Pumpkin Praline Eclairs

This Thanksgiving I had a few leftovers I didn't expect: ground pralines and pumpkin spice pastry cream.

I tried out Martha Stewart's pumpkin cream pie recipe. Excellent pastry cream but not great for pies. It tastes very similar to pumpkin chiffon pie, but pumpkin chiffon is far prettier and more stable. The pumpkin cream pie made for a soggy crust and didn't hold it's form very well.

Gosh darnit what to do?! WHAT TO DO?!?!?!?!

Okay. It's not a bid deal, but what's Thanksgiving without a little drama? :)

I took inspiration from the Laduree Sucre cook book and I opted to make a choux pastry with a pumpkin cream filling and a praline poured fondant icing using the extra ground pralines I had from my chocolate praline cake.

Fantastic idea! They came out wonderfully!

If you prefer cream puffs to eclairs, you can follow the recipe, simply changing the shape of the choux as you pipe.

Pumpkin Praline Eclairs

for the pumpkin pastry cream:

2 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of ground cloves
1/2 cup sugar
Salt
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/4 cups solid-pack pumpkin (from one 15-ounce can)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

1. Bring milk, vanilla,cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, 1/4 cup sugar, and a pinch of salt to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
2. Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks with cornstarch and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a medium bowl.
3. Gradually whisk about 1/2 cup milk mixture into yolk mixture. Gradually whisk in remaining milk mixture. Return entire mixture to saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until bubbling in center, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Immediately whisk in pumpkin. Whisk in butter.
4. Turn out into a bowl, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate until chilled.

Continue by making the choux pastry. 

for the choux:

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup skim milk
½ cup unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
Large pinch of kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 400 Fahrenheit. Line two heavy baking sheets with parchment paper. (If you're pans are too light, stack them. This will reduce the chance of scorching on the bottom of the puff).
2. In a small saucepan, bring the water, milk, butter, and salt to a boil. Add the flour and stir until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan and dries out a bit. Roughly two minutes.
3. Turn the dough out into a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly between each one.
4. Transfer the dough to a pastry bag with a half inch tip (or a disposable bag with the tip cut off) and pipe four inch long strips onto the baking sheets at least two inches apart (or tablespoon sized balls for cream puffs).
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until puffed and golden brown.
6. Allow to cool. 
7. Fill a piping bag with pumpkin pastry cream. Poke three small holes in the top of each eclair (one for cream puffs). 
8. Fill with pumpkin pastry cream. Wipe off any excess. Set aside. 

Continue by preparing the icing. 

for the praline icing: 

4 1/2 ounces white pouring fondant

1 tbsp. water

3 tbsp. praline paste (see below) 

3 oz. white chocolate

1. Melt the white chocolate in a a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water or in the microwave at medium power. 
2. In a saucepan, slightly warm the pouring fondant with the water. 
3. Add the praline paste and the melted white chocolate. Stir until smooth. 
4. Dip the tops of the eclairs (or cream puffs) into the glaze. 
5. Allow to set and keep in the refrigerator. 

Et voila! You have fifteen pumpkin praline eclairs ready to be eaten up!

**Praline Paste is made by grinding pralines. If you grind the pralines for a bit longer they will form a paste. If you feel impatient, add a few drops off water to speed up the process. 

Pumpkin Ice Cream Pie with a Gingerbread Crumb Crust

Pumpkin pie is traditional for the season, but I went for a new take and made pumpkin ice cream pie! The gingerbread crust is a flavorful addition. 

I simply have to tell a horribly funny story.....well, funny for foodies. 

Yesterday was my office's "Christmas Party" which is a Christmas party, because our boss is staunch that saying "happy holidays" is wrong! Wrong I tell you! WRONG!.....I celebrate Christmas. I do. His vigor is far past insensitivity. In most ways he's a Scrooge, but heaven forbid you wish him a happy holiday.....in any event, a holiday lunch at The Palm. 

So, the waiter comes over to tell us the specials. He tells us that the soup of the day is a vichyssoise. He has to repeat it to every other person because the restaurant is so crowded and loud. So I hear him explain, not once, not twice, but five times that the vichyssoise is like a corn chowder with lobster. I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking the waiter how much corn France grows annually. I know the answer but it's not an obvious one. In fact France is the 6th largest corn producer in the world, and has been growing corn since the 1550s. However, I also know the cultural stigmas surrounding corn and that only in the last few decades has it become a somewhat accepted vegetable. None of these facts changes the point that Vichyssoise is a leek and potato soup. 

Each time he kept explaining that a vichyssoise was a warm corn chowder I laughed on the inside....and of course, I ordered it. I actually had the audacity to call the front desk and ask them what the soup of the day was. They told me it was a corn bisque with lobster. Close enough. The soup was closer to a bisque than a chowder. Our waiter had to have been new. Either way, I was amused. The soup conundrum kept me laughing for the rest of day. 

Okay, so none of that has to do with ice cream, and I can see no way to segue into it. So, I won't. 

Cheers!

Pumpkin Ice Cream 

2 eggs

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp. nutmeg

pinch of kosher salt

1 cup pumpkin puree 

2 cups cream

1 cup whole milk 

15 small gingerbread cookies

3 tablespoons melted butter

In a stand mixer combine the eggs and sugar.  Beat for one minute until light and fluffy. 

Gently mix in the cream, milk, pumpkin and seasonings. 

Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker. Allow the ice cream to churn until finished and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or into an gingerbread pie crust to freeze. 

To make a gingerbread crust simply crumble gingerbread cookies and drizzle some melted butter onto the crumbs. Mix together and press into a pie mold. Layer ice cream over top and allow to chill until just set. Serve immediately.