Plaisir Nutella

La Cerise sur le gâteau. Plaisir Sucre. Whatever shape or form and whichever name it takes on, there is no denying that nothing - and I really mean nothing - beats the heavenly combination of gianduja layered on a bed of crunchy-chewy hazelnut dacquoise, then topped with thin layers of tempered milk chocolate discs and luscious milk chocolate mousse. Doesn't reading the ingredients itself make you salivate already?

We all know and love Gianduja plain old Nutella, don't we? Oops! I probably am  committing the worst offense by equating the two but really, except for a few other ingredients, it boils down to the mixture of hazelnut and either milk or dark chocolate. Perhaps the best flavor combination ever invented. Well, next to Hermé's Ispahan of course.
One of my favorite cakes from my last stint at Le Cordon Bleu Paris was this: Douceur Chocolat, translated as Heavenly Chocolate in English in our manuscripts. As soon as Chef JJ started piping the mousse and constructing the dessert during demo, I knew right then that we'd be in for such a ride during the practical session.

The most difficult part of this dessert is probably the milk chocolate tempering - yes, chocolate does have its own temper - followed by the chocolate mousse but when D asked me earlier this week to make my favorite dessert from this last course for him, I can't think of anything besides this.

Douceur Chocolat I made from practical session #10 two months ago

I've decided to make this an early Valentine's Day celebration and since World Nutella's Day also happen to fall on this week, I thought I would make my own version using Nutella and creating it in a heart form. I know, I know, it's corny but hey, it's for V-Day! Ladies and gentlemen, especially you true romantics out there, let me introduce you to le Plaisir Nutella.

Because you've been so patient with me, even during periods of delayed and rather inconsistent updates,  I will be - for real, this time - conducting a giveaway courtesy of CSN Stores. More on that to come. As you all may know by now, CSN Stores is one of the fastest-growing online stores offering a myriad of items for your home from lighting to tools to kitchenware to furniture - check out their swing sets for kids! But that's not all, come back and check this space for recipe and short clip on the making of my Plaisir Nutella.