White Chocolate Profiteroles

To prepare the white chocolate profiteroles, start with making the Choux pastry (pâte à choux). Cut the butter into pieces and place it in a saucepan, pour in the water 1, the sugar 2, the salt 3 and bring to a boil over low heat.

As soon as it is about to boil, remove the saucepan from the heat and add the sifted flour 4, stirring well and quickly with a whisk 5 to avoid lumps and until the mixture thickens 6.

Put the saucepan back on low heat and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon 7. The mixture should soon become thick and soft and detach from the walls forming a ball. When a white film forms on the bottom of the saucepan 7, remove the dough from the heat and transfer it to a stand mixer 9 fitted with a paddle attachment (if you don't have a stand mixer, you can use a wooden spoon).

Start working it at medium-low speed, then only when it stops steaming, add the eggs one at a time 10, adding the next only when the previous one is fully absorbed. Once you have a smooth and thick mixture 11, your choux pastry will be ready, so put it in a piping bag with a plain nozzle 12.

Form small mounds of dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper 13, spacing them to prevent them from joining during baking: with our quantities, you should obtain about 30 cream puffs. Once the dough is done, gently press the tip of the cream puffs with a brush lightly dipped in water 14. Bake the cream puffs for 15 minutes in a preheated static oven at 428°F, then lower the temperature to 374°F and bake for another 10 min. If you are using a convection oven, bake your cream puffs in a preheated oven at 347°F for 30 minutes. After the necessary time, turn off the oven, open the door slightly (you can use a wooden spoon between the oven and the door) and wait another 20 minutes: this will help dry the inside of the cream puffs; only then can you take them out of the oven 15.

In the meantime, prepare the Chocolate custard cream. Coarsely chop the chocolate with a knife 16 and set it aside. Pour the milk and cream into a saucepan 17. Split the vanilla bean in half, extract the seeds by scraping them with a smooth-bladed knife 18 and add them to the milk and cream mixture, then bring everything to a simmer over medium heat.

In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar 19; when the mixture is slightly foamy, add the sifted flour and cornstarch 20 to avoid lumps. Mix all the ingredients well to obtain a smooth mixture, then add a couple of ladles of the hot milk and cream mixture to the eggs; mix everything quickly 21.

Pour the mixture back into the pot 22 and bring to a boil, continuing to stir rapidly. Once the custard has thickened, remove the pot from the heat and add the chopped chocolate 23; then stir until the chocolate has melted 34.

At this point, pour the obtained custard into a shallow and wide dish and cover it with a sheet of plastic wrap in contact 25: in this way, the custard will not form a crust on the surface and will remain soft. Let it cool at room temperature, then put it in the refrigerator for about 1 hour. Once the custard is cold, put it in a piping bag with a nozzle and fill your cream puffs (save some of the custard for the final decoration) 26. Place them on a plate and, once all are finished, put them in the refrigerator 27.

In the meantime, prepare the coating. Coarsely chop the white chocolate with a knife 28 and set it aside. Pour 100 ml of cream into a saucepan and bring it to a simmer 29. Remove it from the heat and add the chopped white chocolate 30.

Stir with a whisk until the chocolate is completely melted and put the mixture in a bowl 31. Let it cool, stirring occasionally, and place it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. When it's cold, whip the remaining cream 32 and add it to the cream and chocolate mixture, adding a tablespoon at a time 33 and stirring with a whisk.

Gently mix with a whisk 34 until you obtain a soft cream 35. Take your cream puffs and, using a spoon, dip them into the cream and chocolate mixture 36.

Remove them 37 and place them, pyramid-shaped, on a serving plate, using a spatula 38. Decorate with the remaining chocolate custard 39 and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour and a half, then serve your white chocolate profiteroles.