Profiteroles with vanilla pastry cream and warm chocolate sauce

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the vanilla pastry cream (crème pâtissière). In a medium saucepan, pour 500 ml whole milk with the split vanilla pod (seeds scraped in) and gently heat until it just comes to the boil. Meanwhile, in a bowl whisk the 4 egg yolks with 80 g caster sugar until pale and slightly thickened, then whisk in the cornflour until smooth.

2. 2

   Temper the yolk mixture: remove the milk from the heat, discard the empty vanilla pod, then pour a ladle of the hot milk into the yolks while whisking. Repeat once more, then pour everything back into the pan. Return to a gentle heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens and comes to a rolling simmer — let it simmer for 30–60 seconds to ensure the cornflour is cooked through.

3. 3

   Strain the cooked custard through a fine sieve into a clean bowl to remove any bits, then cover the surface with cling film to prevent a skin forming. Chill in the fridge for at least 120 minutes until fully set.

4. 4

   Preheat the oven to 200°C fan / 220°C conventional. Line a baking tray with baking parchment and fit a piping bag with a large plain round nozzle (about 12 mm).

5. 5

   Make the choux pastry: in a medium saucepan combine 150 ml whole milk, 75 ml water, 75 g unsalted butter, 5 g caster sugar and 1/4 tsp fine sea salt. Heat until the butter melts and the liquid reaches a rolling boil. Remove from the heat, add all the plain flour at once and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together and a thin film forms on the base of the pan (about 1–2 minutes).

6. 6

   Leave the pan off the heat for 1–2 minutes, then beat in 3 whole eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. The dough should be smooth, glossy and fall from a spoon in a thick ribbon. If it feels too stiff, beat in the reserved extra egg (from the eggs noted) a little at a time until the texture is right.

7. 7

   Fill the piping bag and pipe 12 rounds (about 3.5–4 cm each) onto the prepared tray, leaving space between them. Lightly beat the reserved egg and brush or dab a little egg wash on each top to help colour (or brush with a little milk if you prefer).

8. 8

   Bake at 200°C fan / 220°C conventional for 25 minutes until well risen and deep golden (do not open the oven door during this time).

9. 9

   Turn the oven off, open the door slightly and leave the tray inside for a further 10 minutes to dry the insides. This helps stop the profiteroles collapsing later.

10. 10

    Remove the profiteroles to a wire rack and cool for about 15 minutes before filling.

11. 11

    Make the chocolate sauce: chop the dark chocolate and put in a bowl. Heat the double cream until just simmering, pour over the chocolate, leave for 1 minute then stir until smooth and glossy. Keep warm or reheat gently if it cools.

12. 12

    Fill the profiteroles: cut a small slit in the side or bottom of each puff and pipe in the chilled vanilla pastry cream. Arrange on a serving plate, drizzle generously with the warm chocolate sauce and dust with a little icing sugar, if using.

Tips

• When making choux, cook the flour and liquid until a faint film forms on the pan — this ‘drying’ step is the difference between puffed shells and soggy ones.
• Cover the pastry cream with cling film pressed onto the surface while hot to stop a skin forming; it also speeds up cooling.
• If the choux dough looks too stiff while adding eggs, beat in the reserved egg a little at a time — it’s easier to loosen than to tighten a too-runny paste.
• Bake the profiteroles until deep golden and then leave them in the turned-off oven with the door ajar for 10 minutes to dry the interiors; skipping this often leads to collapse.
• Make the pastry cream a day ahead and keep covered in the fridge for up to 48 hours; assemble just before serving for best texture.

Substitutions

• dark chocolate → milk chocolate, same weight

  Noticeably different

• double cream → single cream, but use 50 ml less and warm gently (sauce will be slightly thinner)

  Noticeably different

• cornflour → plain flour, increase to 50 g

  Stays close

• whole milk → semi-skimmed milk throughout (custard will be slightly less rich)

  Stays close

Nutrition

Per serving · estimated

996

Calories

24 g

Protein

72 g

Carbs

68 g

Fat

3 g

Fibre

30 g

Sugar

350 mg

Sodium

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