Description
Classic French profiteroles featuring light and airy choux pastry puffs filled with either creamy vanilla ice cream or smooth vanilla pastry cream, all elegantly topped with a rich homemade chocolate sauce. Perfect as a sophisticated dessert for any occasion.
Ingredients
Choux Pastry
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1½ teaspoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs
Filling
- Vanilla ice cream (or any flavor of choice; you’ll need to buy a quart but won’t use all of it)
- or vanilla pastry cream
Chocolate Sauce
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- Pinch salt
Instructions
- Make the Choux Pastry: In a medium saucepan, combine water, milk, butter, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the butter is fully melted.
- Incorporate Flour: Reduce heat to low, add all the flour at once, and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms a smooth ball and pulls away from the sides, approximately 1 minute.
- Cool and Mix Dough: Transfer dough to an electric mixer bowl fitted with paddle attachment. Let cool for 5 minutes, then beat on low speed for 30 seconds to release steam.
- Add Eggs: With mixer on low, add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides. Continue mixing for 1 more minute until dough is smooth, thick, and pipeable.
- Pipe Puffs: Transfer dough to a piping bag with ½-inch round tip and pipe 1¾-inch mounds onto parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart. Wet fingertip to gently smooth pointed tips to prevent burning.
- Bake: Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C) with rack in middle. Bake puffs for 22-25 minutes without opening oven until golden and puffed. Turn off oven, crack door slightly, and let puffs dry inside for 30 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
- Make Chocolate Sauce: Heat heavy cream over medium heat in small saucepan until steaming but not boiling. Remove from heat, stir in chopped chocolate and pinch of salt until smooth. Let cool slightly before serving.
- Prepare Ice Cream Filling (Optional): Scoop small balls (about 1½ oz or 3 tablespoons) of ice cream onto parchment-lined sheet and freeze until firm, at least 30 minutes up to 2 hours. If freezing longer, cover with plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn.
- Assemble Ice Cream Profiteroles: Slice cooled profiteroles horizontally with serrated knife, place frozen ice cream ball on bottom half, replace top half, drizzle with warm chocolate sauce, and serve immediately.
- Prepare Pastry Cream Filling (Alternative): Whisk chilled pastry cream until smooth. Poke ¼-inch hole in bottom of each puff with small knife. Pipe pastry cream into each puff until nearly filled. Drizzle with chocolate sauce and serve.
Notes
- Do not open the oven door during baking to prevent puffs from collapsing.
- Cooling the choux pastry inside the oven with door cracked helps them dry out and stay crisp.
- Use an offset spatula to carefully assemble ice cream profiteroles to minimize melting.
- Profiteroles are best served immediately after assembling, especially if filled with ice cream.
- The recipe provides two filling options: ice cream or pastry cream to suit different preferences.
- If freezing ice cream balls longer than 2 hours, cover with plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French
