Basic Old Fashioned Cream Puff Recipe
You will love old fashioned cream puffs for so many reasons, the least of which is that they are simple to make. All you need to have is a little bit of elbow grease for the mixing of the choux pastry. Plus, this recipe doesn’t require a piping bag!This recipe pairs the fluffy, airy cream puff with a rich, decadent cream or custard on the inside.
Equipment
- saucepan
- baking sheet
Ingredients
Choux Pastry | Puffs
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup butter
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, for sprinkling
Cream Puff Cream | Custard
- ½ cup cane sugar
- pinch of salt
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Choux Pastry | Puffs
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and place parchment paper on your baking sheet.
- Add the butter, water, and 1 tablespoon of sugar to a large saucepan. Heat on the stove to medium heat and allow it to come to a boil.
- Turn the heat on LOW, add the flour, stirring quickly until the dough comes together in a big ball. Cook the choux dough for a minute, stirring constantly, to remove any excess moisture from the dough.
- Remove the pan from the heat and make a well on the inside of the choux dough. Add one egg at a time, stirring rapidly to incorporate the egg into the dough. Once one egg is fully mixed in and the dough has structure to it again, add another egg and repeat the process.
- Form the dough into 1-inch balls using greased hands (a drizzle of oil or butter creates hands the dough won’t stick to). Place the balls onto the parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until light, fluffy, and golden.
Cream Puff Cream | Custard
- Combine sugar, salt, flour, and milk in a saucepan on medium heat. Whisk the mixture and allow it to come to a boil.
- Simmer on the stove for 5 minutes, stirring continuously.
- Add the egg yolks and vanilla, stirring continuously for 5 more minutes. The mixture should become thicker as you get to the end of the 5 minutes.
- Remove the custard from the heat and allow it to cool.
Notes
- Do not double the recipe. It will be tempting to double this recipe and make lots of cream puffs, but choux pastry doesn’t double easily. If you want to make more cream puffs, make an entire second batch in a different saucepan.
- Cook off the moisture. Be sure to cook off the moisture of the pastry in the warm pan after each egg addition. If the dough is too wet, the puffs won’t puff up in the oven and the dough will be impossible to work with. Stir in between each egg addition until the dough comes together again. Then, add the next egg. The stirring is the hardest part of this recipe.
- Store Puffs in the Refrigerator once Filled. Once the puffs have been filled with cream, they need to be stored in the refrigerator. The cream needs to be kept cold so it won’t spoil.
- Storing Unfilled Puffs. You can store unfilled puffs in an airtight container on the counter for 2 days.