The Making of Plaisir Nutella and a USD 65 Giveaway!!

It's been a while since I played around with photo montages and video editing but here's one that I created on a favorite dessert that I made recently - le plaisir nutella.
This is my take on PH's plaisir sucré, a simplified version, no doubt but with flavors and textures that still left me wanting for more. This dessert is best prepared and enjoyed in individual servings rather than a larger piece of dessert that you cut into. Each element tastes good on its own but simply transcendental when all layers come together. Ah, le plaisir......

The Making of Plaisir Nutella from Jencrafted on Vimeo.

Recipe for Plaisir Sucre

Part I - The Dacquoise
*can be prepared ahead of time*
100 g powdered sugar
100 g ground nuts (almonds or hazelnuts)
3 egg whites
30 g granulated sugar
Line baking tray with parchment. Pre-heat oven to 350˚F.
Sift and mix powdered sugar and ground nuts together. Set aside. Whisk egg whites to soft peaks, slowly add granulated sugar and continue whisking till meringue forms stiff peaks. Gently fold in dry ingredients then spread batter on to parchment-lined tray. Bake at 350˚F for about 20 minutes or until cake is done. Remove parchment from tray and on to rack to cool.

Part II - Nutella Filling
*can be prepared ahead of time*
30 g nutella (hazelnut spread)
10 g melted chocolate (either dark or milk or even a mix of both)
4-5 egg roll cookies, crushed (or rice krispies will work as well; idea here is to provide some contrast in texture)
Melt chocolate, add nutella spread then mix in the crushed cookies and most importantly, try to resist licking off the spoon or finishing this decadent snack before the other elements of the dessert come together. On a sidenote, there're disturbing news about the health factors, or rather, unhealthy factors of Nutella lately. If you are concerned, you can make your own hazelnut spread from scratch - I would certainly love to moving forward -  and here's how.

Part III - Chocolate Discs or Wafers (optional)
*can be prepared ahead of time*
Melt chocolate, pour on to silicon mat or plastic-lined work surface and smoothen with spatula. Allow to set for ~ 3-5 minutes before scoring with a paring knife. Place another silicon mat (or plastic) to cover and allow to set.

Pre-assembly: gently detach dacquoise from parchment,  cut out shapes, then spread a layer of nutella filling on dacquoise. If using chocolate discs, lay them out so that they are within reach.

Part IV - Nutella Mousse
*to be prepared just before assembling dessert; mise en place: dacquoise already cut and filled with filling, chocolate discs ready*
100 g whipping cream
50 g nutella spread
50 g chocolate, chopped

Warm cream, pour over chocolate to melt. Leave for couple minutes before stirring. Stir in nutella. Whisk mixture together until it thickens and form mousse (may take up to 10-15 minutes). As soon as the mousse is ready, place into piping bag. It's best to layer on the mousse as soon as possible.

Final assembly
Pipe nutella mousse on to dacquoise and chocolate disc layers. Stack the chocolate disc (or another layer of dacquoise if you opt to omit the disc) to form 2 to 3 layers on top of the base dacquoise layer. Finish with decorative piping of nutella mousse. Ready to serve and enjoy!

And now for the GIVEAWAY!
This took a while longer than I had anticipated but I finally got the "go" so here's how it works:

• This giveaway is open only to US and Canadian residents only (I'd love to extend it beyond these boundaries but unfortunately, I've got to play by the rules for now)
• Just leave a comment on this post and you will stand the chance to win a USD 65 coupon (folks, that's absolutely free money!) that can be used toward your purchase at any of CSN's 200+ online stores which include some great selections like cookware, bedding, outdoor furniture or even toys and games for the kids! 
• This contest will run through end of this month (until 23:59 PST on 28th February 2011) and the winner will be announced thereafter.

There's absolutely no catch - just leave a comment and you're in the running. So what are you waiting for?!!

UPDATE: THIS GIVEAWAY CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.