Vietnamese Espresso Profiteroles
For a special dessert without a lot of fuss (maybe for Valentine’s Day?), try Vietnamese Espresso Profiteroles. The light and airy profiteroles are filled with Vietnamese Espresso Ice Cream and topped with spicy ganache to make an absolutely delicious treat!
I can feel some of my awesome readers rolling their eyes when I say “not a lot of fuss” but it’s kinda true! The profiteroles are so easy to make, the ice cream is made a day ahead along with the ganache, and all that’s left to do is fill them. A fun treat is to bring them empty, but sliced, and let your guests fill them and top them how they like.
There are great hacks like not bothering to make the ice cream and using a great store-bought gelato or ice cream. Same with the sauce…you don’t have to make the ganache. Store-bought fudge or caramel sauce works beautifully! But, you do have to make the profiteroles, so let’s get going!
To make the profiteroles, heat the butter, sugar, salt and water in a saucepan until the butter is melted. Add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until the flour is fully incorporated into the liquid. Keep stirring vigorously until the batter starts to stiffen up and leaves a film on the bottom of the pan.
Place the dough in a stand mixer and mix for a minute or so to release some of the steam and add cracked eggs to the dough. Turn the mixer to medium until the dough is glossy and soft.
Place the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a 1-inch open tip and pipe rounds onto a sheet pan. Bake for about 15 minutes and then lower the heat. Continue baking while rotating the pans for another 20-30 minutes until the puffs are entirely golden brown.
Let the puffs cool completely on the baking sheets.
Meanwhile, make the ganache and allow ice cream to soften slightly.
To assemble, split the cooled profiteroles in half horizontally. Place a large scoop of ice cream on the bottom of each half. Place the top half of the puff over the ice cream and drizzle warm spicy ganache on top. Serve immediately!
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Vietnamese Espresso Profiteroles
Makes: about 20 profiteroles
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour plus freezer time (make ice cream a day ahead)
Ingredients
- Vietnamese Espresso Ice Cream
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
- 1 cup plus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour (150 grams)
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- Spicy Ganache, warmed
Instructions
Make the ice cream and store it in the freezer until you’re ready to assemble the profiteroles.
Preheat the oven to 400°F and place racks in the center and bottom third of the oven. Butter two baking sheets or line them with parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium saucepan, heat the butter, sugar, salt and 1 cup (240 grams) water over medium heat until the butter is melted. Do not let the mixture come to a boil or the water will evaporate. Add the flour all at once and use a wooden spoon to stir the flour into the liquid until it is fully incorporated. The mixture will look like a stiff pancake batter. Keep stirring vigorously over medium heat and the mixture will slowly start to get stiffer and look more like loose dough and less like batter. It will lose its shine and become more matte as well. Stir continuously for 3 to 4 minutes, until the dough starts to leave a film on the bottom of the pan.
Remove the dough from the heat and place it in a stand mixer. Using a paddle attachment, mix the dough for 1 minute on medium-low speed (this will allow some of the steam to escape and the dough will cool slightly).
Crack the eggs into a small pitcher and whisk to break up the yolks. With the mixer on medium-low, gradually add the eggs to the dough. When the eggs are all added, turn the mixer up the medium and beat for about 45 seconds until the dough is glossy and shiny and soft like gluey mashed potatoes.
Spoon the dough into a pastry bag fitted with a 1-inch round tip or cut the corner so that the hole is about 1 inch in diameter. Pipe out round puffs onto the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches in diameter, spacing the puffs a few inches away from each other.
Place the baking sheets in the oven, one on each rack. The heat of the oven will immediately start turning the liquid in the dough into steam and it will cause the puffs to inflate.
Bake for about 15 minutes, until the puffs have expanded and have started to turn golden brown, then turn the oven down to 325°F. Continue baking for another 20 to 30 minutes, rotating the baking sheets and switching their positions after 10 to 15 minutes, until the puffs are entirely golden brown like honey.
Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking sheets on a wire rack. (At this point the unfilled puffs can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Refresh in a 325°F oven for 5 to 6 minutes if at room temperature, 8 to 10 minutes if frozen, the let cool again before continuing.)
While the puffs are baking and cooling, make the ganache. If it has been refrigerated, melt it before using by placing it in a metal or heatproof glass bowl over a pot of simmering water and stirring until warm and melted.
If the ice cream is too hard to scoop, remove it from the freezer 10 minutes before assembling.
To assemble, split the cooled puffs in half horizontally. Using a 1/2-cup ice cream scoop or measure, place a large scoop of ice cream on the bottom half of each puff. Top with the top half and drizzle about 1 tablespoon of the warm ganache on top. Serve immediately.
Recipe from Pastry Love
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