Description
These Choux Pastry Hearts with Raspberry Whipped Cream are not only cute – they are also delicious and perfect for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day ;)
Ingredients
For the choux pastry:
1/2 cup (120ml) water
0.9 oz. (25g) butter
1 pinch of salt
2.8 oz. (80g) all-purpose flour
0.5 oz. (15g) cornstarch
3 medium eggs
For the raspberry whipped cream:
10.6 oz. (300g) heavy cream, cold
2 tbsp. confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
some cream stiffener
2.8 oz. (80g) raspberries, puréed (plus more if needed)
For the decoration:
some pink sugar glaze & sprinkles
alternatively confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with baking parchment and set aside.
2. Add water, butter, and salt to a small pot and bring to a boil to melt the butter. Combine the flour and cornstarch, add to the pot and stir until you have a smooth dough that pulls away from the bottom and sides. Let the dough “burn off” (not actually burn but cook the flour), stirring constantly, for about 1-2 minutes – the bottom of the pot should be covered with a white layer. Transfer to a mixing bowl and let cool for a few minutes.
3. Add the eggs to the bowl, one at a time, and mix with the dough hooks of a handheld mixer to incorporate each egg separately into the dough. In the end, the dough should look shiny and hang down in a triangle from the dough hooks when you pull them out. Transfer the batter to a piping bag with a large round piping tip. Pipe hearts onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them far enough apart. Spray or gently brush the hearts with a little water, smoothing out any protruding tips if necessary, and then bake for about 20-22 minutes – do not open the oven during this time. Remove the baked pastries from the oven and let them cool for a moment, then slice them open with a sharp knife to get bottoms and tops. Let cool down completely on a wire rack.
4. for the filling, clean the raspberries and then mash or purée them. Whip the cold heavy cream, with the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and some cream stiffener until stiff peaks form. Add the puréed raspberries and mix in well. Transfer the raspberry whipped cream to a piping bag and pipe a good amount of it onto each (heart) base and close with the top parts.
5. if you want to decorate the hearts further, you can coat the top with some sugar glaze and add some sprinkles as well – or just dust the hearts with some confectioners’ sugar.
Note: If you like it a bit fruitier, you can mash a few extra raspberries, mix them with some sugar and use that as a filling inside the harts underneath the raspberry whipped cream.
Notes
Enjoy baking!