Cream Puffs w/ Vanilla Bean Crème Diplomat
These beautiful classic cream puffs are a slight adaptation on Pierre Hermé’s classic cream puff recipe. This post features informative step by step instructions on how to make cream puffs, as well as a recipe for Vanilla Bean Crème Diplomat, which is a tad bit lighter in texture than traditional pastry cream. Crème diplomat features traditional pastry cream that is lightened by folding in whipped cream! Yum! In my opinion, crème diplomat provides the best of both worlds of whipped cream and pastry cream. These beautiful little cream puffs are then finished with a simple, but delicious, chocolate glaze!
Finicky Little Pastries
Cream puffs, otherwise known as profiteroles, may seem relatively simple at first glance, given that they only have a few ingredients, however they can actually be quite finicky. But with proper preparation you can have perfect cream puffs every single time.
How Many Eggs?
The most finicky part of making cream puffs is the amount of eggs you use! If you notice, my recipe says 4-5 eggs, which may seem weird – is it 4 or is it 5, how many do you add? Well the answer is, it depends. The amount of eggs you need is completely dependent upon the humidity and the weather. Too much moisture in your batter will lead to cream puffs that do not puff! This is why you have to add your eggs in one at a time, until completely incorporated. It is also why you need to check your batter after the addition of the 4th egg. For some, this 4th egg is all they need, while others may need a 5th. I typically always end up using 5 eggs, as I live in the cold, very dry prairies, however, I still check my batter after the 4th egg, every. single. time. What you’re looking for is a batter that comes off your paddle in a nice “V” shape. If it sticks to your paddle, and does not form a V, it needs more eggs!
Why Turn the Oven off Mid-Baking?
The initial high temperature of making the cream puffs is essential to creating the structure of the puffs and forming the steam that puffs up the cream puffs. If we did not turn off the oven/lower the temperature, the outside of the puffs would burn. It is super important to note that under no circumstance should you peak into the oven at all during the first 20 minutes of baking! Even the smallest breeze of cold air into the oven could cause the cream puffs to deflate.
How Do I Know When They are Done?
It can be hard to tell when cream puffs are done. Sure, they should look golden on top and puffed, but the cream puffs can look this way and still not be 100% finished on the inside. If you pull the cream puffs out even the slightest bit too early they will deflate. The best way I have found to test for doneness is actually to remove just one of the cream puffs from the oven, wait 45 seconds, and see if the cream puff has deflated. If deflated, they are obviously not done, but if the puff holds its structure, then you’re good to go!
Allowing the Puffs to Cool in the Oven
The point of allowing the puffs to cool in the oven is to reduce the likelihood of the puffs deflating. Sometimes the drastic temperature drop from the oven to room-temperature can cause the puffs to collapse. So allowing them to cool in a cracked oven ensures they will not collapse, and also dries them out a little bit more as well. As well, poking a small hole, after the puffs have been removed from the oven for good, also allows the puffs to dry out more, as it allows any residual steam to escape from the inside.
Get the Recipe: Cream Puffs w/ Vanilla Bean Crème Diplomat
Ingredients
Cream Puffs
- 1/2 cup Whole Milk
- 1/2 cup Water
- 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter,, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 cup (120g) Flour
- 4-5 Large Eggs
- 1 Large Egg, for egg wash
- 1-2 tsp Water, for egg wash
Vanilla Bean Crème Diplomat
- 2 cups Milk, preferably Whole Milk
- ¼ cup Sugar
- 1 Whole Large Egg
- 2 Egg Yolks
- ¼ cup Cornstarch
- 1/3 cup Sugar
- 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 1 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste (or Vanilla Extract)
- Pinch of Salt
- 2 cups Heavy Cream
Chocolate Glaze
- 135 g Semi-Sweet Chocolate,, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp Unsalted Butter,, at room temperature
- 3 tsp Light Corn Syrup
Instructions
Cream Puffs
- Preheat oven to 475°F. Prepare 2 baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper. Also prepare a pastry bag by adding a plain ½” tip.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add milk, water, butter, 1 tbsp sugar, and salt, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Add flour in the pot, all at once, and begin to stir very quickly. A ball of dough should form relatively quickly. Continue cooking, stirring vigorously, until a dry film begins to form on the bottom and sides of the saucepan. Remove from heat.
- Place dough into a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat for about 30 seconds to a minute, to cool the dough down. Add one egg and beat until completely incorportated (the dough should look dry again). Continue adding eggs one at a time, ensuring that each is completely incorporated before adding the next, scraping at the sides of the bowl occasionally. After the 4th egg, place remove paddle from mechanism and place deep into the batter, if the batter forms a nice “V” shape off the paddle, it is ready. If the batter still looks thick and does not form a nice “V” then add another egg. Dough should be thick and sticky, but also shiny and smooth.
- Add dough to the piping bag, and pipe directly onto parchment lined baking sheets. Pipe about nine 2” rounds per baking sheet (about 18 total). If your piped rounds have peaks, dip your finger into water and press down to flatten the peaks.
- (Optional) For cream puffs that are more “perfect” in shape, freeze the cream puffs for 1 hour.
- Add an egg and water to a bowl and whisk together to form an egg wash. Using a pastry brush, brush over the piped rounds. Place into the 475°F oven, for exactly 1 minute then immediately turn the oven off. After 9 minutes, turn the oven back on to 350°F, and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Rotate pans and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the cream puffs are puffed and golden (~ 30 minutes total baking time). To ensure the cream puffs are finished, remove one of the oven and check if it deflates within 45 seconds – if it deflates they are not finished.
- When done, turn the oven off, and crack the oven 1/3 way open. Allow cream puffs to cool for 30-45 minutes in the cracked oven. Then, remove from oven and allow to cool completely before filling.
Vanilla Bean Crème Diplomat
- In a large sized bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and whole egg. Add in the 1/3 cup sugar and the cornstarch, and whisk well to combine. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring milk and ¼ cup sugar to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once it begins to boil, remove it from the heat, and very slowly drizzle the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, stirring vigorously while drizzling. Once all of the hot milk mixture has been added, pour the entire mixture back into the sauce pan and place back onto medium-low heat.
- Cook the mixture, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened and resembles the thickness of pudding. Add in the butter and vanilla, and place into a heatproof bowl. Place a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the custard, so a skin does not form, and place into the fridge to cool completely.
- In a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, add heavy cream. On medium-high speed, beat the cream until stiff peaks have formed. Add the whipped cream to the cooled custard, and fold together using a spatula, until completely incorporated.
- Using a serrate knife, cut off the top of each cream puff. Using a spoon or a piping bag, fill each cream puff with the crème diplomat.
Chocolate Glaze
- Add chopped chocolate to a microwave proof bowl and place in microwave for about 1-2 minutes, or until melted (check at 1 minute, stir, and return to microwave if needed).
- Once the chocolate has completely melted, add the butter and corn syrup and stir together until the butter has melted and everything is well combined.
- Glaze each cream puff top with the chocolate glaze, place back onto the filled cream puffs, then allow the glaze to set for 10-15 minutes before eating.
Source: Cream Puffs adapated from Pierre Hermé
Creme Diplomat adapted from All Recipes
What kind of flour is used to meek these as the ingredients does not not say..
All purpose!
Excellent recipes!
Thank you!
Recipe call for rotating the puffs ?in the description its not to open the oven door even for a second !
How do you then rotate the puffs for even baking?
It says in the description not to open the oven for first 20 minutes of baking. After 20 minutes, the oven can be opened to quickly rotate the cream puffs to ensure even baking.
Is there a way to make the cream puffs non-dairy?
Hi there, although I’ve never made them non-dairy myself, I’m sure you could. I would suggest replacing the milk in the batter and the pastry cream with something like almond milk. Then I would suggest using margarine instead of butter. For the whipped cream portion that is folded in, you can either leave it out and just use the pastry cream, or you could try buying whipped coconut cream and folding that in.
In your post you said not to open the oven for the first twenty minutes of baking but in the instructions you say to rotate the pans after ten minutes. Could you please clarify this? Thank you!
Hi there! It says in the instructions to bake them for 1 minute at 475, then turn the oven off for 9 minutes, then turn it back on at 350 for another 10 – this is the first 20 minutes of baking that you do not want to open the oven for. After this time you then open and rotate and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Hope this clarifies!
Great recipe! Quite the process, but well worth it. Made 18 as suggested. I’m not sure when exactly you add the pinch of salt so I added it into the egg and sugar mix before adding the heated milk.
Thanks for catching that! It was supposed to go in where you added it!
Thanks Amie!
I re read it and its my oversight!
Harold.