Ingredients
Standard Cream Puff Pastry Dough [Makes about 12]*
1 cup sifted flour
4 large eggs
1/3 cup butter
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
Icing sugar for dusting
*For similar cream puff recipes from first generation Italian Canadians who grew up in Molise in the 1930s check out Zia Rosina's recipes as well as those from Olga and Rita Palazzo.
Directions
Standard Method for Making Cream Puff Pastry Dough
Add water, butter, sugar and salt in a deep-sized pan.
Bring to boil. When the butter has melted remove the pan from the heat.
Add flour all at once, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms into a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan.
Return the pan to stove and continue cooking on medium heat for about two to three minutes until you hear a crackling sound.
Remove the pan from the heat and cool slightly (about 3 minutes -- to avoid cooking the eggs which will soon be added).
When the mixture has cooled slightly, add the eggs one at a time, making sure each egg is thoroughly blended into the mixture before adding the next.
Add vanilla. Blend.
Cover the container with a clean cloth or towel and let it rest for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400 degree F.
Drop two or three tablespoons of the batter on buttered cookie sheets (or ones lined with silicon baking mats), leaving 2 or 3 inches between the cream puffs.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.
Remove from oven and cool.
To fill the cream puffs cut off the tops and place your mixture. Please note that it is best to fill the cream puffs an hour or two before serving them, in this way they will not get soggy. However, one can make the cream puff mixture a day or two in advance and cover it with plastic wrap, and it will return its freshness. Also, one can do the cream puffs, wrap them in clear plastic, keep them in the fridge, and they too will keep their freshness. Of course, once they arrive, it's best to serve the cream puffs at room temperature. Before serving dust them with icing sugar.
Notes
This recipe is the standard or professional method of doing cream puffs. As my oven "over-heats" I found the 400 degree too high for me to use, and possibly 'cause I am an impatient cook, I didn't like stirring the ingredients by hand. Nonetheless, if you can get this recipe to work for you, then you are a very good cook.... |
