Chocolate Covered Profiteroles
Serving
Cooking Time
Difficulty
Profiteroles are hollow cream puffs made with choux pastry. The dough is formed by cooking it on the stovetop and then finished in the oven. They are buttery, tender and hollow, allowing you to fill it with anything from ice-cream to whipped cream. They are served semi-frozen and dusted with confectioners sugar or drizzled with chocolate, sometimes both!
In this week’s #5ingredientfridays, Taz’s challenge was to create a dish that represents what self-isolation means to me. When the pandemic hit and we were told to self-isolate, I saw it as an opportunity for me to try new things in the kitchen; it was my personal challenge to experiment and improve my cooking and baking skills.
This week, I decided to try my hand at Choux Pastry. I’d never made Profiteroles before. I had read that the pastry it can be challenging and fraught with problems, ranging from flat, soft and soggy shells to cracked, irregular shaped puffs. Many recipies also required more than 5 ingredients. To qualify for this week’s challenge, I adapted this recipe.
The finished profiteroles were delicious. The shells were fluffy, tender and hollow. I filled them with whipped cream and dusted them with icing sugar and drizzled them with chocolate. As a reminder, basic ingredients such as water, butter, oil, salt, sugar does not count towards the total number of ingredients used in this challenge.
Chocolate Covered Profiteroles
Makes 36 puffs
- 113 g(1/2 cup) Butter
- 177 g(3/4 cup) Water
- 60 g(1/4 cup) Whipping Cream
- 1 tbsConfectioners Sugar
- 120 g(1 cup) All-Purpose Flour
- 4Large Eggs, Beaten
- 231 g(1 cup) Whipping Cream
- 2 tbsConfectioners Sugar
- 90 g(1/2 cup) Dark Chocolate Chips or Bar Broken into Small Chunks
- 10 ml(1 teaspoon) oil
Instructions for Choux Pastry
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line 2 baking trays with parchment paper.
- In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, add butter, water, whipping cream, confectioners sugar. Stir until the butter is melted. When the mixture begins to boil, turn heat down to low and add all of the flour at once. Using a wooden spoon, vigorously stir the mixture until it comes together forming a roux (dough-like ball). Continue stirring and cooking the roux for another 5-6 minutes over low heat, taking care not to burn the mixture.
- Transfer roux into the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment and set aside for 10 minutes while roux cools.
- Add 4 eggs to a large measuring cup with a spout. Beat eggs until well mixed.
- With the stand mixer on low speed, add the beatened eggs a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stop adding eggs once the batter reaches piping consistency. Batter should be smooth, with a glossy sheen and should form a “V” shape off the paddle atachment when the head of the stand mixer is lifted. (There should be approximately a tablespoon or 2 of unadded egg mixture left). Interesting fact: Did you know that once the eggs are added to the roux, it’s called a Choux Pastry?
- Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe 2″ mounds of choux pastry, 3 inches apart on the parchment.
- Using a wet finger, dipped in water, flatten any pointy bits on the choux pastry mounds.
- Wet hands, flick fingers over the tray and sprinkle it liberally with water. Repeat a couple of times. The purpose is to create a steamy environment in the oven thus encouraging your choux pastry to rise.
- Place one 1 tray in the oven and bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees F. Then, without opening the oven door, turn heat down to 350 degrees F and continue baking for another 15 more minutes. To ensure that the puffs are baked evenly, it is recommended that each tray is baked separately.
- Remove from the oven and transfer to cooling rack to cool.
- Heat oven to 400 degrees F again and repeat steps 9 and 10 for the second tray.
- Once cooled, split puffs open horizontally and fill with whipped cream. Place in freezer to chill.
- Once chilled and the cream is slightly firm to the touch (but not frozen solid), remove from the freezer and drizzle with chocolate and serve immediately.
- Store any leftover cream puffs in an air-tight container, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Instructions for whipped cream
- To the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment, add well chilled whipping cream. Whip until soft peaks form. Add confectioners sugar and continue whisking until stiff peaks form. Transfer into a piping bag fitted with a star tip and pipe into the hollow puff pastry shells.
Instructions for chocolate drizzle
- To a small microwavable bowl, add chocolate chips and oil. Microwave in 15 second intervals, stirring in between intervals, until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Let chocolate cool slightly, then drizzle over well-chilled cream puffs. Serve immediately.
Did you try making these Chocolate Covered Profiteroles? What did you think of them?
Until next time….Love,
