Making cannelés/canelés

[M. Lucia]

Thought you guys might want to know this thread was referenced on101 Cookbooks.

[Wolfert]

I started to clean my files today, came up with a letter from Patissier Antoine written in 1985. It should be of interest to those who follow the history of the recipe for caneles or canneles

The most important line is the first in the 'process'

the sugar, flour and butter are mixed together before the addition of the eggs and the milk .

This is what makes the custardy interior

Edited March 9, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[Patrick S]

Thanks to everyone who's posted pics and advice to this thread. These are definitely some of the most unique and attractive pastries I've ever seen. I can't wait to try them!

[Patrick S]

Does anyone know of an online supplier for the tin or aluminum molds? I've seen some suppliers for silicone molds, but they've gotten mixed reviews on this thread, and the copper molds seem a little too pricey for someone like me.

[FoodMan]

Patrick, I am pretty sure upthread you can find suppliers for both the copper and tin. I bought mine (tin ones) on sale at Williams Sonoma.

edit: JB Prince has both of them, click here.

Elie

[Patrick S]

Thanks a million, Elie!

EDIT: I had tried the three links to suppliers posted earlier in the thread. Two of them were inactive links, and one give a price in euros so I assumed it was a european supplier. My local WS store doesnt carry them, and I couldnt find any on their site, though I might have misspelled it.

Edited March 9, 2005 by Patrick S (log)

[Richard Kilgore]

Patrick, those tin ones from W-S were discontinued. That's why they were selling them for practically nothing. My best guess is that they are gone, gone, gone. It's a slight chance, but you might try calling or emailing W-S to se if they have any laying around in a warehouse, even though they don't list them anymore. Slight chance, but might be worth an email. Or a call to the store asking them to check upstream for you.

Sur La Table may have the silicone ones.

Good luck.

[Wolfert]

Kit Williams told me that the silicone molds from Bridge's in NY are better than others on the market. She uses them with bee's wax. There is a posting on how she does it somewhere up thread.

[Richard Kilgore]

Bridge's shows two lines of silicone molds on its site, but nothing for a cannele. It's probably in their paper catalogue. My guess is it's the red ones.

[kitwilliams]

Bridge's shows two lines of silicone molds on its site,  but nothing for a cannele. It's probably in their paper catalogue. My guess is it's the red ones.

←

They are called "silicone flex" and are a rusty-orange color. They have served me well, but I'm still saving up for copper!

[kuri]

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum, but I am also another who has been obsessed with this little devil cannele!

I am using a copper mold and bees wax-butter mix and have a silly question.

What is the best way to apply the mixture to the mold? I used double-boiler to melt the bees wax and add the butter. Using the brush, I was applying this mixture to the mold, but as you can imagine, it hardens very quickly as it touches the mold. I ended up having rather uneven application of the mixture on the mold. Although this did not cause much problem, some cannle ended up with sticking to the mold. If anyone has any suggestions or tip, I would greately appreciate it!

Many thanks,

kuri

[Wolfert]

Try putting the waxed molds,upside down, on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and setting it a medium hot oven for a minute or two. Remove the molds to drain on paper toweling.Pour the still warm bee's wax butter into a bowl and save it to use later on.

Only the thinnest veil of bee's wax-butter is needed.

Edited June 6, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[Wendy DeBord]

Welcome to The eGullet Society For Arts & Letters Kuri. Paula Wolferts advice seems to be the perfect answer for you question. Let us know how that method works for you.

[kuri]

Try putting the waxed molds,upside down, on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and setting it a medium hot oven for a minute or two. Remove the molds to drain on paper toweling.Pour the still warm  bee's wax butter into a bowl and save it to use later on.

Only the thinnest veil of bee's wax-butter is needed.

←

Hi Paula,

Thank you very much for your insight.

I just wanted to be clear...Would you initially apply the bee's wax-butter to the mold using whatever the methods, i.e. brush or finger, and putting those waxed molds in the oven as you described? I am assuming putting them in the oven would even out the wax layer and drain any excess... Am I on the right track?

Thanks again for such a quick (and clever) response!

kuri

[Wolfert]

Would you initially apply the bee's wax-butter to the mold using whatever the methods, i.e. brush or finger, and putting those waxed molds in the oven as you described? I am assuming putting them in the oven would even out the wax layer and drain any excess... Am I on the right track?

Yes, you are on the right track.

I use a dedicated pyrex measuring cup with a spout to pour about 1 tablespoon of hot bee's wax into the first mold and swirl the mold in order to coat the bottom and lower insides. I quickly invert the first onto the foil lined pan allowing any excess to slide down the inside. I repeat with the rest of the molds

Here is a good tip: use your microwave to warm up the bee'swax butter whenever necessary.

Edited June 6, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[kuri]

Would you initially apply the bee's wax-butter to the mold using whatever the methods, i.e. brush or finger, and putting those waxed molds in the oven as you described? I am assuming putting them in the oven would even out the wax layer and drain any excess... Am I on the right track?

Yes, you are on the right track.

I use a dedicated pyrex measuring cup with a spout to pour about 1 tablespoon of hot bee's wax into the first mold and swirl the mold in order to coat the bottom and lower insides. I quickly invert the first onto the foil lined pan allowing any excess to slide down the inside. I repeat with the rest of the molds

Good hint; use your microwave to warm up the bee'swax butter whenever necessary.

tws

←

Thanks Paula! This gives me another excuse to make another batch of canele! I will report back with my progress.

kuri

[mjc]

I just wanted to let everyone know that there's a new canele in NYC at the new bouley bakery, and I think its the best one i've had.

[jgarner53]

Here's how we do it at work, where we make a boatload (a batch that starts with 12L of milk) of cannelé every single day. The molds (copper), never cleaned, are coated with the beeswax/butter with a dedicated brush that's just barely narrow enough to swipe all the way to the bottom of the mold, then they're set on a sheetpan open side down so that any excess drains out. Seems to work fine for us.

OK. Just read through (skimmed) the thread. Here's how we do it at work. Molds are not refrigerated or frozen, and the batter is usually at least 30-48 hours old. As for making the batter, milk and vanilla beans are brought to a simmer (no temp check, though), then butter is added and allowed to sit until it's cool enough to handle (exact temp isn't critical, but it should still be warm). Flour & sugar are whisked together (yes, we make these by hand, and since I started, I'm usually the one making the batter), then egg yolks, whole eggs, and rum are whisked in gradually. Lastly, the milk/butter mixture is whisked together and gradually whisked in, and the whole mess is poured through a strainer into containers and refrigerated.

As for the baking, it's done usually by the exec PC or assistant PC who come in at 3:30 to start the bake-off, but I think they only pour to about 3/4 full and baked (not sure of the temp) in our convection ovens for at least an hour.

Edited June 7, 2005 by jgarner53 (log)

[kuri]

Thank you for all the great tips!

Another question I have on canneles:

When I had them in Paris and Bordeaux, I found that good canneles (or at least those I liked) had very light almost airly interior - just like in the photo of Paula's canneles - rather than dense cake-like texture. My last attempt yielded in between result. Are there any steps that I shoud be aware of?

many many thanks,

kuri

[Wolfert]

THe only way I know to obtain the custard-like interior is to mix the butter with the flour before adding the sugar, the yolks, and the hot milk----and always in that order.

[kuri]

THe only way I know to obtain the custard-like interior is to mix the butter with the flour before adding the sugar, the yolks, and the hot milk----and always in that order.

←

Thanks Paula!

I remember the interior of cannele has more air and not so dense. I think you meant by "custard-like" refers the same thing, am I right?

I will be sure to report back after my next batch.

kuri

[Wolfert]

The filling of a traditional cannele has the texture of a dense creme brulee ---sometimes with a small pocket of air.

Edited June 8, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[jgarner53]

The center of our cannelés is more like a moist, airy cake than a crème brulée. It's custardy, but with more structure.

[jgarner53]

OK. Since it had been a couple of weeks since tasting one, I brought a couple home today.

These were baked this morning and are probably no more than 8 hours old (no way to know exactly when they came out).

The exterior is crisp and somewhat chewy. The interior is moist, custardy, but with an airiness or sort of crumb structure to it (meaning it isn't solid, as you can see from the pic). Taste? Divine, though I tend to find them very sweet. The beeswax adds a very, very subtle flavor; you have to know what it is in order to identify it, really. The rum is a deep backnote, barely perceptible. If I didn't know there was rum in the batter, I probably wouldn't identify it.

[Wolfert]

Your canneles look wonderful.

How much butter do you use per liter of milk?

Edited June 9, 2005 by Wolfert (log)