Best Cream Puff Shells Recipes

CLASSIC CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine butter, sugar, salt and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil and quickly stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Continue to stir until a film forms on the bottom of the pan.
• Remove from heat and transfer contents to a bowl to cool slightly, about 3 minutes. Add 4 eggs, one at a time, stirring vigorously to entirely incorporate egg after each addition.
• For the egg wash, whisk together the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water. Set aside.
• Transfer the pate a choux to a large pastry bag fitted with a 5/8-inch plain tip. Pipe 1-1/2-inch rounds onto each prepared pan. Gently smooth the pointed peaks with a moistened finger, rounding tops to ensure even rising. Brush tops with reserved egg wash. Bake until puffs rise and are golden brown, about 30 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Puffs can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 day.
• Transfer pastry cream to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/8-inch plain round tip. Insert the tip into the opening of each pastry, and pipe to fill with pastry cream. Serve immediately.

CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• Heat the milk, butter, salt and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until simmering but not boiling, about 3 minutes.
• Take the saucepan off the heat and mix in the flour to form a paste. Put the saucepan back on medium heat and cook the flour mixture, stirring constantly, until the dough forms and pulls away from the sides and bottom of the pan, about 2 minutes.
• Transfer the cooked dough to a stand mixer bowl and beat with the paddle attachment to cool it down. Add 1 egg at a time and continue beating until each egg is completely incorporated before adding another.
• Transfer the dough into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip and pipe 12 equal portions, about 1 ½" - 2" in diameter, on a lined baking sheet. Dip your fingers in water and smooth out each mound of dough so there are no peaks and spikes.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• Beat an egg with a tablespoon of water to make egg wash. Gently apply the egg wash on top of the dough using a pastry brush.
• Bake for about 22 - 25 minutes until the shells are puffed and golden. Observe through the oven door but do not open the oven during baking. Turn off the oven and crack the door open, allowing the cream puffs to cool inside the oven for at least 15 minutes before removing them and let them cool completely on a wire rack.

CREAM PUFF SHELLS

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, bring the water, butter and salt to a boil. Add flour all at once and stir until a smooth ball forms. Remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until mixture is smooth and shiny. , Drop by 2 rounded tablespoonfuls 3 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. In a small bowl, whisk the milk and egg yolk; brush over puffs. Bake at 400° for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks. Immediately split puffs open; remove tops and set aside. Discard soft dough from inside. Cool puffs. Freeze for up to 3 months., To use frozen cream puff shells: Remove from the freezer 15 minutes before filling.

GRAMMY'S GIANT CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Melt butter in boiling water in a large saucepan. Add flour and salt. Stir until mixture forms a ball, then remove from heat and transfer to mixer. Beat to cool slightly, then add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each, until smooth.
• Transfer dough to a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip; pipe 2-inch puffs 4 inches apart on lined baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and puffed, about 1 hour.
• Let cool completely, then split in half and remove any uncooked dough from center. Fill with Grammy's Cream Puff Filling and dust with powdered sugar.
• Pour heavy whipping cream into a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a round tip.

CREAM PUFF SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). In medium saucepan, combine shortening, salt and boiling water and heat until entire mixture boils. Reduce heat, add flour all at once and stir vigorously until mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat and add eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Continue beating until mixture is thick and shiny and breaks from spoon.
• Pipe or spoon onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake 20 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and bake 20 minutes more, or until golden and sound hollow when tapped. Cool and fill.

CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• To make the cream puffs: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a large saucepan, bring the water, butter, salt, and granulated sugar to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. When it boils, immediately take the pan off the heat. Stirring with a wooden spoon, add all the flour at once and stir hard until all the flour is incorporated, 30 to 60 seconds. Return the pan to the heat and cook, stirring, 30 seconds to evaporate some of the moisture.
• Scrape the mixture into a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix at medium speed. With the mixer running, and working 1 egg at a time, add 3 of the eggs, stopping after each addition to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix until the dough is smooth and glossy and the eggs are completely incorporated. The dough should be thick, but should fall slowly and steadily from the beaters when you lift them out of the bowl. If the dough is still clinging to the beaters, add the remaining egg and mix until incorporated.
• Using a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip, pipe the dough onto the baking sheet, in 2-inch diameter rounds or balls. Whisk the remaining egg with 1 1/2 teaspoons water. Brush the surface of the rounds with the egg wash to knock down the points (you may not use all the egg wash). Bake 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 degrees F and bake until puffed up, and light golden brown, about 20 minutes more. Try not to open the oven door too often during the baking. Let cool on the baking sheet.
• To fill the cream puffs, place a pastry tip on your finger and poke a whole in the bottom of each puff. Whip the cream with the sugar and vanilla until stiff. Pipe whipped cream into each cream puff and chill until ready to serve, no more than 4 hours.
• Notes about the recipe: The moisture in the eggs turns to steam and puffs the batter to try to release itself. You can fill them with anything.

CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• Mix together vanilla instant pudding mix, cream and milk. Cover and refrigerate to set.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• In a large pot, bring water and butter to a rolling boil. Stir in flour and salt until the mixture forms a ball. Transfer the dough to a large mixing bowl. Using a wooden spoon or stand mixer, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Centers should be dry.
• When the shells are cool, either split and fill them with the pudding mixture, or use a pastry bag to pipe the pudding into the shells.

JAPANESE CRISPY CREAM PUFF SHELLS (SHU CREAM)

Steps:

• Top Crust Dough: Melt Butter in a small saucepan, Stir in Sugar, then flour.
• Cream Puff Shells: Place butter, salt and water in a large saucepan over high heat.
• When butter is melted and it starts to boil, remove from heat and Immediately tip in flour all at once, and beat into a firm dough with wooden spoon.
• In a separate bowl, lightly whisk 5 eggs. Add approximately one egg to the dough at a time, beating well in between with a wooden spoon.
• Spoon into a Piping bag and Pipe directly downward onto paper-lined tray. If you like, use chopsticks or fingers to pull pastry upwards on the sides.
• Place thin discs of Top Crust Dough (from step 1) on top of each.
• Immediately bake in a very hot oven 410-430 degrees F, 25-30min until well puffed and browned then down to 210 degrees F for 40 min or more to dry.