St. Patrick Day Choux Buns

Crisp choux buns filled with a silky smooth caramel sauce & a decadent whipped chocolate ganache. Both the caramel & the ganache are laden with Irish Cream in celebration of St Paddy's Day honestly, SO GOOD! 

Ingredients - makes 12-15 large choux buns

Choux paste:

100ml water

100ml whole milk

100g unsalted butter

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

105g strong flour

160g eggs (approx 3 large eggs) 

Craqueline topping:

60g unsalted butter

60g demerara sugar

60g plain flour

10g cocoa powder 

Chocolate Whipped Ganache:

100g Milk Chocolate

100g Dark Chocolate

20g honey

250ml double cream (1)

150ml Irish cream

200ml double cream (2) 

Caramel sauce:

100ml double cream

30g unsalted butter

65g sugar

50ml Irish cream

Pinch of sea salt 

Method

The day before:

Whipped ganache: place the first cream & the honey into a pan & bring to a simmer. Semi-melt the chocolates together before pouring over the warmed cream. Whisk together before whisking in the Irish cream & second amount of cold cream. Blend using a hand blender and refridgerate overnight. 

Caramel: place the sugar into a saucepan and make a dry caramel. Once golden, add in the butter then the cream. Bring back to the boil. Add the Irish cream before boiling again. Take off the heat, add the salt and place into the fridge with clingfilm on the surface to cool completely. 

Craqueline:

Mix all of the ingredients until you have a paste. Roll between two pieces of baking paper until 1-2mm thick. Place into the freezer until needed. 

The day of assembly:

Choux buns:

Place the water, milk, butter, sugar & salt into a saucepan over medium heat until just boiling. Add in the flour and beat together with a spoon. Continue to cook for a few minutes, until it comes away from the pan to form a smooth paste. Tip into a bowl to cool for a few minutes. Gradually beat in the egg until the paste falls off the spoon creating a "V" shape and the mix stretches between your fingers without breaking. You may need more egg or less, depending on how it's been cooked out.

Preheat the oven to 200C and line a baking tray with a silicone mat. Fit a piping bag with a plain nozzle and fill it with the choux paste. Pipe the choux buns onto the baking tray, leaving plenty of space in between (remember, they grow A LOT so don’t pipe them too big.) Take the craqueline from the freezer and peel the paper off the top and bottom. Using a round cutter, cut into discs just a little larger than your choux pastry and place on top. Bake for 10 minutes before turning the oven down to 160C for a further 10 minutes. Do not open the oven before they’re done baking, or they may fall. Your choux may need a little longer baking depending on the size. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

Take the ganache from the fridge and whip until you have soft-medium peaks. Fit a piping bag with a star nozzle and fill with the whipped ganache. Cut the tops off of the choux buns and pipe a little ganache inside. Using a spoon, brush it up the sides of the bun before filling the hole with caramel. Finish by piping a large spiral of whipped ganache on top of the choux bun and placing its top back on. Serve.