Profiteroles are dollops of choux pastry piped out and served with chocolate fondant or glace icing on top. Profiteroles, which are petits fours, are made with plain flour, butter, and eggs. Choux pastry is also used to make eclairs which are piped longitudinally.

My first exposure to choux pastry was when I took summer classes in baking in India. These baking lessons taught by experienced home cooks as a hobby, introduced me to the fine art of French baking at the age of eleven. I am fond of baked goods that I could not wait to be older to try them out for myself as I can enjoy these delectable baked goods whenever I had the craving.

Choux pastry is made with few and simple ingredients, but care should be taken to follow instructions and the timing of each step. I found this recipe to be perfect every time I made eclairs or profiteroles. They are not difficult as most people make them out to be. What they lack in complexity of ingredients, the profiteroles make up in flavor with the added chocolate on top.

Profiteroles

Kanchan Dilip

Choux pastry puffs made with flour, butter, and eggs

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Course Desserts

Cuisine French

Servings 6

Calories 125 kcal

Equipment

• Oven

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2½ ounce all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1½ ounce unsalted butter
• ▢ 3 eggs
• ▢ ⅕ tsp salt
• ▢ 1/2 cup water

Instructions

 

How to make choux pastry:

• Dehydrate the flour using a skillet on low heat for 3 minutes or an oven for 3 minutes on low setting. Sieve the flour with the salt.
• In a heavy bottom saucepan or pot, melt the butter with the water. Remove from heat when it reaches boiling point, or when you see the bubbles.
• Quickly, add all the flour and whisk them together until smooth. The mixture will begin to leave the sides of the pan and form a ball.
• Cool this paste a little (blood heat) and then add the beaten eggs a little at a time. Beat well until glossy and smooth textured.
• Spoon or put in a piping bag and pipe out on a damp tray. Space out the profiteroles on the tray as they will get big and fluffy.
• Bake at 400⁰F until slightly crisp and golden brown for 25- 30 minutes.

Notes

1. You could use melted chocolate or chocolate sauce on top of the profiteroles instead of the glace icing that I have used.
2. When the flour, water, and butter mixture leave the sides of the pan, press to ensure that it does not stick to your fingers.
3. Take care to not overcook or overbeat at step 3, else the butter will separate and you will not get a light, airy pastry.

Other Questions:

1. Why is it called choux pastry? Choux in French means cabbage, the profiteroles resemble small balls of cabbage.
2. Are profiteroles different from eclairs? Eclairs, cream puffs, and profiteroles are made out of choux pastry. Profiteroles are usually frozen. All three desserts can be topped with chocolate, filled with custard or cream.
3. What does profiterole mean? Profiterole is a miniature cream puff with a sweet or savory filling.

Nutrition

Calories: 125kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 4gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 97mgSodium: 110mgPotassium: 45mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 296IUCalcium: 16mgIron: 1mg

Keyword chocolate eclairs, choux pastry, Profiteroles

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