Excellent French Profiteroles
Ingredients
For the Choux pastry
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 stick (4 tbsp) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
For chocolate ganache
- 4 oz semi sweet Chocolate, coarsely chopped
- ½ cup heavy cream (or less)
For vanilla pastry cream
- 17 oz whole milk
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 6 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 4 egg yolks
Egg wash
- 1 egg yolk beaten with 2 drops water
Instructions
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First, prepare the pastry cream. Please see recipe link above.
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Second, Prepare Choux Pastry: Preheat oven to 400°F.
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Take out the pan from the heat.
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Put the hot dough in a bowl.
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Beat the eggs, and add them gradually to the dough.
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Mix well with a wooden spoon. The mixture may not look nice, but keep mixing.
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Mix until you obtain a smooth glossy dough. The dough should be similar to a very thick liquid.
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Place the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip.
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Pipe onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.
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Pipe into about 2 tablespoons blobs, spacing them a couple of inches apart.
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Gently, brush with egg wash.
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Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes then reduce the heat to 350°F . Continue to bake for 20 minutes or until the shells are golden. You may need to place under the broiler in the last 5 minutes of baking.
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Prick the pastry shells with a toothpick in two or three places to allow vapor to escape.
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Let cool completely.
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Prepare the chocolate ganache: In a heatproof bowl, put the chocolate and heavy cream.
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Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water ( Bain Marie or water bath).
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Mix well the ingredients with a wooden spoon until you obtain a nice shiny ganache. Set aside.
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Assemble the profiteroles: Put the pastry cream in a pastry bag fitted with a small round tip.
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Pipe pastry cream in each choux pastry shell. Make sure you make a little incision on the side with a knife to get the pastry cream inside.
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Dip the top of the shells in the chocolate ganache.
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Chill uncovered to set the ganache.
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Serve.