A profiterole, cream puff (US) or choux à la crème is a choux pastry ball filled with whipped cream, pastry cream, or ice cream. The puffs may be decorated or left plain or garnished with chocolate sauce, caramel, or a dusting of powdered sugar.
The term profiterole is traditionally used for small versions filled with whipped ice cream[1] and topped with chocolate[2][3] although the usage varies and can include other fillings.[4][5]
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The choux paste is piped through a pastry bag or dropped with a spoon or pair of spoons into small balls and baked to form largely hollow puffs. Then the puffs are filled by slicing off the top, filling, and reassembling, or by injecting with a pastry bag and a narrow piping tip.
The most common dessert presentations involve ice cream, whipped cream or a pastry cream filling, and are served plain, with chocolate sauce, or with a crisp caramel glaze. They can also be topped with powdered sugar, frosting, or fruit.
Filled and glazed with caramel, they are assembled into a type of pièce montée called croquembouches, often served at weddings and during the Christmas Holiday in France. Profiteroles are also used as the outer wall of St. Honoré Cake.
Gougères are the savoury equivalent of profiteroles, and may be filled with a cheese mixture, game puree, etc. They are generally used as an hors d'oeuvre or a garnish or dumpling for soup.[6]
The origin of both the pastry and its name profiterole are obscure. It was introduced in France by Caterina de' Medici, wife of Henry II of France, who brought from Tuscany several recipes, including choux pastry and Profiterole.
The word profiterole (also spelled prophitrole, profitrolle, profiterolle)[7] has existed in English since the 16th century, borrowed from French. The original meaning in both English and French is unclear, but later it came to mean a kind of roll 'baked under the ashes'. A 17th-century French recipe for a Potage de profiteolles or profiterolles describes a soup of dried small breads (presumably the profiteroles) simmered in almond broth and garnished with cockscombs, truffles, and so on.[8] The current meaning is only clearly attested in the 19th century.[7]
The "cream puff" has appeared on US restaurant menus since 1851,[9] if not earlier.
The record for world's largest cream puff, weighing in at 125.5 pounds, was achieved August 11, 2011 at the Wisconsin State Fair by Dave Schmidt and Team Cream Puff.[10] The Wisconsin State Fair is known for its dairy bakery that has been producing cream puffs during the fair since 1924.[11]
Profiteroles in Greece (Greek: Προφιτερόλ, Prophiteról) are often served in a bowl, covered with chocolate sauce, and topped with whipped cream.