CREAM PUFFS – Pate a` Choux Dough

I got a couple of emails today asking me . . . “Where have you been?”

Gosh, that makes me feel good!  Answer:  No Where!  I just seem to be busy here and there.

I did manage to make a fabulous easy dessert to share with you all.

 

Strawberries and Cream . . . put your running shoes on now!

 

 If you’ve wanted to, but never dared make this pastry . . . come back here, it’s very easy!

This recipe intrigued me just a bit, because it calls for milk instead of water for the liquid. 

It also has sugar in the dough. 

You can make this recipe, or one from my previous posts and either one will make you happy.

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Let’s begin:

I’m going to start by making the Cream for the Puffs.

You only need 3 ingredients, and it’s soooooo Good.

Mix a small pkg of Instant vanilla pudding with 1 – 1/3 cups Cold Water.

Now add 1 can of Condensed Milk . . . I always use the Fat Free in everything.

Whisk until well blended, then pop in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes.

After the above has chilled, it will set up,

like this . . .

Gently FOLD in 2 cups of Cool Whip.

You can also Whip Whipping Cream and use that instead, if you like.

It’s also very good, but it doesn’t last as long in the fridge.

It will look like this . . . and it’s sooooo yummy.

Dip strawberries, grapes, bananas, pound cake or apples in it!

Now cover it and chill it for at least 1 hour, while you make the dough for the Cream Puffs.

On to the Cream Puff Pastry . . . 

Begin by heating the following in a medium saucepan over medium heat.

Can you tell that I need new pots and pans – one day.

Once the Milk barely starts to boil, then you’re ready to add the flour.

Go ahead and dump it in . . . all at once!

Stir with a wooden spoon . . . stir, stir, stir . . . it will pull away from the edge of your pan.

It forms a nice BALL.

 

This recipe says to put that ball of dough into your mixer.

(I’ve never done this before.  I always have added the eggs with my wooden spoon)

So . . . if you don’t have a mixer, simply use some muscle and your wooden spoon!

Let the dough sit there and cool for a few minutes, before adding the eggs.

ONE EGG AT A TIME.

The dough will look weird and slimy . . . it’s suppose to.

Make sure you fully incorporate each egg, before adding another one.

Same process with your wooden spoon!

It will look like this after you have added 4 eggs.

Now . . . Normally, I use an ice cream scoop, and make nice balls on parchment paper lined cookie sheets.

Today, I’m following the recipe instructions.

It says to put my dough into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip!

I listened . . .

This takes more time . . . if you don’t have TIME . . . simply use an ice cream scoop.

I wanted to see if they were prettier or something like that!

You can make mini puffs or larger ones . . . they will, or should double in size while they are baking.

Go ahead and pipe them onto the parchment paper.

I did  3 across x 4 down.

My mounds are 2 to 2-1/2 inches wide.

Use that 5th egg as a wash.

Beat that egg with 1 Tablespoon cold water . . . with a fork.

Brush the mounds of pastry dough very gently with the egg wash.

It will make them glisten . . . as if they have been touched by the sun!

Bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes, or until the puffs are a nice golden brown.

Turn off the HEAT and open the oven door – four or five inches.

  Let the puffs sit in the tuned off oven, to dry out for about 20 minutes.

“I  turned off my oven, when they looked like this . . . they will brown a bit more even after you turn the oven off!”

note:  I really believe that using the wooden spoon to incorporate the eggs, instead of the mixer,

makes for slightly puffier puffs!

When the Puffs are cool, split them with a sharp knife.

I usually leave the bottoms a bit bigger than the tops, so that you can fill them with lots of cream.

Drizzle the Hot Fudge Sauce over the top.

Add Berries if you like . . . and EAT!

Simple deliciousness

Cream Puffs – Pate a` Choux Dough

Makes 12 – 13 medium sized cream puffs

1 cup milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon sugar
1 cup flour
5 large eggs (4 for the dough and one for an egg wash)*

Directions:

Heat the first four ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium high heat just until the milk starts to boil. Lower the heat to low and then dump in all the flour at once and stir with a wooden spoon.  The dough will pull together.  Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring the ball of dough around, so that it dries out.  Remove the dough and place it either in the bowl of a stand mixer or the bowl of a food processor and let the dough cool off for a few minutes.

Line a baking sheet with either a Silpat or parchment paper (I like parchment paper because I can just throw it away).  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

With the mixer running, add the eggs one at a time.  It’s important that you let each egg incorporate fully into the dough before adding the next one.  The dough will look curdled and weird – don’t worry about it.  After all four eggs are added, mix until the dough forms a nice paste consistency.  It will be very loose, not at all like a bread dough.  (If you do not have either a mixer or some kind or a food processor, you can beat in the eggs one at a time with a spoon.  It just is a little more work).

Pipe the dough into a piping bag fitted with a large tip (I like using a star tip).  If you don’t have a piping bag, you can just spoon the dough onto the baking sheet.  Pipe the dough into mounds about 2 to 2-1/2 inches wide.  Beat the egg for the egg wash with just about a tablespoon of water.  Brush the mounds of pastry dough lightly with the egg wash.

Bake at 375 degrees F.  for about 25 minutes, or until the puffs are a nice golden brown.  Turn off the heat and open the oven door a few inches and let the puffs sit in the turned off oven to dry out for about 30 minutes. 

* If you are not sure about your egg size (especially if you get eggs from a farm) I weighed my eggs after I broke them into a cup and they weighed a little over 5 ounces.  This does not have to exact.

THE YUMMIEST CREAM EVER
for Cream Puffs, Napoleons, fruit etc. 

1 small box of Instant Vanilla pudding
1 1/3 cups of Cold Water
1 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
(like Eagle Brand – not evaporated milk) 

Mix above ingredients together with a Wire Whip.
Set in fridge to Cool, for 15 to 20 minutes.
This will set up and be quite firm. 

Now fold in:
2 1/2 cups of Cool Whip. 

Serve with fruit or use for Cream Puff filling, Napoleons or Eclairs. 

Keep in well sealed container in the fridge.

This will hold up for 3 to 4 days.

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HOT FUDGE SAUCE

Cream Puffs can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days.  They can also be frozen for several months.