Centerpiece Napoleon With Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse Recipes

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 400°F.
• Unfold the pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface. Cut the pastry into 3 strips along the fold marks. Cut each strip into 6 rectangles. Place the pastries 2-inches apart on 2 baking sheets.
• Bake the pastries for 15 minutes or until they're golden brown. Remove the pastries from the baking sheets and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
• Put the cream and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer set on high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold in the melted chocolate pieces. Split each pastry into 2 layers, making 36 pieces. Spread 18 bottom halves with the chocolate cream mixture. Top with the remaining top halves. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate up to 4 hours.
• Drizzle the pastries with the chocolate and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar just before serving.
• Easy Substitution: You can substitute 2 cups thawed frozen non-dairy or dairy whipped topping for the heavy cream.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT NAPOLEON

Steps:

• For the pastry cream, heat the evaporated milk and milk in a medium saucepot until just below a simmer. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks, and cornstarch together. Place the chocolate and butter in a separate bowl and place a strainer overtop.
• Pour the hot milk over the egg mixture while whisking constantly until it has all been added. Return this to the pot and whisk over medium heat until the custard thickens and turns glossy, about 3 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and pour it through the strainer over the chocolate and butter. Whisk this until the chocolate has melted and the custard is smooth. Whisk in the hazelnut liqueur and vanilla, then whisk in the hazelnut butter. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the custard, cool to room temperature, then chill until set, about 3 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 400 F and line a baking tray with parchment paper, and have a second baking tray of the same size on hand.
• Cut the pastry dough into 3 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface roll out each piece to a rectangle about 5-x-14 inches. Alternatively, you can roll out each piece to about 4-x-8 inches and then finish rolling the dough through a pasta roller set to the widest setting (this makes for a pastry that bakes evenly and level). If needed, stack the 3 pieces of dough and trim the edges so that they are all the same size (they will be closer to 4-x-12 inches once trimmed). Chill the dough for 15 minutes.
• Place the 3 pieces of dough on the prepared baking tray and dock with a fork. Place a second sheet of parchment paper over the pastry and place the second baking tray on top. Bake the pastry for 10 minutes, then add a heavy weight on top of the top baking tray (a cast iron skillet, or even 2 bricks wrapped in foil) and bake 10 minutes more. Remove the weights, the top baking tray and parchment and finish baking for about 10 more minutes, until the pastry is a rich golden brown. Cool completely before assembling.
• To assemble, place one of the pastry pieces on a platter or flat board. Stir the pastry cream to soften and spread half of it over the pastry. Top this with a second sheet of pastry and spread the remaining half of the pastry cream overtop. Top this with the third piece of pastry and press it down ever so gently. Chill for an hour.
• Dust the top of the napoleon generously with icing sugar. Using a sharp Chef's knife, trim the edges of the pastry if needed, then cut the napoleon into 6 individual portions, each 4-x-1 ½-inches. Store the napoleons refrigerated until ready to serve.
• The napoleons can be prepared up to a day in advance, and stored refrigerated up to 2 days.

CHOCOLATE-HAZELNUT NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Make hazelnut crème:
• Melt chocolate with Nutella and keep warm.
• Beat cream with an electric mixer until it just holds soft peaks, then chill.
• Beat egg and yolks in cleaned mixer bowl with cleaned beaters at high speed until thick and pale, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, bring sugar, water, and corn syrup to a boil in a 1-qt heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until sugar has dissolved. Continue to boil, undisturbed, until candy thermometer registers 238°F (soft-ball stage; you will need to tilt pan to get temperature), about 4 minutes.
• Reduce mixer speed to medium and add hot sugar mixture to eggs in a slow steam (try to avoid beaters and side of bowl), then beat until mixture is pale, thick, tripled in volume, and completely cool, about 5 minutes.
• Fold chocolate mixture into egg mixture. Fold in one third of whipped cream to lighten, then fold in remaining whipped cream gently but thoroughly. Chill at least 4 hours.
• Candy hazelnuts:
• Line a baking pan with foil (shiny side up).
• Heat sugar in a heavy 10-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring with a fork to heat sugar evenly, until it starts to melt, then stop stirring and cook, swirling skillet occasionally so sugar melts evenly, until it is dark amber. Add hazelnuts, stirring until coated. Transfer to foil and cool completely, then coarsely chop.
• Bake pastry:
• Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Line a large heavy baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Roll out puff pastry onto a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 17- by 10-inch rectangle (about 1/8 inch thick). Transfer to baking sheet, then cover with a sheet of parchment and top with a heavy baking sheet or sheet pan to weight down. Bake until pale golden, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, stir together corn syrup and water.
• Remove top baking sheet and parchment. Generously brush pastry with corn syrup mixture and cover with parchment, then invert pastry and brush other side with corn syrup mixture. Replace parchment and baking sheet and bake until deep golden and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes more. Cool completely.
• Using a serrated knife, trim edges of pastry, then halve lengthwise and cut each half into 8 equal rectangles for a total of 16 rectangles.
• Assemble dessert:
• Arrange 8 rectangles on a baking sheet and dust with confectioners' sugar to cover. (To mark pastry decoratively, see cooks' note, below.)
• Dab a small amount of hazelnut crème in center of 8 plates, then put an undecorated pastry rectangle on top. Divide remaining hazelnut crème among pastry rectangles. Sprinkle with some of the candied hazelnuts and top with decorated pastry rectangles. Sprinkle with more candied hazelnuts.
• Do Ahead
• Hazelnut crème can be chilled up to 2 days. Candied hazelnuts keep in an airtight container 3 weeks. Pastry can be baked 2 days ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

CHOCOLATE-HAZELNUT MOUSSE

Steps:

• 1. Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Arrange the hazelnuts on a small baking tray and bake until lightly browned, 10 to 12 minutes, turning the tray back to front after 5 or 6 minutes. Cool. Enclose the nuts in a clean towel and rub until as much of the skins as possible come off.
• 2. Place the nuts and hazelnut oil in the workbowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until a paste forms.
• 3. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, using a whisk or eggbeater, whip the heavy cream. Refrigerate, covered, until needed.
• 4. In a medium heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt the chocolate. Turn off the heat when almost melted and stir occasionally until completely melted. Scrape into the nut paste and process until thoroughly mixed. Set aside.
• 5. In a clean medium heatproof bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolks.

CHOCOLATE-HAZELNUT MOUSSE

Steps:

• Grind hazelnuts with 1 tablespoon sugar in processor until mixture forms paste. Melt chocolate in small metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from over water.
• Whisk egg yolks, 2 tablespoons water, Frangelico and 2 tablespoons sugar in large metal bowl to blend. Set bowl over same saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly until thick ribbons form when whisk is lifted and thermometer inserted into mixture registers 160°F, about 6 minutes. Cool mixture slightly. Fold in chocolate and hazelnut paste.
• Using electric mixer, beat egg whites and pinch of salt in large bowl until soft peaks form. Stir remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and 3 tablespoons water in very small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and boil until thermometer inserted into mixture registers 220°F, about 4 minutes. Gradually add hot syrup to whites, beating until firm peaks form and whites are cool. Fold into chocolate mixture in 2 additions.
• Beat 1/2 cup whipping cream in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Fold into mousse. Spoon mousse into 4 goblets, dividing equally. Chill mousse at least 1 hour and up to 1 day. Garnish each serving with whipped cream and toasted hazelnuts.