Paris Brest chocolate filling

Paris Brest with chocolate filling- -//10

Paris Brest is a French dessert make with choux pastry filled with pastry cream, and whipped cream.

The pastry was created in 1891 to commemorate the Paris–Brest (a town in Normandy) bicycle race. The shape of the dessert is circular to represent a wheel since this is a bicycle race. The dessert became popular with riders on the Paris-Brest cycle race, partly because of its energy-giving high calorific value, and the dessert is now found in any patisseries all over France!

Paris Brest is very similar in taste with the éclair! The difference is Paris Breast has whipped cream and the éclair has a glaze on top but the base is the same made with choux paste.

Paris Brest is a lovely dessert to look at and it is also delicious!

Close look at the dessert

I made this dessert for Huyen's Birthday and we all love it.

Preparation work..

Ingredients

Quick cream puff batter (Pate a choux)

1/2 cup milk

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 pinch salt

1 pinch sugar

1/2 cup pastry flour

2 large eggs

1/2 cup roasted and lightly salted peanuts, crushed

Chocolate pastry cream

1 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 eggs yolks

2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Whipped cream

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

In a small saucepan, combine the milk, butter, salt, and sugar over medium heat. When the butter is melted the mixture reaches a boil , remove the pan from the heat.

Add the flour all at once

Mix until all the flour is incorporated.

Keep mixing, about 30 seconds for the mixture to be well incorporated.

Transfer the mixture into a large bowl. Add the eggs.

Whisking well until well incorporated. Put the batter into a piping bag.

First your will need to make a template by drawing circles on parchment or wax paper. Turn the paper upside down so that the ink does not link into the batter. Start piping

Keep piping at least 2 or 3 layers until the desire height.

Then wet your finger and smooth out the batter.

Sprinkle on top some crushed lightly salted peanuts.

Press down the peanuts into the batter so they will stick to the batter once they are baked.

Pre-heat the over at 350 degrees.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brow.

Freshly out of the oven. Transfer them on a cooling rack.

Prepare the pastry cream by whisking the milk, sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, and chocolate together in a medium microwave safe bowl.

Microwave on high about 1 minutes. Remove from microwave an whisk the mixture together.

Put back the bowl in the microwave for another minute or so.

Let the pastry cool down but make sure to put a plastic wrap directly on top of the cream to prevent a skin to form.,

Once the pastry cream has cooled down transfer to a large bowl and whip until it is light an fluffy. Refrigerate until ready to use. Once it is cold transfer the pastry cream into a piping bag.