Claire Saffitz's Most Show-Stopping Dessert: Paris-Brest | Try This at Home | NYT Cooking

heavy cream

🥗Healthier: Greek yogurt

💰Cheaper: milk + cornstarch

Greek yogurt reduces calories while maintaining creaminess

Preheat the oven to 350°F and toast the hazelnuts for about 10 minutes until they smell nutty and toasty.

Wrap the hot hazelnuts in a kitchen towel and rub to remove most of the skins, leaving some on if desired.

Reserve 1/4 cup of the toasted hazelnuts for topping later.

In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup sugar, a pinch of kosher salt, and a little water over medium heat to make a wet caramel.

Once the mixture starts to bubble, stop stirring and wash down the sides of the saucepan with a wet pastry brush to prevent crystallization.

When the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture starts to caramelize, swirl the pot to cook evenly without stirring.

Once the caramel reaches a medium golden color, turn off the heat and quickly add the hazelnuts, stirring to coat them in the caramel.

Scrape the caramelized hazelnuts onto a lined baking sheet and spread them into a flat layer before the caramel hardens.

Once cooled, break the caramelized hazelnuts into smaller pieces and place them in a resealable bag.

Add smooth almond butter to the bag and process in a food processor until the mixture becomes a smooth paste, scraping down the sides as needed.

Prepare the pastry cream by warming milk in a saucepan and infusing it with scraped vanilla bean.

In a bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch until smooth.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens