Top Chef with Teanna: Season 1 Episode 2 - Mango Pillows with Tapioca, Pastry Puffs Filled with Lemon Curd, and Chocolate Shots

Take a look at that title up there. That is the reason why this took me three weeks to resume my quest to make every Top Chef winning challenge recipe.

That's a lot of dessert.

When I got down to it, however, it really wasn't that bad. Slightly time consuming, yes, but not as scary as the THREE PAGE RECIPE seemed.

In this Top Chef Episode, the "cheftestants" had to create sexy desserts to be served at a San Francisco Sex Shop. The chefs were asked to "appeal to all senses", and let me tell you, Miguel, the winner of this challenge, made a dish appeals to all six senses (I say six because I'd have that sixth sense to find my way home if I were lost if this dish was waiting for me).

All aspects of this dish burst with tons of flavor. The tapioca is deliciously flavored with coconut milk, ginger and cinnamon and wrapped in a paper-thin mango slice, creating a deliciously light pillow and sat atop a slice of passionfruit gelee. The most delicious, thick cold "hot" chocolate is poured atop mango puree and diced strawberries and chopped with a spicy whipped cream that is flavored with cinnamon and cayenne pepper, creating the most wonderful array of flavors and textures you can ever find in any dessert drink. And you will find a pool of deliciously rich and lemony curd that bursts in your mouth when you bite into the light pastry puffs.

This dish is not only beautiful to look at, but so much fun to eat.

But let me tell you, if you make one thing, MAKE THE COLD HOT CHOCOLATE. I can't. even. express.

It got a happy dance, a "CHALLAAAAAH", and a head explosion all in one from me.

Check out this recipe. Don't be scared. Be sexy.

Total Orgasm - Adapted from Top Chef

INGREDIENTS NEEDED

Cold Hot Chocolate

8 oz milk chocolate, chopped
1-pint heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 cinnamon stick

Pastry Puffs and Lemon Curd

9 tbsp unsalted butter, plus more for the baking sheets
1 cup plus 2 ¼ tbsp granulated sugar
½ tsp salt
1 cup all purpose flour
7 large eggs
½ cup lemon juice
3 large egg yolks
4 fresh thyme sprigs

Tapioca Pillows

½ cup small pearl tapioca, soaked overnight if necessary
One 13 ½ oz can unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp minced cilantro - I did not use this but if you like it, go for it!
4 ripe mangoes
12-18 chives - again, I did not use. I forgot.
2 cups passion fruit juice
2 tbsp cornstarch

Spicy whipped cream

1 ½ cups heavy cream
3 tbsp confectioner’s sugar
1 tsp ground cayenne
1 tsp cinnamon

To decorate and serve

8 oz white chocolate
Red food coloring
4 oz bittersweet chocolate
1 pt fresh strawberries, hulled and cut into ¼ inch dice

For the Cold Hot Chocolate:

In a small saucepan, heat the chocolate, cream, milk, and cinnamon stick over medium high heat, stirring constantly. Bring to a simmer, the remove from the heat and let cool. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the chocolate and refrigerate overnight.

For the pastry puffs:

Preheat oven to 375 butter 2 baking sheets

In a medium saucepan, combine 1-cup water, 6 tbsp butter, 2 ¼ tsp sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until the butter is melted, then raise the heat to high and bring to a rapid boil. Remove from heat and add flour, beat with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes away from the sides of the pan. Add 4 of the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Put the dough in a piping bag with a 1-inch plain round tip and pipe 1 ¼ inch balls onto the prepared baking sheets. Dip your fingertips in water and smooth the tops of the balls.

Bake for 20 minutes, the lower the oven temperature to 300 F and bake for 10 to 15 minutes longer, until golden brown. Turn off the oven. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and use a small, sharp knife to make a small hole in the side of each puff to allow steam to escape. Return puffs to the baking sheets and put them in the turned off oven for 10 minutes to dry. Set aside to cool completely.

In a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, combine the lemon juice, 1 cup sugar, the remaining 3 eggs, egg yolks and thyme. Whisk for 8 to 10 minutes until thickened remove from heat and add the remaining 3 tbsp butter and whisk to smooth. Let cool then cover and refrigerate until chilled. Discard the thyme sprigs, put the filling in a piping bag fitted with a small lain tip and set aside.

For the tapioca pillows:

In a small saucepan, combine the tapioca, coconut milk, milk, ½ cup sugar, salt, eggs, cinnamon, and ginger. Cook, stirring constantly over medium heat for 15 to 25 minutes, until the tapioca is soft and translucent. Stir in the vanilla and cilantro. Let cool to room temp then over and refrigerate until chilled.

Peel the mangoes and use a mandolin eon sharp knife to cut them into 12 to 8 large paper-thin slices. Trim the remaining flesh off the pits and set trimmings aside.

Lay mango slices flat on a work surface and put about 1 tabs tapioca on one end of each slice. Roll slices up like an egg roll, folding in one or both sides to contain the pudding and tie each roll closed with a chive.

In a small saucepan, combine the passion fruit juice and remaining ½ cup sugar and cook over high heat for about 5 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved. In a cup, combine the cornstarch and 2 tablespoon waters, stirring until smooth. Add to the juice mixture and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes or until thickened. Let cool .

For the spicy whipped cream:

In a large chilled bowl using chilled beaters, whip the cream, confectioners sugar, cayenne and cinnamon until soft peaks form. Set aside.

To decorate and serve:

In a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the white chocolate. Put about ¼ cup of the chocolate in a cup and add food coloring to tint it pink. In a separate bowl over simmering water, melt 2 ounces of the bittersweet chocolate. Dip the top of each cream puff in white chocolate and set aside until the chocolate is set. Dab a bit of pink chocolate in the center of the white chocolate, and then use a toothpick to make a dot of bittersweet chocolate in the center of the pink. To fill the puffs, poke a small hole in the bottom of each puff and pipe in the lemon filling.

In a blender or food processor, puree the mango trimmings. Divide the puree among 12 to 18 of the shot glasses. Put ½ teaspoon of the strawberries on top of the puree in each glass. Fill the glasses with the cold hot chocolate and top with a dollop of the whipped cream. Save some of the remaining bittersweet chocolate over the whipped cream.

Spoon a bit of the passion fruit glee into each of the 12 to 18 Chinese soupspoons. Place the tapioca pillows on top of the gelee and garnish with the pepitas.

Serve the chocolate shots, pastry puffs, and tapioca pillows on a large platter

Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

I didn't start watching Top Chef until season 3 so I hadn't seen this dish, but wow, is it ever gorgeous!! Everything looks so delicious. On your recommendation I'll definitely have to try that hot chocolate!

Posted by: Tracey | June 10, 2009 at 11:20 PM

Thank you, thank you, thank you for adapting the Top Chef recipe for us. I've only ever made 3 recipes from that show because the number of servings is always like 50 or so!

This looks delicious but I don't think I can make it all at once. Will start with the cold hot chocolate!

Posted by: Phyllis (me HUNGRY!) | June 11, 2009 at 12:09 AM

Neat!!! You should be on that show!!! I have tried any of the recipes from the show yet, but I've always wanted to. Nice job adapting it.

Posted by: jenn | June 11, 2009 at 12:17 AM