plaisir sucré, or sweet pleasure, is one of the many pierre hermé's masterpieces that i adore. apart from the ispahan, this is another well-known creation using a lovely combination of milk choc & hazelnuts. making this again certainly brought back lotsa memories as this was one of the earliest entremets i started out attempting and it reminded me of how intimidated i was with chocolate tempering and multi-component desserts then. and now, years later, it was nice revisiting just to see how i fared.
layers from top : milk choc sheet, milk choc whipped cream, milk choc ganache, hazelnut praline feuilletine & hazelnut dacquoise
the first time i made this, i followed the recipe's instruction and made them into 10cm x 5cm rectangles. the size was not only odd (they didn't look elegant at all), it was also kinda big for an individual portion. pretty hard to finish it all up since it can be rather cloying (its afterall milk choc & nutella). so this time round i made them into 11cm x 3cm rectangles, pretty similar to what pierre herme's patisserie is selling and they look so much better! this is also the size i'm using for all my sliced entremets now and i like it alot.
though not a huge fan of nutella (i think it tastes like cheap compound choc), this dessert, i must say, tasted exceptional. i can't decide which component i liked best since they complemented each other really well but if i had to choose, it'll definitely be the really crisp and crunchy feuilletine flakes embedded within the nutella. its important to use good ingredients hence i used valrhona jivara lactée 40% milk choc and instead of rice krispies i substituted with feuilletine flakes for the praline. i think feuilletine yields the best results even though its ok to use rice krispies or cornflakes. nx time round i intend to make my own nutella by combining praline paste (i'm eyeing on the max felchlin one) and milk choc. aesthetic-wise, i noticed quite a few people who made this had their layers really thick, like this one, making the whole dessert chunky instead of elegant. i didn't want that so i used the one pierre herme sells at his patisserie as a guideline - which is, the ganache at the bottom inbetween the 2nd & 3rd choc sheet shouldn't be visible. all in all, the whole thing should be low in height, just like all other entremets. i don't think this is anymore time consuming than the rest of the entremets i've made before but you could start making the choc sheets one day before, if making everything within a day seems overwhelming.
oh, and i gave one to chelle, she LOVED it :p
recipe source : chocolate desserts by pierre hermé
for the milk choc sheets :
at least 450g milk couverture choc, preferably valrhona jivara lactée 40%, finely chopped
for the milk choc whipped cream :
143g milk choc
218ml whipping cream
for the hazelnut dacquoise :
35g ground hazelnuts
50g icing sugar
45g egg whites, room temp
1.5 tbsp caster sugar
1/2 cup whole hazelnuts, toasted, skinned & halved
for the hazelnut praline :
100g nutella or hazelnut praline paste
25g milk choc, melted & cooled til lukewarm
1/2 cup rice krispies or 1/4 cup feuilletine flakes
1/2 tbsp butter, melted & cooled
for the milk choc ganache :
95g milk choc
83ml whipping cream
directions :
1. to temper the milk choc, start with at least a pound (450g) of milk choc as it is easier to work with. get ready a candy thermometer as well. place the choc in a clean bowl, then either double-boil or microwave it in short intervals until the temp reaches 49C (120F). be careful not to let even a drop of water get into the choc as it will seize and render unworkable. remove choc from heat and continue stirring until the choc has cooled to a temp of 27C-28C (80-83F). you'll know the choc is nearing the right temp when it begins to set around the edges. reheat the choc again until it reaches 29-31C (85-88F). it is now ready for use. to test if you've gotten it right, dip a knife into the choc and put the knife in the fridge for a few secs. it should emerge coated with a shiny nonstreaked layer of choc. get ready some A4-sized acetate sheets and spread the choc onto the acetate with an offset spatula. refrigerate for abt 30 secs or until the choc is half set, then remove from fridge and score twelve 11x3cm rectangles with a knife onto the choc. refrigerate until firm, then remove the choc by peeling off the acetate sheet and breaking them along the score lines. refrigerate again until ready to use.
2. to make the choc whipped cream, place choc in bowl. bring cream to boil then pour onto choc. mix well then place plastic wrap directly onto the choc mixture & refrigerate for 5-6 hrs or overnight. before using, whip mixture until almost firm then re-refrigerate if not using immediately.
3. to make the hazelnut dacquoise, sift ground hazelnuts & icing sugar together & set aside. in a bowl whisk egg whites until foamy then gradually add in sugar and whisk until stiff peaks. fold hazelnut mixture into the whites then spread mixture evenly onto a 6-inch baking tray lined with parchment paper. scatter hazelnut halves on top then press down slightly. bake in a preheated oven of 165C for 25-30 mins or until browned. leave to cool.
4. to make the hazelnut praline, place nutella/praline paste in bowl then add in the remaining ingredients the order they're listed. mix well then spread the praline evenly onto the dacquoise, working from the center and spread as far as it will go to the edges. refrigerate the dacquoise for at least 30 mins.
5. to make the choc ganache, place choc in bowl and bring cream to a boil. stir the cream into the choc until the choc is completely melted. allow the ganache to cool & thicken or refrigerate until pipeable consistency.
6. to assemble, trim the dacquoise along the edges and slice into four 11x3cm rectangles. fit the piping bag with a 1/4 inch (7mm Ø) plain tip and fill the bag with ganache. pipe a zigzag of ganache over the 4 dacquoises in the middle (go easy on the ganache). place a milk choc sheet on top, shiny side up and pipe another zigzag of ganache onto the choc sheet. place another choc sheet over. fit the piping bag with a 1/2 inch (14mm Ø) tip and fill the bag with choc whipped cream. pipe two straight lines of choc whipped cream on top and top with one last piece of choc sheet. decorate with toasted whole hazelnuts if desired.
0 comments:
Post a Comment