet chocolate, grated

Step :  

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet, sprinkle with flour, and mark one 9-inch circle or ten 3-1/2- inch circles (this may require more than one baking sheet).

In large bowl, beat egg whites with salt until foamy. Add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Beat in 2 tablespoons sugar until mixture holds long, stiff peaks when beater is lifted. Fold in remaining sugar and vanilla. Place in pastry bag fitted with 1/2-inch plain tube and pipe 1 large round or 10 small ones onto prepared sheet. Bake 1 hour or until meringue is firm to the touch. If meringues brown during baking, reduce heat. Transfer meringues to rack and let cool.

Peel chestnut using small, sharp knife and leaving inner skin.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Place chestnuts in shallow heatproof dish and bake 10 to 15 minutes, or until skin dries and peels off easily. Rub nuts in rough cloth to remove skins. Place peeled nuts in saucepan with vanilla bean and water to cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 25 to 30 minutes, or until very tender. Remove vanilla bean (it may be washed and reused.) Drain chestnuts, then put through food mill or sieve, or in food processor, and puree.

Briefly boil together 3/4 cup water and sugar to make thin sugar syrup, then set aside to cool. When cool, beat enough syrup into chestnut puree to make it thin enough to pipe through pastry bag but still thick enough to hold its shape. If using canned puree, sweeten to taste, making sure it is thin enough to be piped. Fit pastry bag with 1/8-inch plain tube and fill with puree.

Beat cream until stiff, then add sugar to taste and vanilla. Beat egg white in separate bowl until stiff peaks form, then fold into cream. Place cream mixture into pastry bag fitted with star tip. Arrange meringues on serving platter and pipe chestnut puree in bird's nest shape around edge of meringue. Pipe cream mixture in center, piling it high. Sprinkle grated chocolate over whipped cream and chill until serving time. 

credits : homecooking.about.com

Croquembouche

Ingredients :

Choux pastry:
Water  425g
Milk  530g
Sugar  20g
Salt  20g
Butter  400g
Flour  530g
Eggs  16

Pastry cream:
Milk  1300ml
Eggs Yolks 330g
Sugar  330g
Cornflour 130g
Butter  130g
Vanilla  2 beans

Caramel:
Sugar  660g
Water  200g
Glucose 260g

Step :

1. To make the pastry cream, place milk and vanilla bean in a saucepan. Heat gently until the milk almost boils. Remove from the heat, whisk the yolks, sugar and cornflour in a bowl until thick and pale. Gradually whisk in the warm milk. Return mixture to same saucepan and stir over medium heat until the custard boils.  Spread over a tray to cool rapidly. Cover the surface of the custard closely with plastic wrap to prevent a skin forming, at 55°C transfer to a bowl and stir through butter and refrigerate to cool completely.

 

2. Preheat the oven to 210 degrees celsius convection. Lightly grease 4 oven trays and set aside. Combine the butter with water, sugar, milk & salt in a large heavy-based saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and using a wooden spoon quickly beat in the flour. Return to the heat and continue beating until the mixture comes together and leaves the side of the pan. Cook, beating over low heat for 1-2 minutes to cook flour. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

3. Transfer to a large bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat the mixture to release any more heat. Gradually add the eggs, one at a time. Beat well between each addition until all the eggs have been added and the mixture is thick and glossy. Beat for a few more minutes, or until thickened.

 

4. Spoon the mixture, in batches, into a piping bag fitted with a 1.25-1.5cm nozzle. Cover remaining pastry with cling film. Pipe mixture onto trays about 3cm x 2cm high leaving room for spreading. Bake for 25-30 minutes, in batches, or until firm and hollow when tapped. Transfer puffs to wire racks.

 

5. Put custard into a piping bag with a nozzle less than 1cm. Poke a small hole in the base of each puff and fill with custard.

 

6. For the caramel, combine water and sugar in a saucepan until it boils add glucose, and cook until caramel in colour. Remove from the heat and dip the base of the pan in a bowl of water to cool slightly. Grease a cake ring and place ring mould on a baking paper lined tray, pour enough caramel to coat the base 5mm. This is the base for the croquembouche.

 

7. Dip the puff bases in enough toffee to coat and place upside down on a tray lined with baking paper.

 

8. To assemble, oil the croquembouche cone.  Dip the sides of the puff balls in the toffee one at a time and place around the base of the cone. Continue adding balls until the cone is covered.

 

9. Transfer the base for the croquembouche to a serving plate. Place a small amount of caramel on the base. Grasp croquembouche gently and lift from the cone and place on the caramel base.

 

10. Re-heat the remaining toffee then dip two forks back to back in it. Spin toffee around the Croquembouche. Decorate with violets.
credits : masterchef-australia

Créme Brûlée

Ingredients :

600ml thickened cream
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
6 egg yolks
¼ cup caster sugar
120g demerara sugar

Step :

Step 1: Preheat oven to 120°C.

Step 2: Place the cream, vanilla bean and seeds in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to scalding point, then remove from heat. Remove vanilla bean and discard.

Step 3: Whisk together egg yolks and caster sugar in a bowl for 2-3 minutes or until pale.

Step 4: Pour hot cream over egg yolk mixture, continuing to whisk until well combined. Strain mixture into a jug, evenly divide between 4 x 200ml ramekins.

Step 5: Carefully place ramekins in a deep roasting pan lined with a folded tea towel. Pour boiling water into pan to come halfway up the sides of ramekins. Cover pan loosely with foil.

Step 6: Bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until the custard has just set. Remove ramekins from the water bath, and set aside to cool.

Step 7: Sprinkle demerara sugar evenly over the surface of the baked custards. Run a kitchen blowtorch over the custards, or place under a preheated grill until the sugar bubbles and caramelises. Serve.
credits: masterchef-australia