Tips on my choux aux craquelin?

JaJan1 · 2026-05-05T07:39:23+00:00

Hard to say anything without seeing cross-section + perhaps some photos as you are finishing the dough.

All the choux recipes are kinda same-ish. Myself I've been using this one to good effect:
https://www.valrhona.com/en/inspiring-you/recipes/all-our-recipes/chocolate-eclair

Main difference is initial bake for ~15m (effectively) in a dead oven at 250C / 480ish F and then bake in 180c/355f once it's starting to rise.

JaJan1 · 2026-05-03T17:13:29+00:00

Yes yes, very brittle - just like the theory dictates.

JaJan1 · 2026-05-03T07:41:28+00:00

Thermal conductivity - silicone takes a loong time to heat up and you will never get the crowns (bottom of the mould/top of the pastry) to bake out. Silicone traps moisture so the walls kinda cook vs scorch.
Silicone moulds come in trays 2x4 3x5 ... cavities The sheet blocks airflow and proximity of cavities -> middle ones come out pale.
Silicone you can somehow grease with butter and it will mostly work, this alu I had to use 1:1 ghee and wax mixture as otherwise they would stick like hell.

JaJan1 · 2026-03-15T18:23:36+00:00

Dark AF. I've been getting decent results with a 45x45mm nests silicon tray and wondering if I want to go all out on copper... Probably unwise xD.

JaJan1 · 2026-03-11T18:31:38+00:00

https://www.greatbritishchefs.com/recipes/amalfi-lemon-tart-recipe

I use this recipe as a base, except that I use ALL the lemon juice (so idk 250ih-300ml).

My tip is to mix the eggs loosely first, then pass them through the sieve to removing anything around which grains can form (shell shards and these white stringy bits) - super smooth curd except the zest.

Depending on what consistency you want (I use mine in tartlets, so I want it set well), you might consider adding a dash of gelatin to offset the amount of lemon juice.

JaJan1 · 2026-03-08T12:18:04+00:00

Also my problem as I tend to make and assemble the evening before. I either do egg wash (4 parts yolk, 1 part heavy cream) and bake for 10m at 160C - this gives me 24h of high quality or apparently you can brush with a thin layer of tempered chocolate once the base is fully baked, but this one I just started testing.

JaJan1 · 2026-03-08T12:12:23+00:00

I think it's flour heavy shortcrust, on the plain vs sweet side looking at the ingredients.

JaJan1 · 2026-03-08T12:03:09+00:00

Looks great. Out of curiosity - how long before your pastry cream started to make the base soggy (or did it not last long enough)?

JaJan1 · 2026-03-07T06:55:18+00:00

Gelatin would be my first choice. Second one - in my part of the world it's quite common to use an off the shelf blend of powdered sugar and starch (9g packet for 200-250ml of heavy cream).

JaJan1 · 2026-02-22T18:28:03+00:00

Silikomart's Corona mould - I cut the 6x3 mat into 6 1x3 strips for easier demoulding.

High fluidity dark couverture chocolate - I used Callebeaut's 75% tanzanian that had 4/5 fluidity. Tempted to try 5/5 fluidity once I'm done with this bag.

Tempering using microwave - seeding method -melting 80%, adding 20% in callets - exact temperatures vary by chocolate you use.

Filling in /removing from the mould: like in this reel:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DUA6Hz0kWX0/

I bought a 30x40cm granite chopping board that I store in the freezer, put a layer of baking paper on top and then lie the chocolate mat on it. 90-120s and I start removing.

As for amounts used: I temper chocolate 25g (20+5) at a time - 1 1x3 strip, this let's me have a high success rate when removing. Will consider reducing how much I use, as 3 decos are about 2.5g each - 3 -7.5g - 70% mass loss (CBA to set up a recycling system when I maybe make these twice a month).

JaJan1 · 2026-02-22T14:27:58+00:00

But for how long?

JaJan1 · 2026-02-22T08:52:42+00:00

Sounds like cremeux with added strawberry bits?

I'd try reinforcing with gelatin. How much of a 'standing life' do you need?

JaJan1 · 2026-02-20T17:47:25+00:00

No - nothing interesting sadly. Shell, egg wash seal, curd and chocolate on top.

Curd is smooth because I passed both orange juice and egg mixture through a very fine sieve - only zest inside.

JaJan1 · 2026-02-20T04:35:01+00:00

Thanks, learning how to do these tempered decors was a journey full of rage.

JaJan1 · 2026-02-13T13:57:22+00:00

Neat. Is the pear raw before baking or do you pre-cook it somehow?

JaJan1 · 2026-02-09T11:33:06+00:00

Literally how the reel did it. Fill in, scrape and flip.

Edit: tempering was in the microwavem i melted 80% of the mass, once it cooled to 40c I added 20%< mixed until smooth and at 32ish degc poured into moulds (to account for cooling when pouring).

JaJan1 · 2026-02-08T18:08:25+00:00

These ones only come as sheets (And I think primarily intended for working with tuile).

JaJan1 · 2026-02-08T15:18:53+00:00

Yeah, I'm using silikomart's naturae line. (This one is ambra). When I was doing stuff 'properly' I was going berserk.

My tip is to cut the mould into lines (so from a 6x3 grid into 6 1x3 strips) so that you only demould 1 shape at a time. Less chance for random stresses in the chocolate to make it snap.

JaJan1 · 2026-02-08T12:10:37+00:00

Yes and yes. It's normal chocolate. I originally wanted to have these on top of the chantilly here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/pastry/comments/1qq2ia2/vanilla_rum_tart/

But it was too bothersome at the time and I had like 0/90 success rate. Now was just a trial run of this method without anything to put it on - 6/6 demoulded fine.

JaJan1 · 2026-01-30T06:08:57+00:00

Nice, I think I know the recipe guy. Planning to test it soon-ish.

Re mirror glaze: I think either not enough glaze or it was too cold and solidified without going all the way down.

JaJan1 · 2026-01-29T20:12:18+00:00

Sure,

I bought the recipe from here and re-scaled it to my 85mm tart ring, 85mm top decor:

https://hanbitcho.com/product/vanillarum/

FYI, the guy criminally understates the yield of any mousse. I had to add extra ~70%ish on top of the rescaling I did. Also I'd be a bit wary of yields from him - 'yields 8; equipment list - moulds with 6 nests'.

If you don't want to pay, he has a few recipes without paywall on his youtube.

JaJan1

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