Delicious Choux Pastry : Pipe Your Own Durian and Cream Fillings!


If you asked me what's the most exciting part about baking, I would most definitely tell you it's the transformation part that happens in the oven! You can't deny the fact that it's so cool to watch your batter taking shape - rising up, spreading out or in this case, puffing up - and slowly turning the light golden brown that tells us the final product is almost ready. So what was in my oven this time round? Cream puffs.
Choux pastry are pretty tiring to make if you're hand beating it but oh so satisfying once you finish mixing it, piping it and then watch it puff up like a giant marshmallow in the oven. Haha.

This recipe yielded a batch of crispy exterior and soft interior cream puffs that soften over time but the buttery fragrance lingered on. The best part about choux pastry? You can fill them with accordance to your preference. Pipe in some vanilla or chocolate cream if you would like to go down the traditional route or take a walk down the Asian lane and pamper yourself and whip up some Cat Mountain King durian pulp. Go 100% durian, if you're a durian aficionado like me but I never really understood the logic of mixing durian with cream to appeal to those who don't like durian. It only serves to deprive people of the full durian experience right?! 
These cream puffs truly are delicious with your favourite fillings piped in. I would test out pierre herme's recipe next time and the Japanese cream puff recipe that features a crispy cookie top.(:

Durian Puffs
(makes 12-15 puffs)
Choux Pastry
(Adapted from missus C's reverie who adapted from keiko ishida)
75g pastry flour or top flour (I used all purpose flour), sifted
75g water
50g fresh milk
50g unsalted butter
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten, room temperature
pinch of sugar
pinch of salt
drop of vanilla essence
1. Preheat oven to 200C. Line baking tray with parchment paper.
2. In a saucepan, bring water, milk, butter, sugar and salt to boil on medium heat, then immediately remove from heat.
3. Using a wooden spoon, quickly stir in flour until combined and mixture comes together in a ball. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly until the mixture leaves the side of the saucepan and a film forms at the bottom of the pan.
4. Cool it down a little. Add egg one at a time, stirring until the egg has fully incorporated into the mixture before adding the next.
5. Test if the batter is ready by scooping it up with a wooden spoon. The batter should hang down and form a smooth triangular shape.
6. Pour batter into a pipping bag fitted with a 1 cm plain pipping tip. Pipe out 5 cm circles onto the line baking tray and gently smoothen out the peaks with a moistened finger. (A lazy way is to scoop it using a spoon instead of pipping)
7. Bake for about 20 mins at 200C, then reduce the heat to 180C and continue to bake for another 15-20 mins. To check if they puffs are ready, give it a tap. It should produce a hollow sound.
8. Once it’s ready, let it cool on a wire rack. Keep them in an air tight container to maintain freshness.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The crispy top, oh my. I can already imagine the awesome contradiction of texture between the top and the cream. Can I steal some? Lol.

nigeleats said...

haha, I'm still trying out choux pastry recipes to find the best one. You can be my taste tester, no need to steal! :P

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