Pesach Desserts: Enjoy this Pesach-Friendly Pistachio Dacquoise Recipe!

Sun, April 3, 10:30 am – 2:30 pm

Tired of the same old boring sponge cake for dessert on Pesach? So are we. There's so much are you can do without much additional effort or having to hunt down special kosher for Passover ingredients. Chef Avram Wiseman will show you how easy it is to make fantastic desserts that look good taste and taste good for Pesach. He should know -- he works in "the real world" as a chef for Pesach every year! Please join us for this very practical, very timely, very delicious class.

$75 – CALL TO REGISTER – 718.758.1339

Pistachio Dacquoise Recipe

Meringue Ingredients:

Peeled Pistachios 8 oz. for meringues
Peeled Pistachios 3 oz. for decoration
Granulated sugar 1 1/2 cups
Egg whites, room temp. 6 ea.
Cold water ½ cup

Butter cream:

Coffee instant powder 1 ½ Tablespoons
Boiling water 2 Teaspoons
Bittersweet chocolate 4 oz.
Brandy 2 Tablespoons
Butter, sweet 8 oz.
Cold water 3 oz.
Granulated sugar ½ cup
Egg yolks 6 ea.

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 300°. Roast the pistachios for 10 minutes to crisp the nuts.
Remove from the oven and let them cool to room temp. Place the pistachios in a food processor and chop them until they are chopped to a coarse crumb texture. Reduce oven temperature to 150º.

Prepare 3 cookie sheets lined with parchment paper and draw a nine-inch circle on each piece of paper. Combine 1 ½ cups of sugar and the ½ cup of cold water in a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Place a candy thermometer in this syrup and bring up to a temperature of 230º.

While the syrup is cooking, whip the egg whites by hand over a double boiler until very warm. Place the whites onto a mixer with a whip attachment and whip on high until the warm whites are very stiff. Slowly pour in the 230º sugar syrup while still beating.Stop whipping when this Italian Meringue is very very stiff.

Preheat oven to 150º. Add 8 ounces of the chopped Pistachios into the meringue mixture and fold in with a rubber spatula. Place the Dacquoise mixture into a pastry bag and pipe (with straight tube) 3 concentric circles onto the lined cookie sheets. Use all the egg white mixture until 3 circle disks are produced. Smooth out the disks with a spatula. Bake at low 150º for 12-15 hours until the meringues are crisp.

These disks may be wrapped individually and stored for up to 1 week.

Cut the chocolate into small pieces and place into a stainless steel bowl. Dissolve the powdered instant coffee in the 2 Teaspoons of boiling water. In the top part of a double boiler combine the coffee and the chocolate. Add the brandy and melt to smooth.

In an electric mixing bowl with a paddle attachment cream the butter until smooth and very pale. Transfer to a bowl and wash and dry the mixing bowl.

Combine 1/3 cup of water and the ½ cup of sugar and boil until the syrup reaches 230º. While the sugar syrup is boiling, beat the egg yolks until light and frothy. When the syrup is ready slowly pour over the yolks while still beating on high speed. Continue mixing on high until the yolks are cool to the touch. Beat in the softened butter, 1 teaspoonful at a time. Then add the chocolate mixture and mix well. Butter cream may be kept refrigerated for several weeks . Warm to room temperature before using.

To complete assembly: Spread the buttercream over each layer. (Chocolate mousse may be substituted between layers.) Assemble the three disks and coat the top and sides with butter cream. Finish the sides by covering with the remainder chopped pistachios and pipe rosettes around the top.

Chill well to set the butter cream. Warm to room temperature to serve.