Easter Dinner, Part 3 of 3: Profiteroles with Cinnamon-Rum Ice Cream

This is it! Drum roll please....my FINAL Easter recipe: profiteroles with cinnamon-rum ice cream. Creamy, sweet and bitter all at once, profiteroles are one of my favorite desserts to make.  Most of the time, I just serve it with some Turkey Hill vanilla bean ice cream.  But since it's Easter, I decided to finally inaugurate the Kitchenaid ice cream attachment that my sister bought for me as my Christmas gift.

For my basic profiterole recipe, I always use Ina Garten's recipe from her Barefoot in Paris. Her orgasmic chocolate sauce makes such a common appearance in my desserts that I don't even reference it anymore.  It's one of my favorite cookbooks because it offers food that is so comforting yet elegant still.  I am writing the recipe as given by Ina with notes on my adjustments or additions.

For my ice cream recipe, since it was my first experience making fresh ice cream, I referenced several different recipes to get a handle on basic ingredients and approximate quantities used as well as basic instructions.  I would also recommend reading the instructions to your ice cream maker thoroughly as each one operates a little differently.


I was horrified by the amount of egg yolk that some recipes asked for (one called for 12!!).  Most I saw asked for an average of 4-6 egg yolks, so I decided to use 5 as a compromise.  The number of egg yolks you add is definitely adjustable, it just adds to the overall creaminess and texture of the ice cream. I decided to make a cinnamon-rum ice cream since I wanted to make something different.  I had also purchased this amazingly fragrant Saigon cinnamon in Seattle at Market Spice that has permeated my apartment with its sweet-spicy, floral note. The smell has made me want to use it for any purpose, so this was the perfect way for me to use it. And rum...well, do we really have to ask why I used rum?

PROFITEROLES
Serves 6

Adapted from Ina Garten's "Barefoot in Paris"

INGREDIENTS
1 cup milk
1/4 lb (1 stick) unsalted butter *
Pinch of kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 extra-large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream *
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips *
2 tbsp honey *
2 tbsp prepared coffee*
Good vanilla ice cream for serving

*NOTE: I used only 1/2 stick of unsalted butter and it is perfectly fine.  For the sauce, I used approximately only 5-6 oz 60% cacao BITTERSWEET chocolate chips from Ghiradelli for the six servings.  This is a personal preference since I adore the bitterness of dark chocolate. It also helps balance the sweetness of the ice cream. I omit the honey completely. It does taste nice with the honey, but is unneccessary.  For the coffee, I replace that with a shot of freshly brewed espresso.  You can also use 1 tbsp instant espresso. The heavy cream is reduced to 1/4 cup.  Lastly, I add just a dab of unsalted butter into the sauce to give it a gorgeous sheen.

DIRECTIONS
1.  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

2.  Heat the milk, butter and salt over medium heat until scalded.  When the butter is melted, add the flour all at once and beat it with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together and forms a dough. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat for 2 minutes.  The flour will begin to coat the bottom of the pan.  Dump the hot mixture into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.  Add the eggs and pulse until the eggs are incorporated into the dough and the mixture is thick.

3.  Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain round tip.  Pipe in mounds 1 1/2 inches wide and 1 inch high onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  You should have about 18 puffs. ** With a wet finger, lightly press down the swirl at the top of each puff.  (You can also use two spoons to scoop out the mixture and shape the puffs with damp fingers.) Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned, then turn off the oven and allow them to sit for another 10 minutes, until they sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.  Make a small slit on the side of each puff to all the steam to escape. Set aside to cool.

4.  For the chocolate sauce, place the cream and chocolate chips in a bowl set over simmering water and stir just until the chocolate melts.  Add the honey and coffee and stir until smooth. Set aside. **

5.  For serving, cut each profiterole in half crosswise, fill with a small scoop of ice cream, replace the top, and drizzle with slightly warm chocolate sauce.

**NOTE: My profiteroles are a bit larger than normal so I usually am able to make only 12 puffs.  Two profiteroles per person is the perfect serving I find anyways...you may want three but you will be sorry for it later!  The chocolate sauce can also be made by putting all the ingredients for the sauce into a small microwaveable bowl, cover, and in 15 second intervals microwave the chocolate sauce to melt.  Usually 30-40 seconds is enough to melt the chocolate a bit and warm everything up.  Then, all you need to do is mix it all together until it comes together into a gooey chocolate sauce.

CINNAMON-RUM ICE CREAM

Makes 32 fl oz

INGREDIENTS
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
Pinch of sea salt
1 tbsp dark rum (I used Appleton's Special Jamaican Rum)
1 tbsp good quality ground cinnamon (I used Saigon cinnamon which I find to be more intense and spicy than the normal cinnamon you find in the supermarket.)

DIRECTIONS
1. Whisk egg yolks in a medium bowl.

2.  In a saucepan, whisk together the cream, milk, sugar, and salt over medium heat until it starts to simmer and sugar melts.  Then, slowly add it to the egg yolks, whisking at the same time, to keep the eggs from curdling.

3.  Return the entire mixture, once whisked together, back into the sauce pan over medium-low heat to create a custard-like texture.  Stir constantly, otherwise it will curdle on the heat.

4.  Remove from heat and pour into a bowl. Add in rum and cinnamon and mix together until combined.  Let the custard cool, then cover and chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours.

5.  Process the mixture as per your ice cream machine's instructions.  Transfer ice cream to a sealable container and freeze until firm, minimum of 4 hours.  Make sure your freezer setting is at the coldest setting available.