French Profiteroles Recipes

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in the butter and salt until the butter has melted; remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in the flour until no dry lumps remain; stir in the eggs, one at a time, adding the next egg only after the last one has been completely incorporated into the mixture. Drop the profiterole paste onto the prepared baking sheet in evenly spaced dollops.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the pastries have puffed up and turned golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the baking sheet and cool on a wire rack to room temperature.
• Beat 1 cup of heavy cream to soft peaks; stir in the confectioners' sugar and rosewater until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the remaining cup of heavy cream to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until melted and smooth.
• To assemble, poke a hole into the bottom of each pastry and fill with the rose water cream. Place the filled profiteroles onto individual serving plates and top with the warm sauce. Leftover profiteroles may be stored sealed in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

CLASSIC FRENCH PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Melt the Butter and set aside to cool down. In a small bowl, mix the Flour and Brown Sugar. Pour over the melted Butter and stir with a fork or a small spatula until completely combined.
• Place the dough between two sheets of baking paper and spread as thinly as possible with a rolling pin. Place on a flat tray and transfer in the fridge to set for about 30 minutes.
• Place the Water, Butter and Sugar in a medium size pot on medium heat and leave to heat up until the butter and sugar have melted.
• Away from the heat, drop in the Flour at once. Using a wooden spoon or stiff spatula, stir the batter until it starts to come together then place back on the stove over low heat. Keep stiring to dehydrate the pastry as much as possible (at least a couple of minutes) to remove as much moisture as possible until you see a thin film create at the bottom of the pan (see note 1).
• Transfer into a large clean bowl (or the bowl of your Stand Mixer) and leave to cool down for 10 to 15 minutes. The batter should be at room temperature (or at least not steaming hot).
• Beat the eggs together in a seperate bowl. Slowly start to add the mixed eggs into the batter, a little bit at the time. Mix well between each addition of eggs until they are fully incorporated, then add a little bit more eggs and repeat (it is easier to do this step with a Stand Mixer). The pastry should be fluid and shiny, not too liquid or too hard (see note 2).
• Preheat your oven on 180'C / 350'F and grease the bottom of a baking tray (wipe any excess of grease with a paper towel).
• Place the Choux Pastry in a piping bag with a large round nozzle. Pipe small mounds of pastry, leaving room between each choux as they will puff in the oven.
• Optional: Take the Craquelin out of the fridge. Use a small cookie cutter, about the size of each choux, to cut out the craquelin and place them over each choux.
• Put in the oven for 20 minutes or until puffed and golden, then open the oven door to let the steam out and directly re-close it. Leave them to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes - If they Choux are not baked enough, they will fall down once cold. Transfer the Choux on a cooling rack and leave to cool down completely.
• Finely chop the Dark Cooking Chocolate and place in a heat proof bowl.
• In a small pot, heat up the milk until it starts to boil then directly remove from the heat and pour over the chopped chocolate. Wait 30 seconds then stir with a spatula to melt the chocolate. Keep stiring until the chocolate is fully melted, shiny and glossy (see note 3)
• When ready to serve, slice each Choux in half. Place a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream on the bottom of each Choux and place the Choux lid back on. Re-heat the Chocolate Sauce to be fluid if needed then pour it over the Profiteroles. Serve straight away.

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• In a small saucepan combine the water, butter and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and add the flour all at once and stir it vigorously with a wooden spoon. Cook until the mixture has formed a ball and has a slightly sweaty sheen to it and it has pulled away from the pan. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and let cool for 3 to 4 minutes. The mixture does not have to be cold, just cool enough not to cook the eggs when added. Using an electric mixer or lots of good old-fashioned elbow grease, beat in the eggs 1 at a time. Do not add the second egg until the first is fully incorporated. Add in the cinnamon and beat for another second to combine.
• Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag equipped with a large straight tip and pipe 1-inch balls onto a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. When done dip your finger in water and smooth the top of each ball where the pastry bag released the dough. Be sure to leave at least 1-inch between each of the balls. They grow! Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through the cooking time to insure even cooking. When done, the puffs should be light, airy and dry inside. Cool on a rack.
• When ready to serve, cut in half horizontally and fill with ice cream of your choosing. (I prefer a really high-quality vanilla.) Top with warm Chocolate Sauce.
• Bring a saucepan with 1-inch of water to a boil. Put the chocolate in a metal or heatproof glass mixing bowl and place on top of the saucepan with boiling water. Pay careful attention that the mixing bowl does not touch the surface of the boiling water. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until the chocolate has melted and everything is combined. This is a pretty quick process, once the chocolate has melted remove it from the double boiler set up. Spoon over the filled profiteroles. This is best when served warm!

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Heat the milk, butter, and salt over medium heat until scalded. When the butter is melted, add the flour all at once and beat it with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together and forms a dough. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat for 2 minutes. The flour will begin to coat the bottom of the pan. Dump the hot mixture into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the eggs and pulse until the eggs are incorporated into the dough and the mixture is thick.
• Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain round tip. Pipe in mounds 1 1/2 inches wide and 1-inch high onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You should have about 18 puffs. With a wet finger, lightly press down the swirl at the top of each puff. (You can also use 2 spoons to scoop out the mixture and shape the puffs with damp fingers.) Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned, then turn off the oven and allow them to sit for another 10 minutes, until they sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Make a small slit in the side of each puff to allow the steam to escape. Set aside to cool.
• For the chocolate sauce, place the cream and chocolate chips in a bowl set over simmering water and stir just until the chocolate melts. Add the honey and coffee and stir until smooth. Set aside.
• For serving, cut each profiterole in half crosswise, fill with a small scoop of ice cream, replace the top, and drizzle with slightly warm chocolate sauce.

PROFITEROLES WITH COFFEE ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Make profiteroles:
• Chill a small metal baking pan in freezer. Form 18 ice cream balls with scoop and freeze in chilled pan at least 1 hour (this will make serving faster).
• Preheat oven to 425°F with rack in middle. Butter a large baking sheet.
• Bring butter, water, and salt to a boil in a small heavy saucepan, stirring until butter is melted. Reduce heat to medium, then add flour all at once and cook, beating with a wooden spoon, until mixture pulls away from side of pan and forms a ball, about 30 seconds. Transfer mixture to a bowl and cool slightly, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well with an electric mixer after each addition.
• Transfer warm mixture to pastry bag and pipe 18 mounds (about 1 1/4 inches wide and 1 inch high) 1 inch apart on baking sheet.
• Bake until puffed and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes total. Prick each profiterole once with a skewer, then return to oven to dry, propping oven door slightly ajar, 3 minutes. Cool on sheet on a rack.
• Make chocolate sauce:
• Heat sugar in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a fork to heat sugar evenly, until it starts to melt, then stop stirring and cook, swirling pan occasionally so sugar melts evenly, until it is dark amber.
• Remove from heat, then add cream and a pinch of salt (mixture will bubble and steam). Return to heat and cook, stirring, until caramel has dissolved.
• Remove from heat and add chocolate, whisking until melted, then whisk in vanilla and Cognac (if using). Keep warm, covered.
• Serve profiteroles:
• Halve profiteroles horizontally, then fill each with a ball of ice cream. Put 3 profiteroles on each plate and drizzle generously with warm chocolate sauce.

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a pastry bag with a 1/2-inch tip (optional).
• In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Place the water and butter in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the flour mixture and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon for several seconds, until the dough is smooth, pulls away from the sides of the pan, and begins to form a ball. Remove the pan from the heat. Cool the dough for a couple of minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, until smooth and glossy, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Place the dough in the pastry bag. (Alternatively, you can use a spoon to form the puffs.) Grease 2 rimmed baking sheets or line with baking parchment. Pipe the desired shapes onto the baking sheets. The dough can be frozen at this point on the tray then collected into freezer bags and sealed.
• For small (1 1/2-inch) puffs, bake for 10 to 12 minutes. For a standard eclair shape, bake for 10 minutes then raise the heat to 425 degrees and continue baking for 15 minutes total, or until puffed up, golden brown, and firm to the touch. Cool completely on a wire rack.

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. To make the profiteroles, put the butter and 2 tsp of the caster sugar in a saucepan with 150ml water. Place the pan over a low heat until the butter and sugar have melted, then bring to the boil. Take off the heat, add the flour all at once and beat energetically with a wooden spoon until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan.
• Leave to cool for 5 mins, then beat in the eggs bit by bit until you have a stiff, glossy mixture (this process is much easier in a food processor). Rinse two baking trays with cold water, shaking off any excess so they are slightly damp (this helps the pastry to rise). Using 2 teaspoons, spoon blobs of the mixture onto the baking trays. Then place in the oven and cook for about 18-20 mins until well risen and brown. Remove the profiteroles from the oven and cut a small slit in the base of each one so they don't collapse. Cool on a wire rack.
• When they're cold, whip the cream lightly until just holding its shape. Sweeten to taste with remaining sugar and a few drops of vanilla extract. Cut the profiteroles in half, fill them with the sweetened cream and pile them up on a plate. You can refrigerate them for 1-2 hrs at this point but not for any longer as the pastry will go soggy.
• To make the sauce, sift the cocoa powder into a bowl. Put the sugar in a pan with 100ml water and warm over a low heat until dissolved. Bring to the boil, cook for 1 min, then pour over the cocoa powder and stir well until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan, cook for 1 min then set aside for 15 mins before drizzling over the profiteroles.

PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
• Heat the water, sugar, salt, and butter in a small saucepan, stirring, until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat and dump in the flour all at once. Stir briskly until the mixture is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
• Allow the dough to cool for 2 minutes, then briskly beat in the eggs, one at a time, until smooth and shiny.
• Using two spoons, scoop up a mound of dough roughly the size of an unshelled walnut with one spoon and scrape it off with the other spoon onto the baking sheet (or you can use a pastry bag or spring-loaded ice cream scoop). Place the mounds, evenly spaced, on the baking sheet. Lightly beat the egg yolk and milk together and brush the top of each mound with some of the egg yolk glaze.
• Bake the cream puffs for 30 minutes, or until puffed and well browned. Turn off the oven and leave them in for another 5 minutes.
• Storage
• The cream puffs are best eaten the same day they're made. Once cooled, they can be frozen in a zip-top freezer bag for up to 1 month. Defrost at room temperature, then warm briefly on a baking sheet in a moderate oven until crisp again.

EUROPEAN PROFITEROLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400F degrees.
• To make the pastry, place the butter, water and sugar into a large saucepan.
• Mix together the flour and salt; set aside.
• Melt the butter over a low heat; increase the heat and all at once add the flour and salt; Remove from the heat and quickly beat the mixture until a smooth paste is formed, stirring continuously to dry out the paste.
• Once the paste comes away from the side of the pan, put it into a large bowl and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
• Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, mixing briskly until the paste is smooth and shiny; continue adding the egg until the mixture is a soft dropping consistency. You don't always have to use all the egg. The mixture will be shiny and smooth and will fall from a spoon if it is given a sharp jerk.
• Lightly oil a large baking tray. Dip a teaspoonful into some warm water and spoon out a teaspoon of the profiterole mixture. Dip your finger into warm water and rub the top of the mixture then spoon on to the baking tray. This gives it a more a crisper topping.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown, if too lightly colored they will become soggy when cool.
• Remove from the oven and poke a hole the bottom of each profiterole. Place onto the baking tray with the hole facing upwards and put back into the oven for 5 minutes to dry the inside of the profiteroles.
• To make the filling: lightly whip the cream and icing sugar until soft peaks form. Make sure you do not over whip!
• When the profiteroles are cold, using a decorator bag (or a freezer bag with the end tip cut) and a plain nozzle, Squeeze the cream into the holes of the profiteroles. If you cannot find a freezer bag you can spoon in the cream with a small spoon.
• Make the chocolate sauce by melting the chocolate with the water and butter over a double boiler or a pan of low boiling water. Stir gently until smooth and glossy, but do not allow to boil.
• Allow chocolate to cool slightly.
• Built the profiteroles on a serving dish and pour over the chocolate sauce.
• Savour the luxury!