This dessert is dedicated to those of you who LOVE coffee. Golden, crunchy cream puffs, topped with almond crumble layer, and full of chocolate cream and a large, generous mound of coffee cream. What’s not to like? 🙂
Photo: Natalie Levin
Almond, Chocolate and Coffee Cream Puffs
For the almond crumble:
- 50 grams cold butter (cut into cubes)
- 50 grams light brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 70 grams ground almonds
- 50 grams all-purpose flour
For the cream puffs:
- 230 ml. milk
- Pinch of salt
- 5 grams sugar
- 100 grams butter
- 150 grams flour
- 3-4 large eggs (beaten)
For the chocolate cream:
- 100 grams chopped dark chocolate
- 125 ml. heavy cream
- Pinch of salt
For coffee Chantilly cream:
- 500 ml. very cold heavy cream
- 2 tsp. granulated instant coffee
- 50 grams sugar powder
- 2 tsp. cream stabilizer or instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- Icing sugar for decoration
- Pistachio crumble: in a food processor with a steel blade put butter, sugar, salt, almonds and flour and blend together until you receive large chunks of dough.
- Flatten the dough between two baking paper and roll about 2-3 mm thick. Freeze for about 30 minutes to set.
- Cream puffs: preheat oven to 180c degrees.
- In a medium saucepan put milk, salt, sugar and butter and heat to a strong boil.
- Add flour and stir while cooking, until it turns into a lump of dough.
- Transfer the dough to the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle attachment and mix on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until it cools down a little.
- Add the eggs gradually while beating until dough is elastic and smooth. Check the readiness of dough by creating a “trail” with a wooden spoon in the center of the dough – if the track remains stable, add some eggs, and if it closes a bit – the dough is ready. It is important not to add too many eggs to the dough or it may become too soft and ruined.
- Transfer the dough to a pastry bag fitted with a round 2 cm piping tip. On a baking tray lined with baking paper pipe large cream puffs (about 5-6 cm in diameter). It’s important to leave some space between the cream puffs.
- Remove the crumble layer from the freezer and cut out about 6-7 cm circles. Place a round piece of crumble over each cream puff and flatten a bit.
- Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until the cream puffs are golden and set. Cool completely before filling.
- Cut each cream puff into 2 parts (like a sandwich).
- Chocolate cream: place the chocolate in a bowl.
- Heat cream and salt in a small saucepan to simmering point.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate, wait a minute, and beat until uniform and shiny chocolate ganache is formed.
- Cool the ganache in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally, until it reaches a stable and comfortable texture for drizzling.
- Transfer the ganache into a pastry bag fitted with a 2 cm round piping tip.
- Fill the bottom of each cream puff with a thin layer of chocolate cream.
- Coffee Chantilly cream: in a bowl of a mixer with whipping attachment, whip cream, coffee, powdered sugar and stabilizer until you get a very uniform and stable cream.
- Transfer the cream into a piping bag with 2 cm serrated piping tip.
- Drizzle generous mounds of Chantilly cream on top of the chocolate cream and close with the top of each cream puff.
- Garnish with powdered sugar and serve.
- The cream puffs at their best on the day of preparation, but you can keep them in a closed container in the refrigerator up to 3-4 days.
- Instead of almond you can use any other nut you like.
Photo: Natalie Levin
Photo: Natalie Levin