Choux au Craquelin

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Choux au craquelin are classic French cream puffs topped with a thin disc of sweet cookie dough that bakes into a delicate crust. Fill with your choice of pastry cream for patisserie-worthy dessert right from your own kitchen.

Prep Time20

Cook Time50

Total Time1 10

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: French

Servings:

Author: Maryanne Cabrera

Ingredients

Craquelin Cookie Topping:

113 g butter (½ cup) softened, room temp
100 g brown sugar (½ cup) light or dark, or granulated white
130 g all-purpose flour (1 cup)

Choux Dough:

227 g milk (1 cup) whole or reduced fat (2%) or water*
113 g unsalted butter (½ cup) slice into tablespoons or chunks
25 g granulated sugar (2 Tablespoon)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
130 g all-purpose flour (1 cup) or bread flour *
3 large eggs
1 large egg white

Instructions

Cookie Topping

Cream together softened butter and brown sugar. Stir in flour until well combined. Flatten cookie dough to thickness of about 1/4-inch and cover with plastic wrap. Let chill in the fridge until solid or ready for baking.

Choux Dough:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.
In a medium sauce pot, combine milk, butter, sugar, and salt over medium heat. Bring mixture to a boil. Add sifted flour and stir to combine using a wooden spoon or sturdy silicone spatula. Continue to heat and bring to a boil as you continually stir dough. Keep stirring until dough pulls away from the sides of the sauce pot.
Once the dough is a smooth, cohesive ball, transfer dough to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment Beat at medium speed until the dough has cooled to room temperature. Do not be alarmed when the dough steams!

Do not be alarmed when the dough steams! This is normal and expected.

When dough has cooled, add the eggs one at a time. Make sure egg is incorporated before adding the next egg. Scrape down bowl as needed to ensure thorough mixing. The batter will loosen and look curdled at first. Continue to beat until mixture is shiny, thick, and smooth.

Baking

Use a medium cookie scoop to portion out batter. Place dough mounds at least 1 ½ inches apart. This makes 22 #40 portions.
Remove cookie topping from fridge. Punch out 1-1/2 inch rounds or rounds slightly larger than choux mound. Place gently on top of dough mounds.
Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 325°F and bake for another 20-30 minutes until puffs feel light in weight. Transfer to wire rack and cool to temperature.

Assembly

Slice and Fill: Once puffs are cool, slice off the top third. Use a pastry bag, small cookie scoop, or two spoons, fill the bottom cavity of puff with your choice of filling. Place cut piece back on top of filled cream puff.
or
Pipe and Fill:Use a pairing knife to create an "x" at the bottom of the cooled puff. Prepare pastry bag fitted with small round tip. Fill with pastry cream or your choice of filling. Squeeze filling into puff through x, filling until puff feels full.

Notes

*estimated nutritional information does not include your choice of filling

Ingredients:

Milk: you may use whole, 2% reduced fat or skim melt. Or, you can simply use water.
Either all-purpose flour or bread flour is suitable for this recipe.

Nutrition