Cream Puffs

I'm not sure why, but one day I was suddenly craving eclairs. Now, eclairs are kind of tricky to shape, so I just went with chocolate drizzled cream puffs instead. Here's the Original Post if you're curious.

Now, in this recipe, I actually didn't like the chocolate sauce at all. I would suggest finding a different recipe for that. So Here's how to:

Cream Puffs (Profiteroles)

Makes 25 to 30 cream puffs

Custard Filling:

1 large egg

4 large egg yolks

3 cups milk (I used 2%)

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup heavy cream

Choux Batter [adapted slightly from Julia Child’s recipe for Puff Shells (Choux) in Mastering the Art of French Cooking; published by Alfred A. Knopf]:

1 cup water

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

2 teaspoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

5 large eggs

1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water (for eggwash)

Chocolate Topping:

2/3 cup (4 oz) good quality semisweet chocolate chips

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1-2 tablespoons milk (any kind you like)

For the Custard Filling:  Whisk together the egg and egg yolks in a medium bowl and set aside.  Whisk together the milk, sugar, flour, and salt in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally.  Turn off the heat and very slowly ladle the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture while whisking, adding just a drop at a time at first.  Transfer the custard back to the saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat; boil 2 minutes, whisking constantly.  Turn heat off and whisk in the butter and vanilla.  Strain the custard through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps.  Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the custard (to prevent a skin from forming).  Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate to chill.

Before filling the pastries, beat the custard until smooth with a handheld electric mixer.  In a separate bowl, whip the cream to stiff peaks.  Gently fold the whipped cream into the custard, adding 1/3 of the cream at a time.  Pipe this mixture into the center of each pastry (see below for more detailed instructions on filling the pastries).

For the Choux Batter:  Preheat oven to 400F and line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Bring the water, butter, sugar, and salt up to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  Remove from heat, pour in all the flour, and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon to blend thoroughly.  Put the saucepan back on the heat and continue to stir until the mixture thickens and forms a ball, and starts to film on the bottom of the pan, about 1 to 2 minutes.  Turn the heat off and let the dough cool slightly, about 3 to 5 minutes, then make a well in the center of the dough, break an egg into it, and beat vigorously until the egg is absorbed; continue this way until all 5 eggs are incorporated.

While the dough is still warm, use a 1 1/2 tablespoon ice cream scoop to scoop out it out onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each pastry.  Lightly dip a pastry brush into the eggwash and very gently flatten each puff, being careful not to let the eggwash drip down the puff onto the baking sheet (this will prevent the puffs from rising).

Bake for 20 minutes (rotating the pans once halfway through), then turn heat down to 350F and bake until the puffs are golden brown and firm to the touch, about 5 to 15 minutes more, checking them every few minutes.

Remove the puffs from the oven and immediately pierce the side of each with a sharp paring knife (so the steam can escape).  Turn off the oven, put the pastries back into the turned-off oven, and let them sit in there for 10 minutes with the door ajar.  After this, transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

To Fill the Puffs:  Fit a pastry bag with a basic small-medium tip (I like to use a 3/16-inch tip); fill the bag with the custard filling.  Once the puffs are completely cooled, insert the tip of the pastry bag into the puff through the slit that you cut to let the steam vent; gently squeeze the custard into the puff and continue this way until all the puffs are filled.

For the Chocolate Topping:  Melt the chocolate and butter together in a microwave or double boiler, then stir in enough milk to make it smooth.  Spoon over the filled pastries and let the chocolate set before serving.

Enjoy!

Cookie Dough Cupcakes

So, it was time for me to make a special treat for the judges at my Colorguard competition. (By the way, I'm a member of the American Fork High school Colorguard). Nothing like some cupcakes to soften them up before we perform for them, right?

 I looked through my Pinterest pins to find something good, and I found THESE. (Original Post)

They took about 3 hours to make (I know, 3 HOURS!) but I had tons of fun and they were DELICIOUS. I had to test one, of course, before I gave them to the judges.

Here's how to:

Ingredients

Cupcakes
• 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1-1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
• 4 large eggs
• 2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon finely ground sea salt
• 1 cup milk
• 1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Filling
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk (half of a 14 oz can)
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
Frosting
• 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 3-1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon finely ground sea salt
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• Tiny chocolate chip cookies
• Mini chocolate chips (store-bought or homemade)

Instructions

Cupcakes
1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.
2. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners, 24 total.
3. Using an electric mixer combine the butter and brown sugar beating on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
5. In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
6. Add 1 cup of the flour mixture to the mixer bowl on low speed, then 1/3 of the milk. Continue alternating the flour mixture and milk, ending with the flour. Mix after each addition just until incorporated.
7. Blend in the vanilla and almond extracts.
8. Using a spatula, fold in the chocolate chips.
9. Using an ice cream scoop, divide the batter evenly between the prepared cupcake liners.
10. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
11. Cool in the pans for 5-10 minutes, before transfering to a wire rack to cool completely.
Filling
12. Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl. Cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
13. Add in the flour, sweetened condensed milk and almond extract, mixing until smooth.
14. Stir in the chocolate chips.
15. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge, for at least an hour. You can also prepare this ahead of time and store in the fridge for several days.
16. Once chilled, roll the dough into 24 balls, approximately one-inch.
17. After the cupcakes have cooled, cut a cone-shaped portion out of the center of each cupcake using a small pairing knife. Fill each cupcake with a cookie dough ball. You may need to form a cone shape with the cookie dough to get it to fit properly.
Frosting
18. Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and brown sugar until creamy.
19. Mix in the powdered sugar until smooth.
20. Beat in the flour and salt.
21. Add the milk, vanilla and almond extracts until smooth and well blended.
22. Frost the filled cupcakes, sprinkling with mini chocolate chips. Top with half of mini chocolate chip cookie.
23. The frosting can also be made in advance and stored in the fridge. Before using, bring the frosting to room temperature. Using an electric mixer, beat the frosting on medium speed, adding a tablespoon or two of milk to soften it up.

Enjoy!