Profiteroles, the airy light pastries we all love (called cream puffs in the US) have been around for almost 500 years!
Cream puffs bigger than one’s palm are not unusual these days. Profiteroles, though also round, tend to be slightly smaller (and daintier) as well as more uniform in size. They’re designed to hold just the right amount of ice cream or other filling without becoming unwieldy.
The history of profiteroles
No one really knows the tue origin of profiteroles but it seems they’ve been around for a long time. The French writer Francois Rabelais (1494-1553) mentions profiteroles in his book Gargantua. Originally they were made in Italy but more of a bread like texture. In the 16th century Italian Catherine de Medici married French King Henri II and brought with her Italian chefs to France and they made profiteroles for the court.
It was the great chef Antonin Carême (1784-1833) who really made profiterole’s famous though. He elevated the pastry to a whole new level.
Filling the choux buns with cream and dipping them in warm caramel – the dish was transformed and lauded by all who tried it. He went on to invent the Croquembouche – a tower of profiteroles. It was an immediate hit and became the wedding cake of choice in France, where it’s still popular to this day.
Cream Puffs (In-depth Guide to Pate a Choux and Pastry Cream)
FAQ
Is cream puff same as profiterole?
Why is it called a profiterole?
What do the British call cream puffs?
What is a giant profiterole called?
What is the difference between a cream puff and a profiterole?
Cream puffs and profiteroles are often used interchangeably to mean the same thing. They are both choux pastry-based puffs filled with a cream filling. The main difference between the two is that profiteroles are filled with ice cream instead of pastry cream. What does profiterole mean?
What is the difference between profiteroles éclairs & cream puffs?
The difference between Profiteroles, Éclairs and Cream Puffs is that Profiteroles can be frozen. They all may be filled and topped the same way. When making Profiteroles, after they are cool from baking, fill with whipped or pastry cream, or even ice cream, then you can freeze them.
Are Profiteroles a good idea?
The answer is yes… but a qualified yes. Profiteroles are homemade cream puffs that have been split, filled, with ice cream, and topped with hot fudge or chocolate or caramel sauce. So basically we’re talking about an ice cream filled hot fudge cream puff. I think we can all agree that’s a pretty wonderful thing, right?
What is the difference between pâte a choux and profiterole?
The “what is the difference between pâte a choux and profiterole” is a question that many people ask. A cream puff is made with an almond-flour dough, whereas a profiterole is made with a mixture of pastry cream and chocolate. Profiteroles, Éclairs, and Cream Puffs vary in that Profiteroles are frozen while the others are not.