Last updated on February 10th, 2018
I’ve loved profiteroles since childhood. They are the easiest of all French pastries to make, and they require no special equipment beyond a sauce pan and a stout spoon. I enjoy them not only for sweet desserts (cream puffs, anyone?) but for savory sandwiches too. Here’s the recipe in both video and printable format:
I hope you didn’t find Avery’s barking too distracting.
Here’s the printable:
Profiteroles are easy to make and fun to eat. You can fill them whipped cream for traditional Cream Puffs, or with a savory filling such as chicken salad for elegant tea sandwiches.
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 stick (1/4 lb or 113g) butter, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose ("plain") flour
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- For glazing the profiteroles: 1 beaten egg
- Optional filling: sweetened whipped cream
- Optional topping: confectioners' sugar
Instructions
- Center the oven rack, and heat the oven to 400°F. Put the water, butter, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat, add all of the flour, and stir until the flour is completely incorporated, and some of the moisture evaporates -- 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat, and let the pastry cool for 3-5 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with a stout spoon after each addition. Keep beating until the mixture forms a soft dough. Spoon or pipe 12 large or 18 small dollops of dough onto a parchment lined (or non-stick sprayed) baking sheet, spacing the dollops about 2 inches apart. Brush with the beaten egg.
- Bake at 400°F for exactly 15 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F, and continue baking for 30 minutes. Let the profiteroles cool to room temperature on the baking sheet.
- Cut the profiteroles across the middle, setting the top portion aside. Fill the lower portion with sweetened whipped cream, pastry cream, or ice cream, and cover with the reserved "lids." Finish with a dusting of confectioners' sugar. Alternatively, fill the puffs with chicken salad, ham salad, or some other sandwich filling. These savory sandwiches are tres chic for Afternoon Tea!
NOTE: The baked and cooled profiteroles can be frozen in air tight containers for up to 3 months. When needed, simply thaw, split, and fill.
Sharon says
Thank you for passing on the recipe! I was going to ask for it after yesterday’s post!
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Sharon – Thanks for watching!
Growing my own says
Barking makes a house a home. Can’t wait to try this. I have an excess of eggs right now. Even though it is freezing outside, the hens know the days are getting longer!
Jen Clark says
The perfect Valentine’s Day sweet gifts for all!!! Tessa and I will be doing this for sure. Thank you Kevin.
John says
My mom used to make cream puffs, filled with vanilla pudding and whipped cream. Thanks for the memory!
I make a bite-size version of these with cheese added to the batter. I call them ‘cheezy-poufs’ but I think they are called ‘gougères.’
I got your cookbook, Kevin, it’s really gorgeous! I’m planning my next party around your recipes.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Growing My Own — Yep, barking and baking make a house a home!
Hi Jen Clark – Perfect for Valentine’s Day. Enjoy!
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi John – So glad you like my cookbook. Three cheers for Gougères!
Kristin says
Those are the most beautiful cream puffs I’ve ever seen. Definitely going to try your recipe! Thanks for sharing. I can’t think of a certain type of recipe to ask for. I seem to love everything you share.
JoAnne Walker says
Mom Walker used to make homemade puffs. I need to make these for a gathering.
Cary Bradley says
Lovely! Thanks for sharing these treats! You do make them look soo easy. Yum.
Mary Lynne Foster says
I’ve had them with whipped cream in the middle drizzled with a chocolate sauce and those are pretty delicious too.
Brenda Babb says
I got your recipe Kevin I will be sure to give them a try…they look yummy
Oreta says
Why does one need to dice the butter? Once the butter is placed in the boiling water it will do the same thing, so why the extra labor to dice?
LYNNE says
Avery must have seen a squirrel.haha Thanks for all your recipes.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Oreta – For the lightest profiteroles, I’ve read that it’s important to let the butter and water come to a boil at the same time. This way, there is minimal evaporation before the flour is added. I dice the butter so that it will melt rapidly.
Hi Lynn – You are right. Avery saw a squirrel at the bird feeder!
Marye Downs says
Love the recipe for profiteroles. I’ve always been intimidated by them. I was so happy to meet Avery Orphelia
Liz Davey says
I haave been making cream puffs for many years as it is a family fav. When I first moved to MA, I had a terrible time getting them to puff. Same recipe, same technique. So I did some experimentation and found that I could be successful with bottled water but not my tap water. I thought this might help someone else having a problem making pate a chou.
Nancy says
Kevin, you must tune into Pandora , select create a new station and type French Cooking Music…or under genre …just type ‘French’ and it will show up. Then proceed with your lovely recipe , beautiful music and enjoy the day and be magically transported !!!
Katrina says
I’m in the kitchen making these right now! I had no idea how easy these were to make. I have to admit that I had no idea that these were called Profiterols until my husband took me to a sweet French Restaurant for my B-day last month here in Chicago and we had one that was stuffed with the best vanilla ice-cream and drizzled with chocolate (and a candle of course). It was divine.
Thank you for posting
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Katrina – A river of chocolate sauce is always welcome on ice cream-filled profiteroles. Happy belated birthday to you!
Lois says
I was wondering if you could use coconut flour??? Your cream puffs looked great
and wish I had one to eat.
John says
Hi Kevin,
This post got me to thinking about gougères, again, so I’m making a batch for Happy Hour. The recipe is exactly yours, but with a pinch of sugar (I’m guessing to help them brown)? and 1/3 cup of gruyere or cheddar cheese. You drop a small amount of the batter and sprinkle more cheese on top and bake at 325. (I think 350 would be better). They are puffing up beautifully, but taking longer than 20-25 minutes. But the smell is heavenly! Can’t wait till they’re done! Anyway, thanks for the reminder of how awesome they are!
Marjie T. says
Fun to watch you make these! I usually fill mine with ice cream and then pop them in the freezer. When ready to serve, I let them sit out a bit to thaw and serve them with my very best hot fudge poured over the top. Pure decadence!
Addie in Florida says
Hi, Kevin – Avery is precious and very lucky to have been rescued by you and Mr. Fox.
Profiteroles are a very popular dessert in the UK and my English husband loves them. They’re always served there with a chocolate sauce and nearly always a cream filling. I’m very happy to have an easy recipe for them that I can make for my Brit – thanks so much!
Tiffany says
So happy you shared this recipe! It brought back memories of when I was 8 yrs old (I’m 76 now, egads!) and a Girl Scout. One of the Girl Scout moms would make these cream puffs quite frequently and I just loved them and thought they must be difficult to make but they tasted oh so good. Thank you again for bringing back an almost forgotten memory from long ago. I’ll surely have to make these now.
Ardelle says
Growing up on a dairy farm provided us with an easy source of whipping cream. Mom regularly made cream puffs- always plenty of cream and eggs. Often she would drizzle with homemade dark chocolate sauce topped with whatever chopped nuts were on hand. Hickory nuts from our woodlands were the most likely used. I will have to make some again because they are as easy as you demonstrated.
So nice to hear Avery in the background. So glad you have another pup to keep the home fires burning bright!
Bentley MacGregor says
Hi Kevin:
We also lost our 15 year old dog a year ago at Christmas and I can personally attest to how empty and quiet the house has been ever since. We have frequently thought about adopting another dog but we currently have our hands more than full with elderly and ill parents and as a result we would not be able to dedicate enough time to a new dog – as a result I thoroughly enjoy seeing Avery in your posts and videos.
I consider myself an above average cook but have never considered or attempted to make cream puffs primarily due to the fact I believed they were extremely difficult to make and very fussy. Now I know the truth I will be trying out your recipe in the near future and playing around with various ideas for the filling and sauces to serve with the cream puffs.
I would love if you could do a post(s) on making fudge both the boiled type and the quick method. I used to have a recipe for my spouse’s favourite chocolate fudge made with marshmallow fluff which I lost and I would be thrilled if you were able to recreate this recipe.
Nicki Butala says
Thank you for the video. Have been following your posting for a while now and it is nice to hear a voice! You sound good as well, LOL. Will definitely try the recipe and look forward to more videos.
Edie says
Hi Kevin. Would this recipe work in a two bite hors d’oeuvre size? I want to do a simple savory filling for a large event.
Alastair says
Hi Kevin. Thanks for sharing your lifestyle with us and how refreshing to see someone openly showing emotion over a beloved pet. Now on the subject of things French, I’ve got a question. I’ve made five attempts at making French macarons. (All failed) Are you up to the challenge? I’d love to see your video on making those dainty, delicious Valentines’ Day treats.
Patricia Cremens says
Will these work with gluten-free flour?
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Edie – The puffs can be made as small as you like — certainly small enough for 2-bite hors d’oeuvres. Enjoy!
Hi Alastair – I’ll try to make a video for macarons. Thanks for the suggestion!
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Patricia – Supposedly Williams-Sonoma’s “Cup4Cup” gluten-free flour mix will work for profiteroles. Alas, I’ve not tried the mix, so can’t confirm.
Nieuwsredactie says
Profiteroles Profiteroles (französisch für „kleiner Gewinn“) werden in Frankreich, aber auch in Italien zum Dessert oder am Nachmittag serviert.
Lee says
Yum. I especially like that I can freeze them. Suggestions: My son loves toads, the Irish kind using puff pastry. I made them once but the recipe is hard to find. Not the squeak and bubble type of toad, but the sausage type. I would love to see you make them, they are delicious.
Julie R says
Kevin, as always, I enjoyed watching your video, and also the way you share your personal side, cub scouts ? It truly feels like watching a friend when ever I watch your videos, or read from your site. I enjoyed hearing Avery speak up to say hello in doggie talk = )
Watching this video reminded me of many years ago, when I used to go out to lunch with my mom, to a Sanders restaurant, and we always made sure to save room for their cream puff hot fudge sunday after we ate lunch. They made it with vanilla ice cream in the middle of the puff, and topped with their Sanders hot fudge. It was the best ! I have made them a couple of times at home, but it was many years ago. After watching your video, I am ready to make them again.
Julie R says
Hi again….Forgot to add this to my comment above. Kevin, I have a suggestion for making a video. I would like to see a video on how to make Crepes. I cook a lot, but for some reason, have never made Crepes and would like to try making them. Your videos are always so easy to understand and follow.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Julie R – Great idea! A friend’s French mother taught me how to make crepes when I was 14 years old. Been making them ever since.
Mary says
I made them and stuffed them with Zabaglione, then whipped cream. Then I topped with a chocolate ganache. I wish there was a way to attach a picture. They were yummy!
Cheryl says
I made these for a dessert when I was invited to my future mother-in-law’s for dinner. Of course I wanted to impress her. All went well until I decided to do a chocolate mint drizzle on top. In my INexperience at that time, instead of the 1/4 tsp. of mint extract called for, I used peppermint Oil. The mint flavor was wildly overpowering! Comments included, “Wow, after eating one of these, I won’t have to brush my teeth for a week, thanks to (all that) mint! “It was embarrassing, but my mother-in-law thought it was cute that I tried so hard to impress her.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Cheryl – Your story put a smile on my face. Thanks for that!