History of Croquembouche from France

History

Croquembouche's origins come from having a dessert that is fancy, architectural structure to display on medieval tables of the French royal and noble. Antonin Carème was the one who popularized the dessert. Carème studied architecture and was known for saying that "architecture was the most noble of arts and that pastry was the highest form of architecture." He created mosques, pavilions, Gothic towers, etc. The most common shape was that of a Turkish Fez, which in the 19th century, turned into a tower that spiraled upwards and out of control, but in the 20th century turned into a conical structure similar to the modern croquembouche. 
 When croquembouche is split into "croque en bouche,' the name literally translates to "crunch in the mouth." It's a traditional wedding cake or a French dessert and is made of choux buns filled with pastry cream, flavored with a liquor of choice, sitting on a round base and mounted into a cone shape. 
Typically, the croquembouche is decorated with fine strands of caramel, flowers, sugar almonds, strawberries, chocolate, ribbons, and even sometimes macaroons. The decoration that goes on top depends on the occasion- if it is a wedding, it might be sugared bride and groom figurines, a monogram, flowers, marzipan roses, or even hearts made out of nougatine. 

Recipe

Prep Time: 2 hr 50 min Cook Time: 30 min Total Time: 3 hr 10 min

Ingredients

Custard

• 6 cups milk
• 2 vanilla beans, scraped
  
• 18 egg yolks
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3/4 cups cornstarch

Puffs 

• 4 sticks butter 
• 4 cups water 
• 2 tsp salt 
• 6 tbsp sugar 
• 4 cups flour 
• 12 eggs 
• egg wash 

Caramel

•  2 cups sugar
• 2 tbsp dark corn syrup
• 2/3 cup water
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Instructions
  1.  In saucepan, heat milk and vanilla pod on medium heat until boiling. Once boiling, turn off heat and let simmer for 15 minutes.
  2. Using hand mixer, beat egg yolks with sugar until fluffy, about 2-4 minutes.
  3. Add cornstarch and thoroughly mix. 
  4. Remove vanilla pod from milk. Add 1/2 of milk to egg yolk and mix. Add remaining milk and beat until incorporated.
  5. On medium heat, whisk mixture until thickened, 7-10 minutes. 
  6. Remove from heat and whisk in butter.
  7. Cover custard with plastic wrap, ensuring the plastic touches the custard, and chill for 2 hours.
  8. Preheat oven to 450℉. 
  9. In pot, bring butter, sugar, salt, and water to a boil over high heat. 
  10. Once water is boiling, remove from heat and immediately add flour, stirring until mixture begins to form into a ball.
  11. Bring pot back to heat and cook for another 30 seconds to remove excess liquid and then remove pot again.
  12. Quickly add eggs, one at a time, stirring until incorporated. Stir until dough pulls itself away from sides of the bowl and is glossy and thick.
  13. Using a piping bag with choice of tip, fill bag with batter.
  14. Place 1 inch droplets on paper-lined baking sheet at least 1 inch apart.
  15. Bake for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, reduce heat to 375℉ and cook for additional 15 minutes.
  16. Let puffs cool.
  17. Use bottom of wooden skewer to make an opening in the bottom of the puffs with the piping tip. Fill the puffs with custard.
  18. Add corn syrup, sugar, and water to pan over medium heat. Bring to boil and place lid over it, letting it simmer for 5 minutes. Remove lid and cook for another 10 minutes until caramel is deep amber and 300℉.
  19. Remove pan from heat and add heavy cream, stirring vigorously. 
  20. Quickly dip the puffs in the caramel and arrange on a platter in circular pattern.
  21. Continue to stack puffs into a cone shape.
  22. Once tower is completed, dip a fork in caramel and drizzle around the tower. 
  23. Serve
      

  Analysis
  I found this recipe to be a little labor intensive but well worth it. Making the puffs stay upright was difficult, but possible.
  When doing the caramel, you need a candy thermometer, and I've found that corn syrup doesn't always work the best. I tend to substitute corn syrup with either cream of tartar or agar agar for the thickness of caramel.
  I also found that I needed to chill my custard for longer than two hours. I let mine chill overnight so I was positive it would come out how I needed it to.