Put egg yolks, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1/4 cup milk, sifted flour and cornflour into blender, blend on low speed until mixture is smooth or beat well until smooth. Put remaining milk in pan, bring to boil, add to egg mixture, blend or beat for 30 seconds. Pour mixture into pan, stir over low heat until mixture boils. (Lumps may form during cooking; however the cream will become smooth with beating when the mixture boils and thickens). Remove from heat, cool. Whip egg white until soft peaks form, add remaining sugar gradually, beat until firm peaks form. Fold the egg white into the cooled cream, add vanilla, mix well.

Put water, butter and salt in pan. Bring to boil, add sifted flour all at once. Stir vigorously with wooden spoon over heat until mixture is thick. When mixture forms a smooth ball and leaves sides of pan, remove from heat, place pastry on saucer, spread out with back of wooden spoon, leave for 10 minutes. Place cooled pastry in small bowl of electric mixer, add beaten eggs, a little at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Mixture should be smooth and glossy. Line oven tray with a sheet of greaseproof paper, mark four 8cm circles on the paper. Fill pastry into piping bag fitted with 1cm plain nozzle. Pipe choux pastry around edge of circles. Bake in hot oven (200º ) 10 minutes, reduce heat to moderate (180º), bake further 15 to 20 minutes or until dry. Using a sharp knife, cut pastry rings in half horizontally. Return the pastry rings to oven, leave for a few minutes to dry out. Stand pastry on wire rack until completely cold. Spoon prepared filling into piping bag fitted with 1cm plain nozzle. Pipe cream evenly into bottom half of each pastry ring.

Combine chopped chocolate and butter in top of double saucepan. Stand over simmering water until chocolate and butter have melted. Stir lightly to combine. Spread chocolate evenly over top halves of rings. Put almonds on baking tray, bake in moderate oven 5 minutes; cool. Sprinkle almonds over tops of chocolate rings. Refrigerate pastry rings until chocolate is firm. Put chocolate rings evenly on top of filled bases.