Cream Puffs Recipe (VIDEO) (2024)

FAQs

What is the common problem in making cream puffs? ›

Why did my cream puffs collapse? If the puffs collapse it means there was too much moisture in them. So either you did not dry the dough enough, or they were not cooked enough. To avoid this I recommend drying the dough really well (see below) and cracking the door of the oven open when the choux are baked.

Choux pastries (i.e. cream puffs, eclairs, etc.) won't rise if the oven temperature is too low. For the pastries to rise properly, the temperature needs to be really high at first so that the steam builds up inside of the dough and causes them to rise and hollow out.

Water and butter: fats provides tenderness to the cream puff. However, too much fat will interfere with gluten production making your cream puff collapse. It is important to bring the water and butter mixture to a full boil before adding the flour as heat is necessary to swell the starch granules in the flour.

Eggs are a leavening agent and the yolks add fat for a tender and light texture. The yolks also act as an emulsifier for a smooth and even texture in the finished product. Egg proteins add to the structure of the cream puff.

Bake until puffs rise and are golden brown, about 30 minutes.

The Flour: Choux can be made with a range of wheat flour types. Some cooks prefer low-protein cake or pastry flour for the delicate choux puffs they can create, while others swear by high-protein bread flour for the sturdier choux it produces.

I have done it both ways and milk gives a flavor boost and helps with that nice golden brown color. Water is the classic though and there is nothing wrong with water or milk&water combination.

It may sound finicky, but cream puffs require a two-temp approach to baking. The first 15 minutes should be hotter — 425 degrees Fahrenheit. This will help the water in the dough turn to steam, and coax the dough into setting in time to capture that lift. If the oven is too cool, they won't rise and hollow out.

If your batter ended up being too runny, possibly you have added a little too much eggs. To fix this, cook a paste using roughly half the choux recipe (water, milk, flour, butter similar to how you started).

Potential reasons for each fault include insufficient cooling, eggs added too quickly, not beating the mixture enough, incorrect baking temperature or time, insufficient baking, and allowing the liquid to cool too much before adding flour.

Why do my cream puffs taste eggy? ›

Choux pastry tastes eggy: This is normal, for the most part! Choux pastry is mostly eggs, so you're definitely going to taste them here. If you're really tasting the eggs, then you may have added them in the while the dough is too warm.

After they have finished baking, turn your oven off and take the puffs out of the oven. Give them a poke or a little slit with a sharp paring knife. Return them to the oven (turned off) and crack the oven door with a wooden spoon. Let the puffs sit there and bask in their beauty for about 15 to 30 minutes.

My choux puffs are too small/too dense/have no cavity/have too small a cavity. If any of the above describes your choux, there's not enough egg in your batter. Choux paste is a simple concoction with no chemical leavening agent, which means it gets all its rising power from eggs.

Eggs are the only leavening ingredient in cream puffs, so the more egg, the more puff. One recipe calls for eight eggs. --Some recipes call for adding one egg at a time. As you add each egg, the dough ball will break into pieces and then gradually pull back together, at which point you add the next egg.

Potential reasons for each fault include insufficient cooling, eggs added too quickly, not beating the mixture enough, incorrect baking temperature or time, insufficient baking, and allowing the liquid to cool too much before adding flour.

Too much moisture in dough from the eggs.

If you've used too many eggs in your pastry dough, water in the egg yolk will start to separate from the yolk. Once the pastry is baking in the oven, this water then evaporates, causing the structure of the pastry to tighten up and shrink.

If your batter ended up being too runny, possibly you have added a little too much eggs. To fix this, cook a paste using roughly half the choux recipe (water, milk, flour, butter similar to how you started).

Choux pastry was baked at too high of a temperature. The rapid rise of the dough at high temperatures can cause it to crack as well. Many recipes call for pâte à choux to be baked at two different temperatures. First at a higher temperature for a few minutes, and then finish off at a lower temperature.