Buffalo Chicken Profiteroles

For the profiteroles:
Preheat the oven to 425 F. In a small saucepan, heat the water and butter until boiling. Then remove pan from heat, dump the flour in all at once, and stir with a wooden spoon until everything is incorporated and the dough forms a ball. Return the saucepan to medium heat, and cook for about one minute, to cook off some of the moisture.

Add the dough into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add one egg, and beat until well incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and repeat with the remaining egg.

Onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, using a pastry bag fitted with an 11/16″ pastry tip, pipe golf-ball sized mounds of dough. Leave an inch or two between each mound of dough.

In a small bowl whisk together an egg and a tablespoon of water to make an egg wash. Paint the egg wash onto the top of the dough mounds with a pastry brush, pushing down the points and smoothing the dough as you go.

Place the trays in the oven, and bake for 15 minutes. Once the 15 minutes is up, lower the heat to 375 F and bake for 20 minutes more. It’s imperative that you keep the oven door closed while baking, as the profiteroles can be very finicky, and collapse on you.

When done remove pans from the oven and set on a rack. Cool for 5 minutes before handling, and 20 minutes before storing if that’s the route you go. You can store them in an airtight container, and use them the next day.

For the filling:
Finely dice the chicken into very small pieces, about 1/4″ cubes, and add to a bowl. Add the Franks Red Hot (cayenne pepper sauce), paprika, and cayenne pepper.

Over medium-high heat, add the olive oil to a saute pan, and add the chicken mixture, cooking until the chicken is cooked, and the liquid reduces to a thick sauce, about 10 minutes. Reserve chicken to a bowl, and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

To assemble:
Cut the tops off the profiteroles, leaving more than half for the bottom.

Into the bowl with the slightly cooled chicken, add the celery, mayonnaise, sour cream, blue cheese, Worcestershire sauce, and lemon juice. Mix well. Add salt to taste, if necessary.

Fill the bottom of the profiteroles with the Buffalo chicken mixture until there’s a mound on top, about a quarter of a cup. Add celery leaves on top, then cover with the top of the profiterole. Secure with a toothpick, and serve!