Spiced Pear Choux Buns – Pōhā Hēki me ngā Pea Namunamuā
Who out there has made choux buns? I know they can be somewhat daunting but I know you can do it. They are the vehicle for so many flavours and these spiced pear compote and caramel ones are divine. There a few little tricks to making the perfect choux buns.
1. Add enough egg until the point where the mixture holds a V shape. If the V doesn’t hold or breaks off too quickly, add a little bit more egg and test it again. See the video below for a reference.
2. Make sure you bake the buns for long enough. You will see in my recipe that I bake them, stab holes through each one and continue to bake. This is not a typo, this process helps the buns stay dry and crisp and stops them from having a soggy interior.
3. If you want to make the choux buns and eat them later, wait to fill them just before eating so they don’t go soggy. These buns are best eaten within an hour of assembly.
4. If you want to store the choux buns unfilled for another day, put them in a sealed container and store in the cupboard. Do not refrigerate the unfilled buns as they will go soft.
Choux Pastry with Spiced Pear and Caramel
Ingredients
Choux Pastry – Pōhā Hēki
- 1 C wai (water)
- 1 tsp wanira (vanilla)
- ¼ tsp tote (salt, fine)
- 100 g pata (butter)
- 1 C puehu parāoa noa (plain flour)
- 4 hēki (eggs, size 6, you may need a little extra)
Spiced Pear Compote – Tiamu Pea Namunamuā
- 1 quantity spiced pear compote
Cream – Kirīmi
- 2 C kirīmi (cream, whipping)
- 3 tbsp puehu huka (icing sugar)
- ½ C karamea (caramel, store brought caramel sauce)
- 80 g tiakarete kua rewaina (melted chocolate, of your choice)
Instructions
Choux Pastry – Pōhā Hēki
- Pre-heat the oven to 170 °C, on fan bake.
- Add the wai (water), wanira (vanilla), tote (salt) and pata (butter) to a pot. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Remove it from the heat.
- Sift the puehu parāoa (flour) directly in to the hot mixture. Give it a really good stir and set it back on to low to medium heat.
- Cook the mixture for 3 minutes as you continue to stir. You will notice a light film of mixture forming on the bottom of the pot – that is what we want. Tip it in to a large bowl.
- Push the mixture up the sides of the bowl and leave to cool for 10 minutes. As it cools, add the hēki (eggs) to another bowl and whip well.
- Slowly add the hēki (eggs) in to the mixture a quarter at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix it until a smooth paste forms. Keep adding the hēki (egg) and mixing it until a V shape forms when you pull the spatula out of the mix.
- Prepare two large baking trays with baking paper. Spray them with cold water or brush it on with a pastry brush.
- Add the prepared mixture to a piping bag with a small round nozzle. Pipe around 12 choux buns on to each tray. If you don't have a piping bag you can add the mixture with a teaspoon. Make sure there is plenty of room for the buns to grow.
- If you have piped them, dip your finger in some water and smoosh the peaks down so they don't get brunt in the oven.
- Bake them for 20 minutes. Then open the oven and stab through both sides of each bun with a knife. This releases steam and helps them go crisp.Bake them in the oven for a further 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.
Spiced Pear Compote – Tiamu Pea Namunamuā
- Make the spiced pear compote according to instructions and allow to cool.
Cream – Kirīmi
- Add the kirīmi (cream) and puehu huka (icing sugar) to the bowl. Whip it until thick and luscious.
Assembly
- Once the choux buns have cooled slightly, slice them horizontally and allow to cool completely. Pipe or spoon a small amount of kirīmi (cream) in to the bottom of each bun.
- Add the tiamu pea (pear compote) on top of the kirmi. Top with more kirīmi (cream).
- If you are using the karamea (caramel), create a small hole in the centre of the cream and add in the karamea (caramel).
- Add the lids on to each bun. At this point you can dust with puehu huka (icing sugar) or spread a little bit of tiakarete kua rewaina (melted chocolate) on to each one. Ka pai – well done!
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