Buttery Puff Pastry and Chocolate, what could be better?
THE BACKSTORY
I have been looking for more ways to practice making puff pastry, so when I saw recipes for Torsades Au Chocolat aka Chocolate Twists aka Chocolate Torsades. The traditional version has Crème Pâtissière (aka pastry cream) and Dark Chocolate Chips. A variation uses hazelnut spread in place of the pastry cream. Despite loving how my first and only outing of pastry cream came out, I had hazelnut spread to use up, so I opted for the variation.
THE BAKE
Any ALL BUTTER store bought puff pastry can be used if you aren't as fascinated with making puff pastry as I am. Or, you want a rather quick bake. For this bake, I opted for a variation that uses hazelnut spread in place of the pastry cream.
- Puff Pastry (homemade or all-butter store-bought)
- Hazelnut Spread
- Dark Chocolate Chips
The process is pretty straightforward. With the puff pastry at room temperature, you're ready to start. I like to make the puff pastry ahead of time and refrigerate it. Then when I am ready to use it, I bring it to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Before gaining a small confidence in making puff pastry, I would use Trader Joe's Pâte Feuilletée, All Butter Puff Pastry. Unfortunately, it is not available year-round, so when it is available I would grab it and pop it into the freezer. Now, I break out my compact sheeter and make my own, anytime.
When I say hazelnut spread, you probably have your favorite. I used Nutella.
To make the twists
On half of the puff pastry, add a light layer of the hazelnut spread and sprinkle half the hazelnut area with chips. Folder over and seal the ends, then make slices. Twist the slices, brush with an egg wash and bake. That is a summarization of the recipe from the Wheel of Baking website that includes detailed instructions and screenshots (which help a lot).
The Result
A nice buttery, crispy, chocolatey accompaniment to my cup of tea.
WILL I BAKE IT AGAIN
Yes! The next time I will make it with the Pastry Cream in lieu of the hazelnut spread.