Have not made cream puff for a long time, tried this recipe from Michel Roux's Pastry book. The book makes the making of pastry looks easy. Did some chocolate cream and only coat the puff without filling, and some custard filling for another batch of puff.
Choux Paste
Ingredients:
125ml milk
125ml water
100g butter, diced
1/2 tsp salt
1tsp caster sugar
150g plain flour
4 eggs
Combined the milk, water, butter, salt and sugar in a saucepan and set over low heat. Bring to the boil and immediately take the pan off the heat. Shower in the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until completely smooth.
Return the pan to a medium heat and stir continously for about 1 min to dry out the paste, then tip it into a bowl.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating with the wooden spoon.
Once the eggs are al incorporated, the paste should be smooth and shiny with a thick ribbon consistency. It is now ready to use.
Choux bun
For small choux buns, put the paste into a piping bag fitted with a 1 cm nozzle. Pipe small mounds in staggered rows onto a baking sheet lined with greasedproof paper for preference, or directly on greased baking sheet. Lightly mark the top with the back of a fork. Bake at 180 deg C for 15-20min until the outside of the buns is dry and crispy but the inside is still soft. Cool on a wire rack.
Custard Filling
250ml milk
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
3 egg yolk
55g sugar
20g cake flour
5g butter
1. Pour milk and vanilla essence in sauce pot, stir over medium heat till slight boil.
2. Mix egg yolk and sugar in another bowl, use whisk to mix till egg mixture turns pale color.
3. Sift flour into egg mixture, mix till well combined.
4. Add flour mixture into milk of step 1. Mix till well combined. Put on stove and turn on fire(medium fire).
5. The mixture will be watery at first, continue to stir and it will thicken. When the mixture turn smooth, glossy and thick texture, turn off fire.
6. Transfer custard to tray,cling wrap with the plastic touch the custard, chill. Pipe the chill custard into puff when serve.
