Profitaroles

Profiteroles

So although I have plenty of uni assignments and revision still to do which is taking up the majority of my time - my preventing the usual shopping trips, coffee dates and ladies that lunch escapes - lock-down is giving me plenty of time. Last week, in need of a new challenge, I started looking up recipes for profiteroles! Something I never really used to like eating to be honest but had a sudden craving for - so strange how these things come and go.
I've never attempted choux pastry before, in fact the only time I've seen it made is on Bake off! But they often make it look so easy - probably cause they're much better bakers than me, but you don't know till you try right?!!
Thinking it could be an absolute disaster - and not wanting to use up all the rationed eggs! - I adapted a recipe I found on the ever faithful BBC Good Food App - I found that with these reduced quantities I made about 12 well sized profiteroles - decide for yourself how many that serves!!!

Ingredients

For the Profiteroles:
25 g butter, cubed
1 tbsp caster sugar
37g strong white flour
1 pinch salt
75 ml water
1 egg, beaten
150 ml double cream
Vanilla Essence

For the Sauce:
25 g cocoa powder (alternatively hot chocolate powder will do although make adjustments to the quantities if this includes sugar)
85g caster sugar
50 ml water

Method:

1) Weigh out the flour in a bowl and add a pinch of salt
2) Place the butter, 1 tsp of the caster sugar and the water in a pan over a low heat until melted, then bring to the boil. 
3) Take off the heat, quickly add the flour all and beat until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan.
4) Leave to cool, then beat in the egg bit by bit - it may look really wet at first but keep going until you have a stiff, glossy mixture 
5) Rinse two baking trays with cold water, shaking off any excess so they are slightly damp (sounds strange but helps the pastry to rise!). 
6) Use 2 teaspoons to spoon blobs of the mixture onto the baking trays - they don't have to be neat - but make sure they're separated as they do rise in the oven
7) Place in the oven and bake for about 18-20 mins until well risen and brown. 
8) Remove the profiteroles from the oven and quickly cut small slits in the base of each one so they don’t collapse. 
9) Leave to cool.
10) When cold - whip up the cream - sweeten to taste with the remaining sugar and the vanilla essence 

1. 11) Using a thin nozzle, pipe the whipped cream into the balls through the slit 

To Make the Sauce - ideally about 15 mins before drizzling over/serving to allow to cool 

1) Weigh out the cocoa powder in a bowl

2) Warm the sugar and water in a pan over a low heat until fully dissolved

3) Bring to the boil for about a minute 

4) Pour into the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth

5) Return the pan for a further minute and then set aside to cool

 

(These can be made in advanced and refrigerated for 1-2 hrs but not for much longer as the pastry will start to go soggy)

It's really not that hard! Plus the results are so worth it - I made these as a Sunday Roast Dessert and they definitely went down well! I've now been challenged to eclairs, we shall see how that goes...

1. .
2.