Boston Cream Doughnuts Topped With Cacao Nibs Recipes

BOSTON CREAM DONUT RECIPE

Steps:

• Make the doughnuts. While the doughnuts are doing their last proof, make the cream filling.

BOSTON CREAM DONUTS

Steps:

• Chocolate Glaze: Combine chocolate, confectioners' sugar, cocoa, salt, and butter in a small bowl. Heat cream in a small pot over medium-high until bubbling around edges, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour hot cream over chocolate mixture; let stand 1 minute. Add vanilla and whisk until mixture is smooth and has the consistency of hot-fudge sauce. If it's too thick, add more cream, 1 tablespoon at a time. (Makes 1 1/3 cups.)
• Donuts: Whisk together flours. Combine water and milk in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough-hook attachment, then sprinkle yeast over top. Stir in 1 cup flour mixture. Cover with plastic wrap; let stand in a warm place until bubbling and doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Add egg and yolk, granulated sugar, salt, and remaining flour mixture. Beat on medium speed 3 minutes. Continue beating while adding butter, a few pieces at a time, beating to combine after each addition. When all butter has been added, keep beating until a shiny, sticky dough forms around hook, about 4 minutes more. Scrape down sides of bowl.
• Cover dough with plastic wrap. Let stand in a warm place until almost doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Refrigerate at least 8 hours and up to 24.
• Cut out 9 three-inch squares of parchment. Spray a baking sheet with oil; arrange parchment squares in a single layer. Spray parchment. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet; pat out 1/2 inch thick. Using a floured 2 3/4-inch square cutter, cut out 9 squares. Transfer to parchment squares. Drape with oil-sprayed plastic wrap and let stand in a warm spot until slightly more than doubled in bulk and very soft, about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, pour oil into a large, deep, heavy pot, such as a Dutch oven, until it reaches 2 inches up side, leaving about 2 1/2 inches headroom. Clip a deep- fry thermometer to pot and heat oil over medium to 350 degrees to 360 degrees. Working in batches of 3 so as not to crowd pot, carefully use parchment to transfer donuts to hot oil and cook, flipping a few times, until puffed and golden brown all over, 2 to 3 minutes total, maintaining oil temperature between 350 degrees and 360 degrees at all times. Transfer donuts to a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet; let cool completely.
• Fill a pastry bag fitted with a coupler and a Bismarck piping tip (such as Ateco #231) with about 1/2 cup pastry cream. Fill each donut with about 1 tablespoon cream (it should puff slightly in center). Dip top of each donut in glaze until halfway submerged, turning as needed to evenly coat one side, then place, glaze-side up, on rack. Let stand until glaze sets.

BOSTON CREAM DONUTS

Steps:

• For the donuts: Sprinkle the yeast over the 2 tablespoons warm water in a liquid measuring cup. Add the pinch of sugar and set aside until bubbly, about 5 minutes.
• Combine the remaining 1/4 cup sugar with the flour, salt, nutmeg, buttermilk, shortening, egg, vanilla, 150 grams (2/3 cup) water and yeast mixture in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Beat on medium-high speed until a smooth ball of dough forms around the hook and only slightly sticks to the bottom of the bowl, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer the dough to a large bowl lightly sprayed with cooking spray; cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly sprinkle with flour.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 9-by-11-inch rectangle that's 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick. Use a 3 1/2-inch round cutter to cut out 12 donuts. Transfer the donuts to the prepared baking sheet, cover with a towel, wrap with plastic wrap and let rise until they puff slightly, about 20 minutes.
• For the chocolate glaze: In a double boiler over hot, but not boiling, water, combine the chocolate chips, butter and salt. Let mixture gently heat until the chips are melted. Remove from the heat and whisk in the honey and vanilla until smooth. Set aside.
• To fry the donuts: Heat 6 inches of oil in a large heavy pot fitted with a candy thermometer over medium-high heat until the oil reaches 350 to 375 degrees. Fry the donuts in batches, flipping halfway through, until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer the donuts to a wire rack to cool for 2 minutes.
• To fill and decorate the donuts: Once the donuts are able to be handled, but still warm, fill them with the vanilla pudding then dip the tops in the chocolate glaze. Sprinkle with the sprinkles and enjoy!

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE WITH COCOA NIBS

Steps:

• For the creme patissiere: Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale and thick, and then whisk in the cornstarch.
• Add the cocoa powder to the milk and bring to a boil; switch off the heat. Pour the milk in a slow stream onto the egg mixture, whisking vigorously all the time. (Pour slowly to avoid scrambling the eggs.) Return the mixture to a clean pot over a medium heat and whisk continuously. Make sure to scrape the sides and the bottom, otherwise it will burn. The cream will start to thicken. Once it releases a bubble or two, take it off the heat.
• Pour into a shallow bowl. Cover with cling film (pat the cling film so it sticks directly onto the cream) and refrigerate for at least an hour before using.
• For the meringue: Put half the egg whites into a clean glass or metal bowl. Add the sugar, lemon juice and salt and whisk until white. Add the rest of the egg whites and continue whisking until the meringue forms stiff peaks when the whisk is removed.
• Melt the chocolate in a bain marie (a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water) or in the microwave on a low setting. Whip the cream until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed.
• To make the mousse, beat the chilled creme patissiere to remove any lumps before stirring in the melted chocolate. Mix in one third of the meringue, and then gently fold in the rest followed by the whipped cream.
• To serve, brush 4 to 6 glasses or ramekins with butter. Add some cocoa nibs and roll them around the sides and bottom of the glasses until evenly coated. Divide the mousse among the glasses and chill for at least an hour, but ideally 4 hours. Serve chilled, sprinkled with cocoa nibs. The mousse is best eaten the same day and should not be kept for more than 2 days.

CACAO NIB CARAMEL CORN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Pop the corn according to package directions and transfer to a large bowl. Set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, salt, corn syrup, vanilla bean and cacao nibs. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, over medium heat.
• Pour the caramel over the popcorn, tossing to coat evenly. Divide the caramel corn between 2 parchment-lined sheet pans. Bake, stirring every 15 minutes, until the popcorn is sticky and caramelized, about 1 hour. Cool the popcorn on sheet pans, stirring often for the first few minutes (so it doesn't stick together). Store in an airtight container up to 5 days.

COCOA NIB HOT CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• Pulse the cocoa nibs in a spice grinder 3 to 4 times until the nibs are coarsely chopped. Place the nibs in a 1-quart microwave-safe measuring cup and add the milk. Microwave on high for 3 to 4 minutes or until the milk reaches 160 degrees F. Steep at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine the chocolate, sugar, water and salt in the carafe of a 1-liter French press. Set aside.
• After steeping, return the nib-milk mixture to the microwave and heat on high for 2 minutes until it simmers or reaches 185 degrees F. Strain the hot nib-milk mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into the French press carafe. Set aside for 1 minute, and then stir to combine the chocolate and milk. Pump the plunger of the French press 10 to 15 times to froth and aerate. Serve immediately.

BOSTON CREAM DOUGHNUTS

Steps:

• Heat the milk until it is warm but not hot, about 90 degrees. In a large bowl, combine it with the yeast. Stir lightly, and let sit until the mixture is foamy, about 5 minutes.
• Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, beat the eggs, butter, sugar and salt into the yeast mixture. Add half of the flour (2 cups plus 2 tablespoons), and mix until combined, then mix in the rest of the flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Add more flour, about 2 tablespoons at a time, if the dough is too wet. If you're using an electric mixer, the dough will probably become too thick to beat; when it does, transfer it to a floured surface, and gently knead it until smooth. Grease a large bowl with a little oil. Transfer the dough to the bowl, and cover. Let rise at room temperature until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
• Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface, and roll it to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut out the doughnuts with a doughnut cutter, concentric cookie cutters or a drinking glass and a shot glass (the larger one should be about 3 inches in diameter), flouring the cutters as you go. Reserve the doughnut holes. If you're making filled doughnuts, don't cut out the middle. Knead any scraps together, being careful not to overwork, and let rest for a few minutes before repeating the process.
• Put the doughnuts on two floured baking sheets so that there is plenty of room between each one. Cover with a kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place until they are slightly puffed up and delicate, about 45 minutes. If your kitchen isn't warm, heat the oven to 200 at the beginning of this step, then turn off the heat, put the baking sheets in the oven and leave the door ajar.
• About 15 minutes before the doughnuts are done rising, put the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, and heat it to 375. Meanwhile, line cooling racks, baking sheets or plates with paper towels.
• Carefully add the doughnuts to the oil, a few at a time. If they're too delicate to pick up with your fingers (they may be this way only if you rose them in the oven), use a metal spatula to pick them up and slide them into the oil. It's O.K. if they deflate a bit; they'll puff back up as they fry. When the bottoms are deep golden, after 45 seconds to a minute, use a slotted spoon to flip; cook until they're deep golden all over. Doughnut holes cook faster. Transfer the doughnuts to the prepared plates or racks, and repeat with the rest of the dough, adjusting the heat as needed to keep the oil at 375.
• For the glaze, whisk together 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/4 cup milk and 1 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Dip the tops of the doughnuts in the glaze, and let it harden on a rack.
• Combine 2/3 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, 2 tablespoons cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan. Over medium heat, whisk in 2 eggs and 2 cups cream. Continue cooking, whisking almost constantly, until the mixture just begins to boil and thickens, about 10 minutes. Adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles gently; cook until it coats the back of a spoon (when you draw your finger through this coating, the resulting line should hold its shape). Stir in 2 tablespoons softened unsalted butter and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, and cool to room temperature before using.
• To fill the doughnuts with the pastry cream, insert the tip of a pastry bag filled with cream into the side of the doughnut, and squeeze. (Alternatively, poke a chopstick into the side of the doughnut, and wiggle it around to hollow out some space inside. Plunge a small funnel into the hole, spoon some filling into the funnel and use the chopstick to push it into the doughnut. If the filling clumps up toward the center of the doughnut, just press lightly on the top to distribute it evenly.)