Choux Puff

This one is a family’s favorite, we call “éclair” but don’t be confuse with the name this one is so easy. The little choux puff that softens by the pastry cream filling can be described as a comfort food for me too. Start by making the choux pastry and filled them with a sweet and fragrance pastry cream, and you get the little sweet that can be vanished in real soon. I make a bite size choux puff that after start eating the first one many people can’t stop popping it in their mouth, 90 pieces can be gone in one day how amazing?

The key to have a good choux pastry is the liquid, be caution when you add the last egg, you may need all or only a half of it, your choux pastry has to be smooth and fall as a ribbon, not hard or thin like a water.

The pastry cream is the adaptation from .........................., as it contains whole egg; you won’t have to think about something to make with the egg white. But if you have your dearest pastry cream recipe, feel free to use, just make sure it’s enough to fill them all.

éclair

90 pieces

Choux Pastry

100 g.	Butter
250 ml.	Water
3 g.	Salt
6 g.	Sugar
150 g.	Soft flour (or cake flour) sifted
4	Eggs

Pastry Cream

95 g.	Salted butter (cut into small pieces)
670 ml.	Milk
1 tbsp	Vanilla extract
175 g.	Sugar
50 g.	Cornstarch
187 g.	Eggs (both white and yolk)

Make the Choux pastry

Preheat the oven to180° C. lined three baking sheets with parchment baking paper and set aside.

Bring water, butter, salt and sugar to a boil. Add Flour all at once, blend well. Remove from heat, stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until mixture no longer sticks to pan and forms into a ball. Reduce heat to low and return pan to stove, beating for a minute Remove from heat. Whisk in eggs one at a time.
Fill a pastry bag with the warm pastry and, using a ½ inch nozzle, squeeze the pastry to make 1" round circles on to the prepared baking sheets allowing space for them to rise separately.

Bake for 22 minutes or until golden.

Make the Pastry Cream

In a saucepan, bring milk slowly to the boil, in a bowl whisk eggs with sugar until pale and slightly thickened. Sift cornstarch and mix thoroughly with egg mixture add vanilla extract.

Pour milk onto egg mixture whisking continuously. Return to a clean pan and add the butter, stir with a whisk to the boil over a gentle heat until it starts to thicken, stir to ensure it is of a smooth, lump free texture

Place some Clingfilm over the surface and chill until required (the Clingfilm will prevent a skin from forming)

Finished

Cut a small hole in each choux puff.

Fill a pastry bag with the pastry cream and, using a ⅛ inch nozzle or any small nozzle that you have, squeeze the pastry cream to fill each choux puff.