Turkey Croquembouche with Pumpkin Spice Cream

Combine the granulated sugar, egg yolks and optional spices (if using) in a medium bowl. Whisk by hand or with beaters until light yellow and fluffy.

Add flour and cornstarch and whisk until thoroughly combined and lightened even further.

Slowly stream in warmed pumpkin milk with a ladle while whisking vigorously to prevent cooking the eggs. Continue slowly adding in the milk mixture until it is all combined.

Return the entire mixture to the medium saucepan and place over low heat. Whisk constantly until the pastry cream has thickened to a pudding consistency. This can take 5+ minutes. Remove from the heat promptly and transfer to a heatproof bowl.

Cover with plastic and press down to touch the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming. Chill at least 1 hour or place over a bowl of ice to chill it faster. While waiting on this to chill, feel free to move on to next steps and come back to finish this when you are ready to fill the choux.

When the pastry cream is completely chilled, whip the ¾ cup heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the remaining whipped cream into the completely chilled pumpkin pastry cream. Transfer to a large piping bag fitted with a small plain round tip and set aside and chill until ready to fill the choux.

Add the flour and kosher salt. Mix to combine. Divide the mixture in two. Color one half with light brown food coloring either with beaters or by gloved hands. Split the second portion in half again. Color one portion with red food coloring and the other with dark brown food coloring.

Knead each dough with your hands* a bit and form it into a rectangle. Place it on top of one of the sheets of parchment paper. Cover with the second parchment paper sheet.

Roll the dough between the parchment with a rolling pin until ⅛-inch thick. Place each dough between the sheets of parchment on the baking sheet and transfer to the freezer to freeze solid, about 5-10 minutes.

For the light brown craquelin: Working quickly, remove the top piece of parchment and place it back on the sheet pan. Punch out circles of the frozen light brown dough with a 2-inch round cutter. Cut out ¾-inch x 4 inch small rectangles using a ruler as a guide. Transfer these circles and rectangles back to the sheet pan lined with parchment. Freeze until ready to use.

For the dark brown craquelin: Cut out ¾-inch x 4 inch small rectangles using a ruler as a guide. Transfer these rectangles back to the sheet pan lined with parchment. Freeze until ready to use.

For the red craquelin: Save in the freezer for later. You will cut the shapes when you have a better idea of the size of the head and body choux pieces.

For the round choux: Prepare a large sheet pan with parchment paper. On the backside of the parchment paper sheets use a 2-inch cutter and pencil to mark 20 circles (in 4 rows of 5). Hold the piping bag straight up and down, apply medium pressure and pipe dollops of choux batter in the middle of the 2-inch circles until just about reaching the border of the circles on one of the prepared pans. If you have two ovens, move ahead with piping the body, head and feathers and bake both sheet pans simultaneously. If not, save the choux pastry in the piping bag until the oven is available to bake again.

Working quickly, remove the tray from the oven briefly to poke holes in the bottom of the still hot choux with a paring knife to allow the steam inside to escape.

Return the choux to the tray and return the tray to the oven. Use a wooden spoon to crack the door of the oven with the choux inside. Let the choux sit in there for 30 minutes before removing and allowing the choux to cool on a wire rack completely.

For the choux feathers, head and body: See diagram for help. Prepare a large sheet pan with parchment paper. Pipe the body shape, one big circle and another slightly smaller one attached at the top of the larger one. Pipe a small-medium circle for the head and a longer shaft attached for the neck. Transfer the remaining choux batter to a piping bag fitted with a small-medium french star tip. Pipe the feathers in 3-4 inch lines. For most, flick the piping bag up and away at the ends to create a blunt end. For a few skip this to create a tapered end. You will cut one of these tapered ends to create a beak. Add rectangles of craquelin to the feathers. Cut out the body and head shape in the red craquelin and add to the top of those choux parts before baking.

Repeat baking instructions.

Working quickly, dip the bottoms of the round choux in the caramel and adhere to the base of the body. Dip the bottoms of the feathers into the caramel and adhere to the back of the base of the body. Add as many or as little of the round choux and feathers.

With a serrated knife, slice off the tapered end of one of the extra feathers. Adhere this to the front of the head with caramel for a beak. If you want to make eyes, punch out some of the extra dark brown craquelin, or use sprinkles or royal icing.

Serve immediately.