Overview & What You’re Making
Cream puffs (or choux à la crème, profiteroles) are light, airy pastry shells made from choux dough (pâte à choux). The dough puffs up in the oven, hollow inside, ready to be filled. The filling is a smooth custard (also called pastry cream or crème pâtissière) that’s thick, creamy, and holds shape when piped into the puffs.
The process involves two main parts:
Making the choux pastry dough and baking puffs
Making the custard / pastry cream filling and filling the puffs
Getting both parts right leads to delicate shells and a silky filling.
Many recipes follow this approach. For example, Tasty Kitchen’s “Cream Puffs with Custard Filling & Chocolate Ganache” uses 1 cup water, ½ cup butter, flour, eggs for choux; and for custard: milk, sugar, flour, egg yolks, butter, vanilla.
tastykitchen.com
Another version from Parsnips & Parsimony gives a similar choux shell and custard method.
parsnipsandparsimony.com
Let’s walk through the full method, in detail.
🛒 Ingredients (Yield: ~20–30 medium cream puffs)
Here’s a generous list you can scale.
For the Choux Pastry (Shells)
1 cup (240 ml) water
½ cup (115 g) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 tablespoon (about 12 g) granulated sugar (optional, for slight sweetness)
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (≈ 120 g) all-purpose flour
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 extra egg + a splash of water (for egg wash, optional)
For the Custard / Pastry Cream Filling
2½ cups (≈ 600 ml) whole milk
½ cup (≈ 100 g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (≈ 30 g) all-purpose flour OR 3 tbsp cornstarch (or combination)
4 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons (≈ 28 g) unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Optional Garnish / Finishing
Powdered (confectioners’) sugar, for dusting
Melted chocolate or chocolate ganache (for topping)
Fresh fruit or berries, for serving
Whipped cream (to lighten filling or for topping)
🕰 Timing & Workflow
To manage time:
Prep: 10–15 min
Bake choux shells: ~25–35 min
Custard cooking & cooling: ~20–30 min active + chilling (~1–2 hours)
Assembly & filling: 10 min
You can make the custard ahead and chill it while shell dough is resting or baking.
👩🍳 Step‑by‑Step Instructions
1. Preheat & Prepare Baking Sheet
Preheat your oven to 200 °C (≈ 390‑400 °F) (or around 400 °F).
Line baking sheets with parchment paper (or silicone mats).
If using, prepare the egg wash: beat the extra egg with a splash of water and set aside.
2. Make the Choux Pastry (Pâte à Choux)
In a medium saucepan, combine water, butter, sugar, and salt. Heat over medium until the butter melts and the mixture reaches a rolling boil.
Remove from heat and immediately add the flour all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together and forms a paste, pulling away from the sides. You will see a thin film on the bottom of the pan. (This step ensures the mixture is cooked somewhat and develops structure.)
Return to low heat and stir constantly for 1–2 minutes to help dry the dough slightly (so it can hold air).
Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl (or leave in the saucepan if large enough). Let it rest a minute so the mixture cools slightly (so it doesn’t scramble your eggs).
Add eggs one at a time, beating or mixing thoroughly after each addition. You can do this by hand or with a mixer (paddle or whisk). The final dough should be smooth, glossy, and of pipeable consistency — thick but dropping off a spoon in a thick ribbon.
(Optional) Do a test: drop a small bit of dough on parchment — it should hold its shape with a little mound.
Using a piping bag (with a plain round tip, e.g. ½‑inch) or with two spoons, pipe or scoop mounds of dough (about 3–4 cm / 1.5 inch diameter) onto the prepared baking sheet. Leave spacing between (they will expand).
(Optional) Brush tops lightly with egg wash for a shiny surface.
Bake at 200 °C for 10 minutes. Then reduce oven to 180 °C (≈ 350‑360 °F) and bake for another 20–25 minutes or until puffs are golden brown and feel firm. Do not open oven early.
Once baked, turn off oven, crack the door open, and let the puffs sit for 5–10 minutes (to let internal steam escape gradually). Then remove and cool completely on a rack.
If puffs collapse, sometimes you can reheat them briefly (with top off) to help dry interior. But ideally they should come out hollow.
3. Make the Custard Filling (Pastry Cream)
In a saucepan, heat milk (all or most of it) just until it starts steaming (don’t let it fully boil).
In a bowl, whisk together sugar, flour (or cornstarch), and salt. Add egg yolks, whisk until smooth and pale.
Gradually pour some of the hot milk into the yolk mixture (tempering), whisking continuously. Then pour back into the saucepan with remaining milk.
Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and comes to a gentle boil (about 1–2 minutes). It should coat the back of a spoon.
Remove from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla extract until melted and smooth.
Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve to catch lumps (very important for smooth texture).
Cover the surface of the custard with plastic wrap (pressed directly onto surface) to prevent a film forming. Chill in fridge until fully cold (2 hours or more).
(Optional: For a lighter filling, fold in some softly whipped cream (whipped to soft peaks) into the chilled custard. This gives a “crème Chiboust” style filling: pastry cream lightened with meringue or whipped cream.
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4. Assemble & Fill the Cream Puffs
Once both the puffs are cooled and custard is chilled, it’s time to fill.
Using a small knife or piping tip, cut a small hole or slit in the side or bottom of each puff (or slice off the top).
Transfer the custard into a piping bag fitted with a round tip (or a small plain tip).
Pipe custard into each puff until it feels full (you’ll feel resistance).
If you cut off the top, replace it.
Dust with powdered sugar, or drizzle with chocolate / ganache if desired.
5. Serve & Store
Serve soon after filling (to keep shells crisp).
Store filled puffs in the refrigerator (covered) and eat within a day or two. The shells may soften over time due to moisture from the cream.
You can keep unfilled puffs stored in a sealed container for a few days and fill just before serving.
🧠 Tips, Tricks & Troubleshooting
Quality eggs & butter make a difference, especially for flavor in custard and shell moisture.
Room temperature eggs help integrate more evenly into dough.
When stirring flour into boiling water/butter, mix quickly and continuously to avoid lumps.
The dough must be correctly dried (over low heat) before adding eggs — this step gives structure.
Do not open oven early during baking — the change in temperature can cause collapse.
Bake until your puffs are golden and sound hollow (tap lightly).
After baking, letting them rest with the oven door cracked helps steam escape so insides dry out.
For custard, always temper the eggs (add hot liquid slowly while whisking) to avoid curdling.
Strain custard to ensure smooth texture.
Chill custard well before filling (so it holds shape).
If custard seems too thick, you can thin slightly with a little milk, but do so carefully.
If custard seems too thin, chill more or cook a bit longer (careful of overcooking).
For lighter texture, fold in whipped cream into custard.
Fill puffs just before serving to preserve the crisp shell.
Use fine sieve for custard to remove any bits of cooked egg or lumps.
Dust shells or coat tops after filling to prevent fillings leaking during baking.
🔄 Variations & Flavor Twists
Chocolate cream puffs: Add cacao powder to custard or drizzle melted chocolate on top.
Coffee / mocha filling: Dissolve instant coffee into the custard or add espresso powder.
Fruit custard: Stir in fruit purees (strawberry, mango) into the custard after cooling (before piping).
Citrus version: Add lemon or orange zest to custard or infuse milk with citrus peel.
Caramel filling: Make a caramel pastry cream (use caramel instead of plain sugar).
Crème Chiboust: Fold meringue (egg whites whipped with sugar) or whipped cream into pastry cream for extra lightness.
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Craquelin topping: Add a thin cookie-like dough (cracked sugar) on top of each puff before baking so it forms a crackly surface.
Mini versions: Pipe smaller puffs for bite-size desserts.
Dipping sauce: Serve with chocolate ganache, caramel sauce, or fruit coulis.
🗒 Full Clean Recipe Recap (for ~25 puffs)
Ingredients
Choux pastry shells:
1 cup water
½ cup unsalted butter, cut
1 tbsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1 extra egg + splash water (for egg wash, optional)
Custard filling:
2½ cups whole milk
½ cup sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour or 3 tbsp cornstarch
4 egg yolks
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
Pinch salt
Garnish / finishing:
Powdered sugar or melted chocolate
(Optional) Whipped cream
Fruit, etc.
Instructions
Preheat oven to 200 °C, line baking sheets, prepare egg wash if using.
Make choux dough: Boil water + butter + sugar + salt, stir in flour, dry slightly, remove heat, steam off, then beat in eggs one at a time until smooth.
Pipe or scoop dough onto baking sheet in mounds; apply egg wash if desired.
Bake: 10 min at 200 °C, then lower to 180 °C and bake 20–25 more minutes until puffs are golden, firm, and hollow. After baking, cool with oven door cracked, then remove to rack.
Make custard: Heat milk until steaming. Whisk sugar + flour + salt + egg yolks; temper with milk; return to pot and cook until thickened; stir in butter + vanilla; strain; cover surface with wrap and chill.
Fill puffs: Cut or puncture puffs; pipe chilled custard inside; replace caps if used.
Garnish: Dust with powdered sugar or drizzle chocolate.
Serve & store: Serve freshly filled. Store in fridge, eat within a day or two.
🍴 Serving Suggestions & Presentation
Serve cream puffs on a platter, dusted with powdered sugar, with fresh berries for color.
You can serve with a side sauce: chocolate, caramel, fruit coulis.
Stack them into a croquembouche (a tower) for a show-stopping dessert.
Fill some with whipped cream (or mix custard + whipped cream) to vary textures.
Use mini puffs as bite-size dessert hors d’oeuvres.
Offer a dusting of cocoa powder, grated chocolate, or chopped nuts on top.
With practice, your cream puffs will have crisp, golden shells and silky, flavorful custard inside. The contrast of airy pastry and creamy filling is a delight.
If you like, I can convert this recipe into metric units (Moroccan style) and suggest ingredient alternatives based on what’s available locally. Would you like me to do that?
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