Orange Croquembouche

1 hour, 30 minutes prep, 40 minutes cook

Serves 10

Ingredients

For the choux buns

375ml water

150g butter, cubed

175g plain flour

5 large eggs, beaten

For the orange cream

9 large egg yolks

150g golden caster sugar

50g plain flour

1 tbsp finely grated orange zest

4 tbsps orange juice

500ml full fat milk

1 tsp orange extract

For the decoration

800g white chocolate

200g pack Simply Melt Toffee Flavour, available from Lakeland

100g milk chocolate, melted, to fix flakes down

20 Flake bars, broken into pieces

Special kit

This recipe specifies a croquembouche mould, a cone that is used as the base of the structure. They are available from many online retailers.

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F and line 3 large baking sheets with baking parchment.

To make the choux put the water and butter in a large pan, cover with clingfilm and bring to the boil. Remove the clingfilm (take care to avoid the steam) and quickly add all the flour. Remove the pan from the heat, beat mixture to a firm paste, stirring continuously. Transfer mix to a bowl and leave to cool for 5 minutes.

Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well between each addition, until the mix is smooth, glossy and has a ribbon-like consistency when the spoon in lifted.

Spoon the mix into a piping bag with a plain 5mm nozzle. Pipe 75 small rounds onto the baking sheets, leaving enough spreading space between each. Dip a finger in cold water and flatten any peaks. Bake for approx. 20 minutes until risen and golden, turning the baking sheets after 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, and pierce the base of each with a skewer to let steam escape. Return to the oven and cook for a further 3 minutes to dry out. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Make the orange cream; in a large bowl, beat the yolks, sugar, flour, zest and juice to make a smooth paste. Place the milk in a large pan, bring to the boil then immediately pour over the egg mixture, stirring well. Return to the pan and cook over a low heat, stirring constantly until thick and bubbling. Stir in the extract, transfer to a bowl, cover with clingfilm and allow to cool completely. Refrigerate until ready to use. Using a piping bag, fill each bun with the cream.

To stack; break the white chocolate into a bowl then microwave on a medium heat, stirring frequently, until just melted. Using the croquembouche mould, dot a small amount of chocolate at the base on the outside of the cone, place a bun on this, then repeat around the base. Work up the cone, drizzling with chocolate and building up the buns until the cone is covered. To decorate; using a spoon, drizzle any remaining white chocolate over the stack. Melt the Simply Melt Buttons according to the packet instructions and drizzle over the croquembouche. Break the milk chocolate into a bowl then microwave on a medium heat, stirring frequently, until just melted. Using a teaspoon, dot the milk chocolate around the base to fix the flakes in place.