These cream puffs are light, airy and delightful filled with cream as a dessert–or filled with a savory like chicken salad for a lovely lunch. What are you waiting for? To read a few tips for making these perfectly, read our Editor’s Blog here.
Ingredients
- Pastry:
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 eggs
- Pudding:
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 T. cornstarch
- Pinch of salt
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 large egg
- 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preparation
- 1 For pastry shells:
- 2 Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- 3 In a large pot, bring water and butter to a rolling boil.
- 4 Stir in flour and salt until the mixture forms a ball.
- 5 Transfer the dough to a large mixing bowl.
- 6 Using a wooden spoon or stand mixer, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each.
- 7 Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet.
- 8 Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Centers should be dry.
- 9 When the shells are cool, either split and fill them with the pudding mixture, or use a pastry bag to pipe the pudding into the shells.
- 10 For pudding:
- 11 Whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, and salt in a heavy 2-quart saucepan.
- 12 Gradually whisk in the milk.
- 13 Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, and boil, whisking, until pudding is thick, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- 14 Remove from heat.
- 15 Immediately beat the egg lightly in a medium, heat-proof bowl, such as a hard plastic or ceramic mixing bowl. Very gradually add the hot chocolate mixture to the egg, whisking constantly.
- 16 Whisk in the chocolate chips until they are melted and the mixture is smooth.
