Gluten-Free Choux Pastry Cream Puffs
DO NOT FEAR THE CHOUX!! (Or gluten-free cream puffs.)
Jump to RecipeChoux pastry is magical and these gluten-free cream puffs are angelic bites of pure deliciousness! We decided to follow suit with the Great British Baking Show and tackle patisserie week.
I have wanted to try choux pastry for so long but it always seemed quite mysterious … cook butter, milk and water over simmering heat, add the flour in one fell swoop, beat like mad to “cook” the flour; and then add “enough egg” so that the pastry dough comes to the right consistency … whatever that is! I confess that I watched multiple episodes of patisserie weeks on the British Baking Show to get the texture just right. I was possibly still a bit off but they came out smashing.
I decided to use Blends by Orly Manhattan Blend Pastry Flour. Cup4Cup is also generally great in pastry and I believe you could substitute this with no problem. Steer away from any bread-like all purpose gluten-free flours as they will be too heavy for these light delights.
The technique for these gluten free cream puffs was easier than I had imagined! Simply melt some ingredients until they come to a simmer, turn down the heat, dump the flour in and beat strongly by hand until the mixture forms a ball. You want to cook the flour but not overheat the mixture, or the butter will leach out (which happened to me once, and my pastry was still quite good). Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
Next, in the bowl of a stand mixer, slowly add the beaten eggs in a few additions, mixing well between each. Your batter will look lumpy and a bit curdled at first but it will start to come together. Watch that it doesn’t become too slack. This is where you’ll want to use a discerning eye – the batter should be thick and pipe-able and mostly smooth. Sometimes you may not need to add the full 4 eggs and will have a few teaspoons left over (often I use it all; and I use pasture raised organic eggs). The size and texture of your eggs and flour blend will determine this.
Once the dough is ready, fill a pastry bag and spritz some water on the parchment lined baking sheets. Pipe small dollops of choux in rounds of 1-2 inches about 2 inches apart. If they get too high, they may tip over, so use your best judgement. My second tray usually comes out better as I learn from my piping errors on the first.
Wet a finger and gently smooth and tops, then egg wash the choux rounds. Into the oven for about 30-40 minutes (mine take 40) and don’t even crack that oven for at least 30! (Or your choux my fall and deflate.) At about 35 minutes (or 30 if your oven is hot), peek in and prick each bun to release steam and allow the insides to dry. Cook until golden brown and hollow to your tap. Cool on a wire rack or if you have the time, open the oven door and allow to slowly cool inside.
Once your buns are cool you may split them and fill with homemade vanilla whipped cream or leave whole and pipe in pastry cream. I like to dust the tops with icing sugar and some dark chocolate sauce for the ultimate little bite.
Choux can seem intimidating but it’s a quick process and if you make mistakes, it’s easy to whip up another batch! I felt like a true master chef pulling these golden puffs out of the oven and carefully piping in some delicious whipped cream! You’ll be saying … “I made these?!!” in no time!
Find more recipes & inspiration HERE
Gluten-Free Choux Pastry Cream Puffs
Equipment
- Round open piping tip and bag
- Stand Mixer
Ingredients
Cream Puffs (Choux)
- 115 grams unsalted butter, cut into pieces (8 Tb)
- 120 ml water
- 120 ml non-dairy unsweetened milk like coconut milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons cane sugar
- 125 grams gluten-free pastry flour use Blends by Orly Manhattan Pastry Blend or Cup4Cup Flour
- 4 large eggs beaten
- Egg wash (one egg beated with 1 Tb water)
Vanilla Whipped Cream
- 1 cup cold whipping cream / heavy cream
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla paste
Instructions
Make the Choux
- Preheat oven to 375 F
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper
- Combine the butter, water, milk, salt, and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the butter has melted. Bring mixture to a simmer.
- Once simmering, reduce heat to low and add the flour in once step. Stir until the flour is completely incorporated and a thick dough clumps into a ball. Press the ball against pan to “cook” the flour for about 30 seconds.
- Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment Allow to cool down for a few minutes before adding the eggs in the next step.
- With the mixer running on low or medium-low speed, slowly add the eggs in a few separate additions mixing for 30 seconds between each. The mixture will look curdled at first, but will begin to come together as the mixer runs. You may not need to use all 4 eggs – you want a thick pipe-able consistency that is smooth and pliable (last time I made these I needed all 4 eggs)
- Use your choux immediately or cover and refrigerate up to 3 days
- Place your choux in a piping bag fitted with a round open tip nozzle
- Wet your parchment lined sheet trays with a pastry brush
- Pipe small 1-2 inch mounds of choux. I like to use a sharp small knife to cut the choux from the pastry tip (it's sticky)
- Use a dampened finger to press down any peaks on your choux buns
- Egg wash each choux mound
- Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. During the last 5-10 minutes of the bake (but after 30) prick each bun with a toothpick or sharp knife to allow to dry inside. Do NOT open the oven before 30 minutes or your choux may collapse
- Remove from oven or open oven door and allow to cool inside oven until room temperature
- Split your buns for the vanilla whipped cream (or leave whole and pipe in pastry cream)
Vanilla Whipped Cream
- I like to chill my mixing bowl as well as my cream ahead of time
- On high, mix your chilled heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form 3-4 minutes
- Cover and chill. When ready to use pipe onto choux bottom with open star tip nozzle
- Dust your entire cream puff with icing sugar and drizzle dark chocolate syrup if desired (we love Monin gluten-free dark chocolate sauce)
Nutrition
