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Choux Pastry
Appears in
By Anne Willan
Published 1989
Choux or cream puff pastry (Fr. pâte à choux) is unlike any other since it is cooked twice—its original name was pâte à chaud, meaning heated pastry. First, butter is melted in water and brought to a boil, then flour is beaten in off the heat. The warmth of the butter and water mixture cooks the flour to a ball of dough, which is usually dried over the heat for half a minute. Next, eggs are beaten, one by one, into the dough, which should be warm enough to cook them slightly.
Gauging the amount of egg is the only tricky aspect of making choux pastry. At first the dough thickens, then it starts to thin and look glossy. At this point lightly beaten egg is added gradually until the dough falls easily from the spoon. Quantities vary depending on the size of the eggs, dryness of the flour, amount of water that evaporates as it comes to a boil, and on how much the dough was dried. Choux pastry is too soft to be rolled and is always piped or spooned onto the baking sheet.