Mascarpone, Praliné and Shortbread Krembo

Krembo is my childhood in Israel. I remember how much I waited for winter to eat this comforting delicacy that appeared in stores with the first rain. I would go after school to the neighborhood grocery store and buy myself the first Krembo of the season. It was one of my favorite childhood rituals.

So what is Krembo? This snack/dessert is a chocolate-coated marshmallow treat that is popular in Israel. It consists of a round biscuit base topped with fluffy marshmallow creme-like foam, coated in a thin layer of chocolate and wrapped in a colorful aluminum foil. In Hebrew, the word krembo is a combination of the words “krem” (cream) and “bo” (in it).

Actually the Krembo is very simple but so so good and each person has it’s own way of eating it. I love to start with the top and save the best, which is the biscuit, for last. A friend of mine doesn’t touch the biscuit, she eats only the chocolate and cream. it’s a real issue in Israel 🙂

So I decided to upgrade the simple Krembo and turn it into a real dessert. Crispy shortbread base coated in chocolate, delicate Mascarpone cream, praliné and a thin chocolate coating dotted with caramelized hazelnuts.

Mascarpone, Praliné and Shortbread Krembo
12-14 units, 5-6cm

Ingredients
Shortbread:
200g butter, softened
100g sugar
300g all-purpose flour
10g Fleur-de-Sel or 5g salt
300g dark or milk chocolate

Mascarpone Cream:
200g heavy whipping cream
140g white chocolate, chopped
200g Mascarpone cream

100-150g praliné (hazelnut or almond)

Chocolate Decoration:
400g dark or milk chocolate
2.5 tbsp Canola oil
Caramelized hazelnuts. chopped

Preparation
1. Shortbread: Line a 25-cm square pan with parchment paper.
2. Beat soft butter and sugar until light and smooth. Add flour and salt,  beat until mostly combined, knead lightly if required.
3. Transfer the dough into the pan and press to obtain a smooth surface (don’t press too hard).
4. Mark circles on the dough using a 5-6cm round cookie cutter, and prick all over with a fork. Refrigerate for two hours.
5. Bake in a preheated oven to 180c for about 20-25 minutes until the dough stabilizes and turns slightly golden.
6. Cool to room temperature, using the cookie cutter separate the pre-marked shortbread rounds.
7. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Melt chocolate, dip each Shortbread round in the melted chocolate, then place on the parchment lined baking sheet. Place in the refrigerator to set.
8. Mascarpone cream: Heat the cream until simmering. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate in a bowl, wait a few seconds, then stir to make a smooth ganache. Refrigerate for about an hour. Combine the Mascarpone and chocolate ganache and mix. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Assembling
9. Transfer praliné to a pastry bag.
10. Remove the Mascarpone cream from the fridge, and whip until stiff peaks form.
11. Transfer the cream to a pastry bag and pipe on each Shortbread round a spiral in the form of a Krembo (a wider base that is getting narrower) up to half the desired height.
12. Pipe a generous amount of praliné cream into the hole created in the center of the Mascarpone cream spiral (if you do not have a hole, make a hole using a small knife).
13. Continue piping the Mascarpone cream from where you stopped until the Krembo shape is complete (thus hiding the praliné inside). Refrigerate for 3 hours.
14. Melt chocolate, stir together melted chocolate and oil.
15. Dip each Krembo in the melted chocolate, then place on the parchment lined baking sheet. Place in the refrigerator to set.
16. Garnish each Krembo with chopped caramelized hazelnuts (in order for the nuts to stick to the chocolate this step must be done immediately after coating each Krembo).
Keep refrigerated, it is recommended to remove from the refrigerator about 15 minutes before serving.

Bon-Appétit
Sharon