PEANUT CROUSTILLANT;TURRÓN CANDY ICE CREAM
EVERY CHRISTMAS, my nephew, who lives in Valencia, Spain, sends me a 15-pound box of Turrón, the delicious Spanish Marcona almond and honey candy, similar to nougat. I share it with the chefs and staff, and one year, our wonderful pastry chef Sandro Micheli was inspired to create this dessert around it. A declination of taste: peanuts, chocolate, and Turrón, unusual and delicious.
Servings
8
Servings
8
Ingredients
Chocolate Décor
Peanut Butter Feuilletine
Turrón Ice Cream (makes 1 quart)
Glazed Chocolate Ganache
To Finish
Instructions
For the Chocolate Décor
  1. Roll the piece of acetate into a 2-inch-diameter roll and tape to secure on the sides. Fill a piping bag cut with a very small tip or cornet with chocolate and drizzle thin lines widthwise across the acetate tube. Allow the chocolate to set overnight and carefully remove the décor.
For the Peanut Butter Feuilletine
  1. Fill one-third of a medium saucepan with water and bring to a simmer. Combine the peanut butter and chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl and set on top of the saucepan. Heat, stirring occasionally, until melted. Remove from the heat and fold in the feuilletine; cool for a few minutes. Scoop the mixture onto a sheet of parchment paper and set another sheet of parchment on top. Roll the mixture to an approximately ¼-inch-thick sheet. Transfer to a baking sheet. Refrigerate until hardened, then remove the top layer of parchment. Using the aid of a ruler, cut the sheet into at least eight 3¾ × ½-inch bars. Reserve, chilled.
For the Turrón Ice Cream
  1. Roll the acetate sheets into eight ½-inch-diameter tubes, secure the sides with tape, and then tape off one of the open ends to seal. Stand the tubes in a container that will keep them upright with the open end facing up. In a small saucepan, bring the milk, heavy cream, and Turrón to a simmer, cover, and remove from the heat to rest for 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a blender and puree until very smooth; return to the saucepan over medium heat. In a heatproof bowl, whisk the milk powder, sugar, and egg yolks until smooth. While whisking, gradually pour half of the hot cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Gradually whisk the contents back into the saucepan. Return the pan to medium heat and cook, while whisking, until it reaches 185°F. Remove from the heat and pass through a fine-meshed sieve into a bowl set over ice. Stir until well chilled, then spin in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
  2. Transfer the ice cream to pastry bags immediately after spinning. Cut small tips from the bags and fill the acetate tubes. Freeze, making sure they stay upright, until solid, at least 2 hours.
For the Glazed Chocolate Ganache
  1. Grease an 8½ × 4½-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and line with acetate paper. Fill one-third of a medium saucepan with water and bring to a simmer. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set on top of the saucepan. Stir until melted, then remove from the heat. In a small saucepan, combine the milk and heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Whisk into the melted chocolate. Cool the mixture to 115°F and, with a hand blender, puree in the butter until smooth. Pour into the prepared loaf pan and transfer to the freezer until solid, about 4 hours. Invert onto a cutting board, peel off the acetate, and with the aid of a ruler, cut into at least eight 3¾ × ½-inch bars. Set the bars on a rack set over a baking sheet. Ladle the chocolate glaze over the frozen bars to coat. Refrigerate the bars for 2 hours so the glaze sets and the interior thaws.
To Finish
  1. For each serving, spread a circle of chocolate glaze in the center of a chilled dessert plate. Stack a rectangle of glazed chocolate ganache, sprinkled with chopped caramelized peanuts, on a rectangle of feuilletine and set on the plate. Unwrap a tube of Turrón ice cream and set on top of the ganache. Garnish the top with several pieces of chocolate décor.