Strawberry Cream Puffs – Recipe from Yummiest Food Cookbook (2024)

FAQs

Is milk or water better for cream puffs? ›

SUGAR: I use dark brown sugar for the craquelin top for a deeper rich brown color. Feel free to sub with white sugar. MILK vs WATER: This is a personal preference. Water makes a lighter and crisper puff, while milk makes a darker brown, softer puff.

Once cooled, store them in a sealed, airtight container, and do not dust them with sugar until ready to serve. If your cream puffs have softened in storage, you may crisp them up in the oven before filling and serving. To re-crisp; bake uncovered at 300 degrees for about 5 to 8 minutes. Cool completely before filling.

Do the cream puffs needs to be refrigerated? Yes they do. They can stay out for about 4 hours but then need to be refrigerated.

A wonderful treat to beat the heat. Cream puffs are a delicious treat for any time.

For the liquid, you can use water or milk or a combination of both. We choose the combination of both because this way you get a nice color and tender bite, but the extra water also allows for baking at a slightly higher temperature.

There are multiple reasons why cream puffs may deflate. The first cause is undercooking. When preparing dough on the stovetop, be sure to keep cooking and stirring until a film forms on the bottom of the saucepan. Another cause of flat cream puffs is lowering the temperature during baking.

Why did my cream puffs collapse? If the puffs collapse it means there was too much moisture in them. So either you did not dry the dough enough, or they were not cooked enough. To avoid this I recommend drying the dough really well (see below) and cracking the door of the oven open when the choux are baked.

If your cream puffs are moist inside after baking, this is because they did not bake long enough. In addition, the puffs need to dry out on the inside after baking. To help the pâte à choux dry out properly, turn the cream puffs upside down and use a toothpick to poke a hole in each one.

Can they be made ahead of time? Yes, you can make these cream puffs 2-3 days in advance. Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can also make the pastry cream a day or two ahead of time; just be sure to keep it cold in the fridge in an airtight container.

You can freeze the puffs after they're baked and they'll be really good, if a tad less magical than just-baked. I like to refresh defrosted puffs in a 350-degree-F oven for a few minutes, then cool, fill (if that's their destiny) and serve.

Are cream puffs eaten cold or hot? ›

Ultimately, I side with profiteroles are ice cream-filled cream puffs eaten cold whereas, cream puffs can be filled with anything else and eaten warm or at room temperature. Either way you call it, both are still little yummy puffs of bliss!

Store the puffs in an airtight container for up to 2 days and re-crisp them in a low oven for 5 minutes on the day you intend to use them (let them cool before filling). For the filling we suggest you use a creme patissiere rather than just whipped cream.

Cream puffs bigger than one's palm are not unusual these days. Profiteroles, though also round, tend to be slightly smaller (and daintier) as well as more uniform in size. They're designed to hold just the right amount of ice cream or other filling without becoming unwieldy.

The “directions” tell you to let defrost naturally at room temperature for about 30 minutes, warning you not to defrost in the microwave.

In many instances you can use one or the other in the same choux recipe without issue, though it can be useful to take advantage of a milk-based choux's enhanced browning when baking smaller pastries like chouquettes and éclairs, allowing you to achieve a good level of color development without risk of over-baking the ...

Milk brings a softness to the crust, but if you prefer a dough that is harder and crispier then replace the milk with water. If the dough is slightly wet at the end when gathering it into a ball, just sprinkle a little bit of flour on your bench and roll the dough in the flour before kneading the dough.

Eggs. Eggs are a leavening agent and the yolks add fat for a tender and light texture. The yolks also act as an emulsifier for a smooth and even texture in the finished product. Egg proteins add to the structure of the cream puff.

How to keep crisp and not soggy. I find that filled cream puffs will stay crisp when stored in the refrigerator uncovered for about 3 days. The refrigerator is cool but dry, so the shells don't get soggy.