Happy Easter - Bombe de Mousse au Chocolat et Framboise

Happy Easter everyone! I am so exciting Easter is coming and I have in mind a while about making a round, spherical or egg shaped cake..... after many nights of thought, I decided and made this Bombe de Mousse au Chocolat et Framboise or chocolate and raspberry mousse bombe! This is a big and quite heavy 8 inch bombe cake, and can serve 8-10 people! I can't wait till Easter and shared this amazing bombe with my family already!

what you need (recipe follows)

• chocolate mousse
• raspberry mousse insert
• chocolate sponge cake
• Kirsch syrup
• 80g buttercream (I use praline buttercream)
• chocolate glaze
• macaron shells and one macaron for decoration

Let's see how everything comes together.....become a bombe, its may looks kind of funny because I assembled this cake upsidedown.....

Mousse au framboise

I made my raspberry mousse a day ahead and put it in a 4 inch diameter plastic wrap lined sphere mould. This mousse has to be frozen hard so it can hold its shape when assemble my bombe. Actually I made a few more so I can make this cake whenever I like! They can stay good in freezer for around a month but may loss volume a bit.

Mousse au chocolat

This mousse has to be made right at the time when I assemble my cake. I used a plastic wrap lined 8 inch diameter sphere mold. Also left around an inch of space from rim of this mould so I can put in my raspberry mousse insert and bottom cake layer later. it already looks yummy already!

Chocolate sponge cake

This is a simple chocolate sponge cake. I made a lovely batter and piped it to a 8 inches diameter circle on parchment paper. It need to be turned out rightaway after its done, cooled and trimmed a bit to fit into my cake mould. Wow, looks like a huge flattened snail...

Time to assemble my bombe
First, I had my chocolate mousse ready and filled it into my sphere mold and let it sat in my fridge around ten minutes. Then, my frozen raspberry mousse was laid carefully into my chocolate mousse. It need to be flushed with my chocolate mousse. Next step, I spreaded a thin layer of buttercream on my sponge cake and flipped it onto the sphere mould..... oh, nearly there.... finally, I brushed Kirsch syrup on my cake and its now ready to go into my freezer.....

Let me see if everything looks great before freezing my bombe, wow it looks perfect!  And it need to be in freezer for at least four hours to get it frim and cold enough before glazing. Anyway I left mine frozen overnite cause my arms had enough workout already and I need to go to bed!  I double plastic wrapped this bombe for freezing and next day I will finish all my final touches...

Time went by fast and its next day... time to get back to finish my bombe. First, I unmolded my bombe carefully and had it ready on a rack waiting patiently for a lovely chocolate glaze bath.  Timing is kind of important to have my glaze ready, runny, shiny but not too warm. In a few heart beats, I poured my glaze and I am one step closer to taste it!

I just let my bombe has all its glaze dripped down...it looks like mini-volcano-ish now, and I transferred it to my fridge and let it firm up a bit. Finally, I used a bit glaze as glue and decorated my bombe with macaron shells and crown a macaron on top.... and now I can say I am DONE!!!!  I can soon sink my forks in this lovely Easter bombe...although not Easter yet!

OMG, it looks so lovely! I am feeling kind of sorry to cut through it to get a taste.... okay wait till tonight then!

Finally, after all my hard work and sweat....its time to pay off, yeah! My first cut felt like my knife glided into butter, and my slice looks so awesome.  I wonder how it taste? Hmm... perfect smooth, airy and delicious chocolate, raspberry mousse; buttercream and chocolate sponge cake give a bit texture and nutty flavor to this already wonderful cake.  Oh my... just taste scrumptious and heavenly! Hope this bombe can last till this weekend but I will definitely make another again or smaller petite cake...

Happy Easter!

Intense Pistache Macarons

Intense Pistache Macarons

I think I am officially addicted to pistachios, my other addiction is chocolate and my other one.... my list is too long!  Since last couple weeks or so I bake like crazy, maybe spring awoke me...?? Yesterday, is officially first day of spring but I can't wait cold weather to go away. Anyway, I never get tired of making these fantastic intense pistachio macarons!  This time I am using pistachio buttercream instead which makes them exceptional rich....

I used my newly bought green pistachios inside my tant pour tant (batter), and they were fine without adding too much oil into my batter and didn't affect macaronage. The color is really beautiful and I couldn't resist and sprinkled some on the shells before they dry-out. But who knows what will come out when a new ingredient is added to macaron batter?  Like a mystery no one knows!

Time to reveal new pistachios's result: my macaron shells looks great!  I am so happy they turn out perfect as I expected...perfect little roundy, domey shells sitting silently and waiting for their other halves.

Wow! Swarm of macaron shells looks like a small army waiting on my counter top for filling now.  My pistachio butter cream is ready to pipe now.... also has some pistachios chopped and ready to coat them!

Piping is as same as ganache, just need to firm my buttercream in fridge a bit to get a right consistency. But my sometimes-too-warm hand may make my buttercream too soft and need trips to go back and forth my fridge...just a bit workout to burn off some calories!

Yeah!  Piping is done...let me get them roll and bath in a chopped pistachios tub! They looks like very quite happy swimming in pistachio ocean!  This extra layer of chopped pistachios will certainly give them extra flavor and texture to these already amazing macarons. Finally, my intense pistachio macarons are done... phew...let me wait till next day to taste them :) I am so glad my new stock of green pistachios works really well, I'll stick to them and try them out in my other receipes....maybe a cake?

Enjoy!

Rose, Raspberry and Pistachio Scones

I have made these lovely scones a while ago... not sure why kind of really missed them this few days...maybe spring? I have all my ingredients handy, so no need to wait :)  Very delicious, creamy, flaky, fluffy and quite easy to make, let me show you...

you need:

• 2 cups organic unbleached all purpose flour
• 8 tablespoon unsalted very chilled butter (yes, yes butter!)
• 1/3 sugar
• pinch of salt
• 3 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 large egg (slightly beaten)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• scant 1 cup raspberries
• 2 tablespoons rose water
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped pistachios

Time to start some baking....

• preheat your oven to 400F
• mix flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and sift them three times
• mix sugar with flour mixture and set aside
• cut butter into small pieces and put them into flour mixture
• use your hand or a pastry cutter to blend butter and flour mixture until butter around small peas size
• add egg, heavy cream and rose water into butter and flour mixture and blend

• gently fold in rasbperry and chopped pistachios until homogenous and become a ball of softy dough....it will be tacky but don't worry
• turn your soft fluffy dough on a lightly floured surface, use your hand and heel of hand to flatten it into 3/4 inch thick
• use a round cookie or biscuit cutter and make some small rounds. I used 2 and 1/4 diameter ones and got 12 scones

• see.... they looks so pretty now
• put them gently on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake them for 14 to 16 minutes (depends on your oven) until they are golden on top

• let them rest on a rack until cool...of course I ate one rightaway for some quality control!
• enjoy them for the next two to three days or you can store them in air tight container in your fridge

These rose raspberry and pistachio scones taste so delicious and I think they won't last a few days!  I rewarmed them for breakfast, afternoon tea with clotted creme, snacky time, midnight snack....hmm maybe 

Enjoy!

Tartelettes aux Figues et Chocolat

Figues ..... a plummy, juicy, sweety fruit.  I forgot when I start enjoying figs, and now I have them nearly everyday, at least few times a week and mostly with my salads.  Figs are good in almost any dishes, sweet or savory, I love them stand alone but of course they also taste exceptional good in desserts. Tarte...also one of my favorites, sweet or savory tarts are all good to me. So, by marrying both my favorite ingredients, I made this chocolate fig tart... did I mentioned chocolate?  Yes, chocolate adds another dimension to this delicious tart!  I made this tartelettes aux figues et chocolat with these ingredients:

- pâte sucrée au chocolat (chocolate sweet pastry)
- frangipane (almond cream filling)
- figs (I use black Mission figs)
- nappage (apricot glaze)

Lets take a look how I put my ingredients together....

I first started rolled out my pâte sucrée dough in tart rings, let them rested a bit in my fridge and blind baked them gently about 15 minutes with a bit pipe weight and a small piece of parchment paper. Then I filled up all my tartletttes with frangipane and waiting for those lovely figs. It took me a while to get used to tart rings... I think letting pastry dough chilling in fridge for at least couple hours, and many practice hours is my key for success!

My next step is much more easier compare to last few steps.  I cleaned and dried my figs, have their stems removed and sliced them to about 4 to 5 mm thick pieces. Arranged these pretty figs pieces like a swirl, returned them into my oven and baked for about 15 minutes or so.....  I can't wait to see how my tartlets look but I can smell them in the air!

Tada! They are now ready! Slightly caramelized figs with golden and puffy frangipane make these tartlets look so pretty, perfect and yummy. I didn't fill my frangipane too high since bad-tart-days did happened to me before and I had my tarts and tartlets flooded by frangipane like lava. I let them rested a bit and they came out nicely from the rings. Finally, one more step before I can sink my...fork in them. I rewarmed my nappage and brushed them generously and my tartlettes are done!

Hmm... time for my afternoon tea with just one more fig... I am too greedy :) 

Matcha Adzuki Macarons

Here we have another Asian flavor I love a lot, matcha (Japanese green tea) and adzuki (Japanese red bean).  I have tasted quite a few matcha adzuki macarons, mostly with matcha infused shells with adzuki filling.... so I come up with my own version of this amazing macaron! This time we will go behind the scene of how I make my macarons.......

Piping

First thing first, one of those most important things is to pipe these cute macarons shells and bake them perfectly.  I find Silpat is always my best friend in making macarons and it saves me sheets and sheets of parchment paper.... although I used to use them quite a bit, but since I use Silpat, there is no turning back! I use very fine grounded matcha powder in these shells to give them a distinctive matcha flavor....even making my tant pour tant (batter) I can smell very strong matcha flavor already!

Baking

After waiting patiently for my macarons shells to dry out a bit.... then another wait for baking them.  Finally, my perfectly baked macaron shells came out of oven! I use thick aluminium baking sheets to bake mine as they always come out perfectly and my shells won't burn in the bottoms. Okay, now is another time to let my shells cool down...let me make some green tea and relax a bit!

Cooling
Now we are back to business again! All my matcha macarons shells have cooled, paired and rest on rack await for piping with filling. I use matcha infused ganache and adzuki gelée to create my own version of Matcha Adzuki macarons! Since macarons are mostly handmade, I just paired same size ones together and odd ones I usually save them as snacks or other desserts...

Piping and assemble
I always find piping is something easier to say than done. I am still trying to perfect my piping skills in making pastries. Let's back to macarons, I have my matcha ganache ready to go in one hand and adzuki gelée in my other.  I just need to make sure my ganache is not too hard nor too gooey. I just piped a small dollop of ganache and put a adzuki gelée in the centre.... they are then all good to go!

Done!!
Ready to try?  Not so fast yet, as usual I usually let my macarons sit in fridge for around 24 hours to let their flavor develop. I truly agree with Pierre Hermé's suggestion to let macarons' sit after assemble. Yay, another delicious macarosn are ready, they may looks a bit taller than normal ones since they have gelée inside!  I should go get my green tea now....no, not till tomorrow to taste them! 

Biscotti al Pistacchio

Biscotti al Pistacchio - a popular Italian cookies with one of my favorite nuts!   I have tried this gluten free treats in a few places in Toronto and totally fall in love with them.  I think I have to make some myself....actually these cute little treats are quite easy to make and I love the bright green color of pistachios which make my baking much more fun.
 
They are made of very simple ingredients.... I use ground green pistachios, almonds, egg white, sugar and citrus zest.   Their unique bright green colour, nutty pistachio flavor plus a soft and chewy centre make me make me eat more than a few every time! The only way to solve my pistachio love is - I always keep them handy whenever I have a pistachio craving. 

Macarons

Macarons are one of my favorite treats. Since I have tried these cuties years ago, I fall in love with them so much.   Although they may not as popular as they are used to be,  I still love to make them with new flavors and always have some waiting for me in my fridge :)  Luckily, after spending many moons of baking, folding, beating egg whites...  I can make many flavors I love and here are some of my favorites...

Lavender Earl Grey
Earl Grey is one of my favorites tea second to Darjeeling tea and lavender is perfect to go with it.  For these lavender Earl Grey macarons, I combine French Lavender in their shells and Kusmi Earl Grey noir ganache. Really love their slight hint of lavender flavor and bold Earl Grey taste, just like an afternoon tea in my fingers! 

PinkPeppercorns and Raspberry
I can't get enough of these amazing flavor macarons.  A combination of pinkpeppercorns and raspberry may sound unusual....but they really taste great together!   I use pinkpeppercorns in their little shells and fresh raspberry puree ganache which make them looks and taste amazing. A tiny but not spicy kick from pinkpeppercorns with fruity, sweety raspberry make these macarons really exceptional!

Pistachio
Pistachio, pistachio, pistachio....a nut I love so much, I have them in many of my pastries and of course in my macarons too :)  I use green pistachios in shells to give them a strong pistachio flavor, pistachio ganache, sometimes I use pistachio creme, and finish them all with pistachio sprinkles..... intense pistachio macarons are born!

Toasted Black Sesame
Although macaron is a French pastries, sometimes it taste so delicious with Asian flares. This toasted black sesame macaron is an perfect example.  I incorporate Japanese toasted black sesames in shells, ganache and touch them up with a few whole toasted black sesame seeds.  This really make delicious macarons with a robust and unique flavor!

German Chocolate
German chocolate cake stays one of my favorite cakes, very delicious but not invented in Deutschland.... not sure how its name come from?   How about in macarons?  I can tell they taste amazing just like their big sister German chocolate cake. Shells are a bit tricky to make since I use melted 100% cocoa, but my hard work paid off!  I paired them  with coconut chocolate ganache and chopped toasted pecans!   Here we have amazing German Chocolate macarons!

Welcome to my blog :)

Hi Everyone, 

Welcome to Eryn Patisserie's blog.  This is my first blog to share my passion of pastry, sweets, baking, cooking.....  I am so glad I finally put together a place to share my passions with you, my friends, family, co-workers.....

Hmmm.... let's start with some Bordeaux Canelé

I love these little treats to death!   I am kind of difficult to find where to get them, and eventually found a couple places selling them.  Of course that's not the end and now I can finally able to make these little treats on my own...

Traditionally they are baked in copper molds but I manage to bake them with silicon molds and they taste excellent!   Their caramelized, deep brown shells and soft, puffy, creamy inner texture like dancing on my tongue :)   I think I can eat many Canelés in a single time, but I didn't count.....maybe more than ten with my coffee haha!