Cream Puffs

I was pretty disappointed when I heard the Wisconsin State Fair was canceled this year because of COVID. How was I going to get my giant cream puffs? After a completely botched attempt following someone else’s recipe, I decided to create my own (regular-sized) cream puffs. I feel this cream puff recipe is easy to follow plus super tasty! It’s a hardy pastry shell that can handle heavier fillings. I filled them with a basic whipped cream this time but I can’t wait to try pastry cream, lemon curd, etc. I’ll definitely want to cover them in chocolate at some point too – the possibilities are endless.

Directions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Step 2

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together the water, milk, butter, salt, and sugar. Once the liquid mixture comes to a boil remove the pan from the heat.

Step 3

Add the flour to the saucepan and stir into the liquid mixture.

Step 4

Return the saucepan to the stove over medium heat. Stir continuously for about 2-3 minutes until a ball of dough is formed and to let some of the moisture escape.

Step 5

Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl and let it sit 5 minutes. Then use an electric mixer to chop up the dough to let more heat escape and let it sit 5 more minutes.

Step 6

With the electric mixer, beat in the eggs one at a time.

Step 7

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Most recipes say to pipe the dough onto the sheet but I used a cookie dough scoop and thought it worked wonderfully. I’ve piped the dough in the past and couldn’t tell much difference plus using a cookie scoop saves a lot of time!

Step 8

Only put one baking sheet in the oven at a time. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Then poke a hole in each puff with a toothpick or skewer to allow more steam to escape. Put the baking sheet back in the oven for 5 more minutes. Repeat with the second baking sheet.

Step 9

Let the puffs cool completely before filling.

Step 10

To make the whipped cream I use my stand mixer to whisk the heavy cream on med-high until it starts to thicken.

Step 11

Next, I add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and continue to beat the cream until medium peaks form.

Step 12

I fill my piping bag with the whipped cream and fill each pastry. Usually, I can easily jam my piping tip into the cream puff but this time my tip kept sliding back up into the pastry bag (I wasn’t using a coupler) so I first used a toothpick to make a hole in the pastries.

Step 13

Store the cream puffs in the refrigerator. Before serving, sprinkle the cream puffs with powdered sugar.