Matcha Cream Puffs (Choux au craquelin)

Craquelin:

1. To make the craquelin, cream together the butter, flour and sugar in a bowl until it forms a dough. Shape into a ball and place into the fridge for 15 minutes.
2. Remove the dough from the fridge and use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to a thickness of about ⅛."
3. Use a round 2" cookie cutter and cut out discs. Place the cut out discs onto a sheet of parchment paper and place into the freezer until ready to use. You should get approximately 8-10 discs, depending on how large your cutter is.

Cream Puffs:

1. Prepare a large 12" by 17" baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 400°F/204°C.
3. In a small pot, add in the water, butter, sugar and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Add in the flour and reduce the heat. Stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon until it forms a ball of dough, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment fitted, transfer the dough into the mixer and turn it on on low speed. This will help cool down the dough before adding the eggs.
5. Once the dough is lukewarm, gradually add in the lightly beaten egg in a few additions, but be careful not to add too much egg.
6. The dough will look curdled between additions, but don't worry, it will absorb the egg. Scrape down the bowl periodically. To check if you've added enough egg, pull up the paddle from the mixture -- if the mixture hanging down from the paddle forms a "v," it's ready. The dough will be shiny and glossy.
7. Transfer the choux dough to a large piping bag, fitted with a round tip.
8. Pipe round dollops about 1" in diameter and 1" in height on the prepared baking sheet and leave a few inches in between each dollop. Repeat until all the dough is used up.
9. Grab a small dish with a little water and wet the tip of your finger to dab down any pointed tops in the choux dough.
10. Place a frozen craquelin disc on top of each choux dough mound.
11. Bake at 400°F/204°C for 10 minutes. Lower to 350°F/177°C and bake for another 25-30 minutes.
12. Remove puffs from the oven and cut off the tops using a sharp serrated knife. Place them back into the oven with the door slightly ajar and the oven turned off for about 15 minutes.
13. Remove puffs from oven and let cool on a rack. Cream puffs at this point in time can be sealed in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature if not using right away.

Make the matcha pastry cream:

1. In a small saucepan, bring ½ C milk and 2 tablespoon heavy whipping cream to a simmer over medium heat.
2. In a bowl, beat together the egg yolks, ¼ C milk, matcha, sugar, salt and add in the cornstarch and flour. Whisk to combine. 
3. Temper the egg yolk mixture with the warmed milk and cream by slowly adding some of the hot liquid into the egg mixture while constantly whisking.
4. Add the warmed egg mixture back into the sauce pan and cook until thickened. (A way to tell if the pastry cream is thick enough is by running your finger along the back of the spoon to see if a "line" holds).
5. Remove from heat and add in the vanilla extract.
6. Let pastry cream cool and place a piece of parchment over top of the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

To assemble:

1. To make whipped cream, add 2 C heavy whipping cream (at least 36% milk fat) into a chilled large glass bowl. Add 1 teaspoon powdered sugar and whip until soft peaks form.
2. Remove pastry cream from the fridge. To lighten the matcha pastry cream, fold in 2 C of the whipped cream.
3. Transfer the matcha pastry cream to a piping bag and pipe into the cavity of each cream puff. Pipe whipped cream on top of the matcha pastry cream (if desired). Top with its "hat." Dust with additional matcha on top.
4. Serve immediately.