Cream Puff "Crack Buns"(Choux au Craquelin) – Chef John Goes Hollywood

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Make Cream Puff "Crack Buns"(Choux au Craquelin) – Chef John Goes Hollywood

These gorgeous cream puff "crack buns” were inspired by the Great British Baking Show, which is not only my favorite cooking show, but currently my favorite thing on television. Maybe it's the accent, or because the contestants are all so nice, and actually try to help each other. Or, it could be the fact that when the time is up, and they try to work for a few more seconds, the hosts just politely scold them, instead of immediate disqualification, which is what would happen on our much more uptight American culinary competitions.

It's probably all of the above, plus the fact I always get so many wonderful ideas for videos, with these Choux au Crackelinbeing a prime example. Like I said in the video, these would be great filled with all kinds of things, but it's hard to beat vanilla bean pastry cream. I'm pretty proud of the recipe we posted a few years ago, and while I enjoy it straight, traditionally it would have some whipped cream folded in to lighten the mixture.

Speaking of favorite things, Boston cream pie is one of my all-time favorite desserts, and this was basically an individually portioned, probably superior version of that. The only thing that would have made this experience any more enjoyable would have been getting that coveted Paul Hollywood handshake. Maybe one day. In the meantime, I really do hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 6 to 8 Crack Buns:

For the “crack” crust:

3 tablespoons soft butter

1/4 light brown sugar (1 1/2 ounces)

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour (47 grams)

pinch salt

For the choux pastry:

1/2 cup water

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

pinch salt

1/2 cup flour

2 large room temperature eggs

melted dark chocolate, optional

- Put into 450 F. oven, reduce to 350 F., and bake for 30-40 minutes or until browned and fully puffed.

- Get the vanilla pastry cream recipe here.

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Rocky Road with Maltesers

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Make Rocky Road with Maltesers

Rocky Road with Maltesers

This has to be the best rocky road that I have ever tasted, it is a must try!

Naughty but extremely nice!

Makes 12

Prep time:  20 minutes (plus 3 hours 20 minutes refrigeration time)

Cooking time:  10 minutes

Ingredients

110g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing

90g caster sugar

2 tbsp golden syrup

1 tbsp cocoa powder

50g milk chocolate

150g maltesers

100g marshmallows, torn in half or quarters

For the topping

100g milk chocolate

Preparation method

1.    Butter a 24cm x 11cm loaf tin or the equivalent and line with cling film.

2.    In a small pan gently melt the butter, sugar, syrup, cocoa powder and chocolate.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

3.    Now add the maltesers and marshmallows, mix well and spoon into the loaf tin.  Cover with the excess cling film and refrigerate for 3 hours.

4.    Once set remove from the loaf tin and place onto a serving plate.

5.    For the topping, place a small heat-proof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water.  Place the chocolate in the bowl and gently melt, once melted pour over the rocky road.

6.    Place in the fridge for 20 minutes to set the chocolate, to serve cut the rocky road into slices.  Enjoy!

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Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons – What a Difference an “O” Makes

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Make Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons – What a Difference an “O” Makes

I’ve always found it amusing that macaroons, which are one of the easiest cookies ever, has the same name, give or take an “o,” as the famously difficult macaron. 

Even though they have the same origin, which the Italian word maccarone (also where we get macaroni), they couldn’t be more different in texture, as well as the skill they require.

Since we did (and totally nailed) the hard one, I figured I should do the easy one, especially since I just got back from vacation, and something simple seemed like a really good idea. Speaking of easy, using sweetened condensed milk streamlines the operation, and produces a very nice texture, but if you can’t find it, there are many macaroon recipes that use white, or powdered sugar, so don’t let that slow you down.

Regarding the chocolate dip, you can just melt, and use any kind you like, but for that extra professional touch, I suggest tempering the chocolate before you dip.  There are many complicated demos online, which involve heating and cooling the chocolates using very specific temperatures, and they work great, but I generally don’t have the patience. 

Instead, I use a shortcut method that involves chopping up some dark chocolate into the size of peas, melting 75% of it, and then stirring in the other 25%, until it melts. That should get you pretty close, and at the very least you’ll have a firmer, snappier texture than if you just melted all the chocolate at once, and started dipping. Either way, I hope you give these easy coconut macaroons a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 24 Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons:

3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

1 large egg white

3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

- Bake at 350 F. for 20 minutes, or until golden.

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Chocolate & Jerte Picota Cherry Brownies

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Make Chocolate & Jerte Picota Cherry Brownies

Chocolate & Jerte Picota Cherry Brownies

Cherries and Chocolate are a match made in heaven!  But Jerte Picota Cherries make this recipe as they are so deliciously sweet and juicy.

Makes 12

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time:  40 minutes

Ingredients

100g dark chocolate, chopped

100g butter, softened

200g light brown sugar

2 free range eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp vanilla extract

100g plain flour

150g Jerte Picota Cherries, pitted & halved

Preparation method

1.    Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/Gas mark 4.  Grease and line a 20cm square cake tin.

2.    Put the chocolate into a bowl and place over a pan of simmering water making sure the bowl does not touch the water.  Remove when melted and allow to cool slightly.

3.    Meanwhile, place the butter and sugar into a bowl and whisk until light and pale.  Gradually beat in the eggs and vanilla extract and the mix through the flour and melted chocolate until mixed through and smooth.

4.    Now fold through the Jerte Picota Cherries and pour into the cake tin.  Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes.  Allow the brownies to cool and then cut into squares.  Enjoy!

Why Jerte Picota Cherries?

·    The Jerte Picota Cherry is a special variety of cherry that is native to the beautiful Jerte Valley in Northern Extremadura, Spain, 200km west of Madrid. This area is famous for the incredible cherry blossom of more than a million trees that takes place each year.

·         It is a 100% natural product that follows a natural growing season, which is why the arrival of the Jerte Picota Cherry changes each year and why theyare only available for six weeks each summer.

·         When the cherries are ready to be harvested at optimum ripeness, they are hand-picked off the trees, leaving the stalks behind, and placed into chestnut baskets. This is why they are sold without a stalk.

·         Jerte Picota Cherries are usually available from the end of June until the beginning of August in the UK, and they are expected to arrive in stores from the beginning of July, due to the cold winter this year.

·         The Jerte Picota Cherry are a P.D.O. Product (P.D.O. standing for Protected Designation of Origin) which certifies that the fruit has been grown, harvested and packed under rigorous quality-controlled procedures and has come exclusively from the Jerte Valley in Spain.

·         The Jerte Picota is not only unique from its P.D.O. status but also from its stalkless harvest and its shape, which has a slight peak to the base, hence the word ‘Picota’ means ‘peaked’.

For more information on Jerte Picota P.D.O., please visit https://cerezadeljerte.org/en/

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SKIPPY® Peanut Butter & Chocolate Crunchy Bars

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Make SKIPPY® Peanut Butter & Chocolate Crunchy Bars

SKIPPY® Peanut Butter & Chocolate Crunchy Bars

These SKIPPY® Peanut butter bars are an easy and sweet treat with no baking required!  Everyone will love these chewy, sweet & salty bars that are ready in no time at all.

Serves 20

Prep time:  5 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cooking time:  10 minutes

Ingredients

125g butter, cubed

110g caster sugar

80ml golden syrup

100g SKIPPY® extra crunchy peanut butter

160g cornflakes, crushed

350g milk chocolate

Preparation method

1.    Grease a 20cm x 30cm baking tray.

2.    Add the butter, sugar, syrup, and peanut butter to a large pan.  Melt all the ingredients on a low heat until the sugar dissolves.  Bring to the boil and allow to simmer over a low heat for 5 minutes without stirring.

3.    Now add the cornflakes and mix thoroughly.  Spread the mixture into the baking tray, press firmly and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

4.    Melt the chocolate in a small bowl over a simmering pan of water (don’t let the water touch the base of the bowl) or in the microwave, until smooth.  Spread the chocolate over the peanut butter crunch, stand at room temperature until set before cutting.  Enjoy.

Skippy® Peanut Butter (RRP £2.40 per 340g) is available in Smooth and Crunchy varieties, which are currently available in major supermarkets including Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Costco, International section of Tesco and Ocado. For more information and recipes visit www.peanutbutter.uk.com

SKIPPY® EXTRA CRUNCHY Peanut Butter

Craving a peanutty taste that packs a crunch? Look no further than SKIPPY® EXTRA CRUNCHY® Peanut Butter. Every jar is blended with loads of real peanut pieces, so you get the fun flavour of SKIPPY® Peanut Butter, plus lots of crunchiness.

 

SKIPPY® EXTRA SMOOTH Peanut Butter

Spread on the smiles with smooth, creamy, melt in the mouth peanut butter perfection. SKIPPY® Smooth Peanut Butter adds more yum and fun to just about anything. It ain’t nothing but smooth snacking with this creamy classic.

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Chocolate Granola – Take That, Count Chocula!

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Make Chocolate Granola – Take That, Count Chocula!

I know chocolate granola sort of sounds like candy, but introducing cocoa into the mix not only makes it delicious, it also actually makes it better for you! Possibly. No one is really sure. The point is this really tastes great, and would make a wonderful treat for the chocolate lover, mother or otherwise, in your life.

I showed amazing restraint not adding anything more that oatmeal and almonds, since I really think that’s the best plan for the chocolate base, but I would have no problem with you accessorizing this as you see fit. Coconut flakes are an obvious choice, as are other usual suspects like dried fruit, any and all nuts, and assorted seeds.

If you want a stickier granola, that will more easily clump together, you can up the brown sugar and maple syrup a bit, as I used the bare minimum in this recipe, but I think it’s plenty sweet enough, especially if you’re a fan of dark chocolate.

Speaking of chocolate, I used Guittard’s Cocoa Rouge, a Dutch-process cocoa, which has a lower acidity than regular cocoa, and works perfectly flavor-wise. However, I’ve heard that type of cocoa doesn’t retain as much of the nutritional value, due to the way it’s processed. The good news is, any high-quality cocoa will work here.

By the way, I was only half-kidding about making this for someone, and then keeping it all for yourself, so best play it safe, and make a double, or triple batch. No matter how much you make, or what you add in, I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!



Makes about 3 1/2 cups of Chocolate Granola:

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon fine salt)

pinch of cayenne

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa (Dutch-processed if possible)

2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup chopped almonds

- Mix, and bake at 250 F. for about an hour, or until as crunchy/chewy as you like.

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Orange & White Chocolate Cake

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Make Orange & White Chocolate Cake

Orange & White Chocolate Cake

A fantastic light orange and almond sponge covered in a delicious white chocolate topping

Serves 10

Prep time 30 minutes

Cooking time 40 minutes

Ingredients

175g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

175g golden caster sugar

4 oranges, zest of 4, juice of 1

4 eggs, separated

100g self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g ground almonds

For the topping

200g white chocolate

200ml creme fraiche

100g white chocolate, to decorate

Preparation method

1.  Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/Gas Mark 4.  Grease two 20cm sandwich tins and line the bases with baking parchment.

2. Place the sugar into a large bowl and add the butter and orange zest, beat until the mixture is pale and fluffy then add the egg yolks.  Sift the flour and baking powder over the mixture and fold through lightly.  Then fold through the almonds and orange juice.  

3. In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites until they can hold their shape.  Now fold through a third of the egg whites into the cake mixture.  Repeat with another third and then the final third.  Try not to over mix the mixture otherwise you will lose the lightness.

4. Divide the cake mix between the 2 cake tins and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.  Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes and then remove and leave to cool on a wire rack.

5. For the topping, place the chocolate in a bowl and melt over a slightly simmering pan of water and leave to cool.  In a separate bowl whip the crème fraiche until it is thick then fold through the white chocolate.  Place one cake on a serving plate and spoon half the icing onto the cake and top with the other layer of cake.  Spread the rest of the icing on top then allow to set in the fridge for at least one hour.

6.  To decorate the cake, melt the remaining chocolate and spread thinly over a baking tray.  Leave to set in the fridge then use an angled knife blade to scrape chocolate curls.  Pile the curls in the middle of the cake.  Cut into slices and enjoy!

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Nipples of Venus (Capezzoli di Venere) - Keeping Abreast of the Latest in Valentine’s Day Confections

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Make Nipples of Venus (Capezzoli di Venere) - Keeping Abreast of the Latest in Valentine’s Day Confections

I don’t remember much about the movie, Amadeus, which isn’t surprising, since I don’t remember that much about the early eighties in general, but I do recall the famous “Nipples of Venus” scene. At the time, I wondered if that was actually a real thing, or just something made up for the movie, but since there was no Internet yet, I never found out.

Fast forward thirty-plus years later, and inspired by a viewer’s request, I finally learned that these were in fact real, and very delicious, thanks in part to star of the show, chestnuts. While not a common ingredient, chestnuts aren’t that hard to find, and worth the effort, since they work really well in this.

If you must, another nut like almond, or hazelnut, should work about the same, especially when you consider your guest, or guests, will be fairly distracted by the eye-opening appearance. Speaking of Netflix and chill, you could show Amadeus after dinner, with these served as a sexy snack during the viewing. From there, you’re on your own. Regardless of whether you serve these on Valentine’s Day or not, I still really hope you give them a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 24 Nipples of Venus:

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp

1/3 cup white sugar

6 ounces dark chocolate

14 ounces whole chestnuts

pinch of salt

pinch of cayenne

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup brandy

*8 ounces white chocolate, chopped, divided

1/3 cup powdered sugar

enough milk to make a very thick paste

1 or 2 drops red food coloring

*This is more white chocolate than you need for coating, but that's how this stuff works. Just eat the rest. 

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Chocolate Croissants – But Just Barely

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Make Chocolate Croissants – But Just Barely

I’ll admit to being pretty underwhelmed the first time I had a chocolate croissant, or “pain au chocolat,”as I’d mispronounce it; but eventually I realized the relatively sparse amount of chocolate wasn’t any kind of stinginess, but rather the true secret behind this amazing pastry.

Properly done, this should ride that line between sweet pastry and a savory bread, so don’t overdo it with the chocolate chunks; otherwise you’ll lose that beautiful balance. Other than that, not much can go wrong. Just be sure to bake them until nicely browned, and let them cool before enjoying.

While this will work with that dough in the tube, I’d like to think you’d make a batch of your own dough using our recently posted croissant recipe. Don’t worry, it only seems like a lot of work. Either way, I really do hope you give these chocolate croissants a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 12 Chocolate Croissants:

1 batch of croissant dough from this recipe (split in half for two batches of 6)

about 1 cup roughly chopped chocolate chunks, or chips

1 large egg, plus 1 tablespoon of water for the egg wash

coarsely ground sea salt

- Bake at 400 F. for about 20-25 minutes, or until well-browned

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Chocolate Bark – Temper, Temper

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Make Chocolate Bark – Temper, Temper

In addition to sharing an easy, and beautiful edible holiday gift idea, I wanted to make this chocolate bark so I could test a simplified technique for tempering chocolate without a thermometer. It sounded too good to be true, but worked fairly well, which is the problem. Is fairly good, okay? 

Properly tempered chocolate will snap when broken, and retain that gorgeous glossy sheen. Poorly tempered chocolate is sort of dull grey, and the texture is soft, and waxy. This was somewhere in the middle.

Using this method, you will get close to properly tempered chocolate, and you might get lucky, and actually end up with perfectly tempered chocolate, but in hindsight, since using a thermometer isn’t really hard, and the extra steps required not that strenuous, I’ll probably just do it the right way next time.

In fact, I may do a future chocolate truffle video as an excuse to show you the “professional” method, but in the meantime, check out this great article I found on Allrecipes, as well as this video from Monarch Media that does a good job of explaining the steps. There are also hundreds of other videos online that take you through the procedure. Regardless of which method you go with, quick and imprecise, or deliberate and exact, I stand by my assertion that this would make a great holiday gift. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 36 pieces of Chocolate Bark

1 1/2 pounds dark chocolate (70% cacao)

1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped

1 cup shelled, roasted, salted pistachios

1/2 cup dried gogi berries

about 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

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Sticky Chocolate Loaf Cake

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Make Sticky Chocolate Loaf Cake

Sticky Chocolate Loaf Cake
A deliciously gooey sticky chocolate cake that stays moist for days!

Serves 10-12

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 10-20minutes

Ingredients
250g unsalted butter, softened plus extra to grease
225g dark brown soft sugar
3 medium free-range eggs
150g golden syrup
1 tbsp vanilla essence
100g plain chocolate (melted)
225g plain four
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
25g good-quality cocoa powder
250ml boiling water

Topping

250g milk chocolate
350g strawberries
2 boxes of chocolate fingers

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan 170°C/gas mark 5 then grease and line a 900g loaf tin.

2. Place the butter and sugar into a mixer and mix for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, and mix well.

3. Gradually add the syrup, vanilla essence and melted chocolate – mix well.

4. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cocoa powder into another mixing bowl. Add a third of the flour mix into the cake mix and blend well. Add half the boiling water, then half the flour mix and beat well. Now add the remaining water and flour, mix well.

5. Carefully pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 30 minutes. Now reduce the heat to 170°C/fan 150°C/Gas mark 3 ½ and bake for another 30-40 minutes or until a skewer comes out almost clean. Do not worry if it’s a bit sticky – it will continue to cook whilst cooling. Remove from the tin, transfer to a serving plate and allow to cool.

6. To decorate, pour over half the melted chocolate and spread evenly over the cake. Now place the chocolate fingers evenly around the cake. Dip the strawberries into the remaining chocolate and place on and around the cake. Enjoy!

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Chocolate Soufflé – Perfect for Your Valentine (Unless I’m Your Valentine)

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Make Chocolate Soufflé – Perfect for Your Valentine (Unless I’m Your Valentine)

With everybody’s favorite made-up holiday right around the corner, I thought I would finally post a chocolate soufflé. I’m not sure what took so long, other than the fact that soufflés have never been my favorite delivery system for chocolate.

Sure, they’re visually impressive, which is key for a special occasion dessert, but the chocolate does get a bit diluted by all those air bubbles. Also, I’ve always been much more of a cold, or room-temp chocolate dessert guy, and never gone nuts for things like lava cakes, and baked puddings.

Having said that, I’m sure I’m in the minority, and you and your special someone will enjoy these just fine. I developed this recipe for two, since that makes a lot of sense, but it should scale up without issue. If you want to add some type of liquor to this, you can add it to the milk and flour mixture after you turn off the heat.

Rum works beautiful, as does coffee, orange, or raspberry liqueur.  Above and beyond that, if you really want to impress your date, you could also whip up a sauce to serve along side. I’m thinking either a berry puree, or maybe a coffee crème anglaise would pair perfectly. Either way, sauced or not, I really hope you give this a try soon, and it gets you lots of compliments. Enjoy!

Chocolate soufflé for two 5-oz ramekins):
melted butter and sugar to prep ramekins

1 tablespoon butter  

1 tablespoon flour

1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon cold milk

pinch salt

pinch cayenne

2 ounces dark chocolate (I like something around 70%)

1 large egg yolk

2 large egg whites

pinch cream of tartar (you can use a few drops of lemon juice or vinegar instead)

1 tablespoon white sugar, added in 3 additions

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My Dream Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream

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Make My Dream Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream

And by dream, I mean nightmare. I don’t test recipes. There is nothing in my contract that requires me to only post successful videos, and as you longtime viewers know, I do enjoy sharing the occasional flop, but this new and improved, vanilla bean pastry cream was not a one-take affair.

I’ve wanted to update our old crème patisserie recipe for a while, and long story short, I became obsessed, and ended up suffering through seven non-perfect versions before I was finally satisfied. The key to a great pastry cream is using the minimum of starch. You need enough so the cream holds a shape, but not so much it interferes with the flavor.

I found flour-based pastry creams easy to work with, but they have more of a pasty mouthfeel that gets in the way of the vanilla. That’s why this version is all corn starch, which we need less of to do the same job. Just be careful not to keep cooking it once it has thickened, otherwise you may compromise its thickening powers.

With the holidays, and their associated fancy desserts, right around the corner, what better time to work on your pastry cream game? So whether it’s for Napoleons, pies, tarts, or cakes, I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Makes about 3 cups:

1 large whole egg

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon fine table salt)

1/2 cup granulated white sugar

1/4 cup corn starch

2 cups whole milk

1 vanilla bean, seeded, plus pure vanilla extract if needed
Tip: Save the scraped pods, and stick them in your sugar container for lovely, vanilla-scented sugar!

4 tablespoons cold butter, cubed

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