Rose and pistachio choux kisses

Makes 40 Cakes, Bread and Pastries

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Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/ Gas 6. Line 2 large baking sheets with baking paper. Spoon the choux pastry into the piping bag fitted with the 1cm nozzle. Pipe small blobs of dough in rows, leaving at least 1cm between them. The dough will hold in the bag for a while, so it’s easiest to pipe a trayful, bake them, then pipe the other tray while the first is baking.

Bake the kisses for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and, with a skewer, poke a hole in the bottom of each to release the steam. Return them to the oven for a further 5 minutes to dry out and finish browning.

Gently whip the cream until just starting to thicken. (If you whip it too firmly now, by the time you stir in the crème pâtissière it will be grainy). Fold in the crème pâtissière and the rosewater, then transfer the mixture to the piping bag fitted with the small nozzle. Put the filled piping bag in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Once the kisses are cool and the filling is chilled, pipe a small amount of the filling into the middle of each ball, using the hole you made with the skewer. Pack the kisses on to a large baking tray so that they can’t roll around.

Mix the icing sugar with enough water to make a runny icing – you want it to be translucent and a brushable consistency. Brush the tops of the kisses with icing to glaze, then sprinkle with the rose petals and pistachios. Leave the icing to set before serving

For the Choux pastry

Sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Set aside. Pour 150ml water into a pan over a medium- high heat and add the butter. Stir until melted. Allow to come to a rolling boil, then immediately remove from the heat. Add the flour in one and beat well with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together. Reduce heat to medium and return the pan for 1 minute, stirring, until the mix slightly sticks to the base. Remove from the heat and cool for 1 minute.

Pour a quarter of the beaten eggs into the pan and beat very well. Add a little more egg, and beat well again until the mixture comes back together. Continue to add the egg, beating all the time, until the mixture has softened, is nice and shiny and has a dropping consistency. Use immediately.

For the Crème pâtissière

In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until light and thick, then sift in the flour and whisk to combine. Heat the milk in a saucepan over a medium heat and bring it slowly just to the boil. Pour the milk over the egg mixture, whisking.

Return the mixture to the pan and stir over a medium-low heat until it comes to a gentle boil (it must boil for it to thicken). Continue to cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes or until it has thickened.

Remove the pan from the heat, add the vanilla extract and immediately pour it into a bowl.

Cover with cling film to prevent a skin from forming and leave to cool. When completely cool, put it in the fridge until needed.