Cream Puffs Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Made with a crisp choux pastry shell, silky chantilly cream filling, and a dusting of sweet powdered sugar, this easy cream puffs recipe is the perfect blend of fancy and effortless!

Prep Time20

Cook Time40

Waiting time2

Total Time3

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: French

Servings:

Calories: 289kcal

Author: Katalin Nagy

Equipment

Ingredients

For the cream puffs

120 g Unsalted butter 82% European style butter at room temperature, in chunks.
120 g Water
120 g Whole milk
½ teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoon Granulated sugar
140 g Bread flour high protein content flour, eg. 13%
220 g Egg Approx. 4 eggs at room temperature. Might need slightly more or less, see the tips below.

Chantilly whipped cream filling

345 g Heavy cream 36% fat content, use it very cold
110 g Mascarpone 41% fat content, use it cold
45 g Powdered sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
powdered sugar to dust before serving

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Classic cream puffs step-by-step

Begin by sifting the flour and setting it aside. In a saucepan, combine the butter, water, milk, salt, and sugar. Heat the mixture over medium heat, bringing it to a simmer, but avoid letting it come to a boil.
Once the mixture is simmering, remove the saucepan from the heat and add the flour all at once. Stir vigorously with a rubber spatula until the dough is smooth, with no traces of flour remaining. Return the pan to the heat and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring continuously, until a thin film forms at the bottom of the pan and some of the liquid evaporates.
Transfer the dough into the bowl of a stand mixer. With the paddle attachment, mix on low speed for about a minute to allow it to cool slightly. Slowly incorporate the lightly beaten eggs, adding them gradually and ensuring each addition is fully blended before adding more. Continue mixing for 2-3 minutes until the dough becomes glossy and easily pipeable.
The dough is ready when it falls from the paddle in a V shape and holds its form—it should not be runny. Since the amount of eggs needed can vary depending on the flour and moisture lost during cooking, adjust the quantity as necessary.
Transfer the dough into a pastry bag fitted with a 0.5-inch French star tip. Refrigerate the dough for about 1 hour.
After resting, pipe the dough into 12 evenly sized cream puffs onto a perforated baking mat (leaving space between each for expansion) or onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Pipe at a 90° angle (keeping the piping bag straight vertically) and apply even pressure. Smooth any tips by gently tapping them with a damp finger.
Lightly dust the profiteroles with powdered sugar to help prevent cracking. Freeze for at least one hour, or longer if you need the cream puffs later.
Preheat the oven to 200°C / 392°F (without fan). Once the dough is frozen, place the tray in the oven, reduce the temperature to 170°C / 338°F (without fan), and bake for 40 minutes. Avoid opening the oven door during the first 30 minutes. If this is your first time baking, remove one choux bun after 40 minutes to check— it should be golden, puffed up, and should not deflate at room temperature.
Let the cream puffs cool on the perforated mat at room temperature before filling them.

Chantilly whipped cream filling filling

Add very cold heavy cream and mascarpone to a mixing bowl along with the sifted powdered sugar.
Use an electric hand mixer to whip the mixture for about a minute, then add the vanilla extract.
Continue whipping for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the cream reaches a fluffy, pipeable consistency (after soft peaks but before stiff peaks). Be sure to stop whipping right away to avoid over-beating. If you continue, the chantilly cream will separate and become runny.
Cut the tops off the cream puffs, then transfer the whipped cream into a piping bag fitted with a nozzle (I am using Wilton 1M piping nozzle tip). Pipe the cream into each puff, and finish by dusting with powdered sugar.
Cream puffs are best enjoyed immediately after filling, as they lose their crispiness over time. Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to a day.

Notes

INGREDIENT NOTES:

Measure your ingredients with a digital scale for accuracy
For making any choux pastry, use high protein content bread flour for the best results, I am using 12% protein content flour. Do not skip the salt, and use lightly whisked room-temperature eggs.
The heavy cream needs to be high in fat (36%+) as well as the mascarpone (41%). The low-fat version won't whip up correctly because it contains more water.
You can make whipped chantilly with heavy cream and powdered sugar only. However, the mascarpone is there to add further stability to the cream.

TECHNIQUE NOTES:

While heating the milk, water, butter, salt, and sugar mixture, ensure the sugar and salt fully dissolve. It is best to start with room-temperature butter so the mixture will melt together at the same time.
Do not skip sifting flour, as you don´t want to deal with flour lumps while making this recipe.
Please note that you might need slightly more or less egg - and that is normal - depending on the flour you use and how much you dried the mixture while cooking it. Pay very close attention to consistency while mixing the egg and applying the V-shape test.
There are two chilling times involved - one fridge resting before piping and one freezing before baking. Both of them are important to achieve neat, crack-free results.
Use a closed star nozzle tip so your cream puffs will puff up neatly.
I strongly advise using a digital oven thermometer to measure your exact oven temperature, as most home ovens are either over or under heat.
While baking, do not use the fan in your oven, it can encourage cracks on your cream puffs.
Chantilly cream is very easy to overwhip. When whipping, stop as soon as the mixture has reached a fluffy consistency (this will take 2-3 minutes) and early stiff peaks. It won't get stiffer after this point. In fact, if you overbeat it, it will only get funnier, and then it will break.

Nutrition