This is the recipe for the Episode 9 Technical Challenge on The Great South African Bake Off 4.
You'll find links to the recipes for the season's other episodes underneath it.
Milk Tart Saint Honoré
JUDGE SIBA'S TIPS:
- If the temperature isn't high enough, the Choux Pastry won't rise.
- Don't underbake the Rough Puff Pastry.
- The Cinnamon Craquelin must be baked with it, as described in the recipe.
INGREDIENTS
For the Rough Puff Pastry
125g Flour
¼ tsp Salt
125g Butter, chilled and coarsely grated
75g approx. Iced Water
Sugar and flour for rolling
Milk Tart Crème Diplomat
250 ml Milk
2 Egg Yolks
50g Sugar
25g Corn Flour
30g Milk Powder
5g Dried Naartje Peel
1 Cinnamon Quill
2 leaves Gelatine
200ml Cream, whipped to medium hard peaks
Cinnamon Craquelin
30g Butter
30g Brown Sugar
30g Flour
¼ tsp. Cinnamon
pinch. Salt
Choux Pastry
80g Flour
40g Butter
2 Eggs
100ml Water
Spun Sugar
250g Sugar
1 tsp. Glucose
2-3 tbsp. Water
METHOD
1. Tart Crème Diplomat
Heat the milk, milk powder and the cinnamon, sugar and naartjie peel to a soft boil.
Bloom the gelatine leaves, once soft squeeze out excess water.
Mix the cornflour with the eggs and sugar then temper with some warmed milk.
Return the tempered egg to the hot milk and bring to the boil until thick.
Add the gelatine and then pass through a sieve onto a tray to cool.
Cover with cling wrap, cool then beat until smooth.
Fold in the whipped cream.
2. For the Rough Puff Pastry
Sift flour and salt together then loosely rub in the butter - you must still see flecks.
Pour in about 2/3 of the iced water, mixing until a firm dough - you may need to add more.
Pat into a rectangle then cover and place in fridge for 10 minutes.
Roll the dough out in one direction – about 30 cm X 15cm – keeping the edges straight and even.
Fold the top third down towards the centre, then the bottom third up and over that.
Give the dough a quarter turn then once gain roll out to about 3x its length.
Fold as before and then place covered in the fridge for 10-20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
3. Cinnamon Craquelin
Beat all the ingredients together to form a dough.
Place on baking paper then top with another sheet of baking paper.
Roll out to 3 mm thickness then place in freezer for 10 minutes.
Cut out using the back of a nozzle, about 3cm diameter and then return to the fridge to firm up.
4. Choux Pastry
Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
Using the end of a nozzle draw 18 x 2 cm diameter circles evenly spaced on a baking paper.
Heat the water and butter till the butter is melted, then tip in the in all the flour.
Beat with a spatula until smooth, thick and it leaves the sides of the pan.
Return to heat, periodically, to cook the roux- you want a film on the base of the pan.
Place on a side plate and cool rapidly to room temperature .
Beat in eggs, one at a time until pastry is soft, shiny, smooth and of a dropping consistency.
Spoon the dough into the piping bag fitted with the 1.5 cm plain nozzle.
Pipe 20 small circles on the two lined baking sheets, using the drawn circles as a guide.
Top with a Cinnamon Craquelin disk.
Bake at 200ºC for 10 minutes until puffed, crisp and golden.
Drop the temperature to 180ºC for the next 10 minutes.
Prick a small hole in the bottom of the choux and allow to dry out.
5. Spun Sugar
Heat the sugar, water, and glucose over medium heat, until sugar has dissolved.
Cook until the sugar has turned a pale amber – registering 153ºC.
Remove from heat; transfer pan to ice-water bath.
Let cool until slightly thickened.
Dip veil whisk into caramel then flick over two spoons handles in an arc from about 60 cm high.
Gather the spun sugar in a neat ball.
5. Assembly
Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
Roll the pastry, on a well sugared table, 40 cm X 20 cm, about 3 mm thick, then freeze for 10 mins.
Bake for 15- 20 minutes – half the initial time covered with another baking tray.
Cool, then cut two perfect 14 x 14 cm squares.
Pipe a wide wavy ribbon of milk tart crème diplomat down the centre of each pastry rectangle.
Fill the choux buns; pipe a dot of the crème diplomat to stick them in a row on both side of ribbon.
Carefully place the next layer of pastry on the top and repeat the steps.
Gather the spun sugar on to a large loose ball and place on top of the top layer.
Notes
Start with the crème patisserie and then the Flaky Pastry.
Next the Craquelin and the choux.
Pipe and bake the choux.
Roll out pastry and bake.
While the pastry is baking make the spun sugar and fill choux buns.
Tap these links to see recipes from each week:
(Each one opens in a new window.)
Episode 1: Chocolate & Citrus Biscotti
Episode 2: Macadamia Lemon Meringue Roulade
Episode 3: Butternut Maize Meal Parmesan Scones
Episode 4: Classic Choux Swans with Berry Coulis
Episode 5: Plum and Ginger Pudding with Roasted White Chocolate Sauce
Episode 6: Turkish Spinach and Cheese Street Food
Episode 7: Red Berry and Jammy Coconut Crème Doughnuts
Episode 8: Chocolate and Almond Cake
Episode 10: Banana Soufflé & Dark Chocolate Ice Cream