History of the Croquembouche
The Croquembouche traditionally plays an important role at French weddings, Baptisms, Christenings and other Family gatherings. It has its origins as a fanciful, edible, architectural structure displayed on the medieval tables of the French royalty and nobility. Later, Antonin Carème (1783 - 1833), the most famous French Chef of his generation popularized this dessert. Carème studied architecture and was credited with saying, referring to pieces montées, that architecture was the most noble of the arts and that pastry was the highest form of architecture. He created Turkish mosques, Persian pavilions, Gothic towers and other pièces montées from choux buns. The most common shape in those days was that of a Turkish fez. Towards the end of the 19th century, these extraordinary architectural structures spiraled upwards and out of control. However, during the 20th century, the conical structure was the winning survivor.
What is a Croquembouche?
This traditional French wedding cake or this croquembouche dessert is a pièce montée made of profiteroles (choux buns) filled with pastry cream or chantilly or crème patissière, flavoured with a liqueur of choice, sitting on a round base of croquant or nougatine, and mounted in a conical shape. The choux puffs are bound with caramel, and the finished cone is usually decorated with threads of caramel, sugared almonds or hazelnuts, chocolate, flowers, ribbons or spun sugar. Depending of the occasion, the top decoration can be a bride and groom, a crown of marzipan roses, a small bowl of fresh flowers or an engraved nougatine or iced heart. The Croquembouche can also be decorated with 'cheveux d'ange' (spun sugar).
A croquenbouche, spelled out 'croque en bouche' means 'crunch in the mouth'. A pièce montée in French, literally meaning "mounted piece", is a decorative confectionary centerpiece in an architectural or sculptural form used for formal banquets. Nougatine or croquant is a mixture of caramel and finely chopped almonds. Because the choux pastry is very versatile, it can be shaped in a variety of shapes other than the traditional round choux puffs or long éclairs, and, with a bit of imagination a pièce montée can be made in different architectural structures to suit the occasion.