04/03/2022
Love me some cream puffs
If you missed on “The Kitchen”:
Classic Filled Cream Puffs with Chocolate Sauce
Cream puffs:
½ cup whole milk
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
Pastry cream:
6 large egg yolks
¾ cups sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1-1/2 cups whole milk
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Chocolate Sauce:
1 cup heavy cream
1-1/2 cups semi sweet chocolate
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Powdered sugar to top
Yield: about 15 cream puffs
1. Batter: In a medium saucepan, bring milk, butter & salt to a simmer. Whisk in flour & cook, whisking constantly, over medium low heat, 3-5 minutes & transfer to bowl of an electric mixer.
2. With mixer on low with paddle, beat in eggs, 1 by 1. Transfer mix to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round smooth pastry tip.
3. Preheat oven to 400F.
4. Form & bake: On a baking sheet fitted with parchment, “pipe” rounds 2-1/2 inches wide & about 1 inch high. (Or a scant ¼ cup for each puff). Place tray in oven & bake 15 minutes. Lower oven to 350F & bake another 15-20 minutes until firm.
5. Shut oven off. Remove tray, make a small incision in each puff & turn upside down. Return tray to oven & “dry” more, 10 minutes. Remove.
6. Pastry cream: In bowl of an electric mixer fitted with whisk, whip egg yolks & sugar until pale yellow, 5-8 minutes. Mix in cornstarch.
7. In a medium saucepan, simmer milk over medium high heat. Add vanilla paste & extract. Pour milk, slowly, with mixer on low speed, into eggs. Pour back into saucepan. Bring mix to a boil over medium high heat, lower & cook 8-10 minutes over low medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick. Stir in butter, pour onto baking sheet lined with plastic & top with a layer of plastic wrap so it doesn’t form a skin. Refrigerate.
8. Chocolate sauce: In a small pot, heat cream. In a small bowl that fits over the pot, melt chocolate over cream. Combine.
9. Assemble: Cut top off each puff & remove any dough in center. Fill with pastry cream & top. Dust powdered sugar. Serve cream with warm chocolate sauce.