Barbara Schieving - Simply Sweet Dream Puffs: Shockingly Easy Fun-Filled Treats!

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Take A Bite!

Cream puffs, clairs, and profiterolesone is light and fluffy, another one is decadent and custardy, and one is cool and melty. All are crispy, messy, and delicious.

clairs have always been my favorite dessert, though they were a rare treat as I was growing up. Shortly after we got married, my husband asked me what cake Fd like to have for my birthday party, and I told him Fd rather have chocolate clairs. Buying clairs for my large extended family wasnt in our budget, so he decided to make them. I have to admit, I doubted he could pull it offI didnt know anyone who had made clairs at home and assumed they would be difficult. Fortunately, my husband is pretty fearless, even in the kitchen, and it turns out that clair shells are actually easy to make. My birthday clairs turned out perfectly, and weve been baking clairs at home ever since, for over 30 years.

Cream puffs, clairs, and profiteroles are fun and easy to make at home for a fraction of what theyd cost from a bakery. The different toppings and fillings allow you to create a wide variety of flavors and textureseach member of my family has a different favorite recipe. Best of all, you can prepare them ahead of time, making them the perfect dessert to serve at a baby shower, family gathering, or holiday party.

But why wait for a special occasion? Theyre also the perfect treat to come home to at the end of a long day.

I cant wait to help you realize what my husband and I learned long ago: that anyoneeven beginnerscan create these gorgeous Dream Puffs in no time flat!

Barbara Schieving

The Basics

All About Pte Choux

Dont let the French name, Pte Choux (pot-ah-SHOO), intimidate you! Choux pastry is super easy to make with ingredients you probably always have on hand: just water, flour, butter, and eggs. The word choux means cabbage in French because the baked cream puff shells resemble little cabbages. Choux pastry is like a blank canvas; using the same basic recipe, you can create puffs in many different shapes and sizesfrom simple .

The History of Pte Choux

Its believed that pastry chefs have been making choux pastry since 1540, when French chef Pantarelli baked a gteau (a fancy French cake) for Catherine de Medici, who later became the queen of France. The cakes, which were named Pte Pantarelli, became popular, and, over time, other chefs began making similar cakes under various other names. Chefs eventually adapted the recipe to make small choux cream puffs that were baked, cut in half, and stuffed with sweet or savory fillings. However, it wasnt until the recipe was published by the French chef Antonin Carme in 1815 in his Le Ptissier Royal Parisien cookbook, that the method of making choux pastry became well known.

How the Magic Happens

The secret of choux pastry is that its made in three stages: First, you cook the dough in a saucepan; then mix in the eggs; and finally, bake the dough in the oven. The magic starts to happen within a few minutesthe shells puff up, and the dough triples in size. Choux pastry doesnt use leavening agents like baking powder, baking soda, or yeast to rise. Instead, the dough puffs up due to the steam thats created when the dough is baked at a high temperature. The developed gluten holds the steam inside and creates a pocket. Then the oven temperature is reduced, allowing the outside to turn a beautiful golden brown and the inside to bake and firm up. The outside of the shell will look baked long before the recommended bake time is finished, so dont be tempted to take the shells out of the oven early! The shells need to bake long enough to firm up the insides so they wont collapse when removed from the oven.

Baking Secrets

Staying in the Kitchen: It may be tempting to pop whatever youre baking into the oven and leave. However, youll find that youre much less likely to make a mistake if you just stay in the kitchen and watch the magic happen.

Using All Your Senses: After a little practice, you can smell baked goods when theyre browned. Youll be much more successful and prevent mistakes in the kitchen if you learn to trust your instincts and your senses.

Measuring Flour: How you measure your flour can make a big difference in the end result when baking. I keep a scoop in my flour canister. I always fluff the flour in the canister a little bit with the scoop before measuring it, and then I use the scoop to fill the measuring cup. Once the cup is full, I use the back of the scoop to level off the flour and push the excess flour back into the canister.

Measuring Salt: Measure salt over a separate bowl, or even over the sink, so that you dont get too much salt in whatever youre making.

Separating Eggs: One of the easiest ways to separate the egg white from the egg yolk is to use your hands. Crack the egg into your hand over a bowl. Then separate your fingers slightly, and the white will fall down into the bowl while you gently cradle the yolk in your hand.

Warming Eggs Quickly: If you use room temperature eggs when making the pastry shells, they will puff up bigger. When youre ready to start making the pastry shells, place the eggs in a bowl of warm water. In the time it takes to cook the dough on the stove, the eggs will be at room temperature and ready to use.

Cooling Shells in the Oven: If you live in a humid climate, you may want to consider letting the shells cool in the oven so they will continue to dry out. Just remember to turn off the oven, and leave the oven door ajar.

Filling Pastry Shells: There really is no wrong way to fill the shells. I find the easiest way is to cut the shell in half and spoon the filling into the bottom of the shell. If you have a pastry tip, you can put the filling in a pastry bag or zip-top plastic bag and pipe the filling in a pretty pattern.

Some cookbooks recommend poking a hole in each end of an clair and filling from both sides. Other recipes suggest poking one or two holes in the bottom of the pastry to fill the shells. However, I really like having the holes on the top of the pastrythe filling doesnt squirt out the end when you take a bite like it can when you fill from the ends, and it doesnt ooze out the bottom when youre eating it, either. I typically make just one hole with a small paring knife if Im filling a cream puff or mini clair, or two evenly spaced holes for a full-sized clair. After Ive filled the pastry shells, I use a thick icing to cover the opening so no one will even know the holes are there.

Knowing When the Pastry Shells Are Full Enough: When youre piping the filling into the pastry shell, you wont be able to see how much filling is inside, but after youve filled a couple of shells, youll be able to tell when its full. The shell puffs up and gets bigger, it feels heavier, and the filling may even start to come back out of the hole.

Icing the Pastry Shells: Many of the recipes instruct you to dip the shell into the glaze or icing, rather than using a knife or small spatula to spread the icing on top. Especially if the icing is thin, its easier to dip the pastry shell into the glaze than it is to spread it individually on each pastry. Youll also get a smoother finish by dipping than you would from spreading it.