Best Cream Puffs Recipe Recipe Cards Recipe Cards

CREAM PUFFS I

Steps:

• For the custard: In a small saucepan, combine 1/2 cup sugar, 5 tablespoons flour and a pinch of salt. Stir in milk, a little at a time, until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 60 seconds, then pour a small amount of hot liquid into the 2 egg yolks, and stir. Then return now heated egg yolks to saucepan and stir, over heat, until mixture starts to bubble again. Remove from heat, add vanilla. Cover and chill in refrigerator.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• For the pastry: In a medium saucepan, combine shortening and water and bring to a boil. Sift together 1 cup flour and a pinch of salt and pour all at once into boiling mixture. Stir vigorously until mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat, and add eggs, one at a time, stirring vigorously after each addition. Drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet, or pipe into desired shape.
• Bake 10 minutes in the preheated oven, then reduce heat to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) and bake 25 minutes more, or until golden. Cool completely, split, fill with custard, and replace tops.

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 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.

LEMON CREAM PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 425°F.
• In a medium sauce pan, bring the water and butter to a boil, ensuring that the butter is fully melted.
• Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour and salt with a wooden or silicone spoon until a ball of dough forms.
• Transfer the dough ball to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
• Add the eggs one at a time and beat on medium speed until each one is fully incorporated before adding the next.
• Spoon 1-2 tablespoons (1 for small or 2 for large puffs) of the batter onto an ungreased or Silpat-lined (recommended) baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes for smaller cream puffs, or until golden brown. Bake for 25-30 minutes for larger cream puffs.
• Remove the cream puffs from the oven, and with a toothpick or tip of a knife, poke a small hole into each one to allow the steam to escape and the centers to dry out as they cool.
• While the cream puffs are cooling, whip up the lemon cream.
• Place your mixing bowl and whisk attachment into the freezer for 15-20 minutes before you make the lemon cream.
• Remove the mixing bowl and whisk attachment from the freezer and add the heavy cream, sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice to the bowl.
• Beat on high for 5-6 minutes or until stiff peaks form.
• Once the cream puffs are fully cool, either pipe the lemon cream into the centers by poking a hole through the puff, or cut the tops off and fill with the cream. Once filled, replace the top.
• Add a light dusting of powdered sugar and/or a sprinkle of extra lemon zest, if desired.

CHEATER'S CREAM PUFFS (PUFF PASTRY)

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Unfold pastry sheet (not phyllo) on a lightly floured surface and roll into a 10" square. Cut into 8-9 rounds using a glass or a 3" cookie cutter.
• 2. Place on ungreased baking sheet or parchment paper and bake for approximately 10 minutes. Cool completely.
• 3. Pour milk into a large bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with a wire whisk for 2 minutes. Gently stir in whipped topping. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• 4. Cut cream puffs in half horizontally. Spoon pudding mixture evenly onto bottom half; cover with top half. Drizzle with melted chocolate or any sundae topping, toasted almonds, toasted coconut and/or powdered sugar.