One of Those Days

Do you ever have them?  Those days that, at some point, you realize the most challenging thing you should have endeavored was changing the channel?  Apparently, today was my day.  C’est la vie.

Versatile Pâte à Choux

Yesterday it rained.  All day.  And while the cool, dampness began stirring within me the desire to turn on the oven, the desire to curl up on the sofa with a good cookbook and a marginally interesting movie was stronger.  Today, the sun is shining.  It’s a gorgeous day.  And I turned on the oven.  It was time to make some éclairs.  I’ve been thinking about these since making the vanilla-orange curd last week.  Today was the day to put thoughts into action.

The pastry part of the éclair is made from pâte à choux, which to me seems to fall somewhere in between a batter and a dough.  I don't know why I don't use it more often, because it's truly such a simple dough to produce such elegant results.  Pâte à choux is used not only for éclairs, but also for cream puffs, profiteroles and gougeres.  As a side note, I had to look up the difference between cream puffs and profiteroles.  Profiteroles are essentially miniature cream puffs which may have a sweet or savory filling.  Gougeres are piped in the same manner as cream puffs, but have cheese (traditionally Gruyere) and black pepper added to the dough, and are not typically filled.

The recipe I used for pâte à choux today is the one we used in school.  Because of that, the ingredients are by weight versus volume.  The volume measurements I have provided in parentheses may not be 100% accurate, but should be close enough as to not affect the final product.  Also, some recipes add sugar.  The recipe I previously used from Amy Finley calls for sugar.  Either is fine.  You’ll probably have better browning with the sugar.  I think I may one day try pâte à choux in terms of a ratio:  one large egg to each ounce of milk, water, butter and flour.  That would certainly make it easy to remember, providing that it works.

 

An important note on the quantity of eggs:  you may not need the entire 12 ounces of eggs.  Ambient humidity and the amount of evaporation while cooking can affect the dough and how much egg it will require.  Make sure to read the recipe through before beginning.  The recipe can easily be cut in half, keeping in mind that half of 1/4 cup is usually 2 tablespoons.

Pâte à Choux

6 oz (3/4 cup) milk

6 oz (3/4 cup) water

6 oz (3/4 cup or 1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed

Pinch salt

6-1/4 oz (1-1/4 cups) all-purpose flour, sifted

12 oz (6 large) eggs, beaten 

Combine the milk, water, butter and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Remove the pan from the heat, add the sifted flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until it forms a dough.  Reduce the heat to medium and return the pan to the heat.  Cook and stir the dough for 30 to 60 seconds or until a film begins to form on the bottom of the pan. 

Transfer the dough to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Mix on medium speed for about one minute to cool the dough.  Gradually begin adding the beaten egg in a thin stream, adding no more than a tablespoonful at a time.  The mixture will look “curdled” throughout much of the process.  Whenever that happens, stop adding egg and mix until it smoothes out. 

The "droop" test for medium peaks.

At the point when the dough begins to look more like a thick batter, stop mixing.  Scrape the sides and paddle and test the consistency of the dough by quickly dipping a spoon in the dough.  Hold it upright.  If the dough stands straight up, you’re at stiff peaks and more egg needs to be added.  The goal is medium peaks, which is where the dough will stand up but the very tip will droop slightly.

For éclairs:

Preheat oven to 425°F.  



The narrow space is for spacing in
between the rows of piped eclairs. 



Transfer the pâte à choux to a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip.  I use Ateco 806.  You can also use a large star tip, but I prefer the more traditional, smooth tops.  On a parchment lined baking sheet, pipe the éclairs about three inches long and two inches apart.  I like to rule my parchment on the back to make sure I'm keeping the size consistent.  To keep from having a pointy end, release the pressure on the piping bag while quickly pushing the tip upward toward the piped éclair.  (This probably makes more sense when you look at the picture.)  After the éclairs are piped, run the tip of a sharp knife down the outside edge of each éclair.  Be careful not to cut too deeply.  This will help the éclairs keep their shape. 



Finishing the eclairs.



Bake the éclairs for 10 – 12 minutes, or until golden brown.  Cool slightly and then pierce each end with a skewer to make holes for the filling.  Allow to cool completely before filling.  The éclairs can be filled with pastry cream, curd or stabilized whipped cream using a piping bag fitted with a small star tip.  When filled, dip the tops in melted chocolate (or drizzle the chocolate over them).  The full recipe of pâte à choux makes approximately five dozen mini éclairs.

For gougeres:

Preheat oven to 400°F. 



Placing the pastry bag in a cup with the tip folded will
help keep the batter/dough from oozing out of the tip.

When the pâte à choux reaches the proper consistency, add one cup of finely grated cheese (traditionally Gruyere, but I prefer Parmigiano-Reggiano) and coarsely ground fresh black pepper to taste.  Transfer the pâte à choux to a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip, such as Ateco 806, and pipe quarter-sized mounds of dough about an inch tall.  Use the back of a spoon dipped in water to flatten out the peaks. 

Bake the gougeres 14 – 16 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.  When cool enough to handle, use a skewer to poke a small hole in the bottom (to release steam) and transfer to a wire rack.  I think these are best served warm, so if necessary reheat them in the oven before serving.  The full recipe of pâte à choux makes approximately five dozen gougeres.



The finished eclairs filled with vanilla-orange curd and drizzled with white chocolate.



The finished gougeres.  I thought it would be nice to do something savory for the hubs.







The Whites and the Yolks

My friend, Alicia, asked me to do the cake for her sister's bridal shower.  It was to be a white cake with a layer of strawberries in the middle and white chocolate buttercream with white chocolate shavings.  For 80 people.  It was a big cake.

The cake's design was inspired by the shower invitations (the graphic flowers)
and the bride-to-be's china pattern (Lenox "Chirp").

I don't mind doing white cake, but for that much cake I really have to find use for the remaining egg yolks.  All 28 of them.  Throwing them out is simply not an option.

Over the last couple of days I've discovered it's easier to find recipes (that I can actually use anyway) that require only egg whites versus only egg yolks.  My go-to recipe for egg yolks is curd.  So this morning I used close to half of the yolks made about a quart and a half of vanilla infused orange curd. 

The recipe I started with was from Martha.  Of course, we all know I'm not the best at following recipes.  Before I even started, I knew I would be substituting ingredients to use things I already had on hand. 

The recipe calls for cooking the egg yolk mixture in a heavy pot over direct heat.  Much like jams and jellies, curd is not something you casually turn your back on.  As such, I tend to lean toward the side of caution and always use the double boiler method when I make curd.  In this case, I used the mixer bowl of my Kitchen Aid so when the mixture was cooked, I could put the bowl back on the mixer and let it whisk while I added the butter.  Lazy?  Perhaps.  But I prefer to think of it as "working smarter, not harder" - a favorite quote of one of my instructors. 

The brown sticks floating in the egg mixture are two left over pods from vanilla beans scraped for the cake.  I cut them up so they wouldn't be getting caught up in the whisk.  I did pull them out before whisking in the butter.  It would have been nice to show you pictures of the curd coming together as the butter is added in the mixer; however, I'm not coordinated enough to add butter with one hand and try to photograph with the other.  Being one's own photographer has its limitations. 

Because I like the bits of orange zest in it, I chose not to strain the curd.  I usually only strain if I've not been paying attention and have bits of scrambled yolk that need to come out.  And now what am I going to do with a quart and a half of orange curd?  I believe it's going to make a fine filling for some cupcakes.  Or maybe I'll try it as a filling for some mini eclairs topped with white chocolate.  Beyond that, I'm going to try to not just eat it with a spoon.

Vanilla Orange Curd

12 large egg yolks

1-1/2 cups sugar

2 Tbs orange zest

6 Tbs orange juice concentrate

4 Tbs water

5 Tbs lemon juice

1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

2 sticks plus 5 Tbs unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces

Combine the egg yolks, sugar, orange zest, orange juice concentrate, water, lemon juice and vanilla bean in the top of a double boiler set over medium-high heat.  Whisk to combine.  Cook 8 to 10 minutes, whisking constantly until the mixture starts to thicken, then switch to a heat-proof spatula.  Continue to cook and stir until the mixture is thickened and reaches 160°F.  Be sure to scrape sides of the bowl while cooking.  

Remove the bowl from heat.  Remove the vanilla bean pod and discard.  Transfer the bowl to the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk on medium speed.  Add the butter continuously, one piece at a time, until all of the butter is incorporated.  Whisk 2 – 3 minutes more on medium high speed to cool the curd.   If desired, strain through a fine sieve into a bowl or covered container.  Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the curd to prevent a skin from forming.  Refrigerate until chilled and very firm, at least 2 hours or up to 10 days.