Name: Bulgars
Yield: 4 servings

Bulgars

Bulgars: crisp cookies with a tender interior, made with simple ingredients and flavored with a gentle touch of spices.

Ingredients

Servings:

Ingredients

Step-by-step Guide

Note

You can also use a mix of 50 grams of cake flour and 50 grams of cornstarch, rice flour, or potato starch, adding a pinch of salt.
Ingredients for the coating: 300 grams of 70% couverture chocolate and 150 grams of butter.

Preparation

Start by preheating the oven to 180 degrees Celsius to ensure even baking.
Cut the vegetables into cubes approximately 1 centimeter on each side to ensure even cooking.
In a large pan, heat a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat for 1 minute before adding the chopped vegetables.
Sauté the vegetables over medium heat for about 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they are tender and slightly golden.
Next, add the seasonings and stir for 1-2 minutes to distribute the flavors evenly.
Pour the contents of the pan onto a baking tray and bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until well golden.
Remove the tray from the oven and let it rest at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving.

Prepare the Dark Truffle: Should be done the day before

Place the whipping cream in a saucepan over medium heat, ensuring it does not burn.
When the cream reaches a boil, remove the saucepan from the heat and immediately add the two types of chocolate couverture, chopped into small pieces to facilitate melting.
Stir constantly with a spatula until all the chocolate is completely integrated and no lumps remain, ensuring the mixture is homogeneous.
Transfer the mixture to a heat-resistant glass bowl and cover it with plastic wrap, ensuring the wrap touches the surface of the chocolate directly to prevent a crust from forming.
Let it cool at room temperature and, once the chocolate is cool, place it in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, or preferably overnight.
The next day, remove the truffle from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to temper the chocolate before using it.
Remember that it is a simple process, but be careful not to burn the chocolate at any moment.
Transfer the truffle to a saucepan that can go directly on the heat and begin to work it with your hands, kneading until it reaches the point where it can be stirred with a whisk. Important: Keep the saucepan on the heat for only 10 seconds at a time, remove it from the heat to work the chocolate, then return it to the heat for another 10 seconds, repeating this process until it can be easily worked with the whisk. The final texture should be similar to Nutella.

The Next Day: Prepare the Sponge Cake

Place the rack on the second guide from the bottom, ensuring it is securely fastened to support the weight of the tray.
Preheat the oven to 240ºC for about 10-15 minutes, until it reaches the desired temperature.
Use a flat tray with low edges approximately 1 cm high and grease it with melted butter so that the parchment paper adheres well to the base.
Line the base of the tray with baking paper, ensuring that it extends about 10 cm beyond one of the long sides of the tray (the paper should not cover the edges, only the bottom). This will help us stretch the dough and remove it from the tray once baked.
Press the paper firmly against the base of the tray to ensure it doesn't move during the baking process.
Brush the baking paper with melted butter using a pastry brush. Note: Ensure the tray is prepared and the oven is well-heated before starting to prepare the batter, since it doesn't contain any leavening agent and, once whipped, it must go into the oven quickly to prevent losing air and volume.
Sift the flour or the mix of flours, placing it in an easily accessible container for when it needs to be incorporated into the batter.
In a bowl, beat the egg whites together with half of the sugar until stiff peaks form. As the egg whites begin to thicken, gradually add the sugar while continuing to beat, then add the honey, until achieving a firm mixture that forms the typical peak.
In another bowl, whiten the yolks with the other half of the sugar, beating until they double in volume, a process that can take about 10 minutes.
Add 1/4 of the egg whites to the bowl with the yolks and gently stir with a spatula, incorporating them with folding motions to retain the air.
Add the sifted flours in two batches, while continuing to gently stir with the spatula, being careful not to deflate the mixture.
Finish incorporating the remaining 3/4 of the egg whites, stirring gently but efficiently to avoid losing time or volume.
Spread the batter evenly over the prepared tray, smoothing it across the surface with the help of a long spatula or paddle.
Bake at 240ºC for about 6 minutes, keeping the oven door slightly ajar with a wooden spoon to prevent it from closing completely. Note: To check if the sheet is adequately cooked, open the oven and gently touch the surface with your hand; if it sticks, it needs more baking. The sheet should be slightly moist to ensure it can be rolled without breaking.

Tempering the Chocolate for the Filling and Preparing the

Transfer the truffle to a saucepan that can go directly over the heat. Knead it with your hand until it reaches a consistency that allows stirring with a whisk.
Once it is possible to stir with the whisk, place the saucepan over low heat for 10 seconds. Important: Keep the saucepan on the heat for only 10 seconds, then remove it to stir the chocolate with the whisk.
Return the saucepan to the heat for another 10 seconds and remove it. Repeat this process until you achieve a texture similar to Nocilla.
Cut the sponge sheet into three approximately equal parts, parallel to the short side.
Spread a layer of truffle on one of the pieces.
Roll the sheet over itself, this time from the long side to the other long side, applying a bit of pressure.
Once the three sheets are filled and rolled, place them in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to harden slightly. Note: Place them whole, without cutting the Swiss rolls yet.
In the meantime, prepare the chocolate coating bath. Melt the chocolate with the butter using a bain-marie. Note: The container in which we melt the chocolate should be somewhat wide (but not very deep) to be able to dip the Swiss rolls and then remove them easily.
Stir constantly so the chocolate does not burn.
Allow it to cool to 32°C.
Prepare the oven rack with a sheet of aluminum foil underneath.
Remove the rolled sponge cake (swiss roll) sheets from the refrigerator and cut them into individual portions. Do not make the portions too large. Clean the knife after each cut.
Dip the swiss rolls in the covering chocolate by letting them fall into the bath. Use two forks to remove them.
Once coated, let them drain on the rack until the covering chocolate hardens. You can add small chocolate sprinkles on top.
Place them back in the refrigerator for a while (without removing them from the rack) so the chocolate can set completely.

Recommendations & Tricks

Prepare the dark truffle filling the day before to ensure it has sufficient time to cool completely and achieve the proper texture.
To make the sponge sheet, use a 30x40 cm baking mold and line it with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
When preparing the topping, make sure to have at least 15 bulgarians already prepared to facilitate the assembly process.
Prepare a smooth topping by heating 225 g of couverture chocolate with 70% or 80% cocoa content along with 100 g of milk chocolate, mixing until a uniform texture is achieved.
Whip 250 ml of heavy cream with 35% fat content until it forms soft peaks, and if desired, add 3 g of sorbic acid sugar for better preservation.
Before starting with the sponge sheet, preheat the oven to 180 degrees to ensure even baking.
Once the sponge sheet is baked, let it cool completely before cutting it to the necessary size for the bulgarians.