8 big cruffins

Light dough:

• 2 cups (320 g) bread flour
• 2.5 teaspoons dried yeast
• 3 oz (90 ml) lukewarm milk
• ¼  cup (50 g) sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) lukewarm water

Dark dough:

• 1 ¾  cups (270 g) bread flour
• 5 tablespoons (50 g) cocoa powder
• 2.5 teaspoons dried yeast
• 3 oz (90 ml) lukewarm milk
• ¼  cup (50 g) sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) lukewarm water

...

• 2-3 tablespoons (40 g) dark chocolate (grated)
• about 1 cup (220 g) butter, softened

Make light dough: in a medium bowl mix together yeast, milk and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let stand for 15 until frothy. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine flour, remaining sugar and salt. Add yeast mixture, egg, vanilla extract and melted butter, slightly cooled.  Add water and mix on medium speed until dough is smooth (5-6 minutes). Remove from the bowl, place on lightly floured surface and knead by hands for further 3-4 minutes until dough shapes a smooth and elastic ball. Once the dough is ready place it to the oiled bowl, cover and let stand in a warm place for 1-1.5 hours to rest and rise.

Repeat the procedure with ingredients for dark dough.

When the dough is well risen place the remaining 1 cup butter in a bowl of a stand mixer and beat few minutes until light and fluffy.

Grease the pan with butter. Divide each dough into eight equal pieces (eight light pieces and eight dark pieces). Working with one light and one dark piece at the time roll out dough very thinly in a shape of long rectangular with slightly rounded corners. Spread first piece (it does not matter light or dark) with butter evenly over the whole surface and cover with the second piece of dough. Spread butter again over the whole surface and sprinkle with grated chocolate. Roll it tightly into a log starting on the shorter side. Cut out almost the whole log into half lengthwise keeping one end not cut. Place both pieces cut side up and shape each into a snail. Two snails are connected together – put one over the second high up.  Repeat the procedure with all remaining seven light-dark pairs of dough. Place each double snail into one hole of the pan. Important! This way prepared cruffins are supposed to be baked in a popover pan or empty vegetable cans. If you own only classic muffin pan cut each log to the end shaping two separated snails and place in each pan hole one single snail. Let stand the pan in a warm place for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).

Bake cruffins to the ‘clean skewer’ for 20-22 minutes (in pans) or for 25-30 minutes in vegetable cans. Cool on a wire rack.

Dust with icing sugar before serving.

12 cruffins

 Ingredients:

• 2 ¾ cups (440 g) bread flour
• 5 teaspoons dried yeast
• ½ cup (125 ml) lukewarm milk
• 1/3 cup (75 g) sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• ¼ cup (62 ml) lukewarm water

...

• about 1 cup (220 g) butter, softened

Vanilla custard:

• 1 ½ cups (360 ml) milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or seeds of one vanilla bean
• 3 egg yolks
• ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon (60 g) granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons corn starch
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened

Make dough: in a medium bowl mix together yeast, milk and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let stand for 15 until frothy. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine flour, remaining sugar and salt. Add yeast mixture and melted butter, slightly cooled.  Add water and mix on medium speed until dough is smooth (8-10 minutes). Once the dough is ready set it aside, cover and let stand in a warm place for 1 hour to rest and rise. Once ready, transfer dough to the lightly floured surface, punch down, knead shortly by hand, shape into a ball and let to rest for further 30 minutes covering with tea towel.

Make custard: pour the milk and vanilla bean paste in medium sauce pan and heat until boil. In a bowl beat the egg yolks with corn starch and sugar until light and creamy. Pour boiled milk over egg mixture, stirring constantly. Return the mixture to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring, for 4-5 minutes until starts to thicken and bubble. Remove from the heat and beat in the butter. Transfer to a bowl. Cover the surface with a cling film to prevent forming a skin. Leave to cool.

When the dough is well risen place the remaining 1 cup butter in a bowl of a stand mixer and beat few minutes until light and fluffy.

Grease the classic muffin pan with butter. Divide dough into six equal pieces. Roll out each piece very thinly in a shape of long rectangular with slightly rounded corners. Spread butter evenly over the dough and roll it tightly into a log starting on the shorter side. Cut out the log into half lengthwise. Place both pieces cut side up and shape into a snail covering the end underneath (see pictures below the text). Repeat the same with all five remaining pieces of dough. Place each snail into one hole of muffin pan. Let stand the pan in a warm place for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).

Bake cruffins for 20-25 minutes (until slightly browned). Cool on a wire rack.

Spoon the custard to a piping bag ended with big nozzle. Punch a hole on the bottom of each cruffin, put there the nozzle and fill with custard until it reaches the top of cruffin.

round spring pan 9 inch

 Sponge:

• 4 large eggs
• 150 g granulated sugar
• 75 g corn starch
• 75 g cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼  cup (50 g) butter, melted

 Vanilla custard:

• 600 ml milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• 5 egg yolks
• 100 g granulated sugar
• 50 g corn starch
• ¼  cup (50 g) butter, softened
• 600 ml whipping cream
• 200 g fresh strawberries, thin sliced

 Top decoration:

• 450 g ready –to-use store-bought pink sugar fondant
• 50 g dark chocolate, melted

Make custard: pour the milk and vanilla bean paste in medium sauce pan and heat until boil. In a bowl beat the egg yolks with corn starch and sugar until light and creamy. Pour boiled milk over egg mixture, stirring constantly. Return the mixture to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring, for 4-5 minutes until starts to thicken and bubble. Add butter and mix until incorporated. Remove from the heat and beat in the butter. Transfer to a bowl. Cover the surface with a cling film to prevent forming a skin. Leave to cool.

Make the sponge: heat the oven to 350°F (180°C), grease and line (base only) the pan.

Place the eggs and sugar into a bowl of a stand mixer and whisk together until pale and fluffy. This should take about 5 minutes and the mixture will look like very thick vanilla ice cream. Fold in the corn starch, flour and baking powder and carefully mix with a spoon or spatula. Fold in the melted butter and mix gently. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes until the sponge is golden and started to shrink away from the side. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in pan. Once is cooled remove from the pan and transfer onto a wire rack.

Cut the sponge horizontally into 3 equal layers. Place the first layer on a serving plate. Spread a very thin layer of vanilla custard. Spoon 4 spoons of the remaining custard into a piping bag and pipe a border around the edge of the sponge. Place strawberry slices on the custard layer inside the border.

Whip the cream to stiff peaks. Fold half of the cream into the remaining vanilla custard. Spread a third of this creamy vanilla custard over strawberries. Place the second sponge layer on top and spread the remaining creamy vanilla custard over it. Set the third sponge on top. Spoon the remaining whipped cream over the sponge and spread to cover the top and sides, shaped it to a dome on the top. Chill in the fridge for 1 hour.

Roll out the sugar fondant and carefully cover the cake. Gently press with hands to fit and smooth over the cake. Cut off the excess of the fondant on the bottom of cake.

Melt the chocolate and set aside to cool. Place it in a piping bag with small round tip and pipe a spiral starting on the top.

about 58-60 pieces (depending on size)

 Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons (180 g) softened butter
• ½ cup + 1 tablespoon (90 g) icing sugar
• 100 g almond flour
• seeds of 1 vanilla bean
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 ¾ cup (280 g) all purpose flour

Place all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix until smooth, tight dough (the bowl should be almost clean). When is ready, remove it from the bowl, wrap in a cling film and let cool in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours (or overnight).

After cooling time remove dough from the fridge. Tear away walnut size portions and fill with it crescents mould (one portion – one hole). If you do not owe special mould roll each portion with your fingers into a log shape and fold ends to create crescent. Prepared without mould cookies place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 10 to 18 minutes (depending on the oven condition). The crescents should be lightly browned and set. Just after baking they are still tender and become hard when getting cold. Cool after baking on a wire rack. Dust with icing sugar before serving.