Dulce de Leche Croque en Bouche

METHOD

1. Preheat your oven to 200c/400f/gas 6 and place a piece of baking parchment onto a large baking sheet.

2. Pour the water into a large saucepan and add the butter. Heat over a low heat, just hot enough to melt the butter.

3. Meanwhile, sift the flour and salt into bowl.
Once the butter has melted turn up the heat and bring to a simmer and then, watching carefully, bring to a boil. As it starts to bubble up, with the butter collected in the centre, dump in all the flour at once. Remove from the heat and then stir vigorously until a smooth paste is formed. Leave the mixture in the saucepan to cool to body temperature.

4. Beat the eggs in a jug with a fork. With the saucepan still off the heat, add the beaten egg a tablespoon at a time ensuring its fully incorporated before each new addition. The pastry will be a smooth, shiny and pipeable consistently. At this stage you could freeze the pastry or refrigerate overnight.

5. Add the pastry to a piping bag and squeeze small balls onto the prepared baking sheet ensuring room between them to puff up. These will need to be cooked in batches. Bake for 20-30 minutes until well risen, puffed up and golden.

6. Remove from the oven, dropping the oven temperature to 170c/340f/gas 3, make a hole with a skewer in the base of each ball and then return to oven for 5 minutes to dry the insides. Cool on a wire rack. (At this stage the balls could be frozen and defrosted on the morning of your celebration).

7. Meanwhile whip the double cream with electric beaters until softly whipped and then add the dulce de leche. Beat until fully incorporated and then add to a piping bag fitted with a nozzle that will fit into the holes you made in the bases of the balls. Gently squeeze the dulce de leche cream into each and set aside.

8. Prepare the caramel by placing the water, sugar and golden syrup into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over a high heat without stirring and then place a lid over it. Continue to boil for around 10 minutes before removing the lid and boiling further until amber in colour. Test a small amount on a cold plate to check it has a sticky, syrupy consistency.

9. Dip the base of each ball into the caramel which will act as the glue and pile them high on a serving plate. Brush with more caramel to make them shine and then decorate with flowers before displaying proudly at your celebration.