Choux Pastry
by James Diehl
French Vegetarian servings14 – 16
- 1 cup water
- ½ butter
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
- Place the water, butter and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. When the butter is completely melted, remove from the head and add the flour all at once. Mix rapidly with a wooden spoon.
- Place the mixture on top of a low flame and dry 5 to 6 minutes, mixing with a wooden spoon. The dough should be soft and should not stick to your fingers when pinched. This mixture is called the panade.
- Transfer the panade to a clean bowl. you will notice that the bottom of the pan is covered with a thin crust (an indicator that the dough has been sufficiently dried). The eggs will be mixed into the panade in the bowl because if they were added in the pan, the white crust at the bottom would break into dried little pieces that would stick in the dough!
- Let the dough cool for 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating carefully after each addition so that the mixture is smooth before the next egg is added.
- The dough should be smooth, shiny and as thick and heavy as mayonnaise. This makes enough dough for 14-16 choux or éclairs.
- Bake at 400°F on a greased sheet until lightly tanned.
Tips
- It’s important to pipe the dough while it is still warm. When placed in a hot oven, the warm dough will produce steam which causes the pastry to rise and become airy.