After puff pastry and galettes des rois (not to mention crêpes, especially on this Candlemas day), I’m once again sharing with you the kind of desserts I prefer: entremets.
This hazelnut entremets is made up of a hazelnut streusel base topped with a soft hazelnut sponge (a tried-and-tested recipe found at Les desserts de Julien), a lime basil crémeux and an Ivoire white chocolate mousse, all covered in a mirror glaze. An excellent pairing of flavours that pleased everyone who tasted it.
When I thought about this recipe, I absolutely wanted to work with an ingredient I didn’t like but which I’ve learnt to love over time: lemon. Because it’s like me, it’s like my story… I’ve evolved so much in baking, I’ve discovered so many things in recent years… and along the way, there was basil, and more particularly its pairing with lime. A revelation! I think that’s partly what made me love lemon, since I’m not a fan of acidity to begin with. Alongside that, I absolutely wanted to use hazelnut, which I love enormously in baking. The lemon hazelnut pairing needs no further proof…
Ingredients & method
7 components · Full recipe
Yellow Mirror Glaze (can be made in advance)
Ingredients
- 75 g (2.6 oz) sugar
- 75 g (2.6 oz) glucose syrup
- 40 g (1.4 oz) water
- 50 g (1.8 oz) sweetened condensed milk
- 75 g (2.6 oz) white chocolate
- 6 g (0.2 oz) gelatine (3 sheets)
- yellow fat-soluble food colouring
Method
1
Soak the gelatine in cold water.
2
Bring the sugar, glucose syrup and water to the boil.
3
Remove from the heat and add the condensed milk and white chocolate.
4
Blend with a hand blender.
5
Add the squeezed gelatine. Blend again.
6
Add the yellow food colouring. Blend. Cover with cling film pressed to the surface. Use at 35°C / 95°F.
Hazelnut Streusel
Ingredients
- 50 g (1.8 oz) butter
- 50 g (1.8 oz) soft brown sugar
- 50 g (1.8 oz) hazelnut powder
- 50 g (1.8 oz) flour
- 1 pinch of salt
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F.
2
Mix all the ingredients by hand until you obtain a crumble texture.
3
Spread on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.
4
Bake for 15 minutes at 180°C / 350°F. Leave to cool.
5
Briefly blend the streusel to break it into small pieces.
Hazelnut Sponge
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 50 g (1.8 oz) sugar
- 30 g (1.1 oz) hazelnut powder
- 30 g (1.1 oz) flour
- 30 g (1.1 oz) melted butter
- 2 g (0.1 oz) baking powder
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F.
2
Beat the eggs with the sugar until the mixture turns pale.
3
Add the hazelnut powder, sifted flour and baking powder.
4
Add the melted butter and mix.
5
Spread on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.
6
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes at 180°C / 350°F. Leave to cool.
Lime and Basil Cremeux
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 75 g (2.6 oz) sugar
- 50 g (1.8 oz) lime juice (about 2 limes)
- zest of 2 limes
- a few basil leaves
- 70 g (2.5 oz) butter
Method
1
Infuse the basil leaves and lime zest in warm lime juice for 15 to 30 minutes.
2
Strain the infusion.
3
In a saucepan, mix the eggs with the sugar, then add the infused lime juice.
4
Cook over a low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens.
5
Remove from the heat and add the butter in pieces. Blend with a hand blender.
6
Pour into small moulds (I use 3 cm (1.2 in) spherical moulds) and freeze.
Ivory Lime Mousse
Ingredients
- 200 g (7.1 oz) white chocolate
- 200 g (7.1 oz) whipping cream (hot)
- zest of 2 limes
- 5 g (0.2 oz) gelatine (2.5 sheets)
- 400 g (14.1 oz) cold whipping cream
Method
1
Soak the gelatine in cold water.
2
Bring the hot cream to the boil.
3
Pour in three additions over the white chocolate, stirring between each.
4
Add the lime zest and squeezed gelatine. Blend with a hand blender.
5
Leave to cool to room temperature.
6
Whip the cold cream to a soft, light chantilly.
7
Gently fold the whipped cream into the white chocolate and lime zest mixture.
Assembly
Ingredients
- None
Method
1
Half-fill the moulds with the ivory lime mousse.
2
Place the frozen lime and basil cremeux insert in the centre.
3
Cover with more mousse, then place a disc of hazelnut sponge on top.
4
Finish with a layer of hazelnut streusel and seal with a little more mousse. Freeze overnight.
Decoration
Ingredients
- None
Method
1
Remove the entremets from the freezer and unmould them.
2
Place on a wire rack (over a tray lined with baking parchment) and glaze immediately with the yellow mirror glaze at 35°C / 95°F.
3
Place the glazed entremets on shortbread or chocolate discs.
4
Decorate with a few finishing touches (basil leaves, lime zest, chocolate decorations…).
5
Leave to thaw in the fridge for 4 to 6 hours before serving.
Gallery
