Croissant doughnuts, or cronuts, make the ultimate adult indulgence with its mix of childhood nostalgia and grown up sophistication and inventiveness. In this beautiful dessert, buttery crisp layers of puff pastry hide a secret filling of gooey chocolate custard.
Ingredients
New York chocolate-filled croissant doughnuts
Chocolate custard
Method
New York chocolate-filled croissant doughnuts
1.Combine yeast, sugar and the water in a small jug. Stand in a warm place for 10 minutes, or until frothy.
2.Meanwhile, pulse butter, flour, salt and 1/3 cup (75g) of the extra sugar in a food processor for a few seconds in short bursts, until butter is the size of small peas.
3.Transfer flour mixture to a large bowl. Add yeast mixture; stir until ingredients almost come together. Using your hands, bring ingredients together to form a dough in the bowl (the butter will still be visible). Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Stand in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
4.Meanwhile, make chocolate custard: Bring milk to the boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. While warming, whisk egg yolks, sugar, sifted flour and sifted cocoa in a medium bowl, until combined. Gradually whisk in hot milk. Return mixture to pan; stir over heat until custard boils and thickens. Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl. Cover surface of custard with plastic wrap; refrigerate until required.
5.Turn dough onto a floured sheet of baking paper; dust with flour. Top with another sheet of baking paper; roll out to a 20cm x 40cm rectangle. Fold dough into thirds by bringing the bottom third over the middle third, then the top third down to cover the folded dough. Repeat rolling out and folding, then wrap in plastic wrap; freeze 10 minutes.
6.With a short end of the dough in front of you repeat step 5, two more times. Freeze 10 minutes. In total the pastry will have six bookfolds altogether.
7.Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface until 1cm thick. Using a 7.5cm round cutter, cut 16 rounds from pastry, re-rolling dough if necessary. Place rounds on baking-paper-lined oven trays. Using a 3cm round cutter, cut holes from centres; place ‘holes’ on trays. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Stand in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
8.Fill a large saucepan or wok one-third full with oil; heat to 160°C (or until a cube of bread turns golden in about 25 seconds). Deep-fry dough, in batches, for 2 minutes each side or until golden and cooked through. Drain on paper towel, then dust, one at a time in remaining extra sugar.
9.Spoon custard into a piping bag fitted with a 5mm plain tube. When doughnuts are cool enough to handle, pipe custard through the base of each doughnut at four or five points (to allow custard to be evenly distributed). Serve warm.
To prove dough on a cool day, turn the oven to 50°C and open the oven door all the way. Place the bowl of dough on a wooden chopping board, then place on the open oven door; leave to prove for the time directed. Freeze the dough at each stage just long enough for it to firm the butter and facilitate rolling.
Note
