The Heartbake: Cream Puffs

Hey there and welcome to our fourth entry of The Heartbake: Baking My Way Through Heartbreak!

In the last entry, I talked about how things had been improving and my confidence was starting to come back. This week, I felt like all of that progress had gone away. It was a really hard week and I felt like I was back at square one again. 

Some days are really hard and I find myself getting emotional thinking about the way things have changed. It’s also sometimes hard to believe that this is the new reality. I often miss how things were before the breakup, but I know that there are only great things to look forward to in the future. 

This week I am sharing a recipe for Cream Puffs! They are so delicate and they are filled with delicious Homemade Whipped Cream! I hope you enjoy them! Thank you and remember, Stay Tasty!😋💜

xoxo Lyla

Ingredients

Cream puffs

• 1 stick (8 tablespoons) of unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1/2 cup of whole milk
• 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 cup of all purpose flour
• 4 large eggs (room temperature)
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or almond extract (optional)

Whipped cream

• 1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream
• 2 teaspoons of granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup of powdered sugar 

Instructions for the pastry:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. In a saucepan, combine the butter, water, milk, sugar, and salt. Turn on the stove to medium heat and stir the mixture until it boils.
3. Turn off the heat and add in the flour.
4. Stir to combine and place the saucepan back on medium heat and stir with a wooden spoon for about 2 minutes or until the mixture begins to form a smooth ball of dough. Doing this will release any moisture in the dough.
5. Take the saucepan off the heat and stir the dough for about 1 minute to cool the dough.
6. Add in each egg one at a time until completely combined. The dough will be smooth and thick.
7. Pour the dough into a piping bag with a large, round tip. I used a Wilton 1A.
8. Pipe out nice, even circles about 1/2 an inch tall and about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. If the tops are peaked, wet your fingers with a little bit of water and smooth out the tops.
9. Bake for 10 minutes at 425°F. Then, change the temperature and bake them at 325°F for 20 more minutes.
10. Take out the cream puffs and let them cool before transferring them to a wire rack. Cut them in half with a serrated knife if you want to fill them with pastry cream or whipped cream.

Instructions for the whipped cream:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add the heavy whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla extract.
2. Whip on high for 2-3 minutes or until soft peaks form.
3. Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag and pipe in the center of the cream puffs and use a sifter to top with powdered sugar. 
4. Enjoy!