Cream Puffs (with Custard Sauce)
A classic French pastry: crisp choux shell filled with rich vanilla custard cream.
Ingredients
Choux pastry (shaped into rounds)
to taste
Egg wash (for brushing the surface)
remaining
Chopped almonds (for sprinkling on top)
to taste
Egg yolks (for custard sauce)
to taste
Fine granulated sugar (for custard sauce)
to taste
Low-gluten flour (added to egg yolk mixture)
to taste
Cornstarch (added to egg yolk mixture)
to taste
Milk (cooked with vanilla bean)
to taste
Vanilla bean (for cooking with milk)
1
Butter (added at the end)
to taste
Rum (mixed into custard sauce)
1 tsp
Powdered sugar (for dusting the finished surface as decoration)
to taste
Instructions
1
Surface Treatment for the Choux
Use a brush to pick up the remaining egg wash and apply a thin layer on the surface of the pastry. Then dip the tines of a fork in water and firmly press crosshatch patterns onto the surface of the pastry, so it will puff and rise evenly during baking.
2
Baking the Choux
Sprinkle the chopped almonds on the surface and place on the lower rack of a 250°C oven. Close the oven door and immediately lower the temperature to 220°C and bake for 8-10 minutes, then bake at 200°C for 10 minutes. When the choux color turns slightly yellow, turn down to 180°C and bake for 17-20 minutes, until all of them turn a beautiful golden brown. Remove the baked choux and place on a cooling rack to cool.
3
Preparing the Custard Base
Add the egg yolks and fine granulated sugar to a stainless steel bowl and whisk until smooth and silky. Then add the low-gluten flour and cornstarch, and stir until no powder is visible.
4
Adding the Milk
Place the milk and vanilla bean in a saucepan and heat over medium heat. Once it comes to a boil, slowly pour into the egg yolk mixture, whisking quickly with a whisk after each addition. Note: If all the milk is poured in at once, the egg mixture will curdle.
5
Thickening the Filling
Pour the filling back into the saucepan used to heat the milk, heat over medium heat, and whisk constantly until the filling becomes thick and no longer sticks to the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat and continue stirring until the filling is smooth and thick.
6
Boiling and Setting
Return to the stove over medium heat, stirring vigorously while heating, until it starts boiling with large bubbles, then immediately remove the pan from the heat.
7
Adding Butter
Then add the butter and mix, using the residual heat to melt the butter.
8
Chilling and Setting
Once the butter is melted, immediately transfer the filling to a flat tray and cover with plastic wrap, ensuring the plastic wrap is in full contact with the surface of the filling. Once slightly cooled, place in the refrigerator to chill. The custard sauce is complete when the set, hardened filling can be smoothly and beautifully scooped from the tray.
9
Splitting the Choux
Horizontally slice the choux shell from slightly above the halfway point. Sieve the custard sauce, then add 1 tsp of rum and mix well.
10
Assembly and Decoration
Fit a 10 mm diameter star piping tip onto a piping bag and fill with the custard sauce. Pipe the custard sauce onto the bottom half of the choux shell in a circular motion, then place the top half of the choux shell on top, and finally dust with powdered sugar to decorate.
