Ingredients
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Custard filling:
- 2 cups milk
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch or 1/3 cup flour
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or seeds from 1 vanilla bean
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a saucepan, combine water, milk, butter, sugar, and salt. Bring to a simmer until butter melts.
- Remove from heat and stir in flour all at once. Stir vigorously until dough pulls away from the pan and forms a smooth ball.
- Let dough cool slightly. Beat in eggs one at a time until the mixture is smooth, glossy, and thick.
- Pipe or spoon dough onto baking sheet, spaced apart. Bake 20–25 minutes until golden and hollow-sounding. Turn off oven and let dry 10 minutes with door ajar.
- For custard: In a bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch until smooth.
- Heat milk with butter and vanilla. Slowly add hot milk to yolk mixture while whisking (tempering), then return to saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat, transfer to bowl, and cool completely.
- Once puffs are cool, slice open or poke holes in bottoms. Fill with cooled custard using a piping bag or spoon.
Notes
- Bake until shells are deeply golden to avoid collapsing.
- Cool custard completely before filling to maintain puff texture.
- Store unfilled puffs at room temperature, filled ones in fridge up to 2 days.
- Re-crisp unfilled shells in a 300°F oven before use.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking and Simmering
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cream puff
- Calories: 180
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 90mg
- Fat: 10g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 18g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 90mg
