Chocolate Tuile Batter Recipes

VANILLA OR CHOCOLATE TUILES

Steps:

• Beat butter and sugar together with an electric mixer on medium-high speed. Beat in the egg whites, one at a time. Beat in the vanilla.
• Lower the speed and add the flour or flour-cocoa mixture (see Cook's Note) and mix until just combined. Do not overmix. Cover bowl and chill for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Cut a small hole (about 3 1/2 inch diameter) in a thin piece of cardboard or plastic to serve as a template in forming the tuiles. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicon mat and place the stencil on it. Using a small off-set spatula, place a small amount of the batter in the center of the hole of the stencil and spread it out evenly. Carefully lift the stencil off. Repeat for more cookies.
• Bake in preheated oven until lightly brown around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and while still hot, remove tuiles from the pan and drape them over a rolling pin. Allow to sit a few minutes to harden and cool. Store in an airtight container.

CHOCOLATE TUILE BATTER

Steps:

• Sift flour with cocoa, and set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium until well-combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg whites, one at a time, beating for 4 minutes after each addition. Add the flour-and-cocoa mixture, and mix until just combined.
• Reserve 1/2 cup batter; place in a pastry bag fitted with a #2 tip, and set aside for piping white tuile cookies.

TUILES

Steps:

• In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter at medium speed until creamy, about 30 seconds. Add the confectioners' sugar and flour and mix until combined. Add the egg whites one at a time, beating after each addition just until well blended, about 1 minute in all. Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Have a rolling pin at hand. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray or line it with parchment paper.
• Spoon 2 teaspoons of the batter onto the baking sheet and with a small, offset metal spatula, spread it evenly into a 3-inch circle. Repeat to form more tuiles, baking only 6 to 8 at a time. Refrigerate the remaining batter while you bake the tuiles.
• Bake the tuiles for 4 to 6 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges. Remove from the oven and immediately shape the tuiles, lifting up each one with a metal spatula and draping it over the rolling pin so it curves, just until set. Repeat with the remaining batter. Store the tuiles in a cool dry place in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

WHITE TUILE BATTER

Steps:

• Sift flour into a mixing bowl, and set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed, until well-combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg whites, one at a time, beating for 4 minutes after each addition. Add the reserved flour, and mix until just combined.
• Reserve 1/2 cup batter; place in a pastry bag fitted with a #2 tip, and set aside for piping chocolate tuile cookies.

HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE TUILES

Steps:

• Halve 4 parchment paper sheets lengthwise and set aside. Prepare a stencil using a piece of cardboard 6 inches long by 4 inches wide. Draw a circle 2 1/2 inches in diameter in the upper half of the cardboard then cut out the circle. The stencil is the cardboard with the circle removed.
• Melt and temper the chocolate (see pages 25-30), then stir in the ground hazelnuts thoroughly. Set the stencil over a strip of parchment paper and spread about a tablespoon of the mixture over the opening, using an offset spatula with a 4-inch blade. The tuiles should be no more than 1/8 inch thick. Lift the stencil off the parchment paper and scrape the excess chocolate mixture from the stencil back into the bowl. You should be able to place 4 tuiles on each strip of parchment paper.
• Let the tuiles set for 3 to 4 minutes, then carefully drape the parchment paper with the tuiles over a rolling pin that is set on a jelly roll pan. Chill the tuiles in the refrigerator until firm (10 to 15 minutes). Gently peel the parchment paper off of the curved tuiles. In a tightly covered container wrapped in several layers of aluminum foil, the tuiles will keep for 1 week at room temperature or 1 month in the refrigerator. The tuiles are best served at room temperature.
• White Chocolate Tuiles: Substitute 10 ounces white chocolate for the bittersweet chocolate.
• Coconut Chocolate Tuiles: Substitute 2 cups shredded sweetened coconut, lightly toasted, for the hazelnuts.
• Nibby Tuiles: Substitute 1 cup roughly chopped cacao nibs for the hazelnuts.

TUILES

Steps:

• Sift the flour, sugar, and salt into a small mixing bowl. Add the egg whites and then the melted unsalted butter, and whisk until just combined. Set the batter aside to rest for 1 1/2 hours before using, or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Heavily butter 3 pieces of parchment paper, and place one each on three baking sheets. Using 1 1/2 Tbsps. per tuile, spoon the batter onto the baking sheets, 5 per sheet. The cookies should be at least 2 inches apart, as they spread during baking. Dipping a finger in the milk first, spread each cookie into a 3-inch round. To insure even baking, make the edges no thinner than the centers.
• Bake the tuiles 8 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the centers are just beginning to color. Remove the cookies from the oven. As soon as they are cool enough to handle, remove the tuiles from the baking sheets and drape them around rolling pins or wine bottles. If the cookies become too cool and stiff to bend, return them to the oven for a minute or so and they will soften up.