Paris-Brest

By Matt Kennington

Content Creator

Paris was always at the top of my wife’s bucket list, so when we finally got there on our belated honeymoon, she was elated. It was our first international trip together, and we were delighted to discover that we are both foodie-travelers; everywhere we went, we were excited to try new food.

We rented a tiny Airbnb in Arrondissement 17, and on our first night we ventured out to explore the neighborhood. One block away, on Ave. de Saint-Oeun, we found a small patisserie run by a young brother and sister who were delighted to teach a little French language and cuisine to their American visitors. They gave us recommendations, and we were more than willing to take their advice. Every evening, at the end of a long day of adventures, we went back to “our” patisserie and sampled as many pastries as we could afford.

We soon realized that French desserts seemed to have an inverse relationship between fanciness and flavor: the more ordinary and unadorned a dessert looks, the more delicious it tastes. On our new French friends’ recommendation, we tried a simple brown pastry called a Paris-Brest, and it is still the most amazing pastry I have ever met.

When we got home, we tried making a Paris-Brest on our own. It didn’t look as fluffy and delicate as the one from our Paris patisserie, but we had learned our lesson: Don’t judge by looks. It’s tricky to make this recipe look perfect, but it’s hard to mess up the taste!

For Praline Paste:

3 Tablespoon water
6 Tablespoon sugar
3 Tablespoon light corn syrup
⅓ cup toasted hazelnuts
½ cup toasted sliced almonds
⅛ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda

Directions

Lightly grease a baking sheet and set aside. Combine all ingredients except baking soda in saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly for 10 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. Pour over baking sheet and let candy cool to room temp. Break into pieces. Pulse in food processor until a paste forms.

For Choux Pastry:

¼ cup water
¼ cup milk
3 Tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
6½ Tablespoons flour
3 eggs, divided
raw, sliced almonds for decoration
powdered sugar for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine water, milk, butter, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Cook over high heat for 2 minutes, to a roiling boil. Remove from heat and add flour. Mix until all lumps are gone. Return pan to medium heat and stir until dough becomes a cohesive mass.
Let dough cool to 145°F. (You don’t want it to curdle the eggs.) Add the 2 eggs one at a time, stirring well before adding the second egg. Transfer dough to a piping bag.
Pipe a ring of choux paste in an 8-inch circle. Pipe a second ring just inside the first so that the two rings are touching. Finally, pipe a third ring on top of the first two, so that it rests in the groove between them. Use a wet finger to smooth out any bumps.
Gently brush egg wash over the surface of the dough. Sprinkle almonds over top.
Bake 35 minutes until puffed and golden brown. Turn off oven and allow the pastry to dry by poking tiny holes all around the ring and letting it sit for 30 minutes with the oven door cracked open. Remove from oven and let pastry cool to room temp.
Carefully slice off the top half of the pastry. Pastry should be mostly hollow inside. If there aren’t enough air pockets to hold the filling, pluck out dough to make room.

For Crème Mousseline:

2 sticks softened unsalted butter
2½ cups vanilla pastry cream (follow any recipe for “crème pȃtissière”)

Directions

Beat softened butter until light and fluffy. Add prepared praline paste and beat for 3 more minutes.
With mixer still running, add pastry cream a few spoonfuls at a time, until entire mixture is smooth and creamy. Transfer to a pastry bag.

To Assemble Paris–Brest:

Place bottom half of choux pastry ring on serving dish. (You won’t want to move it once it’s been filled.) Pipe the crème mousseline in an even layer onto the choux, about 2 inches high, covering the whole ring.
Place the top half of the choux ring onto the filling. Dust the top with powdered sugar.