Cream and Chocolate Puffs

I can provide you with the recipe for cream and chocolate puffs, a classic pastry that includes small bites of choux pastry filled with custard and covered with chocolate ganache. Here’s how to prepare them:

Ingredients

• For the choux pastry:

  • 125 ml of water
  • 125 ml of milk
  • 100 g of butter
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of sugar
  • 150 g of flour
  • 4 medium eggs

• For the custard:

  • 500 ml of milk
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 100 g of sugar
  • 40 g of flour or cornstarch (cornflour)
  • 1 vanilla pod or vanilla essence

• For the chocolate ganache:

  • 100 g of dark chocolate
  • 100 ml of fresh cream

Preparation

Choux Pastry:

1. Prepare the choux pastry by bringing water, milk, butter in pieces, salt, and sugar to a boil in a saucepan.
2. Remove from heat and add all the flour at once, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon.
3. Put the saucepan back on the heat and work the mixture until it detaches from the walls forming a ball.
4. Transfer the dough to a bowl and let it cool. Then add the eggs one at a time, incorporating them completely before adding the next.
5. When the dough is smooth and shiny, put it in a piping bag with a smooth nozzle and form small mounds on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 200 °C for about 20-25 minutes until golden brown, without opening the oven during cooking.
7. Let the puffs cool on a wire rack.

Custard:

1. Heat the milk with the vanilla in a saucepan until almost boiling.
2. In a bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and frothy. Incorporate the sifted flour.
3. Add the hot milk to the egg yolk mixture, stirring continuously.
4. Put everything back on the heat and cook over low heat until the cream thickens, always stirring.
5. Transfer the cream to a bowl and cover it with cling film in contact. Let it cool.

Chocolate Ganache:

1. Chop the chocolate and put it in a bowl.
2. Heat the cream until almost boiling and pour it over the chocolate.
3. Mix until you have a smooth and shiny cream.

Assembly:

1. Allow all the elements to cool.
2. Fill the puffs with custard using a piping bag.
3. Cover the top of the puffs with the chocolate ganache.
4. Allow the ganache to set before serving.

Curiosity

The basic recipe for puffs, known as choux pastry, dates back to the 16th century and is said to have been invented by Popelini, a cook at the court of Catherine de’ Medici. Since then, it has conquered patisseries all over the world with both sweet and savoury variants.