Classic Cream Puffs

Cream puffs filled with chocolate whipped cream and dusted with powdered sugar on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

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These Classic Cream Puffs are a year-round treat that will surely impress at your next gathering! They're made with a choux pastry that's baked to a light golden brown on the outside with a light and airy inside filled with a simple chocolate whipped cream and sprinkling of powdered sugar. They're absolutely delicious!

Prep Time30

Cook Time35

Total Time1 5

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, French

Servings: servings

Author: Jennifer

Equipment

Ingredients

Cream Puffs

1 cup Water
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
2 tbsp Granulated Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1 1/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
4 Large Eggs

Chocolate Whipped Cream Filling

2 cups Powdered Sugar
1/3 cup Dutch Process Cocoa Powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup Heavy Cream
2 tsp Vanilla Extract

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cream Puffs

Adjust your oven rack to the middle position or the one above. Preheat your oven to 425ºF. Prep a large cookie sheet with either parchment paper or (preferred) a silicone liner. I recommend using a 2nd cookie sheet to place directly underneath the other, which can help prevent the cream puff bottoms from getting dark.
Add the water, unsalted butter, granulated sugar, and salt to a medium-size saucepan, stirring over medium-high heat until the butter has melted and the mixture has come to a boil. Be careful that it doesn’t boil over the top.
1 cup Water, 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, 2 tbsp Granulated Sugar, 1/2 tsp Salt
Remove the mixture from the heat and add the all-purpose flour, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon until well combined. Then return to medium-high heat to continue stirring and pressing into the sides of the pan until the paste is thick and smooth. The mixture should resemble the texture of smooth instant mashed potatoes. It should easily pull away from the sides of the saucepan, leaving a light film.
1 1/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
Transfer the mixture to your stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or cookie whisks attachment if using your Ankarsrum mixer) and beat on medium speed until all the steam dissipates from the batter and the sides of the bowl have cooled slightly (about 4-5 minutes).
Add in the eggs one at a time, ensuring each one has fully absorbed into the batter. Scrape down the sides of the beater bowl in between adding each egg. The batter will be ready when it is smooth and glossy in appearance, thick, and elastic-like in texture.
You can test this in two ways: lift up the whisk attachment from the batter. It should form a V shape without breaking. The other way is to take some of the batter between your pointer finger and thumb, stretching it out to about 1-2 inches. If it doesn’t break, it’s good to go.
4 Large Eggs
Using a one-tablespoon-size cookie scoop, scoop out the choux pastry and place them 1 inch apart on the prepared sheet. You can also pipe them out if you prefer.
Bake the choux pastry for 10 minutes at 425ºF, then reduce the heat to 375ºF and bake for an additional 25 minutes. Do not open the oven door during baking, including when you reduce the oven temperature.
The cream puffs will be puffed up and a light golden brown in color. When done, remove them from the oven and immediately cut a slit into the side of each cream puff to help release the steam. Cool them on a cooling rack.

Chocolate Whipped Cream Filling

I recommend chilling your mixer bowl in the freezer for 10-15 minutes before starting the chocolate whipped cream.
Add in the heavy cream, powdered sugar, dutch process cocoa powder, and vanilla extract to your chilled stand mixer bowl. Using the Ankarsrum balloon whisk attachments, beat the mixture on low speed until all of the ingredients are blended. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 1-2 minutes or until stiff peaks form with the whipped cream. A good tip is that if you can scoop it out with a spoon and it holds its shape, it's ready!
2 cups Powdered Sugar, 1/3 cup Dutch Process Cocoa Powder, 1 cup Heavy Cream, 2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Assembly

Carefully slice the cream puffs in half.
Fit a large pastry bag with a decorating tip of your choice (I used the Wilton 1M). Fill the pastry bag with the chocolate whipped cream and pipe it onto half the cream puff. Top with the other half. Repeat until all of the cream puffs have been filled. Dust with a sprinkling of powdered sugar.
These cream puffs are best enjoyed immediately, but can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 additional day.

Notes

You can use bread flour in place of all-purpose flour. This is a 1:1 substitution.
In place of water, you can use 1/2 cup of water plus 1/2 cup of milk or 1 cup of milk. Note that when you use milk, it will darken the outer shell of the cream puff versus if you just use water.
In place of dutch process cocoa powder, you can use unsweetened cocoa powder. The chocolate whipped cream will still be good, but not have as intense of a flavor.
I recommend using a 2nd cookie sheet to place directly underneath the other, which can help prevent the cream puff bottoms from getting dark.
To test the choux pastry, lift the whisk attachment from the batter. It should form a V shape without breaking or take some of the batter between your pointer finger and thumb, stretching it out to about 1-2 inches. If it doesn’t break, it’s good to go.
For the chocolate whipped cream, I recommend chilling your mixer bowl in the freezer for 10-15 minutes before starting the chocolate whipped cream.

Nutrition