The croquembouche often appears at French weddings. Additionally, for events such as the birth of a child or birthday parties, profiteroles are frequently piled into a tower to celebrate and express congratulations. When stacking the croquembouche, it is difficult to maintain balance, so the overall shape must be checked constantly.
The Origin of the Croquembouche
In the past, Austria and France were long-term competitors for dominance in Europe. Later, to avoid mutual destruction and to prevent neighboring countries from benefiting, the two sides agreed to a political marriage. At the wedding banquet of the Austrian princess and the French prince, the croquembouche was the finale dessert, marking an end to the prolonged war, and thus became a French symbol of auspicious celebration.
Authentic Croquembouche Recipe
Ingredients
400g butter, 500g medium-strength flour, 100g eggs, an appropriate amount of chocolate, 600g water, 100g instant custard powder, 500g sugar.
Instructions
1. Take a large piece of thick cardboard and make it into a cone, then wrap the surface with aluminum foil and set aside.
2. Melt the chocolate in a water bath and keep it in a molten state for later use.
3. Mix the instant custard powder with cold water at a ratio of 1:4 to prepare the filling and set aside.
4. Heat the butter and water until the butter melts and the water boils. After boiling, add the sifted flour and stir while cooking.
5. Place the cooked dough in a mixer and mix quickly until cooled. Add the eggs in portions, stirring until the dough becomes sticky and smooth.
6. Brush a baking tray with a thin layer of oil and sprinkle with a thin layer of flour.
7. Fill a piping bag with the dough and pipe small round shapes onto the baking tray.
8. Bake at 220°C top heat and 180°C bottom heat until golden brown.
9. After cooling, fill with custard filling and dip the surface in chocolate, then chill until set.
10. Boil the sugar and water into a syrup with a sticky consistency. Dip the bottom of the prepared profiteroles into the syrup and stick them from bottom to top on the previously made cone, then sprinkle with icing sugar to finish.
Tips and Precautions for Making Croquembouche
1. When cooking the flour, stir continuously to ensure it is thoroughly cooked.
2. Add the eggs to the cooled dough in portions.
3. After adding the eggs to the dough, stir evenly and smoothly.
4. Do not open the oven door during baking, or the product may shrink.
5. When preparing the custard filling, mix well, and do not overfill the profiteroles.
6. The syrup needs to be boiled to the right consistency, otherwise, the profiteroles will not stick together.
Homemade Croquembouche Recipe
Ingredients
1 pre-baked pie crust, an appropriate amount of chocolate, 30 small profiteroles, an appropriate amount of basic cream filling.
Instructions
1. Fill the baked small profiteroles with basic cream filling.
2. Melt the chocolate in a water bath.
3. Fill the pre-baked pie crust with basic cream filling, dip the small profiteroles in the cream filling, and stack them tightly into a pointed tower shape.
4. Drizzle with melted chocolate for decoration.
Tips
The profiteroles should be stacked first before drizzling with chocolate sauce to ensure stability.