Chocolate St. Honore Cake - #CakeSliceBakers
New year, new book! The Cake Slice Bakers are baking from The European Cake Cookbook by Tatyana Nesteruk. For January, I chose to bake the Chocolate St. Honore Cake. This cake starts with puff pastry onto which a three concentric circles of pate a choux is piped and then the entire thing baked. You create two of these, fill with chocolate pastry cream and flavored whipped cream, layer them and top with chocolate filled and dipped profiteroles.
I knew when I saw this as a choice for January that I would need to at least attempt. I didn't great confidence in my ability to complete it because I have never managed to create pate a choux that baked up correctly. I spent a couple of week watching videos and reading articles until I had a good sense for what I had done in the past. For this cake, I started with the author's pate a choux recipe, but I used bread flour instead of all-purpose flour, and I beat the eggs slightly so that I could add part of an egg if need be. One of the tips I learned in my research was that the goal should be to add as many eggs as possible while making sure you had batter with a strong enough structure to pipe out. The original recipe called for 4 eggs, but I ended up using almost 5. I added egg until the dough was smooth and stretchy, and formed a V when I lifted my mixer.
The pastry cream and whipped cream were delicious. The cake was difficult to cut but was enjoyed by all. Unfortunately, we didn't get the best pictures, but hopefully they're good enough to give you a sense of the amazing mix of flavors and textures.
About the only thing I would change the next time is to only make one layer. The two layers made the cake a little cumbersome both when cutting and eating.
I knew when I saw this as a choice for January that I would need to at least attempt. I didn't great confidence in my ability to complete it because I have never managed to create pate a choux that baked up correctly. I spent a couple of week watching videos and reading articles until I had a good sense for what I had done in the past. For this cake, I started with the author's pate a choux recipe, but I used bread flour instead of all-purpose flour, and I beat the eggs slightly so that I could add part of an egg if need be. One of the tips I learned in my research was that the goal should be to add as many eggs as possible while making sure you had batter with a strong enough structure to pipe out. The original recipe called for 4 eggs, but I ended up using almost 5. I added egg until the dough was smooth and stretchy, and formed a V when I lifted my mixer.
The pastry cream and whipped cream were delicious. The cake was difficult to cut but was enjoyed by all. Unfortunately, we didn't get the best pictures, but hopefully they're good enough to give you a sense of the amazing mix of flavors and textures.
About the only thing I would change the next time is to only make one layer. The two layers made the cake a little cumbersome both when cutting and eating.
I am so impressed that you attempted this one! It definitely seems like a lot of work, but well worth it!
ReplyDeleteI almost made this one. Your cake looks so pretty that I am inspired to make it soon.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Good point about next time making one layer.
ReplyDeleteI agree that cutting through two layers was a tad difficult. However, the end result was well worth. Great job!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous St. Honore' cake! I'd go with one layer, too, although it is quiet impressive with two layers and the profiteroles on top!
ReplyDeleteI love your helpful pate choux tips! Looks like your research paid off, as this is a beautiful cake!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a lot of work but it certainly looks worth the effort. It’s a stunning cake.
ReplyDelete