Chocolate and spiced pear slice

Pastry chefs Beverley Dunkley and Julie Sharp spoil the taste buds with their take on the perfect Xmas cake. They surprise layer after layer with a crispily baked chocolate meringue, soft milk chocolate and caramel mousse, a hearty chocolate ganache and the warm flavours of poached pear in a wintry spiced syrup. Making all the different components for this recipe is quite elaborate - but fairly easy to make.

Chocolate meringue sponge (1sheet 60-40cm)

ingredients preparation
  • 6g
    egg white
  • 160g
    sugar
  • 6
    egg yolks
  • 70g
    CP

Whisk the egg whites and sugar to a stiff meringue. Turn the machine off and add in all the egg yolks and whisk on a high speed for 3 seconds to incorporate them. Fold through the cocoa powder and then spread onto silicon paper. Cook at 180°C for aprox 10 min when they come out of the oven cover with another sheet of silicon and gently press on top of the sponge to even it out.

Milk chocolate and caramel mousse (1xframe 60-40cm)

ingredients preparation
  • 130g
    sugar
  • 255g
    cream
  • 180g
    pasteurized egg yolks
  • 460g
    CHM-Q415AR
  • 7leaf/leaves
    gelatin
  • 900g
    cream

Make a direct caramel from the sugar and allow it to foam, add in the first amount of cream to make it into a butterscotch sauce. (Be careful as this will spit). Whisk up the egg yolks until white and fluffy. Add the gelatine into the sauce and then pour the sauce onto the whisking yolks. Whisk to a sabayon. Melt the milk chocolate and fold through the sabayon. Semi Whisk the cream and fold into the other mix.

Poached pears

ingredients preparation
  • 350g
    white wine
  • 2
    cinnamon stick
  • 1
    clove
  • 2
    orange zest
  • 10
    pear(s)
  • Q.S.
    sugar

Bring all of the ingredients to the boil and simmer to infuse flavour. Peel the pears; take the core out with a melon baller. Place into the white wine and make sure that the pears are immersed in the white wine. Place a cartouche on top and simmer until the pears are cooked.

Ganache

ingredients preparation
  • 400g
    811NV
  • 400g
    35% cream

Bring the cream to the boil, pour over the chocolate and emulsify.

Cara crakine layer

ingredients preparation
  • 150g
    823NV

Warm up the Cara Crakine™. Fold through the pre-crystallised chocolate. Spread out onto silicon paper and allow to set.