Light choux pastry, delicate custard-butter cream, airy whipped cream with mascarpone, and a refreshing lemon glaze make up these elegant homemade choux rings. They are perfect for celebrations, holidays, or as a sweet treat with coffee.
This dessert consists of several components, but each is prepared separately and then simply assembled at the end. When baking, it is important not to open the oven so the choux rings don’t collapse. The amount of sugar, rum, and glaze ingredients can be adjusted to your taste and the desired consistency.
What You Will Need
For the choux rings:
- 300 ml water,
- 150 g butter,
- 200 g plain flour,
- a pinch of salt,
- 6 eggs.
For the custard-butter cream:
- 750 ml milk,
- sugar to taste,
- vanilla sugar,
- 3 vanilla custard powders,
- rum to taste,
- 1.5 blocks of softened butter.
For the whipped mascarpone cream:
- 2 packs of mascarpone,
- icing sugar to taste,
- 2 whipping creams with 33% fat,
- 1 whipping cream stabilizer.
For the lemon glaze:
- lemon juice,
- icing sugar,
- rum.
The original recipe does not specify the exact amount of vanilla sugar, rum, or glaze ingredients, so adjust them to your own taste and the desired consistency.
Step-by-Step Preparation:
1. Preparing the choux pastry: Bring the water and salt to a boil and add the butter. Once the butter has melted, stir in the plain flour and mix thoroughly until the dough comes together and starts to pull away from the sides of the pot.
2. Incorporating the eggs: Let the choux pastry cool slightly. Then gradually beat in all six eggs until you have a smooth mixture suitable for shaping the individual rings.
3. Shaping and baking: Shape the choux rings from the prepared dough. Bake them for 15 minutes at 200 °C, then reduce the temperature to 180 °C and bake until golden. Do not open the oven at any point during baking.
4. Cooking the custard base: From the milk, sugar to taste, vanilla sugar, rum, and three packets of vanilla custard powder, cook a thick custard. Cover the surface with cling film and let it cool completely.
5. Finishing the butter cream: Gradually beat the softened butter into the cooled custard. Continue until both parts are combined into a smooth custard-butter cream, which will be used to fill the bottom halves of the choux rings.
6. Preparing the mascarpone whipped cream: Beat the mascarpone with icing sugar to taste. In a separate bowl, whip the cream with the stabilizer, then combine both mixtures together.
7. Mixing the lemon glaze: Mix lemon juice with icing sugar and a little rum. Add the ingredients according to the desired consistency and mix until you have a thick glaze that will stay on top of the choux rings.
8. Filling and finishing: Cut the baked choux rings in half. Fill the bottom half with the custard-butter cream, add the mascarpone whipped cream, and cover with the top half. Finally, drizzle the tops with the prepared lemon glaze.
Why You Shouldn’t Open the Oven While Baking
The choux rings are first baked for 15 minutes at 200 °C and then finished at 180 °C. During this time, do not open the oven, as proper baking is important to maintain their shape. The finished rings should be golden on the surface.
How to Prepare Glaze with the Right Consistency
The original recipe does not specify the exact ratio of lemon juice, icing sugar, and rum. However, the glaze should be thick so it doesn’t run off the tops of the rings. Adjust the consistency by gradually adding each ingredient.
Final Tip
Fill the choux rings with two different layers: first the custard-butter cream, then the whipped mascarpone cream. This way, both the richer creamy filling and the lighter whipped part stand out. The lemon glaze with rum completes the dessert’s flavor.
