Hey lovelies, another week has flown by especially for me because I am on holiday. I am spending 12 glorious days at Pauanui.
This is on one of the first days I arrived at Pauanui, it was so good to be back. I have been going to Pauanui since I was born. It is a bit different now because I am the youngest of my family. And now I am the only one left going to the batch.
I have a goodie of a recipe lined up for you today. These delicate swans look very complicated, but actually aren't. They are perfect for anyone trying to impress at a family BBQ or gathering.
These swans are made out of choux pastry, filled with Orange Chocolate Ganache, topped with orange flavoured chantilly cream. Dusted with icing sugar.
These swans are a perfect sweet treat because they are a mix of textures in you mouth. The crisp exterior of the pastry, the silky smooth cream, and the dense indulgent chocolate filling.
These little swans have been on my baking list for a very long time, and I am so happy I can tick them off. I have a long list of baking, that I want to complete so I can build a portfolio of different skills and techniques.
I like making these swans because it involves piping, I find piping very therapeutic. I piped the bodies, head and necks.
I think this is such a beautiful photo, it is like a swan is in a wonderland of snow. It did take me a while to get a good photo, some photos you could barely see the icing sugar, and some there was way too much you couldn't identify it.
Lets construct a swan now,
Cut the swan body is half horizontally, only about a third, so that there is a decent size body. With the small 1/3 piece cut off the top of the body. Cut in half down the middle.
Fill the body of the swan, with your thick chocolate orange filling. leave room to fill with cream on top.
Fill a piping bag with chantilly orange cream. Using a 1M nozzle, (Large Star) pipe on top making ruffles for the swan.
With your two pieces of cut pastry, cut into two and dust with icing sugar.
Grab a nicely piped head and neck for the swan and stick into the body of the swan.
Stick the sugared wings in the cream, and make sure the sugared part of the wing is sticking outwards.
Perfect! Your swan!
Now for the recipe,
Recipe:
Choux Pastry
180ml milk
180ml water
150g unsated butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp caster sugar
1 3/4 cups flour (high grade)
8 eggs
Method:
-Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius. Line two trays with baking paper.
-Place milk, water, butter,in a saucepan over medium heat. Let the ingredients melt and bring them to just before boil.
-Remove from the heat and dump all your flour into the pot. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon till you have a lovely smooth dough that doesn't touch the sides of the pot. Stir until the dough has cooled a little. You will notice because the steam wont be coming off the dough.
-Add one cracked egg at a time to the cooled mixture. make sure you beat throughly inbetween each new addition of egg.
-Continue adding one egg at a time and mixing until you form a beautiful thick paste.
-Spoon the mixture into a piping bag that is fitted with a 1M (large star nozzle)
-Pipe bodies onto the lined baking trays. Make sure you get the bodies evenly sized.
-With a small round tip in a seperate piping bag, pipe a narrow leter 'S'. At the top of the S add more pressure to one spot to form a head. quickly stop adding pressure and pull your piping bag away.
-OPTIONAL: if you have a spritz bottle on hand, fill it with water and spray water onto the bodies. This increases their puff capaticy in the oven, because the water turns to steam in the oven.
-Bake for 20-30 minutes. Turn the oven temperature down to 160 degrees and bake for a further 15 minutes. Do not be tempted to open the oven door because this will let precious hot air escape. And might cause them to deflate.
-With a sharp knife, stab the bottom of the body. Add a little air pocket in he bottom. So the steam has somewhere to escape.
-Once they have finished their cooking time, turn the oven off and place a wooden spoon to ajar the oven door. Let them cool down in the oven.
Chantily Cream Recipe
250ml of heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/4 cup Tablespoon SIFTED icing sugar
Method:
-Beat the cream till soft peaks. Add your flavourings, orange, vanilla and your sugar.
-Continue to beat until hard peaks have formed, and the cream can hold its shape. That is when you know its ready.
1x Chocolate Orange Ganache. 1:1 ratio, chocolate and cream. Use chocolate flavouring oil to flavour the chocolate orange.
I hope you guys all try this recipe. It's sure to be a stunner!
Till next time
LINZ x x
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