Ever wanted to make perfect Cream Puffs at home? Today I’m showing you exactly how to make them completely from scratch in the comfort of your own kitchen. And guess what: It’s not even that hard!
I start with my grandmother’s easy recipe for choux pastry and fill it with my simple vanilla pastry cream. For extra tips and visual hints be sure to check out my how-to video at the bottom of the post!
Ready to feel like a fancy French pastry chef? Today we are tackling choux pastry (also known as pâte à choux) and pairing it with the vanilla pastry cream that I shared earlier this week to make perfect cream puffs completely from scratch.
You’ve got this! Besides, by now we’ve tackled crème brûlée and fancy lava cakes, we can handle a little choux pastry. Let’s get right to it.
How to Make Choux Pastry for Cream Puffs
Choux (pronounced “shoo”) pastry may sound fancy but it’s actually shockingly simple to make. You need just 5 humble ingredients: water, butter, salt, flour, and eggs.
- Start by combining the water, butter, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat and bring the mixture to a rolling boil.
- Once boiling, add your flour and turn heat down to medium/low. You can add the flour all at once, there may be some lumps but stir constantly with a rubber spatula and try to work out any clumps of flour as you go.
- Once the dough clings together and forms a ball and all moisture has been absorbed, remove from heat.
- Stir the pastry dough to cool it down for several minutes, then add 4 eggs, one at a time, stirring until completely combined after each addition.
(left) choux pastry after flour is added and dough is clinging together; (right) choux pastry after all eggs have been added.
Once you’ve made your pastry dough, simply pipe it into mounds on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
The dough will need to bake on high heat (400F) for half an hour. Make sure your oven is completely preheated and do not open the oven door until the cream puffs look golden brown and dry. Before they are finished they will have a greasy, wet-looking exterior.
Choux pastry, before and after baking
Once the cream puffs have finished baking, remove them from the oven and use a knife to pierce a hole in the side of each puff. This is where we will eventually be adding our pastry cream (which is much better than the common alternative of hacking our beautiful puffs in half and filling them that way!).
Remember, they will be very hot at this point, so move carefully and quickly and take care not to scorch your fingertips! You do want to pierce them while they are still hot because as soon as you’ve stabbed each puff you’ll immediately return them to the oven. Turn off your oven and crack the door and let them sit in there for another 10 minutes.
This will keep the cream puffs from cooling too quickly, which can cause them to collapse on themselves. More on that below.
Why Did My Cream Puffs Deflate?
Cream puffs usually collapse in on themselves for any of the following reasons:
The oven wasn’t properly preheated before adding your pastry or is not at the right temperature.
High heat is critical for getting these puffs to rise and bake up structurally sound.
You opened the oven door during the baking process.
Every time you open the oven door, the temperature drops and the rush of cold air can keep your cream puffs from rising properly or staying puffed once cooled.
You removed the pastry from the oven too soon.
It’s important that they be golden brown and dry and firm. Make sure you have a working light in your oven so you can check without opening your oven door! If you make your cream puffs larger or smaller than indicated in the recipe, your baking time will vary so it’s important to check for these visual cues.
Can You Make Cream Puffs in Advance?
Yes, you can make these cream puffs 2-3 days in advance. Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you may freeze them for up to several weeks. Fun fact: Frozen cream puffs are known as Profiteroles.
I spent most of today’s cream puff recipe focusing specifically on the choux pastry aspect. This is because I covered all of the ins and outs of making pastry cream in Monday’s post. While I cover all the essentials for making homemade pastry cream in the recipe and video below, if you would like more tips/details/photos for that portion of the recipe, please check out my Pastry Cream recipe.
Other Recipes You Might Like:
Be sure to check out the Cream Puff video at the bottom of the recipe! If you enjoy watching, make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel where I’ve already uploaded over 100 recipe videos that you can watch for free!
Cream Puffs Recipe
Ingredients
PASTRY CREAM:
- 1 cup whole milk (236ml)
- 1 cup heavy cream (236ml)
- ⅓ cup (67g) + 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar divided
- 1 vanilla bean¹ split in half lengthwise
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 large egg yolks room temp
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened and cut into 4 pieces
CHOUX PASTRY
- 1 cup water (236ml)
- ½ cup unsalted butter cut into 8 pieces (113g)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all purpose flour (125g)
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- Powdered sugar for dusting cream puffs
Instructions
PASTRY CREAM
- Combine cream, milk, ⅓ cup (67g) sugar, vanilla bean, and salt in a medium-sized heavy bottomed saucepan. Place on stovetop over medium heat. Stir frequently until sugar is dissolved and mixture comes to a simmer. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes (stir occasionally).
- Meanwhile, in a separate large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and 3 Tablespoons of sugar. Whisk vigorously for about 15 seconds, until sugar is beginning to dissolve.
- Sprinkle cornstarch over egg/sugar mixture and whisk until combined and slightly thickened.
- Once your cream mixture has cooled, slowly drizzle about ⅓ cup of the cream mixture into the egg mixture while whisking constantly (this will temper your eggs and gradually adding the heated cream will prevent them from cooking!). Slowly, while still whisking, drizzle in the remainder of your cream mixture until the cream and egg mixture are completely combined.
- Pour mixture back into saucepan and return to stovetop over medium heat. Whisk frequently until thickened.
- Remove from heat and pour mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl (vanilla bean should be caught by the strainer and should be discarded now).
- Whisk in butter, one piece at a time until completely combined. If you didn’t use a vanilla bean, stir in the vanilla extract at this point, too.
- Place plastic wrap directly in contact with the surface of the pastry cream to keep a skin from forming. Allow to cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes or until near room temperature, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 2-4 hours. Meanwhile, prepare your choux pastry.
CHOUX PASTRY
- Preheat oven to 400F (200C) and line a large baking sheet or two smaller baking sheets² with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine water, butter, and salt in a medium-sized heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat and bring to a rolling boil.
- Once mixture is boiling, add flour and turn down heat to medium/low. Stir continuously with a spatula until moisture is absorbed and mixture forms a ball that pulls away from the sides of the pot.
- Remove from heat and stir for several minutes to cool down the mixture. Add eggs, one at a time, stirring very well after each addition until mixture is smooth and velvety.
- Transfer mixture to a piping bag (or to a large Ziploc bag with one corner snipped) and pipe onto prepared baking sheets by mounds about 2” wide by 1” tall, spacing each mound at least 1 ½ inches apart. Lightly dampen your fingers with cold water and gently press down any peaks on the pastry mounds.
- Transfer to 400F (200C) oven and bake for 30 minutes or until cream puffs appear dry and light golden brown.
- Remove from oven and use a sharp knife to pierce the lower center of each cream puff, inserting knife about halfway into cream puff (be careful, cream puffs will be hot!)³. Replace each puff on baking sheet and return to oven. Turn off oven and let pastry sit in the oven with the oven door cracked for another 10 minutes.
- Once 10 minutes has passed, remove from oven and allow to cool completely on baking sheet.Allow to cool completely before piping with pastry cream.
- To fill with cream, place pastry cream in a piping bag fitted with a small tip (I used a Wilton 5). Insert piping tip into each cream puff and fill until pastry cream is beginning to come out the hole.
- Lightly dust the top of each cream puff with powdered sugar just before serving (the sugar will dissolve in the refrigerator if not served right away).
- Enjoy! Store cream puffs in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or freeze for several weeks.
Notes
Nutrition
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Elliott
I really want be come a pastry chef, and this might do the trick!
Sam
You can do it! Good luck! 🙂
Debbie
Oh my. They came out perfect!!!
I used a lemon curd /whipping cream mousse
Lorna
Help! For some reason, my puffs burnt of the bottom. I tried again because I realised I hadn’t used enough butter in the first batch, and the second batch burnt on the bottoms too. I double and triple checked the instructions and everything is seemingly correct. I have recently moved into a new house and maybe the oven temp is off?
They taste fine still, just visually, they are slightly off.
Thanks for taking the time to share your recipe!
Sam
O no! I’m so sorry this is happening, Lorna! It sounds like your oven may be running a little hot. I would recommend getting an oven thermometer or two to check it. They are relatively inexpensive and then you can adjust your oven temperature if it’s off. 🙂
olivepie
Hello! Is it possible for me to use skim milk instead of whole milk for the pastry cream?
Sam
I haven’t tried it myself, but I think it will work. The cream may just be a little bit thinner. 🙂
Ws
This recipe is a bomb! Last time i followed ur sugar cookies & it was so good so i followed this recipe to make the cream puffs and it taste soooo freakin good ! Thank you for the recipes
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much! 🙂
Cristina
Love your detailed recipe:) I will try these .. thank you
Sam
I hope you love them! 🙂
Kristin
Hello! I’ve attempted this recipe (more than once) and have gotten the same results. I’m hoping you can direct me to fix what I may have done wrong. I am typically a cake person (have used quite a few from here), but wanted to try these instead. Anyway, I followed the directions to a T and got a nice, golden color as described and as your pictures look. When I cut one open to look at the inside after they have cooled, the inside looks not done… definitely some wet/raw/gooey texture to it. My oven temp is 400 (I keep a thermometer in there) and I did 30 minutes. From your other recipes, my oven has been right on with your timing. Anyway, I was afraid if I left it in longer than the 30, I was going to over bake them and they would be too dark on the bottoms especially. I have pictures of mine, but obviously can’t share through this method. Any ideas what went wrong for me?
Sam
Hi Kristin! Is it possible yours are just a little bit larger than mine and need a few minutes longer to bake? Make sure to return them to the oven for 10 minutes with it off. It really helps to finish cooking them. 🙂
Larry
After the 30 mins cooking time, remove them for the oven make a small hole in the bottom to allow the steam to escape, return to the oven turn it off, crack door, leave for 10 minutes, you will have perfect puff pastry, works every time.
Sam
Yes, see step 7 🙂
Tanya Ingardia
Absolutely delicious and the recipe was spot on. My first time making these or any type of pasty. I’m hooked and I can’t wait to make more!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Tanya! 🙂
Pati
Instead of making a whole in the cream puff can I just cut them open? If so do I still put them back in the oven turned off for 10 minutes?
Sam
Hi Pati! Bake them as indicated for 30 minutes, turn off your oven crack the door and let them sit for 10 minutes. Then you can remove them from the oven, let them cool completely and then cut them in half. 🙂
Larry
If you cut them open there’s a chance of them falling, a small hole is what I do, the steam has to escape some where in order for them to have that hollow effect there known for, I do the same for my eclairs.
Sara
I’m so excited to try this recipe out, I will be making these as well as the meringue cookies! Thanks for the recipe!
Sam
I hope you love it! 🙂
Sara
Quick question, can I substitute a vanilla bean for vanilla extract? If so, how much would I need?
Sam
Hi Sara! You can use a vanilla bean here. Just one split vanilla bean will work. 🙂
Rita Hogle
Can I use salted butter and half and half when making the pastry
Sam
Hi Rita! You can use salted butter. You will want to cut the salt by 1/8 teaspoon. You can use half and half just substitute it for both the milk and heavy cream. 🙂
Stephanie
Is it ok to make this one day before? Will it still be good or will the cream make the dough soggy?
Sam
Hi Stephanie! These will last a few days you just need to store them in the refrigerator in an air tight container. 🙂
Emmalee
This was my first time making choux pastry and it came out beautifully. So glad I tried it! Saving this recipe for the future.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Emmalee! 🙂
Sheri
These puffs are awesome filled with ham salad or chicken salad for a great appetizer.
Sam
Yes! Choux pastry has so many different uses. 🙂
Peggy S
Excellent tutorial!!!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Peggy! I am happy that you found it helpful. 🙂
Naomi
I don’t understand, followed all the instructions, even measuring the dimensions of the cream puffs and barely got 10. Recipe says 20??
Sam
Hi Naomi! Yes, I always get about 20 out of this recipe.
Diane Kish
Your instruction is well done! I’m anxious to try this recipe! Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Diane! I hope that you enjoy the recipe. 🙂
Kim
Can I make the choux pastry dough days/weeks ahead and store them in refrigerator?
Sam
Hi Kim! I haven’t tried it, but I think it could keep for 2 days in the refrigerator.
Bea Rose
So excited to make these, do you know if i can use regular milk or all heavy cream if i don’t have whole milk?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Bea! Regular milk is the same as whole milk in the states so you should be fine. I hope that you enjoy the recipe. 🙂