This month Daring Bakers challenge hosted by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf was tuiles. There were four different recipes given to choose from including a savory one. First, I had a solid intention to make them all. Then, I waited, and waited a little bit longer… , and then some urgent matter came up…, and I ended up doing the challenge the night before the due date. I basically, fixed it from what I had at home. Procrastination is definitely not a virtue.
The tuiles recipe I used is adapted from “The Chocolate Book” by Angélique Schmeink. I have to say I was surprised how well they retained their crispiness compare to other recipes I tried before. I baked vanilla and chocolate leaf-shaped tuiles, and made some hazelnut brittle leaves as well. I served the cookies with the mousse which was a simple combination of a chestnut puree, mascarpone, whipped egg whites, and rum; I added some gelatin to set the mixture and turn it into mini-tortes. The crust was ground hazelnuts, chocolate cookie crumbs, melted chocolate, and more rum. I sprinkle some grated bittersweet chocolate over the top of the mousse and placed a rum-flavored chantilly quenelle (I was pirating in my previous life) on the top of each serving. There was also a chocolate–caramel sauce (not shown) to decorate the plates.
Serves about 6
For the vanilla tuiles:
- 65 grams / 2.3 ounces softened butter (not melted but soft)
- 60 grams / 2.1 ounces sifted confectioner’s sugar
- ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 large egg whites (slightly whisked with a fork)
- 65 grams / 2.3 ounces all purpose flour, sifted
- 1 ½ tsp unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
For the crust:
- 2 ½ oz toasted ground hazelnuts
- 2 oz chocolate cookie crumbs, homemade or store-bought
- 1 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
- 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
- Tiny pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp dark rum
For the mousse:
- 1 cup whipping cream, cold
- 8 oz unsweetened chestnut puree
- 2 tbsp dark rum
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt if using a home-made puree (canned one has the salt added)
- 6 oz mascarpone cheese
- 3 large egg whites
- 4 ½ oz fine granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cold water
- 7 g powdered gelatin (3 tsp, one envelope)
For the serving:
- Grated bittersweet chocolate
- Whipped cream with a splash of rum and lightly sweetened (if you wish; I usually don’t)
- Chocolate-caramel sauce (omit the spices)
Make the vanilla tuiles:
Center an oven rack and preheat to 325F. Line a cookie sheet with a silicone mat and set aside.
In a small bowl, beat the butter and sugar with a wooden spoon until smooth, add the vanilla extract and mix to combine. Switch to a whisk and gradually add the egg whites. Add the flour, in small batches, and stir to achieve a homogeneous and smooth batter/paste. Be careful to not overmix, you don’t want to aerate the batter. Spoon out ¼-cup of the batter into another small bowl and stir in the sifted cocoa powder (this batter will be used for piping the veins on the vanilla tuils).
Cover the bowl with the vanilla batter with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up. The batter can be kept in the fridge for up to a week. Do not refrigerate the chocolate batter; transfer it into a piping bag fitted with a small (#2) round tip. And set aside.
Press the leaf stencil ( or any other stencil of your choice) on the prepared baking sheet and use an offset spatula to spread the batter thinly. Leave some room in between your shapes. Use the chocolate batter to pipe the veins.
Bake the cookies in a preheated for about 5-10 minutes (depends on their size) until the edges turn golden brown. Immediately release from the baking sheet and proceed to shape/bend the cookies in the desired shape. These cookies have to be shaped while still warm, you might want to bake a small amount at a time. Cool completely before storing in an air-tight container.
Make the crust:
I used 6 round molds with removable bottoms, each is about 2 ½-inch in diameter. You can use tart rings instead.
Lightly spray the bottoms of the molds with oil. Line the sides with acetate or parchment paper. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the ground nuts, cookie crumbs, melted chocolate, cocoa, salt, and rum. Stir to combine. If the mixture seems too dry, add a little bit of water, ½ teaspoon at a time. Divide the mixture between the molds and press onto the bottom of each. A tall and slim tequila glass is perfect for packing the crumbs. Refrigerate until firm, at least for an hour and up to a day.
Make the mousse:
In a medium bowl, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Do not overbeat! Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed. Don’t wash the beaters, just set aside for a moment.
In the bowl of the food processor, process the chestnut puree with rum, vanilla, and salt (if using) until absolutely smooth, no even tiny lumps should be present.
In a large bowl, using the same beaters that were used for whipping the cream, beat the mascarpone until smooth, add the chestnut puree and beat until well combined. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
Bring 1 inch of water to a very light simmer in a wide skillet. In the bowl of the stand mixer, lightly whisk the egg whites and sugar, then set the bowl in the hot water. Whisk constantly until the egg-white mixture is hot to the touch and an instant read thermometer reads 140F. It will take 2 to 4 minutes. Place the bowl with the egg whites to the stand mixer base and whip with a wire attachment on medium-high speed until double in volume and cool.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the ¼ cup of cold water. Let it soften for a couple of minutes, then microwave on High for 15 seconds (or melt the gelatin in the same water-filled skillet) until dissolved. Gently warm the chestnut-mascarpone mixture to 98F (37C). Whisk a little bit of the chestnut-mascarpone mixture into the gelatin, then whisk the gelatin/chestnut mixture back to the rest of the chestnut-mascarpone mixture in the large bowl. Using a large rubber spatula, fold about one quarter of the meringue into the chestnut mixture, then fold in the rest of the whites. Fold in about one quarter of whipped cream into the mixture, then fold in the rest of the cream. Be delicate, don’t overmix. Transfer the mousse into a large piping bag fitted with a large plain tip and pipe it into the prepared molds dividing equally. Refrigerate to firm up, at least for 2 hours.
When ready to serve, unmold the dessert, sprinkle with grated or shaved chocolate, and top with some whipped cream if you wish.
You can simplify the preparation and serve the mousse from a glass or bowl. To do so, omit the gelatin and don’t warm the chestnut-mascarpone mixture. Proceed as described earlier. Pipe or spoon the mousse into the serving glasses and refrigerate until serving time.
February 24, 2013 at 6:00 am
Czesc, twoj przepis jest bardzo apetyczny napewno go spróbuje
December 18, 2009 at 10:35 pm
Adelina, this is a sad story! I’ve been there; learned from my mistakes.
Keep offering your guests cocktails and, hopefully, they won’t notice any lumps in the cake later.
Thank you for your words and Merry Christmas to you!
December 16, 2009 at 10:41 am
I tried to make the chestnmut mascarpone mixture and I failed miserably! It wasn’t your recipe that I used, I used a recipe from a pastry book that has similar direction/ ingredients. After I melt the gelatin mixture, I added a bit of the chestnut mixture into the gelatin and combine – it was ok for a minute or so, then I fold in the rest of the chestnut mixture and lumps of gelatin were everywhere in the mixture!!!
The instruction from the pastry book left out the fact that I do need to warm up the chestnut mascarpone mixture just a tad (like you said here) before adding this to the gelatin mixture! That was a mess!!! I had to use the “lumpy” mixture to fill the cake because I didn’t have any mascarpone on hand to re-start the process from scratch! Worse part is….it’s going to be for a bday cake….and I have a feeling people would want to know why on earth there are lumpy “thingy” on the fillings!!!
I should have done more research on this recipe and I wish I could have stumbled upon your direction earlier!!!
Love your site and your work!
Thanks for sharing and for posting.
June 6, 2009 at 4:12 am
My daughter says she is getting married in fall (What year I don’t know LOL) anyway I was wondering if you think I could substitute pumpkin for the chestnut puree and maple syrup for the rum? This recipe sounds just divine. Your photos are just gorgeous!
May 25, 2009 at 9:38 pm
Van, thank you very much for your kind words! What keeps me blogging are the comments like yours :) Thank you!
May 25, 2009 at 11:36 am
Hi Vera,
I am following your blog for a long time and have never left any comment for you. So sorry about that. I so admire your talent. Your blog inspires me to keep blogging. Yep, I gonna blog! again:)… Nice week to you!
-Van
March 4, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Sefa, thank you very much! And thank you for hosting!
Please, let me know how you like it :)
March 3, 2009 at 11:28 pm
Congratulations on winning DMBLGIT February 2009 Vera. Your photo is really deserves to be number one.
I’ll try the recipe one day, and will let you know the result.
March 3, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Medena, thank you! And congratulations to you too :)
March 3, 2009 at 4:43 am
Congratulations on the DMBLGIT!!! Beautiful photo, mouthwatering dessert! :)
February 12, 2009 at 10:28 pm
Asti, Helen, thank you very much! You are too kind :)
February 11, 2009 at 10:38 pm
Classically gorgeous Vera! Gimme gimme gimme!!
February 10, 2009 at 5:39 am
WOW! i’m lost for words.. amazing as always Vera =)
February 8, 2009 at 9:22 pm
Thank you, all, for your comments! I’m truly touched!
February 6, 2009 at 4:04 pm
Just Beautiful! Wow! Very nice site!
February 5, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Ciao ! Your tuiles !!! Everytime I visit you I’m speachless !!!
February 5, 2009 at 4:06 am
Your tuiles look perfect (but that’s not unusual for you ;) Love the mousse you made to go with it. So this is what you make at the last evening before posting from the stuff in the fridge, impressive!
February 4, 2009 at 7:19 pm
I haven’t visited in so long! Between this and the gingerbread from the previous post, I’m in foodie blogger heaven. They both look so delicate and lovely–edible art at its finest :).
February 3, 2009 at 6:48 pm
They look absolutely delicious, and your photography is beautiful!
February 3, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Oh my gosh.. PERFECT!
February 3, 2009 at 6:23 am
Wow!!! What a good idea! I love your leaf shaped tuiles, the best for a chestnut dessert (everything reminds me about autumn).
I love it.
February 2, 2009 at 9:21 pm
Thank you very much for all your lovely comments! I really appreciate it!
February 2, 2009 at 1:55 pm
They look beautiful, absolutely perfect. Your chestnut mousse sounds divine too.
February 2, 2009 at 12:17 pm
Nice job on the tuiles! I loved the dessert you paired with it. So elegant! Your blog and photography is simply beautiful!
February 2, 2009 at 11:25 am
What a gorgeous dessert, and the flavors sound amazing!!
February 2, 2009 at 10:45 am
Very elegant, Vera. Great job!!! I love the detail in the leaf tuiles.
Hanaa
February 2, 2009 at 8:26 am
I love your curved leaf tuiles. Great job and at the last minute! I’m impressed.
February 2, 2009 at 8:02 am
Stunning! Am I surprised you outdid yourself? NOOOOO!!!!
February 2, 2009 at 1:23 am
Oh my! Thank you for the recipe, as always ^_^ Beautiful presentation.
February 1, 2009 at 9:16 pm
I love the tuile leaves, they are just spectacular, but I especially love your interpretation, I think chestnut marcapone mousse sounds amazing. I love chestnuts in desserts.
February 1, 2009 at 7:02 pm
That looks so good! I wish I could do great looking mousse like that!
February 1, 2009 at 6:17 pm
They are just absolutely fabulous, elegant and gorgeous!
February 1, 2009 at 6:16 am
So so beautiful, elegant.. and the chestnut mousse: OMG!!!
you’re amazing, Vera!
February 1, 2009 at 3:26 am
Hello Vera:
Delicious recipe. Congratulations winner photographic event. Your foto is very, very wondefurl, also your all recipes. My passion is also the desserts. I’m also seriously considering to change my previous profession to a new one, following my passion.
Best regards
February 1, 2009 at 1:34 am
As usual, you have a unique take on the tuile! They look beautiful and delicious.
January 31, 2009 at 11:01 pm
Thank you, everyone, for your kind words! I’m deeply touched!
January 31, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Um, wow. That just puts my effort to shame.
January 31, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Simply equisite! These are just amazing!
January 31, 2009 at 11:46 am
Just beautiful Vera. Scrumptious and inviting. You rock!
January 31, 2009 at 11:06 am
Wow, wow, wow your are so talented!