Yuzu, pumpkin seeds and caramelized milk chocolate mini mousse cakes

Instructions

Gluten-free almonds and sweet potato shortcrust pastry

1. In the bowl of a freestanding mixer fitted with paddle attachment combine together sweet potato flour, potato starch, butter, almonds flour, icing sugar, vanilla powder, Mahleb and salt and work until the mix resembles fine breadcrumbs.
2. Add the almond milk to the mix of flour-butter and work until the dough comes together.
3. Once the pastry has come together, press into a neat flat square and cover in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge overnight.
4. Preheat the oven to 160°C, ventilation mode and line a perforated baking tray with a perforated silicone mat. Roll out the sablée to a thickness of 2/3 mm and cut it into 8 discs with a 6 cm round Exoglass cutter. Place the discs over the tray and cover them with a second perforated silicone mat.
5. Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden in color. Remove from oven and dust both the sides of each disc with cocoa butter powder (Mycryo) to prevent from getting moist. Store the discs in an airtight container at room temperature until needed.

Gluten-free Caramélia 36% milk chocolate financier

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C, ventilation mode. Line a baking tray with a 18x18 cm square ring, greased and covered with parchment paper.
2. To make the Beurre Noisette, boil the butter in a saucepan until it becomes a golden-brown color (about 6-7 minutes). When it is ready, you should also notice a nutty aroma. Strain through a cheese cloth into a bowl and cool to 45 ̊C.
3. Melt the milk chocolate in the microwave to 45°C.
4. In a bowl sift together gluten-free flour blend with baking powder. Add almonds flour, all the sugar and salt and mix by hand with a fine whisk.
5. Add the egg whites and mix until combined.
6. Add the melted and lukewarm milk chocolate and mix again until obtain a creamy, homogeneous batter.
7. Add the Beurre Noisette and mix until fully incorporated.
8. Transfer the financier into the mould and bake for about 25 minutes, until it is puffed and firm. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before cutting 8 circles of 5 cm wide and 2 cm high with a round Exoglass cutter. I suggest to put the financier in the freezer for 1h before cutting. In this way it will be cold but not fully frozen and you can cut it without ruining it.
9. Once you have cut the financier into circles, cut each centre with a 2,5 cm cupcake corer to make a hole for the runny crémeux. Wrap the circles in clingfilm and store them in the freezer.

Gluten-free pumpkin seeds croustillant

1. Melt the white chocolate in the microwave to 45°C. Add the pumpkin seeds praline paste and the pumpkin seeds butter and stir well with a rubber spatula until obtain a smooth and evenly mixture. Add the chilled roasted pumpkin seeds and the crunchy cereals and stir well with the spatula to obtain a grainy mixture.
2. Line a baking tray with silicone mat. Spread the croustillant onto the tray and into an even layer of 2 mm thick and freeze for a while, until the croustillant gets firm but not completely frozen. Cut out the croustillant into 5 cm discs and store in the freezer until needed.

Roasted pumpkin seeds (for the croustillant)

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C, ventilation mode.
2. Stir together pumpkin seeds, pumpkin seeds oil and salt, making sure the seeds are well coated with oil.
3. Spread onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper and roast in the oven for about 12 minutes, until the pumpkin seeds will be golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool at room temperature before using for the croustillant.

Pumpkin seeds praline paste with caramelized maple syrup (for both the croustilland and the crémeux)

1. Preheat the oven to 155°C, ventilation mode. In a bowl combine together pumpkin seeds, white almonds, maple syrup and salt, stirring well with a spatula to coat the nuts with the maple syrup. Spread the mix onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake for about 15 minutes, until the pumpkin seeds are slightly golden and the maple syrup is caramelized and slightly reduced. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
2. Transfer the caramelized nuts in a food processor and pulse until obtain a creamy paste. Initially, the mixture will be sandy, but then it will become smooth and fluid. Be careful to not overheat the praline paste, otherwise it gets bitter. Make sure the praline paste doesn't exceed 40°C. If the praline paste gets warm, chill it with the bowl in the fridge for a while.
3. Once a smooth and soft paste is obtained, add the pumpkin seeds oil to increase the moisture and fluidity and pulse once again. Add finally the natural green color to enhance the green color and pulse once more.
4. Store the praline paste in an airtight container at room temperature and away from light.

Pumpkin seeds praline paste runny crémeux

1. In a small bowl stir together praline paste and pumpkin seeds butter to obtain a smooth mixture.
2. Add almond milk and stir again. The mix will be creamy yet fluid.
3. Transfer the crémeux into a disposable piping bag and fill each hole in the centre of the financier. Freeze for about 2h in a domestic freezer or about 1h in a blast freezer until the crémeux is frozen.

Yuzu Inspiration whipped ganache

1. Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water.
2. Melt the Yuzu Inspiration couverture in the microwave to 45°C.
3. Heat together in the microwave almond milk with honey without boiling. Add the soaked gelatin sheets and stir with a spatula to dissolve the gelatin.
4. Add the hot almond milk to the melted couverture and stir vigorously with a rubber spatula into circular pattern to obtain a smooth cream.
5. Transfer the cream into a mixing glass and emulsify with a hand blender for stabilizing the emulsion.
6. Add slowly and to wire the yuzu juice, blending contemporarily with the hand blender. Then add the cold heavy cream, always blending. Add finally the natural food coloring to enhance the yellow color and emulsify once more.
7. Pour the ganache into a baking dish, cover with clingfilm pressed on top and chill overnight (12h).
8. Transfer the cold ganache in the bowl of a freestanding mixer fitted with whisk attachment. Whip the ganache on medium-high speed until medium peaks forms. The whipped ganache holds its shape well but is still soft and creamy. When you lift out the whisk, peak will form but the tip will fold back on itself. If you over-whip the ganache it will start to separate, to become grainy and to lose its shiny and silken texture.
9. Transfer the whipped ganache to a disposable piping bag and cut a tip off the end. Pipe the whipped ganache for about ⅔ into the Multiflex 125 silicone mould from Silikomart (6 cm wide x 4,5 cm high). Set inside the frozen financier, followed by the croustillant and press it down slightly, until the bottom of the croustillant is level with the top of the mould. Remove any excess whipped ganache with a small palette knife and freeze for approximately 2-3 hours in a domestic freezer or about 45 minutes in a blast freezer.

Matcha mirror glaze

1. Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water (63 g) for at least 10 minutes.
2. Melt the white chocolate in the microwave to 45°C and pour into a mixing glass.
3. Heat water (115 g), caster sugar, trehalose sugar and glucose syrup in a saucepan to 104°C.
4. Remove from the heat and pour over the melted chocolate. Emulsify with a hand blender without adding air bubbles and in order to obtain a smooth and shiny glaze.
5. Heat the Absolu Cristal in the microwave to 65°C and add into the glaze, followed by the drained gelatin sheets (add both the gelatin and the soaked water). Emulsify once more without adding air bubbles. Finally add the Matcha and the silver dust powder and emulsify once again.
6. Pass the glaze through a sieve and pour into a baking dish. Cover with clingfilm pressed on top of the glaze and chill in the fridge for at least 12h or overnight.
7. Heat the glaze in the microwave to 45°C then pour into a mixing glass and emulsify with the hand blender. Keep the blade of the hand blender on the bottom of the mixing glass, to avoid air bubbles. Allow to cool down to 32-35°C. If you directly melt the glaze to 32-35°C, it will not be shiny and glossy.
8. Once the glaze is 32-35°C, unmould the frozen mini mousse cakes and set them on a cooling rack with a pair of clingfilm sheets underneath, to collect the excess glaze. Pour the glaze over the mini mousse cakes.
9. When the glaze stops dripping, gently place the finished mini mousse cakes over the shortcrust pastry by using a small palette knife and a toothpick skewered in the centre of the mini mousse. Place the finished mini mousse cakes in the fridge.

Assembly and decoration

1. Temper Ivoire 35% white chocolate green colored, following the method you prefer. I use the tabling method. The tempering curve you need to follow is: 45°C (melting) - 26-27°C (cooling) - 28-29°C (the temperature of usage).
2. Make the chocolate flexible band as described here. Spray each band with the silver glitter dust spray before wrapping the mini mousse cakes.
3. Make the chocolate butterflies. Temper Dulcey 32% chocolate in the same way as you would with white chocolate. Line two 30x20 cm guitar sheets. Pour a line of tempered Dulcey chocolate on one edge of the sheet (on the left side, for example). Place another guitar sheet on top and use a teflon rolling pin or a PVC pipe to roll out the chocolate to the other end of the sheet (on the right side, for example). Roll out the chocolate in a thin and even layer. Leave the guitar sheet on the flat bench surface to set, just until the chocolate is set enough to touch.
4. Before the chocolate completely sets, remove the upward guitar sheet and trace the contour of the butterfly wings by using a toothpick and this stencil as a guide. Allow the chocolate to crystalize at room temperature overnight before removing the second guitar sheet.
5. Stick together the wings by piping a line of melted Dulcey chocolate onto a parchment paper. Fix the wings by spraying some cooling spray for chocolate. Finally brush the butterflies with some gold dust powder.
6. Garnish the mini mousse cakes with butterflies and edible flowers.