French gourmet profiteroles with crunchy craquelin, diplomat cream, and warm chocolate ganache

Name: French gourmet profiteroles with crunchy craquelin, diplomat cream, and warm chocolate ganache
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 210 gr all-purpose flour; 7 pcs eggs (large); 1 pcs vanilla bean; 600 ml whole milk (3.6%); 200 gr butter (82%); 80 gr brown cane sugar; 130 gr granulated sugar; 45 gr cornstarch; 550 ml heavy cream (35%); 250 gr dark chocolate (70% cocoa); 0.5 tsp salt; 100 ml water

🌍 French
⏰ 105 min
👥 4
🔥 1970 kcal

Ingredients

all-purpose flour210 gr

eggs (large)7 pcs

vanilla bean1 pcs

whole milk (3.6%)600 ml

butter (82%)200 gr

brown cane sugar80 gr

granulated sugar130 gr

cornstarch45 gr

heavy cream (35%)550 ml

dark chocolate (70% cocoa)250 gr

salt0.5 tsp

water100 ml

Method

Prepare the craquelin: In a bowl, combine 80 g softened unsalted butter, 80 g brown sugar, and 90 g white wheat flour. Mix until a homogeneous dough forms, roll it between two sheets of parchment paper to a thickness of 2 mm, and place it in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
Prepare the diplomat cream base: Cut the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape out the seeds, and place them together with the pod in a saucepan with 500 ml of fresh milk. Heat to a boil, then remove from the heat and infuse for 15 minutes.
Separate the yolks of 4 eggs into a bowl (reserve the whites for another use). Whisk the yolks with 120 g granulated sugar and 45 g cornstarch until a smooth and pale mixture forms. Strain the warm fresh milk, removing the vanilla bean, and pour it into the egg mixture in a thin stream while whisking continuously to temper.
Return the mixture to medium heat and cook while stirring vigorously with a whisk until it thickens and the first bubbles appear. Cook for another 1 minute to fully cook the starch. Transfer the cream to a shallow dish, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and cool completely to 4°C in the refrigerator.
Prepare the pâte à choux: In a saucepan, combine 100 ml water, 100 ml fresh milk, 90 g unsalted butter, 0.5 tsp salt, and 10 g granulated sugar. Bring the liquid to a boil and pour in the remaining 120 g white wheat flour all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spatula over medium heat for 2 minutes until the dough forms a ball and leaves a thin film on the bottom.
Transfer the pâte à choux to the bowl of a planetary mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed for 3 minutes to cool to about 50°C. Whisk the remaining 3 eggs in a bowl and begin to add them gradually, in 4-5 parts, waiting for each part to be fully absorbed before adding the next, until you obtain a smooth, elastic dough that falls from the spatula in the shape of a ribbon.
Preheat the oven to 180°C without convection. Pipe 16 identical domes of dough using a smooth tip onto a perforated silicone baking mat. Remove the craquelin from the freezer, cut circles the size of the profiteroles, and place one disk on top of each dome. Bake for exactly 32-35 minutes without opening the oven, then turn off the heat and leave the door slightly ajar for 10 minutes to dry the shells.
Finish the diplomat cream: Whip 300 ml of heavy cream until medium stiff peaks form. Stir the cooled vanilla cream with a whisk to restore its elasticity, then gently fold in the whipped cream using a silicone spatula with smooth, upward motions.
Prepare the chocolate ganache: Chop 250 g dark chocolate into small pieces. Heat the remaining 250 ml of heavy cream to a boil and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for 1 minute, add the remaining 30 g unsalted butter, and emulsify with an immersion blender at an angle, without incorporating air bubbles, until a mirror-like shine forms.
Assembly: Make a small hole in the bottom of each cooled profiterole and fill them generously with diplomat cream using a piping bag with a thin tip. Arrange 4 profiteroles on a plate and, just before serving, generously pour the warm, velvety chocolate ganache over them.