Cream Puffs
User Reviews
4.5
Cream Puffs
Description
The recipe calls for gently boiling water, salted butter, sugar, and salt before adding flour quickly to form a smooth dough that’s cooked briefly to remove excess moisture. Eggs are incorporated one by one, creating a glossy choux pastry batter that is piped onto a baking sheet. Baking at 400°F produces puffed, browned shells with hollow centers ready for filling.
The filling combines homemade vanilla pastry cream with sweetened whipped cream folded in for lightness, or optionally a cream cheese-based mixture can be used. Adding fresh fruit such as sliced strawberries or raspberries introduces a tart contrast to the sweet filling. Dusting the finished cream puffs with powdered sugar completes the presentation.
Allowing the baked puffs to cool gradually by leaving the oven door ajar helps prevent collapse and maintains their hollow structure for easy filling. The versatility of the filling adapts to preferred cream textures and flavors.
Ingredients
Cream Puff Shells
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup butter salted
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 egg large
Filling
- 1 recipe [vanilla pastry cream]
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- powdered sugar for dusting, additional
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter, sugar, and salt over medium-high heat.
- Cook until the butter is melted, then bring to a full rolling boil over high heat.
- Add the flour all at once and stir with a sturdy wooden spoon until everything comes together in a clump that is like a thick paste that cleans the sides of the pan.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the eggs, one at a time. The mixture may seem to break or curdle at first, but keep stirring and it will come back together by the time you add the last egg. Let the choux pastry cool for 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Fill a piping bag with a large round tip with the choux pastry and pipe 12 large puffs, each using about 1/4 cup of the choux pastry, onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Dab your finger in water and press down any points on top.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes until golden brown. Turn off the oven and crack open the oven door to let the cream puffs cool down slowly for 10 minutes before removing from the oven. This prevents them from deflating.
- Beat the cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla, then fold into the pastry cream. Transfer the filling to a piping bag fitted with a large decorative tip.
- Split each shell down the middle with a serrated knife, then fill with the pastry cream filling. Top with the other half of the shell and dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Notes
- Prepare the choux pastry by cooking the flour mixture well before adding eggs to get the right dough consistency.
- Allow cream puffs to cool slowly in the oven with the door open to maintain puffiness and hollow interiors.
- The recommended filling blends cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, whipped cream, and fresh fruit for a balanced richness and freshness.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 12servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 203 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 203kcal | 10% |
| Carbohydrates | 10g | 3% |
| Protein | 3g | 6% |
| Fat | 17g | 26% |
| Saturated Fat | 10g | 50% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 1g | 6% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 5g | 25% |
| Trans Fat | 1g | 50% |
| Cholesterol | 102mg | 34% |
| Sodium | 146mg | 6% |
| Potassium | 49mg | 1% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 2g | 4% |
| Vitamin A | 607IU | 12% |
| Vitamin C | 1mg | 1% |
| Calcium | 26mg | 3% |
| Iron | 1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.5
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