Choux pastry is a dough that is used to create cream puffs and eclairs or savory appetizers like cheese-filled gougères.
This is simple recipe gives impressive results.
Servings: 36 small puffs
Ingredients
1 stick butter (roughly cut into 8 pieces)
1 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour
4 to 6 eggs
Method
Preheat oven to 400F.
Combine flour and salt. Whisk and set aside.
Crack four eggs into a small bowl to have ready by the stove.
Place water in a medium saucepan. Add butter and melt over medium heat, bringing the water to a boil.
Once boiling (do not allow to boil long, you don't want to lose water to evaporation) add the flour all at once and stir with a wooden spoon until the pastry comes away from the sides of the pan. It should form a ball in the middle of the pot and be quite thick.
Now, pull the pot off the heat, add the eggs one at a time so you can incorporate them evenly. Keep constantly stirring - this requires a bit of effort. Stir until the pastry is smooth and glossy and thick enough to drop off a spoon slowly. It should be a thick batter, not runny. Start with 4 eggs and add another if it is still too dense.
You can use this immediately. Pipe small mounds (about 1 tablespoon each) onto a cookie sheet.
Bake until the puffs are golde and are light and hollow-sounding when tapped, about 30 minutes.
Cool to room temperature. Slice in half and fill with whipped cream or pastry cream. Drizzle with chocolate. Fill these at the last minute or the puffs will get soggy.