Homemade Cream Puffs Recipe

a plate of pastries with strawberries and powdered sugar.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 35

Servings: puffs

Calories: 85kcal

Author: Becky Hardin

These homemade cream puffs are light, golden, and filled with fluffy whipped cream. This easy cream puff recipe uses just 5 ingredients and produces elegant profiteroles that are perfect for brunch, dinner parties, or make-ahead treats.

Print Recipe

US Customary - Metric

Equipment

Kitchen Scale (optional)
Baking Sheet
Piping Tip Set (optional)
Hand Mixer

Ingredients

⅓ cup unsalted butter (⅔ stick)
¾ cup water
¾ cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs room temperature

For the Cream Filling

1 cup heavy whipping cream
⅓ cup powdered sugar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, combine the butter and water, and stir until it begins to boil.
⅓ cup unsalted butter, ¾ cup water
Once it starts a slow boil, add in the flour and continue to mix with a spatula or wooden spoon until the mixture begins to pull from the sides of the saucepan.
¾ cup all-purpose flour
Remove from the stove top.
Add in the eggs, stirring constantly with a fork, until they are well combined into the batter. (The batter will seem “mushy” at first. But as you stir, it will thicken up and become a more solid dough.)
3 large eggs
Spoon or pipe the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Puffs should be about 1 inch in size.
Bake for about 13-15 minutes without opening the oven door while they are baking. Once they turn golden brown, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
While the puffs are cooling, using a hand mixer, whisk the heavy cream on high until it thickens and looks like shaving cream.
1 cup heavy whipping cream
Fold in the powdered sugar and mix gently.
⅓ cup powdered sugar
Once the puffs have cooled, cut each cream puff in half with a sharp knife.
Pipe or spoon cream filling onto the bottom slice.
Replace the top cover over the filling. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.

Video

Notes

Use large eggs at room temperature for consistent dough. Cold eggs can make the dough too stiff and affect puff height.
Consider putting your puff mixture in a piping bag to make it easier for you to create 1-inch puffs in rows on your baking sheet.
Cream puffs need to be golden brown and slightly firm to the touch. Underbaking can cause them to collapse as they cool.
After baking, poke a tiny hole in the bottom of each puff while still warm to let steam escape. This keeps the shells crisp.
If puffs soften while cooling, pop them in a 300°F oven for 3-5 minutes to restore crispness before filling.
Make sure the puffs are completely cooled before adding the filling, or the filling will melt.
I filled each puff with about 1 tablespoon of cream.
Fold a teaspoon of vanilla, almond, or citrus extract into the whipped cream for a unique flavor twist.
For a filling that will last longer, try making stabilized whipped cream instead.
I recommend putting the cream filling in a piping bag to make it easier to fill your pastries.
You can use a metal piping tip to poke a hole into whole pastries and fill them with cream on the inside as well.

Make-Ahead: You can bake the shells ahead and freeze. Once cooled, store in airtight containers and thaw and fill just before serving.

Storage: Store cream puffs in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where they will stay fresh for up to 3 days.

Nutrition