Chocolate, Cherry & Blackberry Profiterole Mountain

Bonjour!!  I’m back from a fab 2 weeks of sunshine and fun in France with lots of exciting blog posts planned in the coming weeks. I took a whole pile of foodie magazines and my ipad to enjoy.  It was bliss with no pressure to write anything just a petit bière to sip as I soaked up ideas along with the sun.

A few highlights from my trip include:

The sunsets from our balcony in Brittany

The fun ‘n’ fruity crocodile made by my hubbie’s Auntie

My daughter’s delicious 3 chocolate birthday cake from a local patisserie

A Michelin star meal….

…and meeting the chef who was just how I imagined a Michelin star French chef might look like

It seemed appropriate then that for my first post holiday blog post I should make something that is popular in France.  Profiteroles caught my eye in restaurants and in passisteries…so here’s a profiterole dessert ‘Homemade by Fleur’ style:

Chocolate, Cherry & Blackberry Profiterole Mountain

The chocolate and cherry were included due to this month’s We Should Cocoa hosted by Janice from Farmersgirl Kitchen blog and organised by Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog.

The blackberries because I came home to hundred’s of them ripe and ready in my garden, and the mountain because quite frankly who would not want to dive into a mountain of profiteroles?

Choux Pastry

For the choux pastry recipe, see my white chocolate and strawberry eclairs.  All you need to do is pipe out little blobs of choux pastry on the baking tray rather than a long sausage shape you would use for eclairs.  Remember to leave space between them to puff up in the oven.  Baking wise the oven need to be 160c and they need to go in for 25 mins.  Don’t open the oven in that time, but when the timer goes take them out, pierce a hole in the bottom of them all with a sharpe knife and pop them back in for another 5 mins. You should have about 24 profiteroles.

Jazzing them up

Filling

120 g fresh cherries (save some for decorating)

70g  fresh blackberries (save some for decorating)

2 tbsp cherry brandy (although you could use water)

2 tbsp honey or agave nectar

200 ml double cream

100g milk chocolate

30g toasted flaked almonds

I made a cherry and blackberry compote, by putting the fruit, cherry brandy and agave nectar in a saucepan and cooking on a medium heat for 10 mins.  I then whizzed it up in the food processor and put the compote through a sieve to make it really smooth.  I added 4 tbsp’s of this to the whipped cream and this is what I used to fill the profiteroles with.  I just used my M1 Wilton piping nozzle with the cream in a disposable piping bag.   You will have a bit of compote left over.  I drizzled some over my mountain and intend to use the rest for my posh pancakes made easy recipe.

I then melted the chocolate in bowl on top of a saucepan with hot water in and used a small palette knife to spread over the top of each one.  A little sprinkle if toasted almonds and into the fridge for 30 mins to set.

Constructing your mountain

First thing you need to do is find a suitable surface.  I used a big slate heart that I have but a cake stand or big plate would be just as nice.  Work your way up adding layers of profiteroles.  When you are happy with the mountain you can start to add the cherries and blackberries that you have saved.  As you can see from mine I just dotted them about.  Then finally I drizzled a bit of the compote over the top and a dusting of icing sugar to finish.

 

Tagged blackberries, cherries, chocolate, French Michelin star chef, holiday, profiterole mountain, profiteroles, we should cocoa