Chef Prateek Bakhtiani runs Ether, his chocolate atelier in Mumbai, and is our very own Willy Wonka. Here he conjures up a bespoke turron for a client’s wedding
Having worked in chemical research in a previous life, Chef Prateek Bakhtiani discovered his passion for pastry at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Several stints at Michelin-starred restaurants in France, Belgium and the United States followed. He has also trained with the prestigious EPGB in Tijuana, Mexico and studied gelato at Carpigiani in Bologna, Italy.
Chef Bakhtiani moved back to Mumbai in 2018 and set up his atelier, a space for the sensory exploration of chocolate. Special attention is paid to the origins, terroir and composition of the chocolate. Inspiration-driven chocolate collections are rolled out regularly. There’s a small viewing gallery to witness the creative process at Ether.
“I created this recipe for a client on the occasion of her wedding. She wanted to create a modern chocolate turron that looked modern but tasted like rich nostalgia and sweet memories of old. To achieve this, of course, I used a base of Parle and added more umami elements of roasted hazelnuts, rich sea salt and feuilletine, to supercharge the intense richness of the turron,” explains Chef Bakhtiani.
Parle turron
Ingredients
Base
- 755 gm ‘Parle’ cookie butter by Ether Atelier
- 200 gm cocoa butter
- 310 gm Valrhona Biskelia
- 5 gm Maldon sea salt
Crunch
- 530 gm Parle G biscuit
- 625 gm feuilletine
- 140 gm roasted hazelnuts
Method
- Melt together the Biskelia and cocoa butter.
- Add the Parle spread and salt.
- Mix well.
- Separately mix together all the ingredients of the crunch, then incorporate this into the base (both at 30°C).
- Set in the desired mould.
- Once set, unmould and dip in dark chocolate.
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