Profiteroles with vanilla ice cream and warm chocolate sauce

Preheat the oven to 200°C, conventional top and bottom heat, without the fan. Line a large baking sheet with parchment, without greasing. Sift 75 g flour. Beat the eggs, weigh 125 g and divide into 100 g and a separate 25 g reserve. Prepare a piping bag with a plain tip about 1½ cm across or two spoons. Keep the ice cream in the freezer until filling the cold puffs.

Combine 125 g water, diced butter, sugar and salt in a saucepan. Heat until the butter melts completely, then bring to a boil without prolonged boiling. Remove from the heat, add all the flour at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until no dry flour remains and the mixture forms a uniform ball. Do not add any more water and do not add extra flour.

Return the pan to low heat. Stir and press the mixture over the base for about 1½–2 minutes, until cohesive and pulling away from the sides, with a thin film on the base. Do not scorch it. Transfer everything to a bowl and spread it a little up the sides. Leave for about 5–8 minutes, stirring once or twice, until no longer steaming strongly; do not add eggs to very hot dough.

Add the weighed 100 g eggs to the cooled mixture in three or four additions, stirring vigorously each time with a spoon or mixer on low speed. It is normal for the mixture to separate at first; it should become uniform again before the next addition. Do not pour everything in at once and do not add the whole reserve yet.

Lift the spatula: the dough should be smooth and glossy, falling slowly in a broad ribbon and leaving a soft V-shaped triangle on the spatula. If too stiff, add the reserved egg about 5 g at a time, mixing thoroughly. Stop when it holds a mound but can be piped; all 25 g may not be needed. Refrigerate unused reserve and use it the same day in another fully cooked dish. Do not brush it onto the puffs.

Transfer all the finished dough to the piping bag or spoon it out with two spoons. Make 12 mounds as equal as possible, about 4–4½ cm across, leaving about 5 cm between them. Use all the dough from the bowl and bag, dividing the last bit among the mounds. Gently flatten projecting tips with the back of a teaspoon. Do not brush with egg, do not add a crumble topping or sugar.

Bake on the middle rack for 15 minutes at 200°C, then reduce to 170°C and bake for about another 20–25 minutes. Do not open the oven door during this time. The puffs should be risen and distinctly golden brown, with dry rigid sides, not pale and soft. Taking them out too early encourages collapse. Do not switch to the broiler or fan setting.

After baking, make a small hole in the side of each puff with a thin knife, holding the hot pastry carefully. Return the sheet to the switched-off oven for about 10 minutes with the door slightly open to release steam. Then transfer the puffs to a rack for about 30 minutes, until completely cold. The centers should be hollow, with no raw sticky dough on the inner walls. Do not cover warm puffs.

Finely chop 120 g chocolate and place in a bowl. Heat 150 g milk until steaming with small bubbles around the edge, then pour it all over the chocolate. Wait about a minute and stir from the center until smooth and pourable. Leave for about 5–10 minutes: it should be warm but not steaming strongly. Do not add cream, butter or water. If it thickens, reheat very gently while stirring.

Just before serving, cut all the cold puffs horizontally and keep every lid. Take the ice cream out for a few minutes, only until scoopable, without letting it melt. Divide all 360 g into 12 portions of 30 g and place in the lower halves, then replace the lids. Do not hollow out edible walls and do not discard them. Do not leave filled puffs somewhere warm and do not put them in the oven.

Place 2 filled puffs on each of 6 small plates. Divide all the warm sauce among the servings, scraping out the bowl; some may run onto the plate and is also part of the dessert. Serve immediately before the ice cream starts noticeably melting. Do not add whipped cream, powdered sugar, fruit, nuts or extra chocolate.

Empty cold puffs can be kept airtight in a dry place until the next day; before use, refresh for about 5–8 minutes at 160°C and cool completely again. Keep the sauce covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days and gently reheat only before serving. Keep ice cream in the freezer according to its packaging; do not refreeze thawed ice cream. Do not assemble servings in advance: make only as many as you will serve immediately.