Praline Dacquoise Cake
The succès au praliné is a French dessert built from two discs of dacquoise (a meringue base made with egg whites and ground hazelnuts or almonds), sandwiched with a praline mousseline cream. Praline is a mixture of sugar and caramelised hazelnuts or almonds, ground to a fine, fragrant paste. The succès is loved for the contrast between the lightness of the meringue and the richness of the praline cream.
Ingredients
Dacquoise
- 56 g ground almonds
- 56 g icing sugar
- 12 g whole milk
- 112 g egg whites
- 112 g caster sugar
Mousseline cream
- 37 cl whole milk
- 1/2 vanilla pod
- 75 g caster sugar
- 3.5 egg yolks
- 15 g plain flour
- 30 g cornflour
- 195 g softened butter
- 112 g praline paste
Method
Dacquoise
- Whip the 112 g of egg whites in a stand mixer.
- Add the 75 g of sugar in several additions as soon as the whites turn foamy.
- Meanwhile, mix the 12 cl of milk with the 56 g of ground almonds and the 112 g of icing sugar until you have a paste.
- Once the meringue is fully whipped and firm (stiff peaks), fold a little of it into the paste to loosen it, then add the rest of the meringue and fold gently.
- Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a plain 1 cm nozzle.
- Pipe 3 spiral discs, 18 cm each.
- Dust the discs with icing sugar.
- Bake for 40 minutes at 150°C.
Mousseline cream
- Infuse the vanilla pod in the 38 cl of milk.
- Whisk the 3.5 egg yolks with the 75 g of sugar until pale.
- Add 15 g of flour and 30 g of cornflour to the yolks.
- Then pour in the vanilla milk a little at a time
- Return everything to the pan.
- Cook over a low heat, stirring, until the cream thickens.
- Put the cream and the praline in the bowl of the stand mixer.
- Beat until smooth and even.
- Add the 195 g of softened butter a little at a time.
- Transfer the cream to a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle.
- Chill for 30 minutes.
- Pipe
- Assemble
