purchased chocolate puff pastry

[Wendy DeBord]

I inherited this on the job. Chef wants me to use it up in my mini pastry's this week-BUT I only make pastries they keep in their freezer 'ready to eat'.

I can do palmiers and spreading a ganche between two. But I really should get more creative....unforunately my mind isn't co-operating with me.

Any creative ideas for using up chocolate puff pastry dough in a ready to eat stored in the freezer mini pastry? Also any baking tips using this....same temp and handling as reg. puff pastry?

[zilla369]

I wish i could get my hands on some chocolate puff pastry, never seen it at the restaurant where i'm staging.

I hesitate to advise anyone on anything on the pastry board, but my first thought was something with blackberries and Chambord. Just going for sheer inspiration value here, not advising on a recipe.

[Elizabeth_11]

Hhhmm, I've never seen or worked with chocolate puff pastry either, but it sounds delicious! Perhaps making mini turnovers filled with a chocolate cream/custard (or plain chocolate) and berries or nuts. Or maybe baking off sheets brushed with cocoa/sugar/butter mixture, then sandwiching with mousse and berries, and sliced into squares..or mini chocolate napoleons. Im just thinking off the top of my head here; I don't have much experience with it, but good luck!

Edited August 11, 2003 by Elizabeth_11 (log)

[mjc]

I don't know if it would work for you, but the item pictured on p. 124-125 of The patisserie de pierre herme is something that I've been wanting to make.

[nightscotsman]

When I made the Pierre Herme recipe for chocolate puff pastry, I ended up making bouches (mini vol au vents) filled with white chocolate cream and topped with a raspberry. You could also fill them with a creme brulee mixture, ice cream, or chocolate/espresso cream and top with chocolate mirror glaze. I assume these are at least defrosted before serving?

Edited August 11, 2003 by nightscotsman (log)

[Wendy DeBord]

I don't have to open Herme's book-I know which one your mentioning mjc....it looks de-lish-well like which one doesn't...

Thanks nightscotsman I think you hit it- making vol au vents would be the way to go. I'll spray them with sugar while baking to coat and then coat the inside with melted chocolate then they should handle being stored in the freezer.

Thanks that gives me lots of ideas!!

[PastryLady]

I could think of a couple things:

-shred the leaves and use as a crispy garnish

-Napoleon with Grand Marnier cream

-Anything hazelnut!

-the rolled up triangles with a ganache filling (resembles a 1/2 ravioli with puff pastry) could also make any other creamy filling.

-create chocolate shells (molds with puff pastry) to put mousse in Giandua mousse

I love chocolate, so this would be heavenly to me!

[chefette]

I didn't know that chocolate puff was available commercially - but it makes sense. Its just as easy as regular to make. Its tough to bake since you cannot really judge it by appearance and have to track time to avoid underdone or over crisped (burned).

It is particularly nice if you caramelize it. brush the top with watered down corn syrup then bake 5-10 minutes, flip and brush new top then continue baking.

My favorite was mini bouchees with a dab of plain ganache in the bottom, brandied cherries and pastry cream flavored with Grand Marnier piped in on top. You could do this with a mini scoop of vanilla ice cream and have them finish it off with another warm sauce or amusing topping since it is part of a mini dessert collection

[Malawry]

What exactly is chocolate puff? Does anybody have a recipe for it? Is the technique any different from regular puff? It sounds like it bakes a little differently from Chefette's response.

[rickster]

Chocolate puff pastry incorporates cocoa powder in the butter "packet" to make a chocolate colored and flavored dough. I think the issue in baking is just that you can't tell by sight when its done. There's a recipe in Pierre Herme's Chocolate Dessert book. I've also seen a recipe for rough or quick chocolate puff pastry in Healy and Bugat's French Cookie Book

[Wendy DeBord]

They bought it through European Imports if anyone's interested.

It didn't bake off correctly- NO Puff! I've never seen a puff pastry that didn't puff.

How dissapointing-the taste was good supprisingly.

[chefette]

Are you sure the oven temp was sufficient? It should puff up just like any other puff. I have not seen any difference in puffability using the chocolate puff to date. And have made it many times.

I forgot to mention earlier that my total favorite chocolate puff recipe is napoleons. Yum YUM!

[Wendy DeBord]

Oven temp was fine.....the dough was shot (had to be in their freezer for a couple years). But I wouldn't hesitate to buy this in the future.

[Louisa Chu]

A couple of years old?! I thought I was cheap - er, frugal. That's brave.

I'd also add that when baking chocolate puff pastry rely even more strongly on your sense of smell. Once you start to smell the chocolate, you're almost there. Like chocolate genoise, dacquoise, etc.