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Cream Puffs, Eclairs and Profiteroles Recipe

Cream Puffs, Eclairs and Profiteroles Recipe

Cream Puffs, Éclairs, and Profiteroles are all made from choux pastry dough but differ in shape and filling: cream puffs are round and cream-filled, éclairs are elongated with pastry cream and chocolate glaze, and profiteroles are small puffs filled with ice cream and topped with chocolate sauce.
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Servings: 2
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Calories: 180
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup water
  • 6 tbsp ¾ stick unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1½ tsp sugar
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
  • ½ tsp ground vanilla bean powder
  • 4 large eggs at room temperature
  • 1 large egg yolk beaten with 2 tsp milk for the glaze
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1½ tsp powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 2-3 tbsp raspberry jam for cookie jam filling (optional)
  • Additional powdered sugar for dusting

Method
 

  1. Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Bring the water, butter, sugar, and salt to a boil, then add the flour and stir until a smooth dough forms.
  3. Cook the dough briefly to dry it out, then transfer to a mixer and let cool slightly.
  4. Beat in the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated.
  5. Pipe the dough into rounds for cream puffs, logs for éclairs, or small mounds for profiteroles. Brush lightly with egg glaze.
  6. Bake, immediately reducing the temperature to 375°F (190°C), until golden brown.
  7. Pierce each pastry to release steam, return to the turned-off oven for 5 minutes, then cool completely.
  8. Whip the cream with powdered sugar and vanilla until stiff, optionally folding in raspberry jam.
  9. Split the pastries, fill with the cream mixture, dust with powdered sugar, and serve.

Notes

For profiteroles, make sure the ice cream is only slightly softened before filling, and freeze the filled puffs until ready to serve. For the cookie jam filling, raspberry or strawberry jam both work beautifully - just fold gently for the best swirled effect.