Choux A La Creme Pastry Food

SWEET OR SAVORY PATE A CHOUX

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Boil water, butter, and salt or sugar. Add flour and remove from heat. Work mixture together and return to heat. Continue working the mixture until all flour is incorporated and dough forms a ball. Transfer mixture into bowl of a standing mixer and let cool for 3 or 4 minutes. With mixer on stir or lowest speed add eggs, 1 at a time, making sure the first egg is completely incorporated before continuing. Once all eggs have been added and the mixture is smooth put dough into piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe immediately into golfball-size shapes, 2 inches apart onto parchment lined sheet pans. Cook for 10 minutes, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees F and bake for 10 more minutes or until golden brown. Once they are removed from the oven pierce with a paring knife immediately to release steam.

PATE A CHOUX (CREAM PUFF PASTRY)

Steps:

• Place a bowl on your mixer and fit the paddle attachment to it.
• Put your eggs next to the mixer.
• Mix the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt in a 2-quart saucepan.
• Bring to a full boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
• Stirring constantly, add the flour all at once, and stir quickly and without stopping until the flour is thoroughly incorporated.
• Then continue to cook and stir for another 45 seconds, or until the dough comes into a ball and a light film of paste coats the bottom of the pan.
• Immediately scrape the dough into the bowl of your mixer, and turn the mixer on low speed.
• Let it mix for a minute or two - the first few turns of the paddle will put up a cloud of steam.
• That's fine.
• Just let it mix until no more steam is coming off the dough.
• Then add the first egg, letting it mix in fully before adding the next one.
• Keep the mixer on low speed - you don't want to incorporate too much air into the paste.
• Scrape down the bowl every 2nd egg just to make sure everything is mixing together.
• Before adding the 6th egg, stop the mixer and check the consistency of the dough.
• You will know it is perfect if, when you lift the paddle, it pulls the dough with it, then the dough breaks away and forms a peak that slowly bends down.
• If the dough is too thick and doesn't form that peak, add the last egg.
• The dough is now ready to be used to make éclairs, cream puffs, profiteroles, or any other recipe calling for choux paste.
• It should be used immediately.
• NOTES FOR MAKING CHOUX PASTE SUCCESSFULLY: The liquid must be heated to a full boil.
• Add the flour all at once and stir madly until every last speck of flour is incorporated, then keep cooking and stirring some more - it's this last bit of cooking that will take the raw taste out of the flour; you'll know you are ready to quit when the dough forms a ball around your wooden spoon and the bottom of the pan is covered with a light film of paste.
• Stop mixing when you still have one egg left to add and inspect the dough.
• Depending on the condition of the flour, the room, or the moods of the pastry gods, the dough may or may not need the last egg.
• The dough is finished when you lift the paddle and it pulls up some dough that then detaches and forms a slowly bending peak - if you don't get a peak, add another egg.
• And relax.
• Even if you can't decide what to do, add the egg - you will still get a good puff.
• Use the paste while it is warm.
• It cannot be kept.
• Unfilled puffs or éclairs can be well wrapped and frozen for a few weeks.

PATE A CHOUX

Steps:

• Bring butter, sugar, salt, and 1 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Using a wooden spoon, quickly stir in flour. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture pulls away from sides and a film forms on bottom of pan, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until slightly cooled, about 1 minute. Raise speed to medium; add whole eggs, 1 at a time, until a soft peak forms when batter is touched with your finger. If peak does not form, lightly beat remaining egg white, and mix it into batter a little at a time until it does.

CHOUX A LA CREME

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. To make the choux, place the water, butter and salt in a saucepan, and bring the mixture to the boil over high heat. Immediately remove from the heat, and add the flour in one stroke. Mix in the flour with a sturdy wooden spatula, and return the pan to the stove over medium heat to high heat, stirring until the mixture comes up the sides of the pan and is almost the texture of modeling clay. Cook for about 20 to 30 seconds, still stirring, to dry the mixture further. Remove from the heat and transfer to the bowl of a food processor. Process for 4 to 5 seconds to cool the mixture slightly.
• In a bowl, beat the eggs with a fork until well mixed. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the beaten eggs to brush on the choux later, and add a third of the remaining egg mixture to the food processor bowl. Process for 5 to 6 seconds, just long enough to incorporate the eggs into the flour mixture. Repeat with the remainder of the eggs, adding and incorporating half of them at a time. After the final addition, process the mixture for about 10 seconds, until very smooth.
• Lightly butter a cookie sheet. Spoon 6 rounds of the dough, each about the size of a golf ball (approximately 3 tablespoons), onto the sheet, spacing them evenly to allow for expansion. Brush with the reserved tablespoon of beaten egg to smooth the tops and coat the surface of the balls.
• Place the cookie sheet in the oven for about 40 minutes, until the choux are nicely developed, lightly browned, and cooked through. Set aside in a draft-free spot on top of the stove.
• To make the filling, place the cream, confectioner's sugar, and vanilla in a bowl, and whip until firm. Set aside.
• The dessert can be completed a few hours before serving. Remove and reserve the top of each choux puff, cutting around each about a quarter of the way down and lifting off the resulting "cap." Remove and discard some of the soft insides, or press this soft membrane against the walls of the choux. Spoon 2 teaspoons of the blackberry preserves into the base of each choux.
• Spoon the reserved cream mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip, and pipe it into the choux. Replace the "caps," and sprinkle with the reserved teaspoon of confectioners' sugar.
• To make the chocolate sauce, heat the chocolate and milk in a saucepan over low to medium heat just until the chocolate melts. Mix well with a whisk, transfer to a bowl, and allow to cool off in the refrigerator, stirring occasionally.
• Arrange a choux on each of 6 individual dessert plates. Serve with the chocolate sauce.

CHOUX PASTRY- GLUTEN-FREE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 220°C or 420°F Line two cookie sheets or baking trays with baking paper.
• Double sfit together the flours.Set aside.
• Add the water and butter to a saucepan. Place over heat until the butter has melted.
• Add all of the flour at once to the water/butter mix. Remove from heat and stir vigorously until the mixture is smooth. It will be very lumpy at first but should smooth out. Stir vigorously and quickly.
• Transfer the mix to the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on low and add both eggs- one at a time. For a sweet dough add the sugar between adding the first and second egg.
• Beat well between adding eggs. (You can do this step by hand but it is so much easier using the electric mixer).
• Beat at a medium speed until the dough becomes very smooth.
• Use a piping bag or spoon to from desired shapes onto the baking trays. The pastry will at least double in size during the cooking.
• For the optional glaze- Mix the egg yolk and water. Brush lightly over the tops of your pastries.
• Bake approx 25 minutes or until the pastries have risen and are nicely browned.
• Remove from oven and cut a small slit into the side of eaach pastry to allow the steam to escape. This helps to stop the pastries being soggy inside.
• File with savoury or sweet fillings as desired. Top with chocolate or icing sugar if desired.
• Options for filling- custard, cream, savoury chicken filling, berries and cream, vanilla yogurt and strawberries.