Choux pastry (cream puffs)

Choux pastry, also known as dough for cream puffs, is a classic of French pastry used in many sweet and savory preparations. Here is a basic recipe to prepare it:

Ingredients

• 150 ml of water
• 50 g of butter
• A pinch of salt
• 5 g of sugar (if for sweet preparations)
• 85 g of flour
• 3 medium eggs

Preparation

1. Put the water, butter, salt, and if you are making a sweet version, the sugar in a pot.
2. Bring everything to a boil until the butter is completely melted.
3. As soon as it boils, remove from the heat and add all the flour at once, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon.
4. Put the pot back on the heat and dry the dough for a few minutes, stirring continuously until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pot, forming a ball.
5. Remove from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes.
6. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition until the dough is smooth and homogeneous. The dough should be soft but not too liquid; it should “write” and form a ribbon when you let it fall from the spoon.
7. Put the dough in a pastry bag with a smooth or serrated nozzle depending on the desired shape, and form small mounds on a baking tray previously lined with parchment paper.
8. Bake in a preheated oven at 200 °C for about 20-25 minutes or until the puffs are golden and puffed up.
9. Turn off the oven and let them dry inside with the door ajar for a few minutes to prevent them from deflating.
10. Once cooled, the cream puffs can be filled to taste with pastry cream, whipped cream, chocolate ganache, or whatever you prefer.

Curiosity

Choux pastry has ancient origins, and it is said to have been invented by an Italian cook, Pantarelli or Pantanelli, in the service of Queen Catherine de’ Medici in France in the 16th century. Its name “choux” in French means “cabbage”, probably because the cream puffs resemble the shape of small cabbages.

Happy cooking and have fun with your choux pastry creations!