Pear, chocolate and hazelnut entremet

Pear, chocolate and hazelnut entremet with

– a hazelnut and almond praline crisp,
– a hazelnut biscuit
– a pear insert
– creamy chocolate,
– a pear mousse,
– a milk chocolate mirror icing.

Equipment used

– Baking tray

– 18 cm silikomart mould

– Baking paper

– De Buyer 14 and 16 cm entremet circles

Ingredients

Hazelnut biscuit
✔60 g hazelnut powder
✔1 egg
✔50g caster sugar
✔20g butter
✔15g flour
✔2 egg whites

Hazelnut and almond praline
✔75g hazelnuts
✔75g almonds
✔75g caster sugar

Chocolate cream
✔70g cream
✔70g milk
✔2g gelatine
✔5g sugar
✔1 yolk
✔50g milk chocolate

Praline crisp
✔60g white chocolate
✔60g praline
✔40g crêpes dentelles

Pear insert
✔3g gelatine
✔140g mixed pears
✔5g sugar
✔1g pectin
✔120g Comice pear cores
✔a few drops of lemon juice

Pear mousse
✔300g pear
✔250g liquid cream
✔6g gelatine

Mirror icing
✔110g sugar
✔25g glucose
✔70g water
✔70g 30% MG min liquid cream
✔100g white chocolate
✔4 2g gelatine leaves

The recipe

For 1 dessert for 6 to 8 people

Hazelnut praline
✔75g hazelnuts
✔75g almonds
✔75g caster sugar

Pour the hazelnuts and almonds onto a baking tray and place in the oven at 150°C for 15 minutes. Pour the caster sugar into a saucepan and make a caramel. Pour onto a sheet of greaseproof paper and leave to cool. Place the hazelnuts, rubbed to remove as much skin as possible, the almonds and the chopped caramel in the bowl of a blender and blend until you have a praline. You’ll have some praline left over for other recipes. It keeps very well in a closed container. Just make sure you blend it again before use, as the hazelnut oil will rise to the surface.

Pear insert
✔3g gelatine
✔140g mixed pears
✔5g sugar
✔1g pectin
✔120g Comice pear cores
✔a few drops of lemon juice

Cut a ripe Comice pear into small cubes. Sprinkle with a few drops of lemon. Mix well and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat the pear purée over a low heat for a few minutes with a few drops of lemon. In a small bowl, combine the caster sugar and NH pectin. Increase the heat slightly and as soon as it starts to boil, pour over the pear purée and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and add the gelatine, wrung out well. Mix well.

Add the diced Comice pears. Mix again.

Pour into a 14cm dessert ring, having first wrapped one side in cling film. Pour into a 14cm dessert ring, having first wrapped one side in cling film. Chill for at least 3 hours to allow the jelly to set, then freeze for at least 4 hours.

Chocolate cream
✔70g cream
✔70g milk
✔2g gelatine
✔5g sugar
✔1 yolk
✔50g milk chocolate

Place the gelatine in a bowl of cold water. In another bowl, mix the egg yolk with the sugar. In a saucepan, bring 70g of cream and 70g of milk to the boil, remove from the heat and pour the hot cream over the previous mixture. Return to the saucepan and cook over a low heat until it reaches 82ºC. Remove from the heat and add the crushed gelatine. Pour the hot cream over the praline and stir.

Pour the cream into a bowl, filter and chill for 2 hours.

Remove the chocolate cream, mix with a spatula and fill with a piping bag fitted with a plain tip. Poach the cream on top of the pear insert. Place in the freezer until ready to assemble.

Hazelnut biscuit
✔60 g hazelnut powder
✔1 egg
✔50 g caster sugar
✔20g butter
✔15 g flour
✔2 egg whites

In a bowl, mix the whole egg with the sugar. Add the hazelnut powder, flour and melted butter. Mix well. In another bowl, beat the egg whites with a mixer. Gently fold them into the mixture using a pastry blender. Pour the biscuit dough onto a baking tray lined with baking paper in the 16cm circle. Bake the biscuit for around ten minutes at 180°C. The biscuit should come out golden brown. Remove the biscuit from the oven and leave to cool completely.

My biscuit puffed up a little when I baked it, so to prevent it from being too thick, I cut it to reduce the height.

Praline crisp
✔60g white chocolate
✔60g praline
✔40g crêpes dentelles

Melt the white chocolate in the microwave. Add the crumbled crêpes dentelles and praline. Mix gently. Roll out between two sheets of baking paper and place in the freezer. Remove from the freezer and cut out the crumble using a 16cm circle, the same one used for the hazelnut biscuit. Place in the freezer until ready to assemble.

Pear mousse
✔300g pear
✔250g liquid cream
✔40g caster sugar
✔6g gelatine

Soften the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water. In a saucepan, heat the pear with the caster sugar over a low heat for a few minutes. Remove from the heat and add the gelatine, well wrung out and softened. Mix well. Set aside. Whip the cold cream with an electric mixer. Gently fold in the cooled mixture.

Assembly

Line the 18cm Silikomart silicone mould with the pear mousse, using a spatula to smooth the edges. Add the pear/chocolate cream insert. Top with a little mousse and finish with the hazelnut biscuit and the chocolate praline crunch. Place in the freezer overnight.

Mirror icing
✔110g sugar
✔25g glucose
✔70g water
✔70g 30% MG min liquid cream
✔100g milk chocolate
✔4 2g gelatine leaves

Place the gelatine leaves in a large bowl of cold water. In a saucepan, heat the sugar, water and glucose to boiling. Remove from the heat and add the gelatine, wrung out and softened. Pour this mixture over the milk chocolate, which has been melted in the microwave. Stir well. Add the liquid cream. Use a hand blender without a bell to blend the mixture smoothly. Remove the cake from the freezer and unmould. Cover the surface with the icing cooled to 34/35°C.