Monday, December 10, 2007

choux addict



Last night I made my very first Pate a Choux AND my first custard. Two small steps for Ironstef one huge leap for Ironstef's hips! That's right, cream puffs. A classic. And quite easy at that! Who knew?

I made the custard filling first, so It could get cool for filling the puffs. Here is the recipe I used:

custard filling:
1/2 cup sugar
5 Tbsp. flour
dash salt
2 cups milk
2 egg yolks slightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla

In top of double boiler combine sugar, flour & salt. Add milk and mix well. Add egg yolks and blend. Place over hot water over medium-low heat & cook until smooth & thick, stirring constantly, about 10 minutes. Cool, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming. Add vanilla.



This tasted awesome, but I could have cooked it a little longer to get a little thicker. I wasn't sure how much it would thicken once it cooled...it hardly changed at all, it turns out.

For the puff's themselves, I used Ruhlman's recipe and tips from The Elements of Cooking, which you can also find on his Elements blog along with some good discussion in the comments.

Here is what my dough looked like before I added the eggs:


Here it is after all the eggs were incorporated (nice little arm workout!) and I started putting it in a piping bag:


All piped out and ready to bake!


Yay! They turned out puffy and hollow and golden delicious! On my very first try!


I ended up piping the filling into the bottoms of the puffs, since all of them seemed to have a ready-made hole there because of how I piped them. Next time I think I'll poke a hole in the tops so they are prettier.

The frosting part was the easiest. Here is the recipe:

Frosting:
1 1/2 cup sugar
6 Tbsp. butter
6 Tbsp. milk
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Boil sugar, butter & milk for 1 minute. Add chips and stir until dissolved. Frost immediately, as this sets up quickly.


I simply dipped the little choux puffs' heads in the frosting. Overall, I think they turned out great. I'll just need to make sure to get the custard thicker next time...not that I mind drippy gooey messes:

6 comments:

redneck muppet said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
redneck muppet said...

wonder if ruhlman was attempting to fatten america one blogger at a time by posting custard, followed by pate a choux, followed by ganache at elements...

ironstef said...

yeah, really, redneck muppet (love the name btw). great timing...right when it's to cold/icy/wet to go for a good jog. I practice moderation as much as I can...by bringing most of my cream puffs into the office :)

Anonymous said...

They look delicious! You are very brave to attempt choux paste sight unseen. I have always prepared my creme patissiere in a stainless saucepan over direct heat. As long as you pay attention you should be in good shape. Great job!!

Marie {Make and Takes} said...

Those look delish and I can't wait to try my hand at my first creme puff too. Thanks.

Kiriel du Papillon said...

Congratulations! Choux pastry is one of those things that only a brave few attempt. Well done; they look grand!